The CNN Wire: Saturday, July 7

Editor's Note: The CNN Wire is a running log of the latest news from CNN World Headquarters, reported by CNN's correspondents and producers, and The CNN Wire editors. "Posted" times are Eastern Time.

Restaurant deck collapses, hurting 9

NEW YORK (CNN) -- A restaurant deck collapsed at a southern New Jersey marina Saturday evening, but none of the diners were seriously injured, according state police and medical officials.

Nine people were treated scrapes and bruises at the Cape Regional Medical Center in Cape May, according to hospital spokesman Tom Piratzky. T

he accident happened at the Two Mile Landing restaurant near Lower Township, New Jersey when a deck partially extending over the water collapsed, New Jersey State Police Sgt. Steve Jones said. Several staff and customers were on the deck at the time of the collapse, Jones said.

--CNN's Chris Browne in New York contributed to this report. (Posted 11:20 p.m.)

U.S. soldier killed Saturday, 9 troops died Friday in Iraq

BAGHDAD (CNN) -- A U.S. soldier, assigned to Task Force Lightning, was killed by an explosion near his vehicle during an operation in the northern Iraq Salah ad Din Province Saturday, the U.S. military said.

Four U.S. soldiers were also wounded by the blast, the military said.

Nine U.S. troops were killed on Friday in Iraq, including three U.S. sailors who died as "a result of enemy action" near Baghdad, the Department of Defense said Saturday. The sailors were assigned to an East Coast-based SEAL team, the DOD said.

These deaths bring July's death toll for U.S. troops in Iraq to 28. In the 4-year-old conflict, 3,606 U.S. troops have been killed, according to a CNN count. (Posted 9 p.m.)

Sightseeing helicopter crashes into Hudson

From CNN's Janine Brady

NEW YORK (CNN) -- A sightseeing helicopter crashed into the Hudson River on the west side of Manhattan late Saturday afternoon, according to a U.S. Coast Guard spokesman.

Lt. J.G. Sullivan confirmed that the eight people on board the Liberty Helicopter Executive Charter helicopter had been pulled from the water by two "good samaritans" in private boats. Liberty Helicopters Inc. told CNN they have no comment regarding the crash.

New York City Fire Department spokesman Craig Mosia told CNN that the FDNY, U.S. Coast Guard, and the New York City harbor police were all assisting with the recovery of the helicopter.

A spokesperson for the New York City harbor police said that 3 passengers had sustained minor injures in the crash, but could not comment on the nature of those injuries.

--CNN's Chris Browne and Katia Porzecanski contributed to this report (Posted 7:07 p.m.)

Lawyer asks Senate not to put Bush aide in the ^middle of "monumental clash" between White House, Congress

WASHINGTON (CNN) -- A former White House staffer is asking for compassion from the Senate Judiciary Committee in what may be another constitutional standoff between the legislative and executive branches, while the committee's Democratic chairman is sharpening his words.

The lawyer for former White House political director Sara Taylor -- who has been subpoenaed to testify before the senate this week about the firing of several U.S. attorneys -- sent a letter to Chairman Patrick Leahy, D-Vermont, asking that she not be used as"the focus of the constitutional struggle."

"In our view, it is unfair to Ms. Taylor that this constitutional struggle might be played out with her as the object of an unseemly tug of war," wrote lawyer Neil Eggleston. He said that Taylor has done nothing wrong and would testify "without hesitation" if not for an expected order from the White House -- where she worked until six weeks ago -- that she not comply the subpoena.

Eggleston urged senators to focus any punitive action against the White House, not his client. He said Taylor was caught in a "monumental clash between the executive and legislative branches of government" that could ultimately be decided in the courts.

Sen. Leahy continued to press for Taylor's testimony and he fired away at the White House for what he called interference on the committee's investigation. "I hope the White House stops this stonewalling and accepts my offer to negotiate a workable solution to the Committee's oversight requests," he said in a written statement.

