Series of EmergencyNet News "Real-Time" Reports Concerning Allied Retaliatory Strikes
Against Afghanistan: 20 Oct to 23 Mar 2002 (Part 4 of 4)

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23 Mar 2002

Al-Qaeda Anthrax Lab Reportedly Found In Afghanistan

AFGHANISTAN: A US official told the New York Times that authorities believe an al-Qaeda laboratory under construction near Kandahar, Afghanistan was designed to develop anthrax. The official said: "It is another example that they had an appetite for developing biological agents." US Central Command found no biological agents in the laboratory, which was apparently still under construction when it was abandoned.

US intelligence officials still believe that al-Qaeda would need assistance from foreign experts or foreign governments to mount an effective program to make weapons of mass destruction. The Times reported that more than 60 sites have been investigated and more than 370 samples have been taken, but in only five cases were there any apparent indications of possible biological agents and then only in tiny amounts. The Times of London also reported Saturday that US troops had uncovered an advanced al-Qaeda biological weapons lab in a mountain cave in Afghanistan.

From: ERRI DAILY INTELLIGENCE REPORT-Wednesday, March 20, 2002-Vol. 8 - 079

U.S. COUNTERTERRORISM OPERATIONS:

US Forces Come Under Attack In Afghanistan

AFGHANISTAN: A US military spokesman said gunmen attacked US coalition forces in eastern Afghanistan, sparking a clash that lasted several hours. Members of the ousted Taliban regime and Usama bin Laden's al-Qaeda terror network were blamed for the overnight assault on a base in the town of Khost. A US Army spokesman said one US soldier was wounded.

Khost is at the southeastern end of the valley where the recent Operation Anaconda was staged. The attack on Khost came less than a day after gunmen challenging the authority of the city's newly- appointed police chief shot at security forces, killing one person and injuring three others. The spokesman for the US Army 10th Mountain Division stationed at Bagram air base, said: "Coalition forces in the Khost area were attacked by Taliban and al-Qaeda extremists using rocket- propelled grenades, mortars and machine guns."

The gun battle occurred in the city's main market. Khost is close to the Pakistani border in an area of strong support for the Taliban and al-Qaeda. There have been several bombings and shootings there in recent weeks.

TODAY'S CENTRAL FOCUS:

U.S. Raid Leaves 16 Al-Qaeda Dead

AFGHANISTAN: US military officials said US special forces killed 16 suspected al-Qaeda fighters and captured two others in a raid on a convoy in eastern Afghanistan on Sunday even as Operation Anaconda came to an end. US Air Force Brigadier General John Rosa, deputy director of current operations of the Joint Chiefs of Staff said US forces also raided a compound west of Kandahar at about the same time, detaining 31 people and seizing weapons and ammunition.

News of the raids came as the Pentagon declared the end of Operation Anaconda after 17 days. The US-led offensive cleared the Shahi Kot valley of Taliban and al-Qaeda fighters, but left eight US soldiers dead and nearly 50 wounded, the highest US casualty toll of the war. Rosa said: "Operation Anaconda is complete, but Operation Enduring Freedom and operations in Afghanistan still continue. We still have teams operating in the area, looking for any remaining Taliban and al-Qaeda, searching caves and in other positions they may have occupied."

Rosa said US special forces in helicopters on Sunday intercepted three vehicles traveling south on the roads leading away from the Operation Anaconda area, sparking a clash that left 16 men dead. He said the convoy had been under observation "for quite some time. At the start of the operation we came in with the helicopters, and they fired warning shots for them to stop. At that time, we were fired back on. So we took out those first three vehicles."

US forces on the ground launched the assault on the convoy after the helicopters were fired on. Two people were detained, including one wounded. Rocket propelled grenades, small arms and ammunition were found in the vehicles.

A US defense official speaking on condition of anonymity said: "We're identifying them as al-Qaeda." The raid occurred about 45 miles south of Gardez in an area that has been under US surveillance for some time as a suspected al-Qaeda haven. It was close to Shikin, a village in Paktia province on Afghanistan's eastern border with Pakistan, opposite Pashtun tribal areas that have been sympathetic in the past to the Taliban and al-Qaeda.

Rosa said the convoy was moving away from the area where US forces have been engaged in Operation Anaconda, but it was not known if they were fighters fleeing the Shahi Kot valley.

U.S. COUNTERTERRORISM OPERATIONS:

Rumsfeld Says Operation Anaconda Fighting Winding Down

WASHINGTON: U.S. Defense Secretary Donald Rumsfeld said on Friday that combat operations are "winding down" in eastern Afghanistan with troops searching caves and clearing areas where fighting took place. U.S. Marine Corps General Peter Pace, vice chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, said that U.S., coalition and Afghan forces involved in the operation now number fewer than 1,000. Rumsfeld said the searchers are finding weapons, ammunition, and some intelligence information.

Both Rumsfeld and Pace refused to give estimates of total enemy forces killed and escaped, saying the number is not knowable. Pace, however, was able to give details about an incident during the fighting in which an enemy vehicle was attacked and destroyed. U.S. troops subsequently found eight dead fighters in the vehicle, along with three dead women and three dead children. One additional child was found alive but injured, and was immediately evacuated to a military field hospital for treatment.

Rumsfeld also announced: "We have ... pretty much completed the work as to how the military commissions generally will be conducted, in the event someone is ultimately appointed to be tried by a commission. We've come to conclusions with respect to six, eight, ten, twelve of the critical issues, and then some of the decisions can be left to the convening authorities, as is the case in most judicial systems."

He added that however, "We have made no decisions with respect to who might or might not be assigned to a commission." He declined to elaborate on the issues that had been decided, saying, "if I were to give you a quick cursory summary, it would be pieces. And it seems to me it's critically important for people to look at the totality of it. Therefore, when we release it, it will be released in writing. There will be questions and answers, and we will see that there is as little confusion as is humanly possible."

WORLDWIDE INTELLIGENCE:

More Terror Manuals Found In Al-Qaeda Caves

AFGHANISTAN: A US military spokesman said that coalition forces have recovered terror manuals and bodies from caves used by al-Qaeda and Taliban fighters in their last known Afghan stronghold. DNA tests are now being carried out on the remains of the bodies found after the extremists were killed in the caves around the Shahi Kot valley in eastern Paktia province. Ten caves had been searched so far by Canadian and US forces as part of Operation Harpoon.

The operation, under Canadian operational command, is being conducted as part of Operation Anaconda, the 14-day US-led offensive against the stronghold of Taliban and al-Qaeda hardline fighters. The search through the caves have yielded intelligence including manuals for terrorist activities in various languages including Arabic. The US spokesman

said: "Afghan soldiers continue to secure the valley floor and US and Canadian light infantry continue to conduct sensitive sight exploitations in the heights around it."

Around 500 allied forces began searching through the caves on Wednesday. The searches have been slow and meticulous with fears that the departing fighters may have booby-trapped their former stronghold, but there have been no casualties so far.

U.S. COUNTERTERRORISM OPERATIONS:

No U.S. Support For Negotiated Escape Of Enemy Forces

WASHINGTON, DC: At a Pentagon briefing on Tuesday, U.S. Defense Department spokeswoman Victoria Clarke was asked to confirm reports that officials in the interim Afghan government were negotiating for the surrender of the remaining al-Qaeda and Taliban fighters inside the 60-square-mile pocket near Gardez in the Shah-I-Kot valley. Clarke replied: "There are not negotiations for surrender." Enemy forces "still have the means to surrender if they want. But we haven't seen any indications that they're inclined to do that." Nor is there any kind of pause in offensive operations to allow for surrender negotiations.

Later, Clarke was again asked whether she was aware of the interim government taking a position to allow some of the combatants "to be set free." "I'm not. I'm not," she said.

Following the briefing, the Defense Department issued a statement by Clarke, in which she said that the U.S. mission "is to capture or kill all al-Qaeda and Taliban leadership," that it "is not in anyone's interest for al-Qaeda or Taliban leadership to be permitted to go free," and that the interim Afghan government "is well aware of our position...and has been fully cooperative on this matter. We do not support releasing any al-Qaeda or Taliban leadership."

According to U.S. Air Force Brigadier General John Rosa, who briefed with Clarke, combat operations continue, and U.S. and coalition air forces flew 180 sorties in the previous 24 hours, dropping 100 bombs in the process. That brings the total number of bombs dropped in Operation Anaconda, which began on 2 March, to 2,500. U.S. force strength involved in the combat operation remains at about 1,200. U.S. casualties remain at eight killed and 49 wounded, with 34 of the latter now returned to action.

Rosa said the pace of operations is not as intense as it was in the first few days. Al-Qaeda forces are now fewer in number, and are "holed up in small pockets" throughout the area, he said. An area of high ridges that from the air resemble a whale's back is a current focus of attack. He also noted that the combat area contains about 40 caves, and that U.S. and coalition forces would be going through them very cautiously.

From: ERRI DAILY INTELLIGENCE REPORT-Monday, March 11, 2002-Vol. 8, NO. 070

U.S. COUNTERTERRORISM OPERATIONS

Mountain Battle Said To Be Over

AFGHANISTAN: According to the US Army, the bulk of the fighting to oust al-Qaeda and Taliban forces from mountain hideouts in eastern Afghanistan is now over and it has withdrawn 400 troops from the battle. Helicopters flew battle-weary US troops back to Bagram air base north of the capital Kabul on Sunday -- part of a US-led force of about 2,000. A US military spokesman said he doubted they would be replaced.

A spokesman for the US Army's 10th Mountain Division said: "The major fighting of the battle is over." But he added that US forces were repositioning and operations in the area would continue. Earlier, US aircraft pounded the militants' positions in high, snow-covered mountains south of the town of Gardez, in Paktia province.

US troops have not received sustained and accurate fire from al-Qaeda in the past few days of Operation Anaconda. Air strikes resumed in earnest on Sunday after the skies cleared in the battle zone. Driving snow and high winds had held up the US-led offensive.

U.S. COUNTERTERRORISM OPERATIONS:

Assault On Al-Qaeda Stepped Up

AFGHANISTAN: Taking advantage of improved weather conditions, US jets continued pounding al-Qaeda and Taliban positions in Afghanistan's eastern mountains. US officials said US-led forces - including Afghan reinforcements - are preparing for a final push against the fighters in their mountain caves and bunkers. Driving snow and high winds in eastern Afghanistan had slowed Operation Anaconda, which began nine days ago south of the town of Gardez, in Paktia province.

