Guantanamo court request

Guantanamo court request

In a filing made public Friday, lawyers for a Guantanamo detainees have asked a federal court to examine the way he was questioned while in secret CIA custody for three years and decide whether he was tortured. If the court takes up the request, it would shift from Congress to the courts the ongoing debate over whether so-called enhanced interrogation techniques authorized by President Bush against al-Qaida suspects included illegal torture. Justice Department spokesman Erik Ablin said Friday the Bush administration had no immediate comment, and would respond in a brief Thursday.

Flu shots for preschoolers

TRENTON, N.J. — New Jersey on Friday became the first state to require flu shots for preschoolers, saying their developing immune systems and likelihood of spreading germs make them as vulnerable to complications as the elderly. State Health Commissioner Dr. Fred M. Jacobs approved the requirement and three other vaccines over the objections of some parent groups. Starting in September, all children attending preschool or licensed day-care centers will have to get an annual flu shot, Jacobs said. That makes New Jersey the first state to require flu shots for preschoolers or older students, according to the American Academy of Pediatrics.

Senate OKs farm bill

WASHINGTON — The Senate on Friday approved a farm bill that would continue to funnel billions of dollars in subsidies to wealthy landowners and farmers who are earning record-breaking prices for their crops, rebuffing a concerted campaign by some senators to shift money to conservation, nutrition and deficit reduction. The bill has drawn a veto threat from President Bush, who has criticized the subsidy payments and the creation of a $5 billion permanent disaster fund. The White House has an unlikely set of allies in taxpayer groups, environmentalists, physicians and rural community advocates who tried to change the bill’s priorities.

Mukasey defies Congress

WASHINGTON — Attorney General Michael Mukasey refused Friday to give Congress details of the government’s investigation into interrogations of terror suspects that were videotaped and destroyed by the CIA. He said doing so could raise questions about whether the inquiry is vulnerable to political pressure. In letters to leaders of the House and Senate Judiciary committees that oversee the Justice Department, Mukasey also said there is no need right now to appoint a special prosecutor to lead the investigation. The preliminary inquiry currently is being handled by the Justice Department and the CIA’s inspector general.

Emergency landing

COLUMBUS — A bird flew into an engine on a Delta Air Lines flight during takeoff Friday night, forcing the pilot to make an emergency landing with 140 passengers onboard, an airline spokeswoman said. There were no reports of injuries. The MD-88 jet took off from Port Columbus International Airport about 5:15 p.m. for Atlanta, said Delta spokeswoman Ashley Black. It circled the Columbus area for about 90 minutes to burn fuel before landing about 6:40 p.m. Six crew members were also on board.

Switch on Afghanistan

EDINBURGH, Scotland — Shifting tactics, Defense Secretary Robert Gates said Friday that the Bush administration has decided to tone down its appeals to NATO allies for more troops and other aid in the fight against the Taliban insurgency in Afghanistan. After two days of talks here with his counterparts from Britain, Canada and five other NATO countries whose troops are doing the bulk of the fighting in Afghanistan’s violent south, Gates said he would continue making the case for greater allied military assistance. But he said he would be doing it differently, keeping in mind the “political realities” faced by some European governments whose people may see less reason to intervene in Afghanistan.

Cracking down on pimps

AMSTERDAM, Netherlands — Authorities said Friday they will introduce new measures to crack down on pimps and stop the exploitation of prostitutes. Under the proposed policies, brothel owners, escort services and so-called “security” firms that work with prostitutes will be forced to seek a license and will be subject to financial auditing, the city government said in a statement. The proposal, which must be approved by the city assembly, is part of a larger strategy to reduce criminality associated with prostitution, the city said. It added that it hoped to increase the legal age for prostitution from 18 to 21. Prostitution was formally legalized in 2000 in the hopes that regulation would improve health conditions for sex workers and reduce petty crime in the city’s famed red light district.

Combined dispatches