Daily News from New York, New York • 8

Wmm p-nsnn iUUUL Solid support in Senate, House By RICHARD SISK DAILY NEWS WASHINGTON BUREAU WASHINGTON Congress gave President Bush the power early today to make war on Iraq if Saddam Hussein fails to disarm. fl I The approval came in a late-night Senate session at which the senators, in a 77-to-23 vote, added their assent to a resolution that passed the House hours earlier. Bush now has the disarm-or-else authority he sought for an attack on Iraq, with or without United Nations backing. The President hailed the solid House endorsement, which gave him stronger support than his father, former President George Bush, received in 1991 in a 250-to-183 House vote authorizing the Persian Gulf War. The House "has spoken clearly to the world and to the UN Security Council the gathering threat of Iraq must be confronted fully and finally," Bush said yesterday in the Roosevelt Room of the White House.

New York Sens. Chuck Schumer and Hillary Clinton voted for the resolution. "In the post-91 1 world, inaction is not an option," Schumer said during the Senate debate, which culminated in the 1 a.m. vote. Six of 221 House Republicans opposed the resolution, which cites the "continuing threat" to the U.S.

posed by Iraq's weapons of mass destruction. Democrats mostly ignored the backing of the resolution by House Minority Leader Dick Gephardt (D-Mo.) and voted, 126 to 81, against the authorization. In the Senate, Bush won the support of Majority Leader Tom Daschle who said the resolution would be "a statement of American resolve and values" that could avoid war by pressure ing the UN to approve unconditional in spections that would rid Iraq of terror weapons. Clinton called the vote her most important since taking office, but she urged Bush to use it to press the UN for unlimited inspections before going to war. "Use these powers wisely and as a last resort," Clinton advised Bush.

"War can yet be avoided." But Sen. Ted Kennedy (D-Mass.) said only Congress has the power to declare war. "We must not delegate that responsibility to the President in advance," he said. Five demonstrators staged a peaceful protest in Clinton's midtown office for nine hours yesterday. The protesters left voluntarily at 10 p.m., a Clinton aide said.

Divided Democrats House Democrats from the city and its suburbs were divided, 8 to 7, in favor of the resolution. The four area Republicans Reps. Vito Fossella of Staten Island, Pete King of Nassau, Felix Grucci of Suffolk and Benjamin Gilman, representing the northern suburbs were in favor. New York Democratic Reps. Joe Crowley, Gary Ackerman, Eliot Engel, Nita Lowey, Carolyn Maloney and Anthony Weiner supported the resolution, as did Long Island Reps.

Carolyn McCarthy and Steve Israel. Voting against it were New York Democratic Reps. Charles Rangel, Gregory Meeks, Jerrold Nadler, Major Owens, Jose Serrano, Edolphus Towns and Nydia Velazquez. i AP Majority values." Throwing Ms support behind the Iraq resolution, Senate it "a statement of American resolve and (Softy craDDCxs oop tieoroir rattcCn Al Qaeda fingerprints on French tanker blast Leader Tom Daschle (D-SJ).) called was an audiotape of al-Zawahiri, who is Bin Laden's second-in-command. On the tape, al-Zawahiri promised continued attacks on "America and its allies." On Monday, an audiotape was released in which a voice claiming to be Bin Laden's promised an imminent attack on America's "economic The FBI's decision to issue the warning was bolstered by "knowledge of ongoing plotting by Al Qaeda members.

The bureau also said it had learned of recent Al Qaeda appeals to extremist groups to strike U.S. forces in Kuwait, Jordan, Qatar and Bahrain. Authorities are investigating whether two men who shot at U.S. troops in Kuwait on Monday, killing one Marine, are tied to Al Qaeda. And officials investigating Sunday's tanker explosion in Yemen are calling it a terrorist act.

AL MUKALLA, Yemen The fiery explosion aboard a French oil tanker in the Arabian Sea was the result of a terror attack, U.S. and French officials concluded yesterday. The Americans said it was most likely carried out by people with links to Al Qaeda. ry Investigators from France, Yemen and the United States had been trying to determine what caused the blaze on the Limburg that killed one crew member and sent 90,000 barrels of oil pouring into the Gulf of Aden on Sunday. "It's become clear it's an act of terrorism," a U.S.

intelligence official in Washington said on the condition of anonymity. Fiberglass debris from what was likely an attacking boat has been found on the supertanker, a French inspector said. Al Qaeda would consider an oil tanker an economic target, the U.S. official said. Recent statements from Al Qaeda leaders have suggested attacks on economic targets are imminent.

News ttrfre Sefics In a statement released to law enforcement agencies across America, the bureau said several factors indicate Al Qaeda foot soldiers are already in place with specific plans. Despite the FBI alert, the Office of Homeland Security did not raise the nation's alert level, as it did for the anniversary of the Sept. 1 1 attacks. Much of the heightened anxiety is attributed to taped threats against America by Al Qaeda leaders Osama Bin Laden and his top lieutenant, Ay-man al-Zawahiri, released this week. The statements "suggest that an attack may have been approved, while the specific timing is left to operatives in the field," the bureau said in a statement.

It said a "senior detainee" told the FBI, "Al Qaeda would only release such a taped statement after approving a specific plan for an attack." On Tuesday, the satellite TV network Al Jazeera released what it said By MICHELE McPHEE and GREG B. SMITH DAIUf NEWS STAFF WRITERS The city went on high alert yesterday after federal officials became convinced new taped threats by Al Qaeda leaders indicate an attack against America is in the works. Police sent an armored vehicle to Wall Street and beefed up patrols around bridges, tunnels and other possible targets such as City Hall, FBI headquarters and 1 Police Plaza. "Although there is no specific threat to New York City or any other location, the New York City Police Department has increased security at sensitive locations out of an abundance of caution," Police Commissioner Raymond Kelly said. Despite the shadowy and unspecif-ic hints, the FBI said it believes a mission has been approved by Al Qaeda leadership.

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