WORLD BRIEFS

ISRAEL: Netanyahu on his way

Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu sets off this week on a U.S. visit clouded by a deepening rift with Washington, which is pressing Israel to hold off on any attack against Iran's nuclear program. A strike by Israel would have deep worldwide implications. Senior Israeli officials say Israel would have to act by summer in order to be effective. U.S. officials want to give diplomacy and sanctions more time. Netanyahu is to arrive Monday. Defense Minister Ehud Barak arrived in Washington on Wednesday.

SEYCHELLES: Rift at sea over disabled ship

The disabled cruise ship Costa Allegra was spending an extra 10 to 12 hours at sea without electricity, air conditioning or toilet facilities because a French fishing vessel that was first to respond refused to give way to faster tug boats, a Seychelles government official said. A spokesman for the cruise line denied that the tow would have been faster with the tugs and said the disabled ship was always scheduled to reach the Seychelles' main port, Victoria, on Thursday. The head of the France-based company that owns the tuna boat pulling the limping ship said the cruise line was the decision-maker. The government minister, Joel Morgan, told The Associated Press the Costa Allegra probably would have arrived in port Wednesday night if the tugs had been allowed to take over.

PORTUGAL: No extradition for fugitive

Portugal won't extradite George Wright to the United States for crimes he committed four decades ago, after the United States ran out of possibilities to appeal the decision to let him stay, a Portuguese court official said. Wright, 68, was captured near Lisbon in September, ending his more than 40 years on the lam after escaping from a New Jersey prison. In November, a Lisbon court refused a U.S. request to send Wright back to serve the rest of his 15- to 30-year term for the 1962 killing of a New Jersey gas station attendant during a robbery. The statute of limitations had expired, a judge ruled.