WESTERN EUROPE

BRITISH ARREST COULD DELAY U.S. TERROR EXTRADITION

LONDON – Police arrested a radical Muslim cleric yesterday on suspicion of preparing or instigating “acts of terrorism,” a move that could delay American attempts to extradite the suspect for allegedly trying to establish a terrorist training camp in Oregon and on other charges.

The arrest of Abu Hamza al-Masri, who already was being held in a British prison on the American warrant, suggests British authorities plan to pursue charges against Mr. al-Masri under British law. Mr. Al-Masri was taken to a central London police station for questioning by anti-terrorism officers, police said. If British authorities formally charge Mr. al-Masri, the case has to be resolved before any extradition proceedings, according to officials. British law bars extradition to countries that might execute a suspect, and officials have made clear they would not send the Egyptian-born Mr. al-Masri to America unless it rules out the death penalty.

Mr. al-Masri, whose mosque has been linked to several terrorist suspects – including September 11 suspect Zacarias Moussaoui and “shoe bomber” Richard Reid – is also under American scrutiny for possible links to an alleged senior Al Qaeda operative recently arrested on charges he conducted surveillance of financial targets in America.

– Associated Press

MIDDLE EAST

ISRAEL BLOCKS ROADS AFTER PALESTINIAN ROCKET FIRE

JERUSALEM – Israeli forces cut access to main Gaza roads yesterday after terrorists fired rockets at an Israeli town, and soldiers tore down houses in a refugee camp on the Egyptian border.

The Israelis have been unable to stop rocket fire into Israel, despite frequent army operations in northern Gaza, the launching zone. Yesterday, Israeli helicopters fired missiles at the area as a warning, Army Radio reported. Prime Minister Sharon intends to pull Israeli soldiers and settlers out of Gaza next year. Critics warn that that after the exit, rocket attacks will intensify. Palestinian Arabs yesterday fired two of the primitive homemade Qassam rockets at Sderot, an Israeli town of about 20,000 less than a mile from the Gaza fence. One rocket hit a storage shack next to a house, and the other landed in a field. No one was hurt.

– Associated Press

PERSIAN GULF

QAEDA MEMBER ASKS TO REPRESENT HIMSELF In a dramatic turn that silenced defense lawyers, a Yemeni poet accused of crafting terrorist propaganda argued yesterday to represent himself before an American military commission, and then admitted to being a member of Al Qaeda.

Ali Hamza Ahmad Sulayman al Bahlul, 36, of Yemen, was adamant that he didn’t accept representation by his military lawyers when he went before the five-member panel to face charges of conspiracy to commit war crimes. If denied that request, he said he wanted a Yemeni attorney. The procedural rules for the military commissions set up to try Guantanamo detainees say defense attorneys must be American citizens and lawyers, and Mr. al Bahlul’s arraignment was recessed until a higher authority can rule on his request. During a discussion of the request, the presiding officer, Army Colonel Peter Brownback, explained that if Mr. al Bahlul chose to represent himself he would not be allowed to see any evidence that was classified.

– Associated Press

CARIBBEAN

CUBA CRATE REFUGEE LANDS IN U.S. BY AIRMAIL

A Cuban woman has won asylum in America by airmailing herself, a jug of water, and a cell phone to Miami from the Bahamas in a tiny wooden crate.

Astonished workers at a DHL warehouse at Miami airport opened the box on hearing noises from inside only for the unnamed stowaway to unfold herself and stretch after the ordeal. The plywood crate, measuring 36 inches x 26 inches x 18 inches, had been dropped off at Nassau airport and spent only an hour in the air before landing in Miami. Most refugees seeking asylum are deported, but Cubans who make it to dry land, rather than being intercepted at sea, are allowed to stay.

Separately, Cuba broke off diplomatic relations with Panama after Panama’s president, Mireya Moscoso, pardoned four Cubans convicted over a plot to kill Cuban leader Fidel Castro, Agence France-Presse reported. Panama is “a state that has demonstrated its incapability of avoiding the monstrous action it has committed against the Cuban people,” Cuba’s government said in a statement from Havana, according to AFP.

– The Daily Telegraph

SOUTH AMERICA

CHILE STRIPS PINOCHET OF IMMUNITY

SANTIAGO, Chile – Chile’s Supreme Court stripped General Augusto Pinochet of immunity from prosecution yester day, paving the way for possible trial of the former dictator on charges of human rights abuses. The court voted 9-8 to lift the immunity the 88-year-old Mr. Pinochet enjoys as a former president, a court spokesman said.

The decision removes a major legal hurdle for prosecutors seeking to bring Mr. Pinochet to justice, adding to his legal woes after Chilean investigators recently opened a probe into multimillion dollar bank accounts in America.

The ruling came in a lawsuit brought on behalf of victims of “Operation Condor,” which they say was a coordinated plan of repression against opponents by the military dictatorships that ruled the South American nation in the 1970s and’80s. Although Mr. Pinochet has never been indicted in connection with “Operation Condor,” government spokesman Francisco Vidal signaled the ruling clears the way for a possible investigation.

– Associated Press