Afghan fighters said the militants were running low on ammunition but the US-led operation had also been slowed by land mines. Clear skies on Sunday enabled helicopters to resupply 2,000 coalition troops operating in mountains soaring to 12,000 feet. A US army spokesman said US forces had not come under any sustained fire in the last 72 hours.

To help defeat the militants, the Afghan defense ministry has sent about 1,000 extra troops to the region. These consist mainly of Tajik troops of the former Northern Alliance, which has caused tension with local Pashtun leaders, who say their own forces are capable of defeating the Taliban and al-Qaeda fighters. Analysts say if the US wants to further increase the number of Afghan soldiers in the area they will have to tread warily, to ensure that ethnic divisions do not rise to the surface and threaten their operations.

U.S. COUNTERTERRORISM OPERATIONS

Pentagon SitRep Of Afghan Battle

WASHINGTON: A U.S. Defense Department spokesman said U.S., coalition and pro-government Afghan forces continue offensive operations against as many as 200 al-Qaeda and Taliban fighters in Afghanistan's Paktia province. U.S. Air Force Brigadier General John Rosa said on Friday: "We believe there are still a couple hundred al-Qaeda fighters remaining in the area, and we believe we've killed several hundred al-Qaeda and former Taliban troops since the beginning of this operation last Friday (1 March)." Nearly 200 sorties have been flown in the past 24 hours by long-range bombers, tactical aircraft, AC-130 gunships and attack helicopters, with about 75 bombs dropped.

Rosa said enemy forces are comprised of people from al-Qaeda, Taliban and the Islamic Movement of Uzbekistan. More than 2,000 U.S., pro- government Afghan and coalition forces are involved in the effort, named Operation Anaconda by the Pentagon. U.S. losses remain at eight killed, while the number of wounded has risen slightly to about 50. Of the 50 wounded, he added, nearly 30 have already returned to action because their wounds were so slight.

The number of detainees since military operations in Afghanistan began on 7 October has risen slightly, he said, to 225, including several turned over to U.S. forces by Pakistani and Afghan authorities. This is apart from the 300 detainees still being held at Guantanamo Bay, Cuba. The fighting over the most recent 36 hours is not as intense as it was at the start of the operation. Rosa attributed this to the fact that "as we collapse caves, as we force them out of their fighting positions, it's very difficult for them to get reorganized."

Nevertheless, Rosa said the enemy forces are still able to communicate with each other. He explained: "They are communicating. There's evidence of that. They know how to fight in that terrain, and they know how to communicate." Asked how U.S. forces will know when the battle is over, given the large area of combat operations, Rosa answered, "When do we know there's victory? When there's none left, and there's not any resistance."

From: ERRI DAILY INTELLIGENCE REPORT-Friday, March 8, 2002-Vol. 8 - 067

U.S. COUNTERTERRORISM OPERATIONS:

Afghan Battle Appears To Be Coming To An End

AFGHANISTAN: US and Afghan forces hope to be able to crush al-Qaeda and Taliban resistance as early as Saturday even as the opposition fighters dug into high mountain positions in eastern Afghanistan. US Defense Secretary Donald Rumsfeld said on Thursday: "It strikes me that it should end -- I would think it would end -- sometime this weekend or next week." Rumsfeld said there was no sign of surrender from the entrenched guerrillas, but he also said it was difficult to know how many were still alive.

On Friday, a senior US commander said that allied attacks overnight had caused numerous enemy casualties. Lieutenant Colonel Joe Smith, holding a news conference at Bagram air base, near Kabul, said the military had anticipated the current snow and bad weather but gave no details of whether it had affected operations. Rumsfeld labeled the enemy as "true dead-enders" -- mainly foreign forces who are fighting to the death or who, if they escaped, would immediately renew anti-US attacks.

More pro-US Afghan forces are being sent to the area, adding to the 2,000 Afghan and US troops, and special forces from various countries, who have been conducting Operation Anaconda since last Friday. A column of Northern Alliance tanks left Kabul for Paktia province on Thursday, as 1,000 fresh Afghan troops were ordered to the battle zone. But the weather is deteriorating badly, adding urgency to the operation to get in supplies before helicopter flights become too dangerous.

Commenting further on the ongoing combat operations, Rumsfeld said, "It's very hard to know what's going in and out of that area. We think we have observation posts everywhere that one needs them, so that people can neither get in nor out. But we can't be certain of that. And there's no doubt in my mind ... that an awful lot of people have been trying to get out and haven't been making it. But we can never know if it's all the people that were trying to get out."

Asked about steps being taken to seal off Afghanistan's border to Iran and Pakistan in order to prevent the escape of Taliban and al-Qaeda fighters, Rumsfeld said, "Their borders are porous. The area is populated by tribes that have, through hundreds of years, been moving back and forth across those borders like the borders aren't even there. The terrain is rugged." He added that preventing small numbers of people from escaping across the border is "something that's not really doable. It is doable if one's talking about very large forces. And fortunately, the Pakistani government has been just enormously cooperative. They have large numbers of soldiers along the border." He added that the United States is getting help from Uzbekistan and Tajikistan, but that the border with Iran "is as porous as it ever has been, going both ways."

Focusing specifically on Operation Anaconda, Rumsfeld said, "We have people all the way around the al-Qaida and Taliban folks who are in there ... so that people cannot get in there to reinforce ... or get out."

From: ERRI DAILY INTELLIGENCE REPORT-Thursday, March 7, 2002-Vol. 8, No. 066

U.S. COUNTERTERRORISM OPERATIONS:

US Troops Face Guerilla Tactics

AFGHANISTAN: Fierce fighting against Taliban and al-Qaeda forces is now in its sixth day as the United States military pours reinforcements into an area of eastern Afghanistan. Fresh troops, attack helicopters and low-flying ground attack planes have been called in. The US carried out a massive overnight aerial bombardment of enemy positions in caves high in the snow-covered mountains south of Gardez, in Paktia province.

Observers near the area said US bombers returned hour after hour in what appeared to be the heaviest air strikes since this operation began. The Taliban and al-Qaeda fighters -- who are said to include Chechens, Pakistanis and Uzbeks -- are reportedly mounting guerrilla-style resistance, using the tactics of mujahideen guerrillas who fought invading Soviet forces between 1979 and 1989. Small groups of fighters, four or five strong, dart out of caves and bunkers, rain down fire on advancing US and allied Afghan troops and then disappear back into their hideouts.

About 1,200 US troops have now been deployed in the operation -- codenamed Anaconda -- along with 800 allied Afghan fighters and 200 soldiers from other Western countries said to include Canada, Denmark and Norway. A US military spokesman said that about 1,000 Taliban and al-Qaeda fighters had taken part in nearly a week of fighting, but half of that number were now thought to have been killed. Wednesday alone saw an estimated 100 enemy fighters killed.

US Defense Secretary Donald Rumsfeld said at a Pentagon briefing: "The Afghan coalition forces are turning up the pressure on the al-Qaeda and Taliban forces in the mountains south of Gardez. The battle very likely will take some time to play out," but added that he believes "the outcome is reasonably assured," and that the al-Qaeda and Taliban forces "will either ... surrender or be killed in the days ahead."

Central Command CINC General Tommy Franks said he is generally pleased with the outcome so far. He said the U.S. troop strength in Afghanistan is now approximately 5,300 personnel, which is well below the number of coalition forces and the British-led International Security Force. Franks said five Marine attack helicopters, based on an assault ship nearby, and about a dozen Army Apache attack helicopters are being dispatched to the battle zone to reinforce the combat aircraft currently being used. He said the addition of another 200-300 troops inside the operation did not come as a surprise, but was part of "our plan to reposition our forces inside the objective area as necessary." Military operations, he noted, maintain a level of elasticity.

Major General Franklin Hagenback, who is at the Bagram Air Base and is in operational control of Operation Anaconda, had reported that he believed the coalition was facing 600 to 700 al-Qaeda and non-Afghan Taliban forces. Franks said at the Pentagon briefing he did not dispute that figure or that more al-Qaeda and Taliban fighters may have drifted into the battle zone from other safe havens. Franks also said that if the situation requires some modification of the U.S. troop strength in Afghanistan, then Washington would support it. But he stressed that did not mean an expansion of the military forces there.

German, Danish Peacekeepers Killed By Exploding Munitions

AFGHANISTAN: The chief of the German armed forces said three Danish and two German soldiers serving with the international peacekeeping force in Afghanistan were killed when munitions they were defusing accidentally exploded. The accident occurred when anti-aircraft missiles went off prematurely during explosives clean-up work in the Afghan capital, Kabul. A total of eight other soldiers were injured in the accident, three of them seriously.

In Berlin, officials said it was not immediately clear why the munitions had detonated but added that preliminary findings did not indicate any violation of security guidelines. The defense ministry said 860 German soldiers are currently serving with the 4,500-troop International Security Assistance Force (ISAF) charged with helping the interim Afghan government maintain order in Kabul and the surrounding area. The German troops have been tasked in particular with mine removal, munitions defusal and police duties.

Dutch and Danish soldiers are stationed with the German contingent, which is to number up to 1,200 troops by the end of April. Beyond the ISAF forces, both Germany and Denmark have special forces serving alongside US soldiers attempting to root out al-Qaeda forces in eastern Afghanistan. Denmark has 48 soldiers based in Afghanistan including 17 sappers, as well as some 100 special forces involved in combat alongside US troops.

AFGHANISTAN: In the mountains south of the town of Gardez, US-led forces in eastern Afghanistan say they have killed hundreds of the al-Qaeda and Taliban fighters who are holding out. One report said that up to 500 of the enemy had been killed. That number was thought to represent half the total of the enemy force. With ferocious air support, US-led ground troops have seized one of the cave complexes used by the rebels in the mountains outside Gardez -- capital of the Paktia Province.

In the face of the biggest ground assault of the war so far -- Operation Anaconda -- US officials said al-Qaeda resistance was weakening. But they warned that the operation was far from over. A US military spokesman said that, in a separate incident, US aircraft attacked what he described as a "convoy of heavily armed Taliban and al-Qaeda fighters" which he said was making its way to join others already fighting outside Gardez. The attack had left hundreds dead. An Afghan commander also mentioned the incident, saying it happened in an area called Lakatiga.

Meanwhile, Brigadier General John Rosa, deputy director of operations for the Joint Chiefs of Staff, confirmed that a total of eight Americans were killed during attacks on Chinook helicopters on Monday. Of 40 personnel wounded, 20 are now said to be back in combat.

