National and State News-Monday, March 19th

KABUL, Afghanistan (AP) - Several people have been wounded in a roadside bomb attack on a U-S embassy convoy in Afghanistan. One person has suffered serious injuries. An embassy spokesman says the U-S ambassador was not in the convoy.

WASHINGTON (AP) - The White House says House Democrats will assure failure in Iraq with their legislation to withdraw troops by fall of next year. The bill ties the pullout to funding for the war. The House appears ready to pass the measure this week. The fourth anniversary of the war figured prominently on the Sunday talk shows.

NEW YORK (AP) - The indictment in the New York police shooting death of an unarmed man will be unsealed today. Lawyers for three officers said to be indicted say their clients have been told to surrender for arraignment.

LOS ANGELES (AP) - Jury selection begins in Los Angeles today in the murder trial of music producer Phil Spector. He's accused of killing an actress at his home in 2003. Spector, who's 66, faces life in prison if convicted.

FRANKFURT, Germany (AP) - An Airbus A-380 superjumbo jet has taken off from Germany for its first flight to North America. The double-decker plane is scheduled to arrive at New York's Kennedy airport later today with about 550 people on board.

PHILADELPHIA (AP) - U-S Airways says it is making progress clearing the backlog of passengers waiting for flights since Friday's ice storm. Officials last night reported waits of 30 to 45 minutes in Philadelphia and Charlotte, North Carolina, and say they hope to have "near-normal" operations today.

SCRANTON, Pa. (AP) - A challenge to the legality of Hazleton's efforts to curb illegal immigration continues today. The city says it is trying to deal with crime and violence that officials attribute to an influx of illegal aliens. The American Civil Liberties Union says only the federal government has jurisdiction over immigration matters.

PITTSBURGH (AP) - The Allegheny County Council says a city-county authority has until this evening to provide information about a convention center collapse in 2005. Council members say they want details to help their investigation of a similar event last month.

BRANDYWINE HUNDRED, Del. (AP) - State police in Delaware say a one-year-old girl who was in a car that was stolen with Chester County, Pennsylvania, is back with her mother. The car later crashed in Delaware, but the girl was unharmed. A man was charged with kidnapping and 10 other offenses.

PITTSBURGH (AP) - People interested in planning Pennsylvania's 150th commemoration of the Civil War can attend two more meetings in western Pennsylvania and a statewide gathering in Harrisburg. About two dozen people took part in the first regional meeting over
the weekend.