White House has publicly announced it would assert executive privilege in the case, directing Taylor and former White House counsel Harriet Miers, who also was subpoenaed, not to comply with the Senate's subpoenas.

White House spokeswoman Jeanie Mamo issued a response Saturday to Leahy. "Senator Leahy is seeking testimony related to Sara Taylor's duties as an aide to the President. The President is entitled to candid, confidential advice from his aides without the threat of compelled testimony from Congress," Mamo said. (Posted 7:03 p.m.)

Death of 3 sailors in Iraq brings Friday's toll to nine

BAGHDAD (CNN) -- Three U.S. sailors supporting Operation Iraqi Freedom died Friday as "a result of enemy action" near Baghdad, the Department of Defense said Saturday.

The sailors were assigned to an East Coast-based SEAL team, the DOD said. The three deaths brings July's death toll for U.S. troops in Iraq to 27.

In the 4-year-old conflict, 3,605 U.S. troops have been killed, according to a CNN count.

Earlier on Saturday, the U.S. military announced the Friday deaths of two Task Force Marne soldiers who were killed in a roadside bombing south of Baghdad.

Other deaths from Friday are: -- Two soldiers were killed when a homemade bomb exploded near their combat patrol in eastern Baghdad. The military said soldiers from the unit have recently arrested a number of suspected insurgents.

-- One soldier was killed, along with an Iraqi interpreter, when an "explosively formed penetrator" exploded near their patrol in southeastern Baghdad. Three soldiers were wounded.

-- A soldier died of non-battle-related cause, which the military said it is investigating. No further details were provided. (Posted 6:51 p.m.)

Sen. Reed: Tactical success in Iraq not translating to political progress

BAGHDAD (CNN) -- Opinions across Capitol Hill may now be more receptive to legislation that would begin troop withdrawal from Iraq and of limit spending on the war, a Democratic senator who has long been a critic of the war said Saturday.

"This is a different environment than even a month or so ago," Sen. Jack Reed, D-R.I., said of political views in Washington. Reed was speaking on a conference call from Baghdad, where he arrived for a visit early Saturday. "I think there is a growing sense even within the administration that...it is difficult to sustain" this level of effort.

Reed's remarks came as several Republican lawmakers recently broke ranks with the Bush administration over the war on Iraq. Sen. Pete Domenici of New Mexico, Sen. Richard Lugar of Indiana and Ohio's George Voinovich have all made statements in the past two weeks arguing that the United States should begin moving toward a withdrawal from the 4-year-old conflict. (Posted 4:59 p.m.)

Official: Death toll in northern Iraq blast now at 117

BAGHDAD (CNN) -- The death toll in the Saturday suicide bombing at a marketplace in northern Iraq now stands at 117, a government official told CNN.

A truck laden with two tons of explosives detonated in an outdoor market in Amerli. The truck resembled an Iraqi military truck, according to an official at the Joint Coordination Center in Tuz Khurmatu.

Amerli is a village predominately populated by Shiite Turkmen and Kurds. It is located about 100 miles north of Baghdad in Salaheddin province, near the city of Tuz Khurmatu.

Around 265 were wounded and at least 12 houses were badly damaged from the bombing. (Posted 3:30 p.m.)

Freed British BBC journalist arrives home

(CNN) -- After four months in captivity in Gaza, BBC journalist Alan Johnston is back home in Scotland, thus ending what he calls "this strange dark period" of his life.

Johnston arrived in Argyll on Saturday after a British Airways flight carried him from Israel to Britain.

After touching down in London, the 45-year-old correspondent returned home --- "back in the kitchen with the family, a moment you dream of."

Flanked by his loving family, Johnston chatted with reporters.

"There just isn't an imaginable contrast greater than this," he said, speaking in the foreground of the "green and calm and cold and wet and beautiful" Argyll hills.

