TWO CHARGED WITH AIRPLANE BOMB PLOT

A bomb that exploded on aPhilippinesAirline flight en route from Manila to Tokyo last December, killing a Japanese passenger, was part of a broad conspiracy to blow up airliners on Asian routes, according to an indictment unsealed today in New York City. Two men are charged in the conspiracy:Ramzi Ahmed Yousef, the suspected mastermind of the1993 World Trade Center bombing, and Abdul Hakim Murad, a Yousef associate. Yousef was arrested in Pakistan in February and extradited to the U.S. Murad was arrested at Yousef's Manila apartment in January, and was extradited to the U.S. yesterday. Police believe the two men had been hatching a plot to kill Pope John Paul II during his Asian trip.