Blind activist leaves China for the US

A blind Chinese activist was hurriedly taken from a hospital today and boarded a plane that took off for the United States, closing a nearly month-long diplomatic tussle that had tested US-China relations.

Chen Guangcheng, his wife and their two children were on United Airlines Flight 88, which took off late afternoon local time from the Beijing airport. The flight is scheduled to arrive in Newark, New Jersey, later today.