Rosa said Tuesday at a Pentagon briefing: "We've been able to get into at least one of the cave complexes thus far, and we've discovered mortars, rocket-propelled grenade rounds, and small arms. And in a different location we found more weapons and ammunition, as well as foreign driver's licenses and foreign passports." Since the operation began late on 1 March, Air Force and Navy long-range bombers and tactical aircraft have dropped over 450 bombs in the mountains, as ground forces have been supported by A-10 ground attack combat jets and AC-130 Specter gunships.

The operation is the largest U.S.-led air and ground offensive launched since the war began five months ago, and involves U.S. Special Forces with pro-government Afghan forces, coalition special operations forces, and elements of the U.S. 10th Mountain Division and the 101st Airborne Division. It marks the first time U.S. conventional combat troops have entered combat.

U.S. COUNTERTERRORISM OPERATIONS

Afghan Militants Come Under Heavy US-Led Fire

AFGHANISTAN: Following a night of heavy US bombing, US-led ground troops in eastern Afghanistan are advancing closer to al-Qaeda and Taliban positions. A local Afghan commander said Afghan troops and US advisers were about 100 yards from the rebel hideouts -- about 20 miles from Gardez, capital of Paktia Province. The commander said the US bombing had stopped, but there was no sign of a rebel surrender.

A rebel commander quoted by the Pakistan-based Afghan Islamic Press news agency (AIP) said al-Qaeda and Taliban forces would fight to the end. The assault is led by US troops, who on Monday suffered the heaviest losses in combat since the war in Afghanistan began when two of their helicopters came under attack. At least seven US soldiers were killed.

Heavy fighting is continuing in the area. The local Afghan commander said: "The rebels are firing heavy machine guns and rocket-propelled grenades." He added that the Taliban and al-Qaeda fighters had become very weak and were running out of ammunition, but they were not giving up.

Besides those US soldiers killed, at least 40 US troops have been wounded since the fighting began on Saturday, about half of them serious enough to require medical evacuation. About 2,000 US-led troops, including about 900 Americans and some 200 European special forces troops, were taking part in Operation Anaconda, which on Tuesday went into in its fourth day. US Army General Tommy Franks, the commander of CentCom, estimated that between 100 and 200 al-Qaeda fighters have been killed.

US forces suffered their stiffest casualties of the war when US combat helicopters, operating at the limits of their capabilities at high altitudes, came under heavy fire ferrying troops in and out of battle on the mountainsides. One soldier was killed after apparently falling out of a special forces MH-47 helicopter that was hit by a rocket propelled grenade as it was flying low to the ground. The helicopter, which was hit by a rocket propelled grenade, made a hard landing a half mile away and only then did its crew discover that a soldier was missing. Six US soldiers were killed in a firefight. More than five others were wounded.

US Defense Secretary Donald Rumsfeld said: "They're, obviously, well- organized. They're dug in. They're well-armed. And they're fighting fiercely. We knew they would resist strongly, and anticipated a fierce fight. That is exactly what's taking place."

U.S. COUNTERTERRORISM OPERATION:

Major Assault In Afghanistan

AFGHANISTAN: After a major US-led ground offensive failed to dislodge fighters holed up in a suspected Taliban and al-Qaeda stronghold in eastern Afghanistan, US bombers continued their bombing runs. Afghan and US forces are reported to be gathering in Gardez, 20 miles north of the Shah-e-Kot mountain range, to renew their assault.

At least nine bombs were heard exploding within minutes of each other in the area on Sunday morning. They included two newly developed high- pressure fuel-air bombs which send suffocating blasts into underground positions. Afghan officials said their troops had come up against artillery, mortar and heavy machine gun fire on Saturday, and had made little headway against the al-Qaeda fighters. One American and three Afghan fighters were killed in the fighting, and there were many wounded.

Soldiers returning from the offensive said that some US advisers had been rescued by helicopters under intense fire after their four wheel- drive vehicles came under attack. An Afghan soldier injured in the assault said that the American was killed when a mortar round hit the vehicle he was riding in. About 30 US soldiers - special forces and troops from the Army's 101st Airborne assault troops - led 1,500 Afghan fighters in the operation. US Central Command said the size of the enemy force was unknown, but Afghan fighters said it numbered between 3,000 and 5,000.

U.S. COUNTERTERRORISM OPERATIONS:

Al-Qaeda Targets In Afghanistan Bombed By US Fighters

AFGHANISTAN: A suspected al-Qaeda base in eastern Afghanistan has been attacked and bombed by Afghan troops and US warplanes. The US bombers targeted hundreds of suspected al-Qaeda and Taleban fighters in the mountains about 20 miles east of Gardez, in Paktia province. A local commander said 1,000 Afghan soldiers were ready to attack the base. Up to 60 US Special Forces advisers are reported to be with the Afghan troops.

Pakistan has reportedly sealed off a 60 mile stretch of its nearby border to stop militants from escaping. Local Afghan officials said US planes began bombing hideouts around the mountain village of Shai Ko in the Arma hills on Friday night and that raids were continuing. A spokesman for the province's warlord, Padshah Khan Zadran, said the al-Qaeda and Taleban fighters were responding with rockets and heavy weapons.

A US military spokesman said American and Afghan forces were "moving methodically" to identify and eliminate al-Qaeda and Taleban fighters in eastern Afghanistan. There are believed to be up to 5,000 foreigners who fought for the Taleban and al-Qaeda still inside Afghanistan. More than 500 al-Qaeda and Taleban troops were believed concentrated in the hills.

Al-Qaeda And Taliban Forces Gathering In Gardez Area

WASHINGTON: A U.S. Defense Department spokesman said on Friday that the United States and coalition forces are observing hundreds of Taliban and al-Qaeda forces gathering in pockets in the area of Gardez, Afghanistan. U.S. Air Force Brigadier General John Rosa, deputy director of operations on the Joint Staff, said "we are seeing pockets of al-Qaeda and pockets of Taliban" around Gardez, a provincial capital southeast of Kabul and bordering Pakistan. Asked for the breakdown of Taliban and al-Qaeda in the pockets, Rosa answered, "There's hundreds of folks, and we don't know the makeup. But they're certainly not friendly."

Rosa said that the specific issue that caused a hunger strike by detainees at Camp X-ray in Guantanamo Bay Naval Base has been addressed, and the strike is subsiding. The incident occurred a few days ago, Rosa said, when a detainee was praying with something wrapped around his head, which was contrary to security precautions then in place. Two security personnel asked the detainee to remove the wrapping, but he refused, Rosa said, and so the security people removed it. The next day the hunger strike started.

As a result of discussions with the strikers, Pentagon spokeswoman Victoria Clarke said the detainees will now be allowed to wear some- thing fashioned as a turban, "because that is being sensitive ... to their religious beliefs. We will do periodic checks because of security concerns."

Clarke began the briefing by emphasizing the Japanese contribution to the anti-terrorism effort. She noted that Japan has three destroyers and two supply ships in the Indian Ocean, where they are refueling U.S. and British warships. In addition, about half of Japan's fleet of C-130 and U-4 aircraft are providing airlift support to the Afghanistan operation.

U.S. COUNTERTERRORISM OPERATIONS

General Franks Offers Afghan SitRep

Nearly 20,000 Afghan civilians have received medical care from military hospitals set up by U.S. and coalition forces in Afghanistan, General Tommy Franks said on Monday. At a press conference in Tampa, Florida, where U.S. Central Command is located, General Franks introduced two coalition military officers who gave details on field hospitals that their governments have established in Afghanistan. Jordanian Lieutenant Colonel Yousef al-Hnaity said Jordan opened a field hospital near Mazar- I Sharif on 8 January that has so far treated 18,000 civilian Afghan patients, including 12,000 women and children. The facility has 200 personnel, including 27 doctors, 45 nurses and 45 medics.

Spanish Brigadier General Fernando LaFuente said his country's hospital was established on 10 February in Bagram. He said the hospital treats 100 to 120 civilian patients daily. They have established two separate facilities, one just for women, staffed entirely by women doctors and nurses. The facility is able to provide medicines not just for the visit itself, LaFuente said, but for two or three weeks at a time.

General Franks announced that a survey team sent to Afghanistan to consider how to establish a national Afghan army will arrive in Tampa on 26 February. Franks said the United States is certain that a national army is needed for Afghanistan to replace the current, traditional situation of numerous tribal and ethnic forces not under central government control. But the composition and size of such an army are questions the survey team was sent to explore, Franks said. He added that the United States would like to improve the security situation in Afghanistan by having Afghans provide for their own security, but that he would wait for the report, which he would then forward to U.S. Defense Secretary Donald Rumsfeld, to determine how best to go about it.

Franks said he would not characterize the Hazar Qadam raid, in which 16 Afghans were killed, as an "intelligence failure." Nor would he say that U.S. forces involved were "trigger-happy." The compounds were studied closely over a period of time, but a decision was made to send in ground forces instead of calling in air strikes because U.S. military personnel were not absolutely certain of the situation on the ground. The two compounds were breached nearly simultaneously, and in one of them there was no initial firing. More than 20 persons were detained at this compound, he said, but then U.S. troops were fired on by two individuals, and return fire killed them both.

At the other compound, U.S. troops were fired on by multiple sources, and killed 14 in returning fire. Franks said: "The one mistake that I know was made was when people shot at American forces doing their job on the ground in Afghanistan."

From: ERRI DAILY INTELLIGENCE REPORT-Wednesday, February 13, 2002-Vol. 8 - 044

U.S. COUNTERTERRORISM OPERATIONS:

Strike Said Likely Killed Top Terrorist

By Paul Anderson, ERRI Analyst

WASHINGTON: A military source said intelligence analysts believe the United States killed one of Usama bin Laden's top finance minions in the 4 Febrauary Predator strike on a group of three suspicious figures in the Zawar Kili terrorist camp in Afghanistan. Despite media reports that three innocent civilians were killed by the CIA-operated Predator drone, two officials said they are convinced that al-Qaeda terrorists were targeted.

A second senior U.S. official said on Tuesday night that evidence is mounting that a senior al Qaeda member was killed in the attack. But he cautioned that the identity might not be confirmed by examination of human remains found at the scene by U.S. soldiers. The unnamed official said: "We may never identify these remains. We only have small bits of remains, and unless you've got something to compare it to, you never know." This source said it is "too hard" to obtain DNA samples from relatives. Other intelligence methods, however, may eventually determine who was killed in the attack by a missile fired from a remote-controlled aircraft.

The CIA can operate the Predator by remote control from stations thousands of miles from Afghanistan, including U.S. Central Command in Tampa, Florida, the Pentagon, and CIA headquarters in Langley, Virginia.

