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Al-Jazeera bureau ordered closed

BAGHDAD - The Iraqi government closed the Iraqi offices of the Arab television station Al-Jazeera for 30 days, accusing it Saturday of inciting violence.

A spokesman for Al-Jazeera called the closure "unwise" and said it restrained freedom of the press.

"It is a regrettable decision, but Al-Jazeera will endeavor to cover the situation in Iraq as best as we can within the constraints," Jihad Ballout said.

Interim Prime Minister Ayad Allawi said the government convened an independent commission a month ago to monitor Al-Jazeera's daily coverage "to see what kind of violence they are advocating, inciting hatred and problems and racial tension."

Based on the commission's finding, the National Security Committee ordered the monthlong closure, Allawi said.

Iraqi Interior Minister Falah al-Naqib said the closure was intended to give the station "a chance to readjust their policy against Iraq."

"They have been showing a lot of crimes and criminals on TV, and they transfer a bad picture about Iraq and about Iraqis and encourage criminals to increase their activities," he said. "We want to protect our people."

FORT BRAGG, N.C. - The pretrial hearing for a soldier photographed with naked Iraqi prisoners recessed Saturday without a ruling on whether Vice President Dick Cheney and other high-ranking administration officials must testify - and without the photos being accepted into evidence.

Military judge Col. Denise Arn recessed the Article 32 hearing for Pfc. Lynndie England until she reviews defense requests to call dozens of witnesses, including Cheney, Defense Secretary Donald Rumsfeld and top Army generals.

"It is my intent to complete this investigation as soon as possible," Arn told attorneys. Defense attorney Rick Hernandez said the case could resume the week of Aug. 30.

The hearing is to determine whether England, a 21-year-old reservist with the Maryland-based 372nd Military Police Company, should face a court-martial on 13 counts of abusing detainees and six counts stemming from possession of sexually explicit photos.

NATO launched its training mission for Iraqi forces Saturday, sending a small group of officers to Iraq to consult with authorities and prepare logistics.

The NATO Training Implementation Mission, led by Dutch Air Force Maj. Gen. Carel Hilderink, will initially consist of about 45 people. The first four officers left for Iraq on Saturday from a command center in Naples, and the remainder should deploy next week, NATO said in a statement.

"The guys will essentially start work right away, establishing contact, offering advice and preparing the long-term training," spokesman Robert Pszczel said at alliance headquarters in Brussels, Belgium.

BAGHDAD - A Turkish company decided to pull out of Iraq after television broadcast a video Saturday purportedly showing a kidnapped Turkish truck driver in Iraq pleading with colleagues to stay out of the country.

Meanwhile, Jordan said a businessman had escaped his Iraqi captors and returned home. In Lebanon, the father of two brothers kidnapped while taking electric generators to Iraq appealed for their release, saying they were not working for the Americans.

The Turkish transport company Atahan Lojistik decided to pull out of Iraq after the video of its employee was shown in the video Saturday, according to a statement released by Hasan Tarhan, a partner in the company.