Terrorism Notebook
White House to rush case to high court

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The administration wants the high court to quickly hear the case of Jose Padilla, a former gang member and convert to Islam who was arrested in Chicago in May 2002 in connection with an alleged plot to detonate a radioactive "dirty bomb."

Last month, a federal appeals court ruled that President Bush does not have the authority to declare Padilla an enemy combatant and hold him in open-ended military custody.

The 2nd U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals gave the government 30 days to release Padilla.

The administration had promised an appeal. It said it will also ask that the appeals-court ruling be put on hold.

The administration's top Supreme Court lawyer went a step further yesterday by notifying the Supreme Court that it will file an appeal there by Jan. 20, in time for the court to squeeze the case onto its calendar for the final session of scheduled oral arguments in April.

Gunmen kill 12 Hazaras in latest Afghan violence

KANDAHAR, Afghanistan — Unidentified gunmen killed 12 ethnic minority Hazaras in southern Afghanistan in the latest spate of violence in the volatile region, an official said yesterday.

The Hazaras were traveling in a vehicle when they came under attack in Baghran district of Helmand province Tuesday night, said Haji Mohammad Wali, spokesman for the province's governor.

The victims were residents of neighboring Uruzgan province, where tension has reportedly erupted recently between some Hazaras and ethnic Pashtuns, the largest clan of Afghanistan.

The incident took place on the same day that a bomb went off in Kandahar, the main city in southern Afghanistan, killing at least 16 people and injuring more than 50 others.

Remnants of the Taliban, toppled more than two years ago, have claimed responsibility for the blast in Kandahar, the militia's former stronghold.

U.S. forces searched Spin Boldak, a town between Kandahar and the Pakistani frontier, military spokesman Lt. Col. Bryan Hilferty said.

British authorities given new power for emergencies

LONDON — The British government presented plans yesterday to grant authorities sweeping new powers to deal with civil emergencies and terrorist attacks.

The Civil Contingencies Bill will give police the power to evacuate dangerous areas, impose no-go zones, destroy private property without compensation and ban peaceful protests.

If approved by Parliament, the legislation would cover national emergencies such as floods, disease and major terrorist incidents.

Experts have warned that authorities are not prepared to deal with an incident on the scale of the Sept. 11, 2001, attacks in the United States.

Prosecutors say missile launcher was used in failed attack

NAIROBI, Kenya — Prosecutors at the trial of three Kenyans charged with plotting attacks on Westerners and Israelis yesterday displayed a missile launcher they said was used in an attack on an Israeli airliner in Kenya.

In the latest hearing of a trial that centers on attacks claimed by al-Qaida, the prosecution displayed a 6-foot-long blue tube it said was used in the failed 2002 attack.

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