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In the News

Yonathan Melaku admits shooting at Pentagon, other military-related sites

Yonathan Melaku, a 23-year-old former Marine Corps reservist, admitted in federal court that he fired shots at military buildings in the Washington area, a series of crimes that left residents on edge.

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This undated file photo released by the Leesburg Police Department shows Yonathan Melaku, of Alexandria, after his May 2011 arrest in Loudoun County, Va., charged with four counts of grand larceny. Melaku, who was detained during a security scare near the Pentagon, has pleaded guilty to shootings last year at the Marine Corps museum in Quantico and several D.C.-area military recruitment stations, officials said.

/ AP

Authorities said Melaku was found on Fort Myer in Arlington at 1:30 a.m. Friday and was approached by the base police. He fled and dropped a backpack. He was found later Friday morning at Arlington National Cemetery. At first, he refused to identify himself, and he had no identification on him.

June 17, 2011

Authorities said Melaku was found on Fort Myer in Arlington at 1:30 a.m. Friday and was approached by the base police. He fled and dropped a backpack. He was found later Friday morning at Arlington National Cemetery. At first, he refused to identify himself, and he had no identification on him.

Alex Brandon / AP

FBI agents and Prince William County police investigate outside a recruiting station at Potomac Mills Mall in Woodbridge.<br>
<br>At least one gunshot was fired at the site overnight, officials say.

Nov. 2, 2010

FBI agents and Prince William County police investigate outside a recruiting station at Potomac Mills Mall in Woodbridge.

At least one gunshot was fired at the site overnight, officials say.

Gerald Martineau / For The Washington Post

The Coast Guard recruiting station shooting has not been conclusively connected to previous military-related shootings as of Tuesday afternoon. Officials are awaiting ballistics results.

Nov. 2, 2010

The Coast Guard recruiting station shooting has not been conclusively connected to previous military-related shootings as of Tuesday afternoon. Officials are awaiting ballistics results.

Gerald Martineau/For The Washington Post

Prince William County police gather evidence in Woodbridge.

Nov. 2, 2010

Prince William County police gather evidence in Woodbridge.

Gerald Martineau for The Washington Post

No one was hurt in the overnight shooting at the Coast Guard recruitment site.

Nov. 2, 2010

No one was hurt in the overnight shooting at the Coast Guard recruitment site.

Gerald Martineau for The Washington Post

The National Museum of the Marine Corps in Triangle was shot two times, first the night of Oct. 16 or the next morning, and again overnight Thursday.

Oct. 29, 2010

The National Museum of the Marine Corps in Triangle was shot two times, first the night of Oct. 16 or the next morning, and again overnight Thursday.

Tracy A. Woodward / The Washington Post

Investigators work along southbound Interstate 95 just below Exit 150, near the Marine Corps Museum.

Oct. 29, 2010

Investigators work along southbound Interstate 95 just below Exit 150, near the Marine Corps Museum.

Tracy A. Woodward / The Washington Post

FBI officials are trying to coax the shooter to contact them.

Oct. 29, 2010

FBI officials are trying to coax the shooter to contact them.

Tracy A. Woodward / The Washington Post

Officials would not discuss the caliber of the bullets, or the specific weapon used.

Oct. 29, 2010

Officials would not discuss the caliber of the bullets, or the specific weapon used.

Tracy A. Woodward / The Washington Post

Shots may have been fired from a car; both the museum and the Pentagon are within range of busy intersections.

Oct. 29, 2010

Shots may have been fired from a car; both the museum and the Pentagon are within range of busy intersections.

Tracy A. Woodward / The Washington Post

Several helicopters flew over the Marine Corps museum Thursday.

Oct. 29, 2010

Several helicopters flew over the Marine Corps museum Thursday.

Tracy A. Woodward / The Washington Post

Len Lomascola, a former Marine, and Marlene Gatto of New Jersey are turned away at the front entrance to the National Marine Corps Musuem.