According to a report in Wednesday's edition of the Washington Times, the Predator spy plane had tracked the group for a number of hours as they and others moved around the Zawar Kili terror camp, one of Usama bin Laden's largest. The drone sent back video images that captured the targets trying to "camouflage their movements." A U.S. official

said: "People were observed in the camp doing things we associate with al-Qaeda, making security arrangements and things like that."

When the CIA and U.S. Central Command concurred the three men were a legitimate target, a CIA team was authorized to fire the Hellfire missile and steer it to the targets, who appeared to be hiding under a tree. One senior intelligence official told the Times: "There were pretty classic intelligence indications. We felt pretty confident it was the man himself, his deputy or the finance guy." The source said some analysts calculate that an al-Qaeda finance director was killed based on his physical characteristics and "other intelligence."

The source declined to identify the al-Qaeda finance director who may have been hit. Several al-Qaeda members who specialize in finance remain at large, including Abdul Rahim Riyadh and Ahmad Said al Kadr.

U.S. Central Command dispatched 50 helicopter-borne Army troops to the site 11,000 feet above sea level. They cordoned off the area, interviewed locals, found the exact missile point of impact and collected human remains, including bits of bones and flesh.

U.S. COUNTERTERRORISM OPERATIONS:

Al-Qaeda Leaders Hit By CIA Missile

AFGHANISTAN: At least one high-ranking al-Qaeda member was killed when a missile fired from a pilotless CIA plane is reported to have hit a group of senior al-Qaeda members in Afghanistan. A US official said that a CIA Predator drone had fired a Hellfire anti-tank missile by remote control into a group of al-Qaeda members on Monday night.

The unnamed official said: "At least one was killed and possibly others. It is not clear who the individual was." But a senior Europe- based US security official says al-Qaeda leader Usama bin Laden and hundreds of his supporters appear to have escaped from Afghanistan. Frank Spicka, the head of Interpol's terrorism division, told the London-based Financial Times that the trail on the al-Qaeda leader- ship had "gone fairly cold."

Spicka's comments suggested the hunt for al-Qaeda members will have to go beyond Afghanistan. He told the FT: "There is growing evidence that many al-Qaeda fighters were evacuated from Afghanistan before the major military offensive and it is safe to assume that many have entrenched themselves elsewhere in the world. He said: "There is certainly a possibility that bin Laden and others are being harbored by countries that have large areas which are not controllable." Spicka was transferred to Interpol's headquarters in France from the US Secret Service last year.

The person reported to have been killed by the missile strike was said to be tall, leading to some speculation that it may have been bin Laden himself, who is about 6-feet, 4-inches tall. But another US official said several al-Qaeda leaders were tall, including Ayman al-Zawahri, Bin Laden's most senior lieutenant. CBS News, quoting a senior Pentagon source, said that several al-Qaeda leaders had been killed when the missile hit the group near the Zawar Khili caves.

U.S. COUNTERTERRORISM OPERATIONS:

Afghan Peace Threatened By Fighting

By Paul Anderson, ERRI Analyst

AFGHANISTAN: As rival warlords grapple for power, heavy fighting has broken out again in the town of Gardez in Paktia province, south of Kabul. Reports from Gardez say that as many as 60 people have been killed and 200 captured in the violence. The conflict is between the forces of two rival provincial governors - one chosen by local people, the other appointed by the new Afghan administration.

The two rival factions in Gardez have been exchanging machine-gun and rocket fire, and smoke can be seen rising from residential areas where people are trying to shelter. US warplanes have been circling overhead and special forces are stationed nearby, although as yet they have not taken any action. The head of the local council has said that the Americans believed the fighting was a local matter and they would not intervene. Government forces are also present, but say they are neutral and, significantly, they are not backing the Kabul-appointed governor.

Following the collapse of the Taliban the people of Gardez had chosen a governor -- Saif Ullah, an elderly but powerful local tribesman -- and a council or shura to govern the province. But recently Afghanistan's new interim government appointed a warlord from a neighboring province, Padsha Qhan Zadran, to take control instead. He was rejected by the local people, who last week staged demonstrations against his appointment. Now the protests have slid into violence, forcing Padsha Qhan to flee.

The main fighting is said to be concentrated in the south and west of the town, which has a population of about 20,000. Padsha Qhan's men have been rocketing Gardez from outside positions but the local shura still controls the majority of the town.

Analysts say the fighting highlights the fragility of the peace in Afghanistan, where warlords still wield enormous power both inside and outside the capital Kabul.

General Tommy Franks, U.S. Central Command chief, has begun an investigation into the events involved in the raid near Hazar Qadam on 24 January, a Pentagon official said. Reports from the region continue to assert that the victims were anti-Taliban forces concerning whom U.S. forces were deliberately misled by local rivals.

"When the people that you associate with over there ... bring up the question, you're obligated to go look at it, so that's what we're doing," General Richard Myers, chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, said at a Wednesday Pentagon briefing.

Myers and Defense Secretary Donald Rumsfeld, who also briefed, said it appears that U.S. forces were fired upon first as they approached the compounds, no women or children were present, and large amounts of munitions were found there. Rumsfeld cautioned that "it is true that there are Afghan factions ... that don't get along. It is true that people say things in ways that ... they feel might advantage them." He noted that some Afghans who had relations with the Taliban want to be part of the new provincialgovernments.

The secretary termed it "perfectly possible to go in [on a raid} ... get shot at, shoot back, and end up having someone say that 'those people were Taliban' and somebody else say that 'those ... were people we were engaging in our local government,' and both can be true in as confused a situation as it is in village after village in Afghanistan."

Rumsfeld said the President's remarks in the State of the Union speech concerning North Korea, Iran and Iraq "had near-perfect clarity." The SecDef said: "I think if I were in Iran or North Korea or Iraq and I heard the president of the United States say what he said last night about weapons of mass destruction and about terrorism and about terrorist networks and about nations that harbor terrorists, I don't think there'd be a lot of ambiguity as to the view he holds of those problems and their behavior."

"Now, what they will do about that is something we'll find out. But it ought to be very clear to them that he is ... calling attention to the risks to the world that that relationship poses."

From: ERRI DAILY INTELLIGENCE REPORT-Wednesday, January 30, 2002-Vol. 8 - 030

U.S. COUNTERTERRORISM OPERATIONS:

Al-Qaeda Fighters Reportedly Regrouping

By Paul Anderson, ERRI Analyst

AFGHANISTAN: As the US military prepared to open a Southeast Asian front in its counterterror campaign, hundreds of Usama bin Laden's al-Qaeda fighters are reportedly regrouping in remote mountains of eastern Afghanistan, according to a local commander. Local Afghan military chief Padsha Khan, incoming governor of Paktia province and a powerful mujahedin commander, upto 1,200 al-Qaeda fanatics have gathered in mountains near the village of Zurmat.

Khan said he was readying some 6,000 fighters to root them out of the area, south of the Tora Bora mountains where US warplanes and ground forces waged an intense campaign against al-Qaeda cave positions in December. At his headquarters in Tumoni about 20 miles west of the main Paktia city of Gardez, Khan said:"We are not sure of how many there are or of their exact location."

Some local sources had reported around 800 fighters in the mountains, and others 1,200, he said, adding that he was trying to gather intelligence to pass to US military commanders. He said: "The United States will decide if it will bomb the village or not. The US special forces may join in the attack."

U.S. COUNTERTERRORISM OPERATIONS:

Crash In Afghanistan Injures U.S. Soldiers

By Paul Anderson, ERRI Analyst

AFGHANISTAN: Sixteen U.S. soldiers were injured when a transport helicopter crashed while trying to land in rough terrain in eastern Afghanistan. The US Army CH-47 Chinook helicopter was carrying 24 people when it struck a hole and tipped over in the province of Paktia, near the town of Khost.

None of the soldiers' injuries are life-threatening and they were taken to a hospital in Afghanistan. All are from the 101st Airborne Division. The US military is still investigating the cause of the crash. A Pakistan-based news agency reported gunfire in the area immediately afterwards. Four soldiers suffered serious injuries such as hip and leg fractures, while ten received minor injuries such as other broken bones, abrasions and cuts. The military did not give details of the soldiers' mission, merely saying that the helicopter had made a "hard landing."

A surface ship, the USS Ogden, collided with the submarine USS Greenville in the northern Arabian Sea on Monday. Two crew members of the submarine were to be sent to the surface vessel for transfer back to the United States, when the ships bumped while being maneuvered into proximity to effect the exchange. The collision occurred during daylight. The surface vessel was remaining in its existing location while a team of divers assessed the damage sustained below the water line.

Defense spokeswoman Victoria Clarke said three Defense Department themes will be emphasized during the State of the Union speech on Tuesday. First will be the drive by the military to recruit and retain the best possible people, with all that entails -- pay, benefits, training and equipment.

Next will be a focus on transforming the military to face asymmetrical future threats. Last will be an emphasis on "reforming the way we do business here in the Pentagon. We have got to do a better job of using the taxpayers' hard-earned dollars, and we will."

U.S. COUNTERTERRORISM OPERATIONS:

Kandahar Hospital Siege Comes To An End

AFGHANISTAN: U.S. special forces reportedly participated in an operation at a hospital in the Afghan city of Kandahar that left up to six al-Qaeda fighters who had barricaded themselves inside dead. The operation conducted with US troops and Afghan soldiers at the Mirwais Hospital compound began at about 0340 hours local time (2210GMT). Loud explosions and automatic gunfire rocked the compound as they moved in.

Smoke was seen coming from the building and US SOF snipers were seen on ledges of the second storey where the gunmen had been holding out. Earlier, an Afghan police guard said that the al-Qaeda terror suspects had been given until 1400 hours (0930 GMT) to surrender. The wounded fighters, who were patients at the hospital, barricaded themselves inside one of its wings when the Taleban fled Kandahar in December. The besieged fighters were part of a group of 19 al-Qaeda members who were brought to the hospital for treatment shortly before the city fell to opposition forces on 7 December.

The barricaded men had dug in, threatening to blow themselves up if anyone other than a doctor approached. It is unclear how they managed to smuggle pistols and grenades into the hospital. Two of the fighters were captured - tricked by the only doctor the men trusted - and one killed himself with a grenade during a failed attempt to escape earlier this month. Those remaining, who were thought to be from Sudan or Yemen, took over four or five rooms of the internal medicine ward.

Two weeks ago, hospital officials ordered staff to cut off the men's food and water in an attempt to starve them out - but they are believed to have stockpiled supplies.

