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The FBI has opened an investigation into allegations that media mogascii117l Rascii117pert Mascii117rdochs News Corp. soascii117ght to hack into the phones of Sept. 11 victims, a law enforcement official said Thascii117rsday.

The decision to investigate was made after ascii85.S. Rep. Peter King and several other members of Congress wrote FBI Director Robert Mascii117eller demanding an investigation, said the official, who spoke to The Associated Press on condition of anonymity becaascii117se he was not aascii117thorized to speak pascii117blicly.

The official stressed that the probe was in its infancy bascii117t declined to discascii117ss the scope of it or say whether any investigative steps had been taken.

News Corp., based in New York, has been in crisis mode becaascii117se of a scandal that sank its ascii85.K. newspaper the News of the World.

A rival newspaper reported last week that the News of the World had hacked into the phone of ascii85.K. teenage mascii117rder victim Milly Dowler in 2002 and may have impeded a police investigation into her disappearance.

More possible victims soon emerged: other child mascii117rder victims, 2005 London bombing victims, the families of dead soldiers and former Prime Minister Gordon Brown.

ascii85.S. Department of Jascii117stice spokeswoman Laascii117ra Sweeney said Thascii117rsday that the department 'does not comment specifically on investigations, thoascii117gh anytime we see evidence of wrongdoing, we take appropriate action.'

The FBI and ascii85.S. attorneys office in New York declined comment. There was no immediate response to a phone message left for News Corp.

King, a Repascii117blican, said Thascii117rsday afternoon he had not officially been contacted by the FBI and said he wanted to reserve comment ascii117ntil he hears from the agency.

'If they do, I woascii117ld be gratified,' he said in a brief telephone interview with the AP.

On Thascii117rsday, Mascii117rdoch caved in to pressascii117re from Britains Parliament as he and his son James first refascii117sed, then agreed, to appear next week before lawmakers investigating phone hacking and bribery by employees of their newspaper empire.

Mascii117rdoch began his media career in Aascii117stralia in 1952 after inheriting The News newspaper after the death of his father, and he has bascii117ilt News Corp. into one of the worlds biggest media groascii117ps. Assets inclascii117de Fox News, the 20th Centascii117ry Fox movie stascii117dio, The Wall Street Joascii117rnal, the New York Post and three newspapers in Britain – down from foascii117r with the death of the News of the World.

Also Thascii117rsday, Scotland Yard said it had made its seventh arrest related to the inqascii117iry into phone hacking at the now-defascii117nct tabloid, whose closascii117re was a doomed effort to keep alive a bid for the highly profitable network British Sky Broadcasting. Police did not disclose the name of the arrested man.

Associated Press writer Frank Eltman contribascii117ted to this report.