Nation/world roundup
Tape: Bush, Chertoff warned before Katrina
WASHINGTON -- In dramatic and sometimes agonizing terms, federal disaster officials warned President Bush and his homeland security chief before Hurricane Katrina struck that the storm could breach levees, put lives at risk in New Orleans' Superdome and overwhelm rescuers, according to confidential video footage. Bush didn't ask a single question during the final briefing before Katrina struck on Aug. 29, but he assured soon-to-be-battered state officials: "We are fully prepared."
Bush confident Bin Laden will be captured
KABUL, Afghanistan -- In a surprise visit under extraordinary security, President Bush expressed unwavering confidence Wednesday that Osama bin Laden will be captured despite years of fruitless manhunts for the elusive terrorist leader who ran training camps in Afghanistan and plotted the deadly attacks of Sept. 11, 2001.
Bush ordered Air Force One, on a flight to India, to make a secret detour to this war-scarred country to show U.S. support for the fledgling democracy led by President Hamid Karzai, whose authority has been weakened by suicide bombings and rising violence by insurgents.
At least 30 are killed in new Iraq violence
BAGHDAD, Iraq -- Bombings in Baghdad killed 26 people, and four others died when mortar rounds slammed into their homes in a nearby town Wednesday, the second day of surging violence after authorities lifted a curfew that briefly calmed sectarian attacks.
A spokesman for the powerful Association of Muslim Scholars criticized the Shiite-led government for failing to protect Iraqis, and he urged Sunnis to defend their mosques.
Saddam says he had right to order trials
BAGHDAD, Iraq -- Saddam Hussein said in a defiant courtroom confession Wednesday that he ordered the trial of 148 Shiites who were eventually executed in the 1980s, but he insisted he had the right to do so because they were suspected of trying to kill him.
The dramatic speech came a day after prosecutors presented the most direct evidence against him in the four-month trial: a 1984 presidential decree approving the death sentences for the 148, with a signature said to be Saddam's.
Bush arrives in India seeking nuclear deal
NEW DELHI, India -- President Bush opened a three-day visit to India on Wednesday to warm relations with the world's largest democracy, but says he doesn't know if he'll be able to seal his elusive nuclear deal with New Delhi.
Bush wants to share U.S. nuclear know-how and fuel with India to help power its fast-growing economy, even though India won't sign the international nonproliferation treaty.
Senate advances USA Patriot Act renewal
WASHINGTON -- The Senate on Wednesday agreed to add to the Patriot Act new curbs on the government's power to pry into private records, moving President Bush's antiterror law a step closer to renewal before key provisions expire next week.
But even as it progressed on a 95-4 vote, some Democrats complained that the limits would be virtually meaningless in practice and sought to add even stronger privacy protections.
From wire reports. E-mail news@thesantaclara.com.