U.S. COUNTERTERRORISM OPERATIONS:

SecDef Defends Treatment Of Terrorist Detainees In Cuba

By Paul Anderson, ERRI Analyst

WASHINGTON: At a Pentagon briefing on Tuesday, U.S. Defense Secretary Donald Rumsfeld asserted that the treatment which al-Qaeda and Taliban detainees at Guantanamo Bay are receiving "is proper, it's humane, it's appropriate and it's fully consistent with international conventions." Approximately "two short weeks after the activity began, the more than 150 detainees have warm showers; toiletries; water; clean clothes; blankets; regular, culturally appropriate meals; prayer mats and the right to practice their religion; modern medical attention, exercise, quarters ... eight-by-eight and seven-and-a-half feet high; writing materials; and visits by the International Committee of the Red Cross."

Furthermore, he added, it should be kept in mind that the detainees are "extremely dangerous, particularly when being moved." That is why U.S. troops take extra precautions when moving the detainees. Regardless of what the detainees' legal status is eventually determined to be, Rumsfeld said, they are being treated humanely in accord with the principles of the Geneva Conventions. As for the open-ended period of detention those at Guantanamo face, Rumsfeld said, "At some point they will either be charged or released. At the moment, it's been two weeks since they've been there ... These people are committed terrorists. We are keeping them off the street and out of the airlines and out of nuclear power plants and out of ports across this country and across other countries. And it seems to me a perfectly reasonable thing to do."

Rumsfeld noted that some detainees have already been turned over to Pakistani authorities, and some to the interim Afghan authorities. "My first choice would be for many of those detainees to end up back in their countries, to be processed through their systems, whatever they may be," he said. Rumsfeld added: "We undoubtedly will end up processing some through the criminal justice system. I wouldn't be surprised if we did some through the Uniform Code of Military Justice, and I suspect there will be some military commissions."

Sun 1/20/2002 08:31 AM

U.S. COUNTERTERRORISM OPERATIONS:

Helicopter Crash Leaves Two US Personnel Dead

By Paul Anderson, ERRI Analyst

AFGHANISTAN: Two US Marines were killed when a helicopter crashlanded in northern Afghanistan. Five others were injured in the crash, two critically. A military spokesman said the helicopter was flying from Bagram airbase, north of the capital Kabul, to resupply US forces at the time of the crash. It is not clear what caused the accident. The US Marines spokesman said there was no indication of hostile fire.

The CH-53E Super Stallion came down in a mountainous region of northern Afghanistan at about 07:30 hours local time (03:00 GMT). The specific location of the crash has not been disclosed but was said to be in mountainous terrain, high elevation.

The injured -- two described as being in critical condition, two serious, and the fifth with minor injuries -- have been evacuated from the crash site to an undisclosed location. There have now been three fatal crashes involving US personnel involved in the Afghanistan campaign.

TODAY'S CENTRAL FOCUS:

Al-Qaeda Terrorists Leave Behind Trail Of Evidence

By Steve Macko, ERRI Risk Analyst

WASHINGTON: U.S. investigators searching for clues from Afghanistan to Europe to the American Midwest say that suspected terrorists, often hastily retreating from their homes, camps and even their caves have left behind a huge amount of evidence and useful intelligence information. Information in some discovered documents has led to arrests, thwarted attacks and a is, according to one intelligence expert, "peeling back of the onion of al-Qaeda."

The paper trail alone is described as a confetti shower in a Manhattan parade. But there have also been videos, arti- facts and digital records. What they all amount to is still being sorted out. But officials believe documents and a videotape found in Afghanistan and passed to authorities in Singapore foiled a planned terrorist attack and resulted in the breakup of an al-Qaeda cell there. Without giving details, officials said that such discoveries have exposed similar cells in other countries.

Altogether, there's a lot to sort through. Here are some examples of the material found:

-- An English-language book with instructions on how to survive a nuclear explosion was found at a compound in eastern Afghanistan where one of the criminal Usama bin Laden's wives lived.

-- An issue of Chemical Weekly addressed to a public library in Kansas City, Missouri, was discovered at an al-Qaeda camp.

-- Documents relating to deadly chemicals and bacteria have been discovered inside houses abandoned by al-Qaeda after the Taliban fled Kabul on 13 November.

During raids and arrests around the world, U.S.-led forces and intelligence officers have collected gas masks, homemade videos -- some infamously starring Usama bin Laden himself -- and American military reports on immunizing soldiers against anthrax. The materials have been shipped back to the Washington area for translation and sharing among the CIA, the Defense Intelligence Agency and the FBI.

Some of the items at al-Qaeda safe houses in Afghanistan were taken by journalists or thrown out by northern alliance troops before U.S. officials arrived. But the materials found have revealed new details about bin Laden's terrorist network -- clues that could help prosecutors build cases against suspected terrorists or help investigators interrogating Taliban and al-Qaeda members being held by the United States.

Bruce Yannette, who formerly directed the terrorism unit of the U.S. attorney's office in Washington, said the "scope of this operation is absolutely remarkable" considering what's been found so far.

Officials said that as U.S. troops wrapped up operations at the bombed-out Tora Bora complex, they seized two al-Qaeda members, their computers, cell phones and training documents. More often it was papers, not people that were left to be found. Former CIA terrorism analyst Stan Bedlington said: "They were on the run. They had to travel light."

U.S. COUNTERTERRORISM OPERATIONS:

SecDef Says Possible Chemical Weapons Containers Found In Afghanistan

WASHINGTON: According to U.S. Defense Secretary Donald Rumsfeld, the United States military has found what appears to be canisters containing chemical weapons in Afghanistan. The discovery was made a few weeks ago and was the first indication that al-Qaeda and the Taliban may have been successful in obtaining the weapons of mass destruction.

At the Pentagon on Wednesday, Rumsfeld said: "I've seen pictures of them. Externally, they've got stuff on them that make reasonable people think there's something not good in there, and we're going to check them out." He said it was not known for certain whether the metallic objects have chemical weapons in them as they are still being analyzed.

The SecDef said the military has found around 50 al-Qaeda sites that contain weapons, around 40 of which have been examined. Lab results on substances found there are not all complete, but earlier reports that radioactive material was found were misleading: the heightened radioactivity appeared to come from depleted uranium weapons used on the sites by the United States. He added: "We have found a number of things that show an appetite for weapons of mass destruction -- diagrams, materials, reports that things were asked for, things were discussed at meetings, that type of thing. In terms of having hard evidence of actual possession of weapons of mass destruction, we have -- I do not have that at this stage."

Intelligence officials said today that they believed the canisters were a hoax, because scam artists in Afghanistan have been caught trying to sell flasks with similar markings. But Rear Admiral Craig Quigley, senior spokesman for the United States Central Command, said that to be safe, the military would soon ship the canisters to the Army's Edgewood Chemical Biological Center at Aberdeen Proving Ground in Maryland for analysis.

On other subjects, Rumsfeld said the presence of two U.S. hostages in the Philippines is causing the United States to be more forward-leaning in its effort to help the Philippine government combat terrorism. The United States currently has approximately 250 military personnel in the Philippines, and several hundred more are coming. The U.S. troops are there for training purposes, logistics support and to participate in an ongoing exercise with Philippine troops.

Furthermore, the fact that the Abu Sayyaf terrorist group is holding two American missionaries hostage disposes the United States to be "leaning forward" in its assistance to the Philippines government, he said.

Thirty more detainees from Afghanistan were on the way to the U.S. naval base at Guantanamo Bay, Cuba, according to Air Force General Richard Myers, chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff. Rumsfeld said formal interrogation of the detainees at Guantanamo has not yet resumed, and that no decision has been made on their disposition.

Myers, at the same briefing with Rumsfeld, said the United States was also preparing to transfer approximately 90 Pakistani detainees to Pakistan. They are among the 403 detainees currently in U.S. custody in Afghanistan.

Tribal Leaders Reportedly Balking At Searching For Taliban

AFGHANISTAN: The New York Times was reporting on Thursday that Many Pashtun tribal leaders in eastern Afghanistan are balking at cooperating with U.S. Special Operations Forces in the hunt for al-Qaeda and Taliban fighters, weapons caches and intelligence that could prevent future terrorist attacks. Military officials said the leaders' reluctance has left U.S. forces with few Afghan allies in one of the most dangerous regions of the country, a former Taliban and al-Qaeda stronghold that may still harbor hostile fighters and contain underground command bunkers and hideouts for staging guerrilla attacks.

For now, the Pentagon has no plans to send more troops into the area, which includes Paktia, Paktika and Khost provinces. Putting more Marines or soldiers on the ground, they said, could make them targets for the kind of ambushes that killed an Army Special Forces soldier, Sgt. First Class Nathan R. Chapman, two weeks ago. Instead, officials say, the Pentagon is trying to offset the lack of assistance on the ground by focusing more attention on the sky, using its vast array of surveillance sensors, including U-2 spy planes, unpiloted Predator drones and the RC-135 Rivet Joint aircraft, which monitors radio and other transmissions.

During the course of the three- month war in Afghanistan, Special Operations Forces have overcome the initial suspicions of most tribal or militia leaders to reach agreements to work with anti- Taliban forces based on mutual goals. But in a swath of eastern Afghanistan, where sympathies still generally favor the routed Taliban regime, U.S. overtures have often been greeted with cold stares and suspicion.

U.S. COUNTERTERRORISM OPERATIONS:

U.S. Jets Hunt Al-Qaeda

By Paul Anderson, ERRI Analyst

AFGHANISTAN: After destroying al-Qaeda and Taliban hideouts in the east as the war against the elusive fugitive from justice Usama bin Laden ran into a 102nd day, U.S. warplanes prowled the skies above Afghanistan, hunting new targets. U.S. officials said their planes, which in recent days leveled about 60 buildings and closed entrances to dozens of caves in the Zawar Kili region of eastern Afghanistan, were looking for fresh targets of opportunity and acting to prevent al-Qaeda and Taliban forces from regrouping or operating.

U.S. officers said a man had turned up at the gates of the airport, saying he had information to offer. CNN described him as a senior al-Qaeda financier and said he was expected to be transferred to the Bagram air base north of the capital, Kabul.

With dozens more prisoners expected to be flown to Cuba, U.S. Attorney General John Ashcroft said American Taliban fighter John Walker Lindh would face criminal charges of aiding and abetting a terrorist organization and could face life imprisonment. Ashcroft said: "Walker knowingly and purposely allied himself with certain terrorist organizations. He chose to embrace fanatics and his allegiance to those fanatics and terrorists never faltered, not even with the knowledge that they had murdered thousands of his countrymen."

