July 21, 2001

Missing-person cases require balancing act by police, who come under pressure from distraught families who feel that not enough is being done but who are reluctant to deploy limited recources in opening investigations when they know that most missing people eventually turn up; last year, 876,213 missing-person cases were reported to Federal Bureau of Investigation by local police agencies after calls from frantic families or friends; but there were even more cases--882,163----in which missing person was found or, in many instances, simply turned up; these figures demonstrate how unusual it is that Washington, DC, police have been engaged in such intense search for Chandra Ann Levy, government intern who vanished at end of April; photo (M)

President Bush was urged by 61 senators to permit the use of federal dollars for embryonic stem cell research. A letter by Senator John Kerry, Democrat of Massachusetts, was signed by a bipartisan group of 59 senators who want to see the ban lifted.

Defense Min Binyamin Ben-Eliezer hints that Israel might agree to foreigners monitoring worsening conflict with Palestinians, but says outsiders would have to be Americans; other officials close to Prime Min Ariel Sharon seek to minimize importance of remarks, which come day after foreign ministers of major industrialized countries urged introduction of 'third-party' monitors as way to keep violence from spinning out of control, a suggestion immediately embraced by Palestinian leaders and rejected by Israelis; photo (M)

Article describes furnishings for former president Bill Clinton's new offices in Manhattan and process by which they were selected; with eye toward cost effectiveness, furniture and carpeting are not custom-made; photo (M)

First Union and SunTrust Banks are waging decidedly hostile advertising campaign to sway Wachovia's shareholders in coming proxy vote; First Union's bid is worth $14.4 billion, while SunTrust is offering $14.6 billion; SunTrust's very slight financial edge reflects its effort to play spoiler and break up First Union's friendly deal; SunTrust suffers setback as North Carolina judge refuses to nullify First Union's agreement; Sun Trust and First Union are planning to step up their campaigns, which have included radio and television advertising (M)