March 2, 2002

New York Knicks defeat Seattle SuperSonics, 89-87; photos (M)

Pres Bush has approved plans to send as many as 100 troops, mostly Special Forces, to train Yemeni military to fight terrorists, specifically Al Qaeda fighters hiding in country; increasingly broad campaign stirs Democratic complaints that administration demands virually unlimited funds without answering to Congress; latest operations aim to crush isolated but potent Islamic insurgents; Special Forces would be limited to training and equipping nations requesting help, but not calling in air strikes; Americans will be discouraged from even firing weapons except in self-defense; Yemen is key center of support for Osama bin Laden, home to well-armed tribal forces, at least 20 senior Qaeda officials and scores of fighters trained in Afghanistan (M)

New York Mets lose, 7-1, to St Louis Cardinals in Mets home exhibition opener; photos (M)

ABC News president David Westin tells his top executives that his bosses blindsided him, failing to tell him of plan to remove Nightline to make room for David Letterman, whom network hs tried to lure from CBS; photos; Westin is reported 'ashen,' talking of tremendous blow to ABC News from news he learned in call from The New York Times; outcome is unclear with Letterman on vacation; Nightline anchor Ted Koppel declines comment; executives at parent Walt Disney Co insist they will not allow sentimental attachment to 'aging news program' stand in way of corporate ship; Letterman, who has strained relations with CBS Television head Leslie Moonves, has made clear he will not go to ABC if it leads directly to Koppel's departure (M)

Handful of Islamic scholars, bucking threats of violence for questioning words of Koran, are quietly investigating origins of Muslim holy book, offering radically new theories about text's meaning and rise of Islam; photos; German scholar who uses pseudonym Christoph Luxemberg uses earliest copies to maintain that portions are derived from pre-existing Christian Aramaic texts that were misinterpreted by later scholars who prepared modern texts; he posits that 'virgins' supposedly awaiting martyrs in paradise are actually 'white raisins' of crystal clarity; his work has no publisher, given cases of Salman Rushdie and Suliman Bashear, who was thrown from window at University of Nablus for arguing that Islam developed gradually, not fully formed from mouth of Mohammad; scholar at US campus says fear and political correctness make it impossible to say other than 'sugary nonsense'; authors Patricia Crone and Michael Cook suggest Muhammad was seen originally not as founder of new religion but as Old Testament-style preacher on Messiah, so that earliest followers may have seen themselves retaking place in Holy Land alongside Jewish cousins (M)

Arther Andersen agrees to pay $217 million to settle investor lawsuits arising from its role as auditor of Baptist Foundation of Arizona, nonprofit company that plaintiffs' lawyers say was Ponzi scheme that cost investors hundreds of millions of dollars; settlement is seen sign of firm's determination to resolve numerous shareholder lawsuits against it; underscoring danger to Andersen, Merck & Co announces that it is dropping Andersen as its auditor, joining steadily growing list of companies distancing themselves from accounting firm (M)

William C Rhoden Sports of The Times column examines unwaivering drive of sports icons Michael Jordan, Mario Lemieux and Mark Messier, despite recent injuries and their advancing ages; photo (M)

News analysis reviews recent events in Abner Louima torture case and their impact on New York City police department; Comr Raymond Kelly's good standing in black community may be jeopardized if he decides to reinstate former officers Thomas Wiese and Thomas Bruder, whose obstruction of justice convictions have been reversed; may hinder department's efforts to recruit minorities and create potentially divisive atmosphere; third trial of Charles Schwarz will recall details of brutality for beleaguered citizenry; photo (M)

New York's Jewish Museum, faced with criticism over coming exhibition with Nazi themes, will place warning sign near exhibition; some Holocaust survivors continue to object, saying exhibit is no less morally repugnant because people are warned; photo (M)

Elizabeth Chapman admits in interview with The New York Times that she faked tests and reports indicating that her son Justin, now 8, is child genius; IQ test given at age 6 recorded score of 298-plus, math SAT was perfect 800 and IQ test at age 3 also scored record high; child enrolled in online high school at 5, took courses at University of Rochester at 6, met with Gov George Pataki, was featured in BBC documentary and spoke at conferences on gifted children; photos; single mother says she wanted opportunities for unusually bright child and let 'things get out of control'; Justin has been hospitalized for psychiatric problems in Colorado and placed in foster care; authorities charge mother has interfered with care and impaired child's functioning; trial set on neglect charges (M)

Qwest Communications International continues to market itself to Wall Street as model phone company of future, but all that investors seem interested in it how voice and data communications giant plans to survive present; faces cash squeeze severe enough to have forced company to draw down $4 billion credit line with banks; is also confronting doubts about its growth prospects and controversy over its accounting practices that has generated shareholder lawsuits; photo of Joseph P Nacchio, chief executive; graph shows decline in share price (M)

Clyde Haberman NYC column scores Bloomberg administration for not saying who is in charge of New York City when mayor takes weekend jaunts; also, says time is right to address issue of mayoral succession in City Charter, which calls for public advocate to assume mayoralty if mayor is unable to function (M)