U.S. COUNTERTERRORISM OPERATIONS

Latest War On Terrorism SitRep

[Terror Group Reference: al-Qaeda]

By Paul Anderson, ERRI Analyst

WASHINGTON: A Pentagon spokeswoman said that the first 20 al-Qaeda detainees being held at Guantanamo Bay naval base in Cuba are receiving humane treatment in accordance with the Geneva Conventions. U.S. Defense Department Spokeswoman Victoria Clarke said at a Monday Pentagon briefing: "Each day the detainees are given three culturally appropriate meals. They have daily opportunities to shower, exercise and receive medical attention." In addition, a representative of the International Committee of the Red Cross (ICRC) is scheduled to visit the detainees later in the week.

Clarke reiterated Defense Secretary Rumsfeld's assertion that the detainees must be handled with the utmost care. She said: "You're talking about people who are incredibly dangerous -- incredibly dangerous -- who are willing to blow themselves up or do anything possible to hurt and kill others."

Military operations at the former al-Qaeda complex at Zawar Kili are drawing to a close, according to Pentagon spokesman Navy Rear Admiral John Stufflebeem. Briefing along with Clarke, he said continued air strikes over the January 12-13 weekend were aimed at flattening above-ground structures and closing cave entrances. Stufflebeem said: "Over the course of the weekend ... we have leveled the remaining structures that were found on the surface, and we have closed all the caves that we would intend not to be occupied. So ... it's now time to go look elsewhere."

Stufflebeem noted that the Zhawar Kili complex covers an area of three square miles and included more than 60 above-ground structures and at least 50 caves. Its enormous extent was discovered only when U.S. ground forces were able to investigate it, he said.

Asked whether the Pentagon was considering curtailing or modifying the combat air patrols (CAP) being flown over parts of the United States, Clarke said she would withhold details "since giving a lot of details ... gives an advantage to those who might want to do us harm. It's important to emphasize that we are absolutely committed to providing the best protection possible for the American people. And combat air patrols are part of those. And we'll dedicate the right resources ... to get the job done."

Stufflebeem added that the patrols are being flown largely by the Air National Guard and Air Force Reserves. He noted that the process was being carefully monitored to ascertain whether the patrols were subjecting personnel or equipment to excessive stress.

A U.S. military official said on Tuesday that U.S. forces have seized a cache of weapons including rocket-propelled grenades near their base at Kandahar airport in southern Afghanistan. The weapons were discovered in buildings and tunnels about 300 yards from the perimeter of the air base after a group of seven men were spotted in the area on Monday evening. U.S. forces went out to search the area after the men were seen and found the weapons. The men had disappeared.

U.S. COUNTERTERRORISM OPERATIONS:

U.S. Continues Bombing Raids On Afghan Hide-Out

[Terror Group Reference: al-Qaeda]

By Paul Anderson, ERRI Analyst

AFGHANISTAN: While a second batch of prisoners was flown under cover of darkness to Cuba, U.S. warplanes kept up heavy bombing raids on Monday on terrorist hide-outs in eastern Afghanistan, hoping to smash the evil Usama bin Laden's die-hard supporters. Aerial attacks against a deep complex of tunnels at Zawar, in the hills of Paktia province near the border with Pakistan, have been under way for nearly two weeks. U.S. ground forces are also operating in the area, the last main battleground in Afghanistan.

The first group of international peacekeepers arrived in Ghazni province, to the west, on Monday and U.S. helicopters were seen flying over the highway linking Ghazni to Kabul, the capital, as the country's new authorities extend their control. The tempo of the bombing picked up with daylight raids Sunday and continued Monday. The bombing was so intense that it rattled windows in Khost, a town 20 miles to the southeast. Civilians living near the bombing zone were fleeing and said that many had been killed and wounded by falling bombs.

The U.S. military says it is determined to crush remnants of al-Qaeda and the Taliban seeking shelter in underground passages at Zawar, a camp that was the base of one of the Taliban's senior commanders, Jalaluddin Haqqani. Sur Gul, security chief of Khost, 20 miles to the southeast, said the underground passages continue to shelter Islamic militants mostly Pakistanis, Chechens and some of bin Laden's Arab warriors.

The Pentagon has said that intelligence reports said al-Qaeda fighters were using the area to regroup and move out of Afghanistan. U.S. special forces have been seen operating the area and have met with local officials.

In Kandahar, a second group of bin Laden supporters was flown by a C-17 transport plane from a temporary detention center Sunday to Guantanamo, Cuba, where the U.S. military has built a prison camp to hold al-Qaeda and Taliban suspects. Guarded by attack dogs and U.S. troops, the 30 prisoners, shackled and their faces covered, shuffled in the darkness into the plane. The transfer left 361 al-Qaeda and Taliban suspects interned in Kandahar, where coalition forces have established a base currently manned by 3,100 troops.

In other news, the U.S. military is exploring ways to curtail the around-the-clock anti-terrorism patrols that fighter jets have been flying over U.S.cities since 9/11.

From: ERRI DAILY INTELLIGENCE REPORT-Sunday, January 13, 2002-Vol. 8 - 013

U.S. MILITARY OPERATIONS:

U.S. Planes Bomb Afghan Hideouts

Terror Group Reference: al-Qaeda

By Paul Anderson, ERRI Analyst

AFGHANISTAN: As the United States looked beyond central Asia in its war on terrorism, U.S. warplanes pounded suspected al-Qaeda and Taliban hideouts in eastern Afghanistan on Sunday. And on the other side of the world, the first 20 captives shipped out of the war, settled into a routine, sleeping and praying in their outdoor, cage-like cells at a U.S. Navy base in Cuba as they waited for interrogation and possible trial.

U.S. warplanes bombed cave complexes in the Zhawar area, about 20 miles southwest of Khost, late on Saturday and through the night. The Afghan Islamic Press (AIP) said the bombers have been hitting the area hard for several days and were preparing the way for U.S. ground patrols to search the caves and tunnels for Islamic criminals.

The evil Usama bin Laden's al-Qaeda network ran a guerrilla training base in the Zhawar area and al Qaeda fighters were believed to have recently regrouped there after weeks of military defeats.

Another international menace, Iraqi leader Saddam Hussein, keeps going in and out of U.S. sights. POTUS and SecState Colin Powell have reportedly made clear there has not been any decision made with regard to particular options but they have also made clear that all options are available. U.S. Assistant Secretary of State William Burns said the President has warned Hussein would "find out" the consequences if he did not readmit United Nations inspectors seeking to stop Iraq from developing weapons of mass destruction.

Burns said: "We have ... some serious concerns about the behavior of the Iraqi regime ... its failure to abide by its U.N. Security Council obligations with regard to weapons of mass destruction, inspectors."

TODAY'S CENTRAL FOCUS:

U.S. Sees Battles After Afghan War in Lawless Areas

Terror Group Reference: al-Qaeda and Abu Sayyaf

By Steve Macko, ERRI Risk Analyst

WASHINGTON: Deputy Secretary of Defense Paul Wolfowitz said this past week that the war on terrorism after Afghanistan could focus on denying terrorist groups sanctuary in places like Somalia, Yemen, Indonesia and the Philippines, countries where they have sometimes operated freely. Wolfowitz's remarks provided one of the clearest outlines of the military's strategy for destroying terrorist networks.

While Wolfowitz has a reputation as one of the more aggressive members of the White House war council, his statements suggested that the Pentagon could opt to put off the bigger and politically more difficult targets in the war on terrorism like Iraq, and therefore avoid conflict with some of its most important Arab and European allies, which have been leery about taking on Baghdad. Instead, Wolfowitz said, the military is now engaged with friendly countries like the Philippines that would welcome U.S. help in ridding themselves of terrorist networks. The Pentagon is also looking hard at possible terror bases in countries like Somalia and Yemen that are weakly governed and ill equipped to uproot them.

Wolfowitz stressed that he was not providing an explicit forecast for the next step in the war on terrorism and that the Pentagon had not ruled out imminent military action against any country. He asserted that the U.S. military's devastating air campaign in Afghanistan had already induced many nations that have supported terrorism to change their ways, and that it would serve as a powerful deterrent against future acts of terrorism.

He said: "I'd say almost everywhere one has seen progress. A lot of that progress is motivated by the sense of American seriousness and the fear of getting on the wrong side of us. To the extent that's the motivation, then obviously you don't want to issue a report card on those people and have them let up, because they're not doing it out of the goodness of their heart."

Iraq, however, has shown no signs of opposing terrorism. Wolfowitz said while Saddam Hussein "is keeping his head down these days, that should not leave the impression that he doesn't continue to do a bunch of things that concern us." Those things include firing at U.S. warplanes patrolling the no-flight zones in southern and northern Iraq.

While careful not to identify countries where the U.S. might next aim its military might, Wolfowitz said Somalia, perhaps more than any other place, fitted the bill of a lawless state that draws terrorists like a magnet. But he acknowledged that U.S. options were limited in Somalia, where, he said, "by definition you don't have a government you can work with." The Central Intelligence Agency, he added, is "looking for exactly those sorts of people" that the United States can use as proxy forces, as it did with anti-Taliban groups in Afghanistan.

In the Philippines, he said the government was eager to quell a rebellion by Muslim militants from the Abu Sayyaf group who have been linked to al-Qaeda and have been battling government forces on Basilan Island, in the southern part of the country. U.S. officials have already begun training the country's forces in counterterrorist and Special Operations activities. He said U.S. involvement "might include direct support of Philippine military operations. "There's no question that we believe that if they could clear the Abu Sayyaf group out of Basilan Island, that would be a small blow against the extended al-Qaeda network."

In Indonesia, Islamic militants have fought with Christians on Sulawesi Island and in Maluku Province, areas where the government is extremely weak. Wolfowitz said: "You see the potential for Muslim extremists and Muslim terrorists to link up with those Muslim groups in Indonesia and find a little corner for themselves in a country that's otherwise quite unfriendly to terrorism. In the case of Sulawesi, the concern is there isn't enough military to protect the local population or to create the kinds of stable conditions that keep terrorism down."

He said that while Indonesia had expressed a willingness to crack down on terrorists, the government there was fearful of causing a violent backlash among its large Muslim population. He also said the United States was prepared to provide assistance. Wolfowitz said it was unlikely, however, that the United States would consider direct military action in Indonesia, "because it's such a big and disparate place."

From: ERRI DAILY INTELLIGENCE REPORT-Saturday, January 12, 2002-Vol. 8 - 012

U.S. MILITARY OPERATIONS:

Twenty Detainees Arrive At Guantanamo Bay

[Terror Group Reference: al-Qaeda]

By Paul Anderson, ERRI Analyst

WASHINGTON: U.S. Defense Secretary Donald Rumsfeld said 20 Afghan militia and al-Qaeda detainees arrived on Friday at the U.S. naval base at Guantanamo Bay, Cuba, on a lone Air Force C-17 cargo aircraft. The detainees -- characterized as "unlawful combatants" and not prisoners of war -- will be housed at a detention center designated Camp X-Ray. U.S. Air Force General Richard Myers, chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, said he was notified of the plane's arrival at 1350 EST (1850 GMT). Myers said of the detainees: "These are people that would gnaw through hydraulic lines in the back of a transport plane to bring it down."

