East Timor, island country in the eastern Lesser Sunda Islands, at the southern extreme of the Malay Archipelago. It occupies the eastern half of the island of Timor, the small nearby islands of Atauro and Jaco, and the enclave of Ambeno, including Pante Makasar. Dili is the capital and largest city.
Thousands of people gathered in Dili at the stroke of midnight Sunday to witness the birth of a nation, as a declaration of independence put an end to 450.
Nobel laureate Jose Ramos-Horta was inaugurated as East Timor's president on Friday, pledging to break a longstanding political deadlock in Southeast Asia's youngest country as it celebrated its 20th…