He says he "came to love Gaza in a way as well in the three years that I spent there. It's a tremdously important place to me," he said. But he called the four months in the cell "something else."

"It's like another planet." (Posted 3:08 p.m.)

'Several' Taliban militants killed in southern Afghan fighting, coalition says

(CNN) -- "Several" Taliban militants were killed on Saturday in fighting along the Helmand River in southern Afghanistan, the U.S.-led coalition said.

The fighting was part of a NATO operation called Ghartse Ghar, an offensive designed to clear the river area of the Taliban -- the Islamic militant group that formerly ruled Afghanistan and provided haven to the al Qaeda terror network.

The fighting in question involved Afghan troops advised by coalition forces and it occurred in Helmand province's Nahr Surkh District on the western side of the river. (Posted 2:11 p.m.)

Iraqi doctor charged in connection with failed car bombings makes court appearance

LONDON (CNN) -- An Iraqi doctor charged in connection with last weekend's failed car bombings in London and Glasgow made a court appearance on Saturday.

Bilal Abdulla appeared at a magistrates court in central London. He had been charged on Friday with conspiracy to cause explosions likely to endanger life.

The appearance was brief. Abdulla spoke only to confirm his name and age, and a judge ordered him held in custody until his next hearing on July 27. (Posted 1:43 p.m.)

2 children, at least 2 police killed in southern Afghanistan blast

(CNN) -- Two children and at least two Afghan police officers were killed on Saturday in an explosion at a National Police base in southern Afghanistan, NATO's International Security Assistance Force said.

The explosive device, concealed in a wooden cart, detonated at an Afghan National Police base in the Sangin region of Helmand province, where fighting has raged between NATO and Afghan security forces have been fighting Taliban militants.

"This cowardly attack by the Taliban is further evidence of their lack of regard for the lives of ordinary Afghan people and their intent to attack and disrupt the legitimate security forces of the Government of the Islamic Republic of Afghanistan," said Lt. Col. Mike Smith, Regional Command-South spokesman. (Posted 1:28 p.m.)

19 bodies found in Baghdad

BAGHDAD (CNN) -- Nineteen slain bodies were found dumped in the Iraqi capital of Baghdad on Saturday, an Interior Ministry official said.

This brings the total of unidentified bodies found in the capital during July to 113.

The bodies were bullet-riddled and unidentified. They are believed to be the victims of sectarian violence. (Posted 1:09 p.m.)

Areas of Arizona, Nevada, California remain under heat warnings

(CNN) -- Western states braced Saturday for another day of blistering temperatures, according to the National Weather Service, and the agency maintained heat warnings for sweltering areas of Arizona, Nevada and California.

Temperatures in Las Vegas -- where the Thursday temperature tied the all-time high of 117 degrees -- were expected to soar as high as 114 degrees, the National Weather Service said.

And as of early Saturday, temperatures in Phoenix had already reached the mid-90s, according to CNN meteorologist Reynolds Wolf. In Billings, Mont., the temperature had reached 97 degrees, Wolf said. (Posted 12:46 p.m.)

Iranian diplomats in Iraq meet with 5 detained Iranians

BAGHDAD (CNN) -- Iranian diplomats on Saturday for the first time met with five Iranians detained in Iraq, in a "consular visit" organized by the Iraqi Foreign Ministry as a "humanitarian gesture."

Iraq's Foreign Ministry issued a statement about the meeting, also confirmed by a brief report in Iran's Islamic Republic News Agency.

The ministry said Iran's ambassador to Iraq and two other Iranian diplomats from the Islamic Republic's embassy in Baghdad visited the five people, detained Jan. 11 in Irbil, near the Iranian border in Iraq's Kurdish region.

"We hope that this humanitarian gesture will help to ease tensions and facilitate further dialogue between the two countries," Iraqi Foreign Minister Hoshyar Zebari said in a statement.

