U.S. carrier dispatched, without its aircraft

Associated Press/Suzanne Plunkett

New York City Mayor Rudolph Giuliani addressed the United Nations General Assembly Monday. Stepping onto the world stage, Giuliani urged the United Nations Monday to hold accountable and ostracize any nation that supports terrorism. U.S. carrier dispatched, without its aircraft

WASHINGTON -- President Bush's war on terrorism gained a fourth aircraft carrier Monday -- but the USS Kitty Hawk isn't bringing along its full fleet of planes.

The Kitty Hawk will serve as a floating base for other forces, defense officials said.

In keeping with the administration's policy of not discussing details of military activities related to the anti-terror campaign, the Navy would not comment except to say the Kitty Hawk does not have its usual number of aircraft aboard.

Two defense officials, speaking on condition of anonymity, said the Kitty Hawk was headed from its homeport in Japan toward the Arabian Sea.

New York City offers $1 billion in bonds

NEW YORK -- New York City offered $1 billion in bonds for sale Monday to start paying for the aftermath of the Sept. 11 terrorist attack.

The short-term bond offering will pay for such things as debris removal and unemployment insurance for workers who have been put out of work by the World Trade Center collapse.

In a preliminary estimate last week, Senate aides said it would cost about $39 billion to clean up from the Sept. 11 attack and rebuild the city. Washington has pledged at least $20 billion.

Americans are buying gas masks, antibiotics

CHICAHO -- Claudine Jordan trembled and struggled to speak after the sales clerk at Chicago's Army Navy Surplus USA store told her that he would sell her only two gas masks, not the six she wanted for her family.

"You tell me who I should save in my family," Jordan demanded. "What child should I save?"

Army Navy Surplus USA has sold more than 6,000 masks -- at about $40 each -- and chemical filters since the Sept. 11 terrorist attacks, sales clerk Robert Finstein said.

Normally, the place sells about one gas mask per month.

Some area pharmacies have reported a run on the antibiotic Cipro in case of anthrax, a deadly bacterium that some fear could be used in a bioterrorism attack.

Afghan alliance, ex-king to choose new leader

ROME -- The anti-Taliban alliance in northern Afghanistan and the former Afghan king agreed Monday to convene an emergency council of tribal and military leaders as a first step toward forming a new system of government in their country. The Taliban's leader predicted the effort would fail.

The council, or loya jirga, they envision would consist of 120 people chosen from the opposition northern alliance as well as different provinces and ethnic groups, said Abdul Sattar Sirat, a senior adviser to former King Mohammad Zahir Shah.

After near standstill, criminal trials resume

NEW YORK -- Few criminal trials have taken place in the city since the attack on the World Trade Center because the Police Department, stretched to maintain high security, could not free up officers to testify.

That should change this week. The department was ordered to make its officers available to the courts starting Monday.

Prosecutors said the suspension of criminal trials has created slight backlogs, and defense lawyers said it has forced some defendants to stay in jail much longer than they would have otherwise.

-- From wire reports