Oct. 29, 2010

Len Lomascola, a former Marine, and Marlene Gatto of New Jersey are turned away at the front entrance to the National Marine Corps Musuem.

Tracy A. Woodward / The Washington Post

The couple decided to drive to Mount Vernon since they couldn't go to the Marine Corps museum.

Oct. 29, 2010

The couple decided to drive to Mount Vernon since they couldn't go to the Marine Corps museum.

Tracy A. Woodward / The Washington Post

Federal officials say the shooter could be a Marine or someone with a grievance against the Marines.

Oct. 29, 2010

Federal officials say the shooter could be a Marine or someone with a grievance against the Marines.

Tracy A. Woodward / The Washington Post

Law enforcement officers search for evidence and comb through grassy areas along Interstate 395 as entrances to the Pentagon nearby were locked down after a report of shots fired near the building.

Oct. 19, 2010

Law enforcement officers search for evidence and comb through grassy areas along Interstate 395 as entrances to the Pentagon nearby were locked down after a report of shots fired near the building.

Pablo Martinez Monsivais / AP

Shots were fired shortly before 5 a.m., shattering, but not penetrating, windows on the third and fourth floors of the Pentagon, officials said. They also said the walls of the building may have been struck.<br>
<br>Officials said they think a high-velocity rifle was used, but they were not certain. Two windows were hit, but officials do not know precisely how many shots were fired.

Oct. 19, 2010

Shots were fired shortly before 5 a.m., shattering, but not penetrating, windows on the third and fourth floors of the Pentagon, officials said. They also said the walls of the building may have been struck.

Officials said they think a high-velocity rifle was used, but they were not certain. Two windows were hit, but officials do not know precisely how many shots were fired.

Pablo Martinez Monsivais / AP

Officials said officers in the south parking lot heard the shots just before 5 a.m. and reported them to headquarters. The Pentagon entrances were closed as authorities swept the area. The entrances were reopened about 5:40 a.m.

Oct. 19, 2010

Officials said officers in the south parking lot heard the shots just before 5 a.m. and reported them to headquarters. The Pentagon entrances were closed as authorities swept the area. The entrances were reopened about 5:40 a.m.

Pablo Martinez Monsivais / AP

The shooting incident came just over seven months after a gunman opened fire at a Pentagon entrance. Officers Jeffery Amos, 46, and Marvin L. Carraway Jr., 44, suffered minor injuries in the March 4 shootout. The gunman, John Patrick Bedell, 36, who family members said suffered from mental problems, was killed.

Oct. 19, 2010

The shooting incident came just over seven months after a gunman opened fire at a Pentagon entrance. Officers Jeffery Amos, 46, and Marvin L. Carraway Jr., 44, suffered minor injuries in the March 4 shootout. The gunman, John Patrick Bedell, 36, who family members said suffered from mental problems, was killed.

Pablo Martinez Monsivais / AP

FEATURED PHOTO GALLERIES

epa03708924 Franziska (C) wears a helmet and carries a shield during the recreation of The Battle of the Teutoburg Museum in Bramsche, Germany, 20 May 2013. The everyday life of Romans and the Germanic people is depicted at Museum Park Kalkriese during the Romans and Germanic people days. EPA/Friso Gentsch

Photos of the day

Battle of Teutoburg Forest reenactment, Mars Curiosity rover drilling, massive tornado strikes Moore, Oklahoma and more.

A Burrowing owl tries to perch on a protective rope in a public park in Cooper City, Fla. Monday, May 20, 2013 as rain falls. (AP Photo/J Pat Carter)

Fun and fascinating creatures around the world.