Zebari's statement expressed appreciation for "the close cooperation with the U.S. Embassy in Baghdad and the Multinational Force Command to help organize this visit." (Posted 11:56 a.m.)

Freed British BBC journalist arrives in Britain

(CNN) -- BBC journalist Alan Johnston arrived in his native Britain Saturday after spending four months in captivity in Gaza at the hands of a radical Palestinian group, according to the BBC press office.

Johnston, 45, left from Tel Aviv aboard a British Airways flight Saturday morning. After touching down in London, he is scheduled to continue on to Scotland, where his family awaits.

The correspondent was released Tuesday this week after suffering what he described as the most "appalling experience." (Posted 11:30 a.m.)

John Mark Karr arrested in domestic violence incident

ATLANTA (CNN) -- A former suspect in the killing of JonBenet Ramsey was arrested early Saturday in a suburban Atlanta city after a 911 call of domestic violence, police in Sandy Springs told CNN on Saturday.

John Mark Karr, 42, is charged with battery and obstruction of a 911 call, Lt. Keith Zgonc, of the Sandy Springs police, said.

The killing of the 6-year-old children beauty queen has been a mystery. The girl's beaten and strangled body was found December 26, 1996, in the basement of her parents' home in Colorado.

Karr was arrested in Bangkok, Thailand, last year in connection with the slaying and brought to Colorado, but his DNA failed to match that found on the child's underwear nearly a decade ago. (Posted 11:05 a.m.)

2 British soldier deaths reported in Iraq

BAGHDAD (CNN) -- The British Defense Ministry on Saturday reported two British troop deaths in Iraq.

A British soldier was killed on Saturday in a bomb explosion in the southern Iraqi city of Basra during a "very large" operation staged overnight by British forces,

Three soldiers were wounded -- one seriously -- when troops encountered small arms fire and homemade bombs while operating in Basra's Jumhuriya district, the ministry said.

The operation yielded "very important finds," such as weapons and munitions, a ministry spokesman told CNN.

Another soldier died on Friday at the Basra Palace base in Basra city center. (Posted 10:44 a.m.)

Fighting in Shiite cities reported; Al-Maliki urges Sadrist movement to distance itself from violent militants with links to the group

BAGHDAD (CNN) -- Conflict between a notorious Shiite militia and security forces has been raging in two southern Iraqi cities, Iraqi officials told CNN, and at least 11 deaths have been reported on Saturday in those towns -- both capitals of largely Shiite provinces.

U.S. and Iraqi forces in Diwaniya on Saturday conducted raids against fighters in the Mehdi Army, the militia of anti-American Shiite cleric Muqtada al-Sadr. And fighting has been reported in Samawa.

Such violence prompted an exhortation from country's prime minister to the al-Sadr movement to firmly distance itself from lawless and violent militants who purport to be part of the group.

Al-Sadr movement leaders must "make significant and clear decisions in order not to bear the responsibility of others who may be using their names in these acts of killing, terrorism and lawlessness," Prime Minister Nuri al-Maliki's office said. (Posted 10:10 a.m.)

2 Task Force Marne soldiers killed in bombing, bringing number of U.S. troop deaths on Friday to six

BAGHDAD (CNN) -- Two Task Force Marne soldiers were killed and two were wounded in a roadside bombing on Friday south of Baghdad, the U.S. military said on Saturday.

These are among 12 U.S. troops that have died in Iraq on Thursday and Friday -- all but one in combat operations.

The number of American military killed in the Iraq war stands at 3,602, according to a CNN count. (Posted 9:02 a.m.)

6 killed, 22 wounded in Baghdad suicide bombing

BAGHDAD (CNN) -- Six people were killed and 22 others were wounded when a suicide car bomb struck soldiers at an Iraqi army checkpoint in southeastern Baghdad, the Interior Ministry said.

The incident occurred about 2 p.m. Among the dead were five soldiers and among the wounded were four soldiers. The incident occurred in the Zayouna district. (Posted 8:48 a.m.)

