US foreign intelligence wiretaps rose in 2007

WASHINGTON- Wiretaps approved by a secret U.S. court overseeing foreign intelligence rose last year, even as Congress was debating a Bush administration request for more authority to fight terrorism.
The Justice Department said on Wednesday that government applications to the Foreign Intelligence Surveillance Court for wiretap approval rose to 2,371 in 2007, from 2,176 a year earlier.
The court's approval is required to intercept a call involving an American or calls routed through the United States.
It was the fifth annual increase in wiretap approvals since the Sept. 11 attacks in 2001 spurred President George W. Bush's administration to incorporate foreign intelligence wiretaps into its strategy to fight global terrorism.
Civil liberties groups and other opponents, angered by a secret warrantless domestic wiretapping program have urged sharp restrictions and oversight of the wiretaps.
The latest figures were released as the Justice Department announced it was reorganizing its national security division, which represents the government before the secret court, to cope with the increased workload and staff.