Myers said that around the time of takeoff in Kandahar, Afghanistan, shots were fired from outside the base. However, the approach of a Marine quick reaction force caused the shooters to flee the area.

Rumsfeld said the unlawful combatants were shackled and hooded when they boarded the C-17 cargo jet at Kandahar and at least one of the detainees was also sedated for the long journey. He asserted that those measures did not violate any of the detainees' rights under international law. He added that the detainees will be accorded many of the rights in the Geneva Conventions. The U.S. Southern Command has activated Joint Task Force-160 to manage the detainee operations at "Gitmo," as it is commonly called, the Department of Defense said in an announcement 11 January. The task force includes active duty service members from the Army, Air Force and Navy, and nearly all are military police.

The Pentagon said that the detention facility is still being fully developed and will eventually house up to 2,000 detainees. The facility currently can hold up to 100 detainees and will be expanded shortly to hold 220 detainees. Meanwhile, Myers said the number of detainees under U.S. control has grown to 445.

Guantanamo Bay naval base -- which covers 45 square miles on Cuba's southeastern coast -- was established by U.S. Marines on 6 June,1898 during the Spanish-American War. It was leased to the United States in 1903 in an agreement signed by President Theodore Roosevelt for approximately $5,000 a year, which is still paid to the Cuban government. The land can revert to Cuban control only if abandoned or by mutual consent, according to an agreement renegotiated in 1934. The bay borders three sides of the naval base and the fourth side, which is guarded by U.S. Marines, fronts a cactus wall built in the 1960s to deter Cubans from seeking refuge.

Myers said at the briefing that nine U.S. aircraft -- bombers and tactical jets -- dropped a further 44 precision weapons on targets at the Zawar Kili compound in eastern Afghanistan on 10 January.

Rumsfeld said the United States and Pakistan have had discussions "about aircraft and apron space and fuel and a variety of other things" because of Pakistan's partial mobilization of forces resulting from tensions with India. Pakistan is allowing the United States some use of some of its military bases for the operations in Afghanistan.

On Saturday, U.S. warplanes wreaked more damage as they bombed suspected al-Qaeda hideouts. U.S. planes launched some of the fiercest raids yet seen on areas around eastern Khost. U.S. planes reportedly bombed Zhawar Kili near eastern Khost city throughout the night and early on Saturday morning.

From: ERRI DAILY INTELLIGENCE REPORT-Friday, January 11, 2002-Vol. 8 - 011

U.S. MILITARY OPERATIONS:

Afghan Prisoners Sedated On Plane Ride To Cuba

[Terror Group Reference: al-Qaeda]

By Paul Anderson, ERRI Analyst

WASHINGTON: The USA Today newspaper reported on Thursday that the Pentagon used unprecedented security measures, possibly sedation, as it began transporting dangerous Taliban and al-Qaeda prisoners from Afghanistan to a Navy prison at Guantanamo Bay, Cuba. Officials said that the cargo planes were accompanied by fighter jet escorts for at least a portion of their flights.

The prisoners were chained to their seats and outnumbered roughly 2-to-1 by security guards as they are flown to Cuba aboard U.S. Air Force cargo jets, each carrying 20 to 30 prisoners. Officials said prisoners were to be manacled and possibly hooded during the trip, were not able to leave their seats for any reason and will be chained to one another. Devices were to be provided to allow bodily functions in place.

The guards were to carry stun guns rather than pistols. The Air Force has trained law enforcement teams known as "Ravens" who are experienced operating aboard aircraft. The newspaper said that the transfer of most of 368 prisoners was to take place over a period of weeks and all of them may not go to Cuba. There was also a possibility of transfers of prisoners to smaller C-141 jets in an unnamed nation for the flights to Cuba with total flying time as long as 20 hours. A senior military official familiar with planning for
the estimated 12 to 20 flights said the mission could be the largest transfer of dangerous prisoners during wartime.

The transfer of the prisoners got off to a dramatic start in an exchange of gunfire. Unidentified assailants, on foot and under cover of darkness, penetrated the perimeter of the base at Kandahar airport at a couple of locations late Thursday and US troops responded with machine gun and small arms fire. The attack came just 20 minutes after a C-17 transport plane took off from the airport, carrying a group of about 20 prisoners to a US base at Guantanamo Bay, Cuba.

A spokesman at the US Central Command said there were still pockets of Taliban and al-Qaeda supporters in the country "and you just never know when they are going to pop up." There were no reports of injuries in the initial exchange of fire.

The first contingent of German troops joining the British-led International Security Assistance Force arrived at Bagram air base on Friday. The troops, the first of a 70-strong German advance party expected in coming days, arrived aboard a military C-130 Hercules aircraft at Bagram, 30 miles north of Kabul.

U.S. MILITARY OPERATIONS

US Plane Crashes In Pakistan

By Paul Anderson, ERRI Analyst

PAKISTAN: At least seven US Marines were killed when a military plane crashed in southwest Pakistan on Wednesday. The cause of the crash is under investigation. The plane crashed into a hill in flames near Shamsi airfield, about 170 miles southwest of Quetta, in Kharan district, Baluchistan province, as it was making its approach to land at about 2015 hours local time (1515 GMT).

US Central Command said in a statement that the KC-130, an aircraft routinely used by the Marines for in-flight refueling of helicopters, was on a multi-stop mission and the flight had originated in Jacobabad, east of Shamsi. The crash site is in a remote, sparsely-populated area.

NEWS RELEASE from the United States Department of Defense
No. 014-02
IMMEDIATE RELEASE
January 9, 2002

DOD IDENTIFIES SEVEN MARINES KILLED IN KC-130/R CRASH
The Department of Defense announced that the following Marines were killed as a result of the crash of a KC-130/R aircraft in Pakistan today:

Command Pilot: Captain Matthew W. Bancroft, 29, of Shasta, CA. He joined the Marine Corps in 1994.
Co-Pilot: Captain Daniel G. McCollum, 29, of Richland, SC. He joined the Marine Corps in 1993.
Flight Engineer: Gunnery Sergeant Stephen L. Bryson, 35, of Montgomery, AL. He joined the Marine Corps in 1983.
Loadmaster: Staff Sergeant Scott N. Germosen, 37, of Queens, NY. He joined the Marine Corps in 1982.
Flight Mechanic: Sergeant Nathan P. Hays, 21, of Lincoln, WA. He joined the Marine Corps in 1999. Flight
Navigator: Lance Corporal Bryan P. Bertrand, 23, of Coos, OR. He joined the Marine Corps in 1998.
Radio Operator: Sergeant Jeannette L. Winters, 25, of Du Page, IL. She joined the Marine Corps in 1997.

The Marines are assigned to Marine Aerial Refueler Transport Squadron 352 (VMGR-352), the "Raiders." Elements of VMGR-352 are attached to Combined Task Force 58, in support of Operation Enduring Freedom. VMGR-352 is home-based at the Marine Corps Air Station, Miramar, CA. The cause of the accident is under investigation.

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U.S. MILITARY OPERATIONS:

Two Senior Al-Qaeda Fighters Captured By U.S. Forces

[Terror Group Reference: al-Qaeda]

By Paul Anderson, ERRI Analyst

WASHINGTON: A a Defense Department official said two senior al-Qaeda fighters were captured in Afghanistan on 7 January and sent to the U.S. detention facility at Kandahar. The two were part of a group of 14 suspected al-Qaeda forces captured without resistance by a U.S. search team near Gardez-Khost, according to Air Force General Richard Myers, chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff. Myers, who spoke at a Pentagon press briefing on Tuesday, added that laptop computers, cellular telephones, training documents and small arms were also seized.

Myers said the two fighters sent to Kandahar "are al-Qaeda as opposed to Taliban. They become very interesting to us because they're part of the worldwide network of terrorism that al-Qaeda supports. And so we would hope to be gleaning ... information that might point to future operations." Myers said additional air strikes were carried out on 7 January on the al-Qaeda Zawar Kili complex, and that search teams there have found that the extent of the complex is much greater than previously thought. The ongoing sweep of the complex uncovered additional buildings in caves or bunkers, so two air strikes were called in to destroy them. Myers noted that the 14 suspected al-Qaeda fighters were captured near, though not in, the bombed complex.

Preparations continue for receipt of detainees from Afghanistan at Guantanamo Naval Base in Cuba, and the first contingent of detainees is expected to be transferred soon, Myers said. He said: "Obviously, any time you have detainees who will sacrifice their life to kill you or what you stand for...that's the most dangerous type of individual you can have in your control. We want to make sure the facilities...are adequate for the task. And this is serious business."

The number of detainees under U.S. control continues to grow, Myers said. The total is now 364, with 302 held at Kandahar, 38 at Bagram, 16 at Mazar-i-Sharif, and eight on the USS Bataan assault ship. Myers disagreed with the notion that U.S. forces have an understanding with Pakistan, which allows them to pursue Taliban or al-Qaeda fighters across that border from Afghanistan. He said: "We do not operate unilaterally inside Pakistan," but rather have liaison people with Pakistani forces.

Myers reported that a contingent of 725 Canadian forces will be sent to Kandahar, and that no problem is expected in integrating them with the ongoing operations of U.S. forces there.

From: ERRI DAILY INTELLIGENCE REPORT-Tuesday, January 8, 2002-Vol. 8 - 008

U.S. MILITARY OPERATIONS

U.S. Winds Down Search For Bin Laden At Tora Bora

[Terror Group Reference: al-Qaeda and Taliban]

By Paul Anderson, ERRI Analyst

AFGHANISTAN: While targeting al-Qaeda and Taliban remnants in air and ground attacks to stop them from regrouping, the U.S. military is winding down its unsuccessful search for master terrorist Usama bin Laden at the bomb-shattered Tora Bora cave complex. In the southern city of Kandahar, one of seven heavily armed al-Qaeda fighters who had been barricaded for more than a month in a hospital, threatening to kill any- one who tries to move them, made a pre-dawn escape attempt on Tuesday. When soldiers surrounded him he exploded a grenade, killing himself.