Freed British BBC journalist on way home

(CNN) -- BBC journalist Alan Johnston was flying home to his native Britain on Saturday after spending four months in captivity in Gaza at the hands of a radical Palestinian group, according to the Foreign Press Association.

Johnston, 45, left from Tel Aviv aboard a British Airways Flight Saturday morning and was scheduled to touch down in London before continuing on to Scotland, where his family awaits.

The correspondent was released Tuesday this week after suffering what he described as the most "appalling experience." (Posted 7:52 a.m.)

4 killed, 9 detained in Iraq raids

BAGHDAD (CNN) -- Coalition forces in Iraq on Saturday conducted a series of raids that resulted in the killings of four militants and the detention of nine suspected insurgents, the U.S. military said.

The raids took place in Khan Bani Saad, in Diyala province; Hit, in Anbar province; and Mosul, in Nineveh province and targeted al Qaeda in Iraq, the military said in a statement.

"We're continuing to chip away at the senior leadership and low-level operatives involved in al-Qaeda in Iraq," said Maj. Marc Young, an MNF-I spokesman. (Posted 7:44 a.m.)

British soldier killed in action during 'very large' operation in Basra

BAGHDAD (CNN) -- One British soldier was killed in a bomb explosion in the southern Iraqi city of Basra during a "very large" operation staged overnight by British forces, the Ministry of Defence said Saturday.

Three soldiers were wounded -- one seriously -- when troops encountered small arms fire and homemade bombs while operating in Basra's Jumhuriya district, the ministry said.

The operation yielded "very important finds," such as weapons and munitions, a ministry spokesman told CNN.

Since the start of the war in 2003, more than 150 British soldiers have been killed in Iraq.

The number of British troops in Iraq was recently reduced from 7,000 to 5,500.

On Thursday Iraq Prime Minister Nuri al-Maliki said he wants to see Iraqi forces taking over security control in the southern city and province of Basra, where the British troops are based, within three months, the prime minister's office said.(Posted 5:49 a.m.)

Outdoor market bomb attack kills 25 in northern Iraq

BAGHDAD (CNN) -- A suicide car bomber targeting a busy market in a northern Iraqi village killed at least 25 people and wounded 50 others Saturday morning, a Tuz Khurmatu police official said.

The bomb exploded at around 9 a.m. (1 a.m. ET) in Amerli -- a village predominately populated by Shiite Turkmen and Kurds located about 100 miles north of Baghdad.

The blast also damaged at least six houses.

Meanwhile, Iraq's Interior Ministry on Saturday increased the death toll from a suicide bomb attack on an outdoor market to 26. The ministry said 33 others were wounded in the attack, which took place Friday evening in a Kurdish village near the town of Jalawla, about 75 miles northeast of Baghdad. (Posted 4:48 a.m.)

Coalition, Afghan forces locked in battle with militants

(CNN) -- Coalition and Afghan National Security forces were locked in a two-hour long gunfight with militants Saturday morning in southern Afghanistan's Helmand province, the U.S.-led coalition command said.

A "platoon-size" group of militants fired indirect mortar rounds and rocket-propelled grenades at the troops in Nahr Surkh district.

The command said troops were using direct fire against the militants to "minimize the chance of hurting innocent Afghans."

Coalition forces became engaged in the battle after witnessing "insurgent indirect fire landing in a nearby civilian compound." (Posted 4:15 a.m.)

3,600 American deaths in Iraq since war's start

BAGHDAD (CNN) -- U.S. troop casualties in Iraq have been on the rise in recent months, correlating with the increase of troops there -- a build up the Bush administration calls a "surge."

This year's April-June period was the deadliest three months for U.S. troops since the start of the war in March 2003.

The number of American military killed in the Iraq war stands at 3,600, according to a CNN count. (Posted 3:47 a.m.) E-mail to a friend