IRAQ ATTACKS

American soldiers in Baghdad came their closest yet to losing top brass. Gen. John Abizaid, commander of all U.S. forces in the Middle East, and Maj. Gen. Charles Swannack, commander of the 82nd Airborne, narrowly missed falling into a gun battle in central Iraq Feb. 12. The fully flanked convoy they were riding in had just pulled inside the cinderblock walls of Iraqi Civil Defense Corps headquarters in Fallujah when explosions erupted near the entrance. Several attackers fired rocket-propelled grenades and small arms from a nearby mosque. U.S. soldiers responded with rifle and machine-gun fire in a six-minute gun battle. No U.S. soldiers were injured. Not so for Iraqi police and military. Suicide attackers plowed into a crowd of Iraq army recruits in Baghdad on Feb. 11, killing 47 and wounding 50. The day before, a similar strike against police recruits killed at least 50. The two-day death toll is the bloodiest blow yet to Iraqis and strikes at the heart of those allied with U.S. forces.

AL-QAEDA LINKS

The attacks followed a blueprint captured along with a terrorist courier north of Baghdad. Hassan Ghul confessed that he was delivering a 17-page document via CD-ROM from Ansar al Islam terrorists based in Iraq to al-Qaeda. Its plan calls for al-Qaeda assistance to wage a "sectarian war" in Iraq in coming months. It calls for attacks on Shiites in Iraq at "zero hour," before Americans hand over sovereignty to Iraqis. The aim is to prompt a counterattack on Sunni Iraqis, which would prompt support from Sunni extremists among the al-Qaeda swirl. Media spin and Democratic electioneering aside, the three cases for war in Iraq look more solid every day. Human-rights groups have testified to the uncovering of mass graves and horror under the dictatorship, and al-Qaeda/Baath Party links are increasingly obvious. The most controversial casus belli remains the existence of weapons of mass destruction. But, as senior weapons inspector Rolf Ekeus tells WORLD (cover story, p. 30), it's nothing new to find political gamesmanship thwarting the hunt for WMD. Every WMD czar in Iraq has dodged political bullets of both the Baghdad and Washington variety, only to discover that, yes, Saddam did oversee a program of unconventional warfare. The urgent question now is not, "What did Bush know?" but, "Where did they go?" HAITI VIOLENCE After weeks of peaceful protest against Haiti's president, a militia resorted to a time-honored national tradition: political violence. Members began an armed uprising in fourth-largest city Gonaives on Feb. 5, with rebels freeing prisoners and burning a police station. Government forces used burning barricades to block the rebel advance toward port city Cap-Haitien, while citizens looted warehouses for flour and other goods. Faced with this new crisis, President Jean-Bertrand Aristide refused to step down. He was democratically elected in 1990, but ousted in a coup the following year. American troops in 1994 restored him to power, but faulty elections in 2000 eroded his Haitian support and drew international censure. The Bush administration, meanwhile, worriedly watched the Haitian destruction. Officials don't want another refugee influx, and are leaning hard on Mr. Aristide to negotiate with the opposition. BUSH MILITARY RECORD As Sen. John Kerry continued his march toward the Democratic presidential nomination, new questions emerged about President Bush's service in the Air National Guard during the 1960s and '70s (story, p. 18). Answering charges from Democratic Party chairman Terry McAuliffe that Mr. Bush was "AWOL" during 1972 when he was assigned to serve in Alabama, the White House released records intending to prove that Mr. Bush showed up for duty. Meanwhile, Retired Lt. Col. Bill Burkett of the Texas Air National Guard said last week that he overheard a 1997 conversation between then-Gov. Bush's chief of staff, Joe Allbaugh, and then-Adjutant Gen. Daniel James about disposing of military records that might embarrass Mr. Bush. Both men deny any such discussion took place.

HAITI VIOLENCE

After weeks of peaceful protest against Haiti's president, a militia resorted to a time-honored national tradition: political violence. Members began an armed uprising in fourth-largest city Gonaives on Feb. 5, with rebels freeing prisoners and burning a police station. Government forces used burning barricades to block the rebel advance toward port city Cap-Haitien, while citizens looted warehouses for flour and other goods. Faced with this new crisis, President Jean-Bertrand Aristide refused to step down. He was democratically elected in 1990, but ousted in a coup the following year. American troops in 1994 restored him to power, but faulty elections in 2000 eroded his Haitian support and drew international censure. The Bush administration, meanwhile, worriedly watched the Haitian destruction. Officials don't want another refugee influx, and are leaning hard on Mr. Aristide to negotiate with the opposition.

BUSH MILITARY RECORD

As Sen. John Kerry continued his march toward the Democratic presidential nomination, new questions emerged about President Bush's service in the Air National Guard during the 1960s and '70s (story, p. 18). Answering charges from Democratic Party chairman Terry McAuliffe that Mr. Bush was "AWOL" during 1972 when he was assigned to serve in Alabama, the White House released records intending to prove that Mr. Bush showed up for duty. Meanwhile, Retired Lt. Col. Bill Burkett of the Texas Air National Guard said last week that he overheard a 1997 conversation between then-Gov. Bush's chief of staff, Joe Allbaugh, and then-Adjutant Gen. Daniel James about disposing of military records that might embarrass Mr. Bush. Both men deny any such discussion took place.

FCC SANCTIONS COMING?

Repercussions from Janet Jackson's breast-baring Super Bowl stunt may extend to cable TV. FCC chairman Michael Powell told a trade group that "the cable industry cannot completely ignore the discontent" of parents and others disgusted by raunchy programming just because cable is not delivered over the airwaves. Meanwhile, a bill to increase fines on broadcasters for indecency violations from $27,500 to $275,000 is gaining momentum on Capitol Hill (story, p. 24).

OHIO SNIPER

Authorities now have a rough description of a serial sniper who has terrorized interstate highways in the Columbus, Ohio, area for more than eight months. Three separate witnesses to two Feb. 8 attacks on I-71 described the sniper as a middle-aged white man driving a dark car. One of those witnesses was Douglas Berry, the target of one of the attacks. The sniper's bullet hit the hood of Mr. Berry's car, just six inches away from the windshield. "I feel blessed today," he said (story, p. 25).

CUBA REFUGEES

The U.S. Coast Guard last week sent back to Cuba eight immigrants who had tried to float to America in a Buick. The government sent three others, however, to the U.S. Navy base at Guantanamo Bay as their case is reviewed. Luis Grass Rodriguez, his wife, and his son had applied for visas at the American diplomatic section in Havana before boarding the floating sedan. Miami's Cuban community is pressuring the White House to grant asylum to the Grass family, and the outcome of the case could become a campaign issue in Florida (story, p. 26).

REBUILDING LIBERIA

The U.S. government contributed $200 million and other countries chipped in another $320 million to help rebuild war-torn Liberia. In asking for the aid at a United States/United Nations conference, President Gyude Bryant called his country "a portrait of utter destruction," with almost one-third of his countrymen either internally displaced or living as refugees in other countries. Government forces and rebels, however, have been able to maintain a five-month ceasefire, and about 50,000 refugees have returned home (story, p. 27).