| OCR Text |
Show A6 The Salt Lake Tribune OTHER DEVELOPMENTS Anthrax tumsup again on mailsorting machine Traces of anthrax have been found again on a mail sorting machine in New York that came back positive Friday night, postal officials said. William Smith, president of spokeswoman forthe U.S.Postal the New York Metro Area Postal Union,said he wouldtell Service said Saturday. Morgan employees not toreturn The machine, at the Morgan Processing and Distribution Center, had been testing negative since October, but a new roundoftests conducted Dec. 23 to work until the extent of the contamination wasclear. Postal officials said that the thirdfloor machine was the tested positive in October, a onlyone to come back positive. Bahrain to send best warship to aid U.S.effort In a significant move for the Persian Gulf region, the government of the tiny island nation of Bahrain pledged Satur- President Bush named Bahrain a major non-NATOally.Forits part, the Bahrain government has suggested that its neighbors day to send its best warship to assist the U.S-led coalition also become more cooperative with the United States. against terrorism in Afghanistan and provide humanitarian . Since Sept. 11, the Bahraini assistance there. While Bahrain haslong been an allyof the United States, the repercussions from Sept. 11 have brought the two countries even closer. In October, emir, Sheik Hamed ibn Isa Khalifa, has sought to take a leadership role among the gulf states to convince them that securityis best achieved through cooperation with the United States. Weaponscache discovered by Pakistani police Pakistani police have made the country’s largest-ever sei- Two suspects have been detained. Suddle said police re- zure of arms and ammunition, covered 124 submachine guns, 248 rifles, one recoilless rifle, two mortars, 342 mortar bombs, rockets and almost 30,000 rounds of ammunition. Police in Quetta have recently arrested dozensof for- allegedly smuggled from neighboring Afghanistan, a senior police official said Saturday. The weapons, found buried in an empty house onthe outskirts of Quetta on Friday, could have beenused forterrorist attacks, Balochistan province Police Chief Shoaib Suddle said. eign nationals on suspicion of links with the Taliban and Osamabin Laden. 2 — Tribune newsservices WAR-ON TERRORISM Sunday, December30, 2001 FBI Probing 150 al-Qaida Cases in U.S. Butterrorism expertsskeptical government coping with threat BYDAN EGGENand BOB WOODWARD THE WASHINGTON POST _ WASHINGTON — TheFBI is conducting more than 150 separate investigations into groups and individuals in the United States with possible ties to Osama bin Laden's al-Qaida organization. Until now,law enforcement authorities hadnotdisclosed the numberofactivealQaida investigationsin the United States. U.S. counterterrorism investigators are unsure exactly how manyal-Qaida opera- tives and sympathizers are in the United States, although in the days after Sept. 11 they identified fourorfive activecells. But the sheer numberofactive FBIinvestigations suggests the al-Qaida presenceis far broader than previously known. The presence of al-Qaida members in the United States is of grave concernto senior Bush administration officials, who have issued several alerts since Sept. 11 warning of the possibility of another attack. Attorney General John Ashcroft and FBIDirector Rebert Mueller III have repeatedly said they viewpreventing another terror attack as their main priority, ratherthan securing criminal convictions. That concern has helped fuel the massive domestic andforeign dragnet aimed in large measure at disrupting the operations of al-Qaida. In addition to the domestic detentions, the CIA has passed information to foreign intelligence services, which have had more than 500 suspected terrorists ar- rested or detained abroad. The domestic dragnet has prompted criticism from civil libertarians, as well as concern from some former lawenforcement officials and terrorism experts that the Justice Department is not effectively pursuing al-Qaida. But sources said the governmentis expandingits battle against terrorism with new tools and is nowfocused on a variety of newleads. Officials declined to offer details of the roughly 150 open investigations, or to nametheir targets. Some of the cases revolve around suspects alreadyin U.S. cus- tody, but most. involve individuals who have been questioned and released or who have never been detained,officials said. Theyare hoping to buildpossible criminal cases and monitor the development of pos- sible terrorist plots. Some of the investigations pre-date the Sept. 11 attacks. A special team in the command center of FBI headquarters in Washington, including representatives of the CIA and other agencies, has been coordinating the huntfor associates of “UBL” — for Usama bin Laden — following the 1998 embassy bombings in East Africa. FBI officials said they have gained a deeper understanding of al-Qaida’s operations and strategies by expanding the numberof criminal investigations under way. But someoutside experts are skeptical, arguing that large numbers of criminal cases and detained immigrants provide little insight into whether the FBI and other agenciesare effectively coping with terrorist threats. Vince Cannistraro, a former counterterrorism official at the CIA,said U.S.officials still cannot say with certainty whetheral- Qaida operatives are prevalent here, or whethertheyare centered overseas. Bin Laden Fighters Holed Upin Hospital Release Comrade BY DREWBROWN KNIGHTRIDDER NEWSSER RVICE KANDAHAR, Afghanistan —A group of woundedal-Qaida fighters barricaded inside Mir- Anti-Talibanfighters standing guard at the hospital took chargeof the injured man and said they later turned him over to U.S. Marines at Kandahar International Airport, where wais Hospital and threatening to kill themselves rather than surrender turned over a sick morethan 70 al-Qaida and Tal- comrade early Saturday, say- mained in thehospital, mostof them wounded during U.S. bombing raids. A hospital ing they couldn’t care for him because hewastooill. iban prisoners were in custody. Seven al-Qaida fighters re- nurse who saw them said all were in weak condition after beingcutofffrom most medical treatment and food last week. There were some reports that sympathizers weregetting aid to the seven. Therest of the floor where the seven were being held appeared to be empty, but. the floor below was occupied by patients inthe women’: swardof the hospital. Hospital staff said the alQaida fighters were armed with grenades and pistols. They have threatened. to kill themselves and any nonmedical personnel who attempt to entertheir room. The fighters surrendered their comrade because his amputated leg might have become infected, witnesses said. SHOP ALL STORES SUNDAY NOON-6 PM NEW YEAR'S SALE USE YOUR FREE *1 0 & ‘15 BONUS GIFT CARDS! SALE 27.99 ENTIRE STOCK Lee RIVETED © JEANS ON SALE LEE® PAINTER JEANS . Stonewash, bleachorstring. Orig. 38, SALE 27.99 LEE® EARHEARTBELTEDUTILITY JEANS Stonewash or khaki. Orig. 38, SALE 27.99 “Downtown Salt Lake City and University Mall stores closed Sunday. Regular and original 2S are offering prices only and may or ‘may not have resulted in sles. Extra savings % applied to reduced prices. Prices shown as “only” ‘emain in effectafter this event Advertised nara may be Sala ale ces ‘upcoming sale events. Selection varies. Sale ends wary 1 CHARGEIT WITH MEIER & FRANK. WE ALSO WELCOMEVISA, MASTERCARD& DISCOVER MEIER & FRA All the right choices ORDER ANYTIME: TOLL FREE 1-800-452-6323, |