ANNAPOLIS, MD - MAY 20: The Herndon Monument Climb is the traditional culmination of plebe year at the United States Naval Academy. The plebes climb to the top of the lard-covered 21 foot high monument and remove the 'dixie cup' hat at the top replacing it with an upperclassman's hat. After completing this, the freshmen are called 'fourth class midshipmen.' This class completed the task in 1 hour 32 minutes and 43 seconds. The hat was placed by Patrick Lien from Orlando. (Photo by Sarah L. Voisin/The Washington Post)

The Herndon Climb

The Herndon Monument climb is the traditional culmination of plebe year at the U.S. Naval Academy.

This combination of Associated Press photos shows left, a neighborhood in Moore, Okla., in ruins on Tuesday, May 4, 1999, after a tornado flattened many houses and buildings in central Oklahoma, and right, flattened houses in Moore on Monday, May 20, 2013. Monday's powerful tornado in suburban Oklahoma City loosely followed the path of a killer twister that slammed the region in May 1999. (AP Photo)

Okla. tornado loosely followed path of 1999 twister

Monday’s powerful tornado in suburban Oklahoma City loosely followed the path of a killer twister that slammed the area in May 1999.

Lea Bessinger salvages a picture of Jesus as she and her son Josh Bessinger sort through the rubble of the elder Bessinger's tornado-ravaged home Tuesday, May 21, 2013, in Moore, Okla. A huge tornado roared through the Oklahoma City suburb Monday, flattening an entire neighborhoods and destroying an elementary school with a direct blow as children and teachers huddled against winds. (AP Photo/Charlie Riedel)

Tornado near Oklahoma City causes more damage

Rescue workers are searching for survivors after a twister carved a long path of destruction in a suburb of Oklahoma City. It was part of the...

FILE - In this undated publicity file photo, members of the Doors, from left, John Densmore, Robbie Krieger, Ray Manzarek and Jim Morrison, pose for a portrait. Manzarek, the keyboardist who was a founding member of The Doors, has died at 74. Publicist Heidi Robinson-Fitzgerald says in a news release that Manzarek died Monday, May 20, 2013, at the RoMed Clinic in Rosenheim, Germany, surrounded by his family. (AP Photo, File)

Ray Manzarek, founding member of the Doors, dies at 74

Manzarek co-founded the Doors after meeting then-poet Jim Morrison in California. The band went on to become one of the most successful rock-and-roll...

US actress Rosario Dawson smiles on May 20, 2013 as she arrives for the screening of the film 'Wara No Tate' (Shield of Straw) presented in Competition at the 66th edition of the Cannes Film Festival in Cannes. Cannes, one of the world's top film festivals, opened on May 15 and will climax on May 26 with awards selected by a jury headed this year by Hollywood legend Steven Spielberg. AFP PHOTO / ALBERTO PIZZOLIALBERTO PIZZOLI/AFP/Getty Images

Eye on entertainment

Rosario Dawson, Alec Baldwin, Michael Douglas, Matt Damon, Bow Wow, Amy Poehler and more.

A man walks on sulphur and mineral salt formations near Dallol in the Danakil Depression, northern Ethiopia April 22, 2013. The Danakil Depression in Ethiopia is one of the hottest and harshest environments on earth, with an average annual temperature of 94 degrees Fahrenheit (34.4 Celsius). For centuries, merchants have travelled there with caravans of camels to collect salt from the surface of the vast desert basin. The mineral is extracted and shaped into slabs, then loaded onto the animals before being transported back across the desert so that it can be sold around the country. Picture taken April 22, 2013. REUTERS/Siegfried Modola (ETHIOPIA - Tags: BUSINESS SOCIETY TPX IMAGES OF THE DAY)

ATTENTION EDITORS: PICTURE 2 OF 30 FOR PACKAGE 'ETHIOPIA'S ANCIENT SALT TRAIL'
SEARCH 'DANAKIL DEPRESSION' FOR ALL

Ethiopia’s salt trail

For centuries, merchants have traveled to Ethiopia’s Danakil Depression with caravans of camels to collect salt from the surface of the vast desert basin. The mineral is extracted...

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