April 4, 2002

Frick Art and Historical Center in Pittsburgh is opening exhibition of drawings by Rubens, Jordaens, Van Dyck and other Flemish masters from Museum Boijmans Van Beuningen; Kennedy Center names comedian Bob Newhart as recipient of fifth annual Mark Twain Prize for American Humor, which will be awarded on October 29; Dino Anagnost will lead Little Orchestra Society and Metropolitan Singers/The Greek Choral Society in Rossini's Messa di Gloria at Holy Trinity Cathedral in Manhattan; Mayor Michael Bloomberg and actor Sean Connery will lead Tartan Day parade, commemorating Scotland's independence in 1320, in New York City; photos (M)

Federal government moves on two fronts to protect interests of Enron investors and retirement-plan participants, as parties in company's bankruptcy proceedings maneuver to lay claim to company's dwindling assets; Labor Department officials accuse Enron of backing out of agreement to pay independent investment firm State Street Corp to oversee its three employee pension plans, move that angry officials with agency describe as 'repudiation' of deal signed less than month ago; Enron denies backing out of deal, but Labor Department officials say dispute is sure to delay transfer of control of pension plans out of hands of Enron executives who have been criticized for not protecting interests of employees and retirees as Enron's stock plunged last fall; Securities and Exchange Commission also says it will ask that US Bankruptcy Judge Arthur J Gonzalez appoint independent examiner with expanded powers to investigate Enron's collapse and potential conflicts of interest in bankruptcy case; SEC is supporting move by group of creditors, including various pension and retirement funds, because of widespread accusations of conflicts of interest involving companies with longstanding ties to Enron, including Citigroup, Credit Suisse First Boston and J P Morgan Chase; Labor Department solicitor Eugene Scalia says Enron should abide by agreement to pay State Street Corp to oversee its pension plans; photo (M)

Afghan security officials say they arrested hundreds of political opponents who were conspiring to mount bombing campaign against government of Hamid Karzai and against former king Mohammad Zahir Shah; Karzai advisers says plot appears to have been aimed at toppling government or destabilizing his regime; say conspiracy is linked to Gulbuddin Hekmatyar, longtime warlord known for his anti-Western views and ruthlessness on battlefield; he was last seen in Pakistan and Iran; with details of alleged plot so sketchy, roundup of well-known opponents of Karzai's government seems certain to prompt suspicions that government fabricated threat to crush its opponents; wave of arrests illustrates fragility of American-backed effort to foster democracy in country with long tradition of cutthroat and tyrannical politics; photo (M)

Britain Caught in the Middle With the Middle East in turmoil and American talk of attacking Iraq, Europe's doubts about American foreign policy bode ill for Prime Minister Tony Blair and President Bush, who meet this weekend. PAGE A12 Open Hearing for Detainee A federal judge ruled that an immigration hearing for a suspect in the terror sweep could not be closed to reporters. The ruling could affect hundreds of hearings pending for men of Arab descent. PAGE A20

Germany's Kirch Group is near bankruptcy after rescue talks with bankers and investors, including Rupert Murdoch, break down; bankruptcy filing would shake up Germany's media industry and would have important political implications; it would strain reputation of Bavaria's conservative Prime Min Edmund Stoiber, who is challenging Chancellor Gerhard Schroder in elections this fall; Kirch's biggest and most vulnerable creditor is Bayerische Landesbank, which is half-owned by state of Bavaria; collapse would give no comfort to Stoiber's opponents, Schroder's ruling Social Democrats; Kirch, with 11,000 employees, would be third major German bankruptcy in less than month (M)

Number of households with interactive television is expected to climb by end of 2002 to more than 15 million households; services include video on demand, expanded content for ESPN and Weather Channel, local information and selling channels; two-way interactivity with television programs appears to be far off because of cost and consumers' resistance to convergence of television and computing; cable provider Insight exemplifies trend toward interactivity with services that include local weather, traffic and music performances; photo (M)

Gaz de France and TotalFinaElf SA plan to buy natural gas pipelines owned by French state to retain control of networks they operate; Gaz de France pays deposit of 176 million euros ($155 million) and TotalFinaElf pays 12.2 million euros ($10.7 million); buying pipelines will enable two companies to keep control over gas they sell and keep network out of hands of rivals (S)

Interview with Prof Robert J Full, robot maker who patterns his designs on nature; photos (M)

New York Yankees defeat Baltimore Orioles, 1-0, in pitcher David Wells' first start of second tour with Yankees; photos (M)

Joyce Purnick Metro Matters column scores Gov George Pataki's health care bill, which provides for wage increases for members of 1199/Service Employees International Union, but fails to create permanent health care fund for uninsured New Yorkers; says bill is politically motivated as SEIU president Dennis Rivera has endorsed Pataki's re-election bid (M)

Bethlehem's streets are terrifyingly empty of everyone except Israeli soldiers searching for Palestinian gunmen; shops are closed and few residents venture out; some ambulances are unable to reach wounded; Israeli officials say they know their violence could breed more gunmen and suicide bombers, but they insist they have no choice; say their invasion of Bethlehem should at least slow their opponents down; photo; map (M)

Artisans at Brooklyn company Fabricon put finishing touches on new carousel set for Bryant Park, Manhattan; photo (M)