Virginia: Government acknowledges ‘souvenir’ photos of Lindh

The federal government acknowledged Friday that an untold number of U.S. military service members took “souvenir” photographs of John Walker Lindh during the first days of his captivity, but then added that the images were destroyed because they were taken without military approval.

Randy L. Bellows, an assistant U.S. attorney, made the acknowledgment during a hearing in federal court, in which Lindh’s defense attorneys had hoped to obtain copies of the photographs and videos to use as potential evidence that Lindh was intimidated and coerced into making incriminating statements to U.S. authorities after he was captured late last year fighting for the Taliban in Afghanistan.

Bellows said the unauthorized photographs and videos were taken when Lindh, a 21-year-old from Northern California, was brought aboard the USS Peleliu last December. Aboard the ship, he was kept in irons, blindfolded and strapped to a gurney.

Washington: U.S. planes bomb radar site in southern Iraq after threat

U.S. warplanes bombed an air defense radar site in southern Iraq Friday after coming under attack by Iraqi surface-to-air missiles, U.S. military officials said.

It was the fifth U.S. airstrike against Iraq in less than two weeks.

The latest incident happened early Friday, Iraq time. U.S. Central Command, which is responsible for military operations in the Persian Gulf area, said allied aircraft responded immediately after reporting that three surface-to-air missiles were fired in their direction. The planes were not hit.

The attack was in Nasiriyah, about 170 miles southeast of Baghdad, Central Command said.

Baltimore: Cardinal meets with suspect accused of shooting priest

Cardinal William Keeler met with the man accused of shooting a priest and assured him he would push for a zero-tolerance policy toward sexual abuse of children in the Roman Catholic Church.

“There’s no place in the ministry of our church for anyone who would put a child in danger,” Keeler said Friday.

The cardinal met for 90 minutes Thursday with Dontee Stokes, the 26-year-old Baltimore man who told police he shot the Rev. Maurice Blackwell on May 13 because he had been molested by the priest years earlier. He faces attempted murder charges.