AMSTERDAM – Dutch police detained two men who flew from Chicago to Amsterdam on Sunday night after U.S. screeners found suspicious-looking items in their checked luggage before they departed, U.S law enforcement officials said Monday.

Security screeners found a cell phone taped to a Pepto-Bismol bottle, three cell phones taped together and a number of watches taped together, prompting American officials to alert Dutch authorities. One of the men was also carrying $7,000 cash.

Federal air marshals were on the flight. U.S. officials said it was too early to confirm an ABC News report that the men were staging a dry run with “mock bombs.”

Nation

ACLU challenges feds in terror war

The American Civil Liberties Union and the Center for Constitutional Rights filed a federal lawsuit Monday in Washington challenging the U.S. government’s authority to target and kill U.S. citizens outside of war zones when they are suspected of involvement in terrorism.

The groups were retained by the father of Anwar al-Aulaqi, a radical U.S.-born cleric hiding in Yemen.

Arizona is sued again over illegals

The Justice Department filed another lawsuit against immigration practices by Arizona authorities, saying Monday that a network of community colleges acted illegally in requiring non-citizens to provide their green cards before they could be hired for jobs.

Murder charge filed in 2 Alaska slayings

A man charged in the slayings of two police officers in a tiny Alaska village was accused of viciously attacking the same officers after they responded to a call about an intruder last year.

John Marvin Jr., 45, is charged with murder on allegations he ambushed Hoonah officers Tony Wallace and Matt Tokuoka as they chatted near his home Saturday. He surrendered Monday after a standoff with police.

Manure 8 feet deep at Iowa egg farms

Federal investigators found piles of manure up to 8 feet tall and live mice, pigeons and other birds inside the hen houses at two Iowa egg farms suspected of causing a nationwide outbreak of salmonella illness, officials said Monday.

World

Alleged drug lord arrested in Mexico

Mexican police on Monday captured Edgar Valdez Villarreal, alias “the Barbie,” a Texas-born alleged drug kingpin who has been blamed for a turf war that has included bodies hung from bridges and shootouts in central Mexico.

31-ton drill begins work on Chile mine

An enormous drill began preliminary work Monday on carving a half-mile chimney through solid rock to free the 33 men trapped in a Chilean mine. The 31-ton drill bored 50 feet into the rock, the first step in the weeklong digging of a “pilot hole” to guide the way for the rescue.

North Korea tells of Kim’s trip to China

North Korea confirmed Monday that its leader, Kim Jong Il, had visited northeastern China. Kim hobnobbed with top Chinese officials, including President Hu Jintao, and toured factories, state media reported.