UPI NewsTrack TopNews

Mukasey advocates separate terror court

WASHINGTON, Sept. 18 (UPI) -- U.S. Attorney General nominee Michael Mukasey's push to create a separate court for terror suspects has some liberal support, the Los Angeles Times reported.

Last month, the 66-year-old former New York federal judge wrote in The Wall Street Journal he advocated "a separate national security court staffed by independent, life-tenured judges."

Monday, U.S. President George Bush nominated Mukasey to replace outgoing Attorney General Alberto Gonzales. The Los Angeles Times found some prominent Democrats and liberals like Mukasey's record and approach.

Georgetown University Law Center Professor Neal Katyal, a self-avowed liberal told the Times there were "many reasons" he supported the nomination.

"I think Judge Mukasey is right to say we should think about a national security court for a small handful of cases that are not capable of being handled in the current criminal justice system," Katyal said. "His embrace of a national security court does not, in my mind, disqualify him for his position as attorney general. Rather, it is one of many reasons I am so supportive of his nomination."

Capitol anti-war protest peaceful

WASHINGTON, Sept. 18 (UPI) -- About 150 anti-war protesters peacefully filed through U.S. congressional buildings delivering certificates of "Induction into The Hall of Shame."

None of Monday's protesters were arrested, in contrast with 192 arrests Saturday in an antiwar rally near the U.S. Capitol, The Washington Post reported Tuesday.

Police at the Rayburn House Office Building Monday braced for a confrontation that didn't happen as the protesters delivered written rebukes to members of Congress who support U.S. President George W. Bush's policy in Iraq.

"We don't want to get arrested today. We've got people catching planes tonight," said Medea Benjamin, 55, a protest organizer.

The protesters delivered their certificates of "Induction into The Hall of Shame" to the offices of Reps. Duncan Hunter and Dana Rohrabacher, both California Republicans; Rep. Dan Burton, R-Ind., and Rep. Brian Baird, D-Wash., among others, The Post reported.

New clashes in West Bank

NABLUS, West Bank, Sept. 18 (UPI) -- Two Palestinian teenagers were killed and two Israel soldiers were injured in clashes in the West Bank, Haaretz reported Tuesday.

The soldiers reportedly encountered stone-throwing rioters and exchanged fire Tuesday with Palestinian militants during a raid on the Ein Beit IImeh refugee camp in Nablus, Haaretz reported.

Mohammed Khaled, 17, a member of a militant group called the Popular Front for the Liberation of Palestine, was killed in the raid, Haaretz reported.

The Israeli army had no immediate comment on witnesses' claims that Israeli soldiers used a resident as a shield as they moved house to house in search of suspected militants, the report said.

In Ramallah, Mohammed Jabbarin, a 16-year-old Palestinian was killed Monday after he threw rocks at Israeli soldiers, Palestinian sources told Haaretz.

Musharraf may relinquish military title

ISLAMABAD, Pakistan, Sept. 18 (UPI) -- A Pakistan ruling party official expects President Pervez Musharraf to give up his army chief post if re-elected, a report said Tuesday.

It is the clearest indication the embattled president, who took power after staging a bloodless coup in 1999, will give up his army title after elections next month with his presidential term set to end Nov. 15, The Telegraph reported.

"We expect that after his re-election process next month, God willing, Gen. Musharraf would take his oath of office as a civilian president before Nov. 15," Mushahid Hussain Sayed, secretary-general of the ruling Pakistan Muslim League, said. “Yes, I have no doubt that the president will keep his commitment.”

The announcement about Musharraf’s plans comes at a time when Pakistan’s Supreme Court has started hearings on petitions challenging his candidacy, the British newspaper said.

Musharraf is facing numerous political problems and rising extremist violence. He is also under Western pressure to make a power-sharing deal with former Prime Minister Benazir Bhutto, who plans to return from exile next month.

The Telegraph said if the Supreme Court rejects Musharraf’s eligibility to seek re-election even as a civilian, he may be forced to quit or impose emergency rule.

ACLU goes to bat for senator in sex case

MINNEAPOLIS, Sept. 18 (UPI) -- The American Civil Liberties Union has filed a court motion suggesting the sex-related arrest of conservative Sen. Larry Craig, R-Idaho, was unconstitutional.

In a friend-of-the-court motion filed with the Minnesota 4th District Court, the ACLU said Craig's arrest in June at the Minneapolis-St. Paul International Airport for soliciting sex was covered by First Amendment rights, CNN reported.

An undercover police officer said Craig made gestures and movements in a washroom allegedly common to men seeking sex. On Aug. 8, Craig denied he is gay or was seeking sex but pleaded guilty to one charge of disorderly conduct. He later said he would resign Sept. 30 from the U.S. Senate.

But on Sept. 10 Craig filed court papers to withdraw his guilty plea, which the ACLU is supporting.

ACLU Executive Director Anthony Romero said while Craig has a track record of voting against same-sex marriages, he deserved equal protection from arrest.

"Senator Craig has not always been a great friend of civil liberties but you shouldn't have to endorse the civil liberties of others to keep your own," Romero told CNN.