World briefs 14A

U.S. troops kill alleged attacker in Afghanistan

KABUL, Afghanistan -- U.S. troops shot and killed a man who threw hand grenades at their patrol in southeastern Afghanistan, the Afghan and U.S. military said Saturday. The attack happened Friday in Khost, 90 miles south of the capital, Kabul, said Khial Baz, the military commander for Khost province. Baz said the assailant threw two hand grenades at a convoy of five to six U.S. military vehicles patrolling the tense city near the Pakistan border. One soldier received "superficial wounds" and had returned to duty, according to a U.S. military spokeswoman.

Political crisis likely if Sharon's plan rejected

JERUSALEM -- Prime Minister Ariel Sharon is determined to withdraw Israeli troops and settlers from the Gaza Strip even if his Likud Party rejects the plan in today's referendum -- as polls predict, his advisers said Saturday. However, a defeat could trigger a major political crisis, including a Cabinet reshuffle, a split in Likud or even early elections. Under Sharon's plan of "unilateral disengagement," Israel would withdraw from the Gaza Strip and evacuate some 7,500 settlers, take down four small West Bank settlements and complete construction of a West Bank separation barrier by the end of 2005. Opponents accuse Sharon of betraying the settlers.

U.N. OKs new Haiti peacekeeping mission

UNITED NATIONS -- After a decade of international failure in Haiti, the United Nations has approved a new peacekeeping mission aimed at stabilizing the Caribbean nation. The Security Council authorized a force of 8,000 for the wide-ranging mission, from police to human rights experts. The force will replace the 3,600-member contingent of American-led troops from the United States, Canada, Chile and France.

U. of Chicago returns ancient tablets to Iran

TEHRAN, Iran -- The University of Chicago on Saturday returned 300 ancient clay tablets taken from Iran on loan 67 years ago, marking the first U.S. return of borrowed Iranian artifacts since the Middle Eastern state's 1979 Islamic revolution. The clay tablets belong to the Achaemenid dynasty that ruled ancient Persia about 2,500 years ago. They have provided historians with details about the languages and daily life in the Persian empire.

Fire at Rome luxury hotel kills three people

ROME -- A fire broke out about 5:15 a.m. in Room 305 of the five-star Parco dei Principi hotel in Rome Saturday, killing three people and forcing the evacuation of tennis stars Andy Roddick, Marat Safin and other players in the Italian Open, officials said. None of the players was injured. Police took two American women in for questioning because the blaze started in their room, but said they were being treated as witnesses, not suspects. -- From wire reports

Smoke and flames spread quickly throughout the floor and to other parts of the hotel.

One American man, James Lawery of Georgia, died after he tried to escape the fire by shimmying down his balcony using a bedsheet and slipped, said police official Giuseppe Andruzzi. Firefighters found a Canadian couple dead in their bathroom, apparently after they suffocated from the smoke, he told a press conference.

-- From wire reports