U.S. Central Command CINC General Tommy Franks said that the weeks-long search through the Tora Bora complex in eastern Afghanistan had failed to turn up bin Laden. The search would be ending in the next day or so with no clue to bin Laden's whereabouts. U.S. troops could begin pursuing bin Laden in neighboring Pakistan, though there was no hard proof the terrorist mastermind was there. Franks said that in the next few days, the U.S. military would gain custody of one or two Taliban or al-Qaeda figures of great interest to the United States. He would not elaborate.

In Washington, Pentagon spokesman Rear Admiral John Stufflebeem said U.S.-led forces are focusing more on finding and attacking remaining Taliban and al-Qaeda members and less on the hunt for bin Laden. As part of that effort, warplanes have been striking a "hotbed" of terrorist support at the al-Qaeda base at Zawar Kili near Khost, where bin Laden's followers have been emerging, possibly from the Tora Bora area.

U.S. and coalition warplanes -- long-range B-1 Lancers and B-52 Stratofortresses and carrier-based jets in the Indian Ocean -- flew 118 sorties and struck four times at targets in the Zawar Kili and Khost areas of eastern Afghanistan on 6 January. Stufflebeem said at Zawar Kili, U.S. Special Forces and anti-Taliban troops found armored personnel carriers, artillery, munitions and other war materials. They pulled the equipment and munitions out of hiding places and called in airstrikes to destroy them. At Khost, he said, U.S. forces found a small number of anti-aircraft weapons.

Stufflebeem also said the tunnel and cave complex at Zawar Kili, which is a former al-Qaeda equipment, command and support haven, is now becoming a focal point for al-Qaeda forces to regroup. He said it has become "a relatively active area."

Victoria Clarke, assistant secretary of defense for public affairs, outlined during the Pentagon briefing the primary U.S. objectives of current military operations in Afghanistan. She said: "The military operations are focused on achieving the following outcomes: to make clear to the Taliban leaders and their supporters that harboring terrorists is unacceptable and carries a price; to acquire intelligence to facilitate future operations against al-Qaeda and the Taliban regime that harbors the terrorists; to develop relationships with groups in Afghanistan that oppose the Taliban regime and the foreign terrorists that they support; to alter the military balance over time by denying to the Taliban the offensive systems that hamper the progress of the various opposition forces; and to provide humanitarian relief to Afghans suffering truly oppressive living conditions under the Taliban regime."

Pakistan has said its troops arrested 23 foreign fighters trying to cross from Afghanistan over the weekend. At least 350 al-Qaeda members, including more then 300 Arab nationals, have been arrested in Pakistan after crossing the border.

The Pakistan-based Afghan Islamic Press agency reported that U.S. planes dropped leaflets in eastern Afghanistan urging civilians not to give al-Qaeda fugitives refuge, warning they could be caught in airstrikes. Local leaders have denied the presence of terrorists in their areas and urged a halt to the bombings.

In other developments, Canada announced on Monday that 750 military personnel will join U.S. forces trying to root out die-hard al-Qaeda and Taliban fighters in southern Afghanistan. They should begin arriving in about ten days. A contingent of 70 German troops set off Tuesday to join the British-led international stabilization force in Kabul, which is expected to reach a total of 4,500 troops.

From: ERRI DAILY INTELLIGENCE REPORT-Monday, January 7, 2002-Vol. 8 - 007

U.S. MILITARY OPERATIONS:

U.S. Continues Afghan Bombing

[Terror Group Reference: al-Qaeda]

By Paul Anderson, ERRI Analyst

AFGHANISTAN: As tribal elders met to decide the fate of a teenage boy suspected of killing a U.S. soldier in an ambush, U.S. jets bombed eastern Afghanistan on Monday in the hunt for Usama bin Laden's terror network. Tribal elders met in Khost in Paktia province, target of some of the latest raids, to decide the fate of a 14-year-old boy suspected of killing U.S. Sgt 1st Class Nathan Ross Chapman in an ambush on Friday. Sources said a tribal jirga (council) would decide whether to hand over the teen-ager to the U.S. military.

The leader of Afghanistan's interim administration, Hamid Karzai, said on Sunday that Taliban leader Mullah Mohammad Omar remained at large but forces were still searching for him and he was determined to arrest the terrorist sought by the United States.

British paratroopers arrived on Monday to take part in the International Security Assistance Force (ISAF) that will ensure security in Kabul. French troops securing Kabul's battle-scarred international airport said its crater-filled runway should be clear of mines and ready for jumbo jets to land within ten days.

The Afghan Islamic Press reported that U.S. aircraft bombed parts of Paktia province, where bin Laden once ran training camps and where he or his al-Qaeda fighters may have taken refuge. Through the night and into Monday morning, U.S. planes were bombing the area. The raids were described as intense. There were no details of damage or casualties. There was no independent confirmation of the report.

WORLDWIDE INTELLIGENCE:

U.S. Officials Say They Think Bin Laden In Pakistan

WASHINGTON: Two members of the Senate Intelligence Committee said on Sunday that with no sign of terrorist mastermind Usama bin Laden in weeks, U.S. and other counter-terrorism coalition officials are beginning to believe he has fled Afghanistan for Pakistan. On "Fox News Sunday," Senator John Edwards, who is traveling with other senators in the Central Asian region, said that Uzbekistan's military intelligence service believes bin Laden has crossed the border into Pakistan.

On ABC's "This Week," Intelligence Committee Chairman Senator Bob Graham said bin Laden and other top officials have probably escaped Afghanistan, but no one is certain. Graham said: "Increasingly as our efforts to get them in Afghanistan have been futile, there is a greater sense that they have, in fact, escaped, and are probably in one of those tribal territories just over the border into Pakistan."

From: ERRI DAILY INTELLIGENCE REPORT-Saturday, January 5, 2002-Vol. 8, No. 005-10:00CST

U.S. MILITARY OPERATIONS

SF Soldier Killed, CIA Officer Wounded In Afghan Ambush

[Terror Group Reference: al-Qaeda and Taliban]

By Paul Anderson, ERRI Analyst

AFGHANISTAN: U.S. government officials said a U.S. Army special forces soldier was killed and a CIA officer was seriously wounded on Friday in the Gardez-Khowst region of Afghanistan when their group was ambushed. A special team extracted the group. The CIA officer is expected to make a full recovery.

U.S. Central Command CINC General Tommy Franks only acknowledged the death of the soldier in a press briefing on Friday. Franks said to explain the death: "There was an exchange of small arms fire." The U.S. soldier was the first to die in combat in Afghanistan. Military sources identified him as Sgt. 1st Class Nathan Chapman of San Antonio, Texas. Franks said the soldier was attempting to establish relations with local Afghan leaders when he was shot.

The shooting death was near an al-Qaeda camp (Zhawar Kili) that has been the focus of two major strikes in the past week but was not directly connected to that operation. Special Forces soldiers have helped identify targets for aircraft and have often been close to direct attacks.

While the soldiers have been working with local Afghan leaders since the beginning of the campaign in the north and then around Kabul and Kandahar, they are just now beginning to move into the Gardez-Khowst area. CIA officers tend to be first to make contact, as they are authorized to offer valuable gifts -- including money -- to induce cooperation with the U.S. military.

Special Forces soldiers have inspected seven of eight cave complexes in the Tora Bora area. Franks said soldiers have found "one or two tanks" in the caves, large caches of ammunition, and many dead. U.S. forces have also inspected 40 of 48 al-Qaeda training camps and headquarters. They have so far found no evidence that al-Qaeda had managed to build or obtain nuclear, chemical or biological weapons, though much intelligence material has been gathered indicating an interest or study of CBRN weapons by al-Qaeda.

Franks said: "What we have found is considerable indication of interest and desire by al-Qaeda to acquire weapons of mass destruction. We have not yet found evidence of the existence of weapons of mass destruction inside Afghanistan."

Early Friday, U.S. warplanes bombed the Zhawar Kili al-Qaeda terrorist camp near Gardez, just three miles from the Pakistan border, for the second time in less than 24 hours. Air Force bombers, Navy fighters and an AC-130 gunship pounded the camp on Thursday with more than 100 one-ton bombs. The camp -- a compound including a leader- ship headquarters, a training facility and a cave complex -- is a place where al-Qaeda is historically known to regroup.

The United States now has 273 detainees -- 250 with U.S. Marines and Army soldiers at Kandahar International Air- port, 14 at the Bagram air base north of Kabul, eight on the U.S. Navy ship USS Bataan and one in Mazar-e-Sharif. CIA and military officers are still in the process of interviewing thousands of Afghan prisoners. Franks said within ten days or so some of the U.S. detainees will be moved to newly constructed detention facilities at Guantanamo Bay, Cuba, and possibly other U.S. military bases.

With Taliban troops surrendering arms to Afghan fighters under the watchful eyes of U.S. Special Forces in the Baghran area, Franks acknowledged that some Taliban could be bartering for their freedom. He said his main concern remains finding Taliban and al-Qaeda leaders. Taliban leader Mullah Mohammed Omar is rumored to be hiding in the vicinity of Baghran, Tarin Kot, and Deh Rawod.

Unofficial reports on Saturday said Omar had escaped from his hideout in southern Afghanistan on a motorbike. According to the head of intelligence in Kandahar, Haji Gulalai, all the Taliban sympathizers around the area of Baghran in the Helmand province had surrendered to anti-Taliban forces. But the whereabouts of Omar -- who apparently escaped with four sympathizers -- are not known.

The surrender of Taliban sympathizers in the area, who were able to go free after handing over their weapons, was brokered during the last few days in negotiations with local tribal leaders.

14:00CST - 00:30/05 Jan (Kabul time)

U.S. Trooper Dies In Reported Afghan Ambush

A U.S. Army Special Forces trooper was reportedly killed by small-arms fire in northeastern Afghanistan on Friday, according to Gen. Tommy Franks, commander of U.S. Central Command. The incident was described as "an ambush" by military personnel who spoke with EmergencyNet News a short time ago.  The incident reportedly occurred near the town of Gardez, in the province of Patkia, near the Pakistan border.

Gen Franks announced the first death of a U.S. soldier in combat, at a news conference in Tampa, FL., held within the past hour. He also said the soldier's name and other details of the shootout were being withheld until the next-of-kin could be notified of the incident.

ERRI analysts said that it is likely that both Afghan and U.S. Special forces were closely monitoring the border area with Pakistan, in an attempt to interdict Taliban/Al-Qaeda insurgents, who may be trying to escape as Pakistani armed forces are repositioned in response to an on-going crisis in Kashmir.

U.S. MILITARY OPERATIONS:

U.S. Forces Continue Search For Omar

AFGHANISTAN: An official in the southern city of Kandahar said Afghan fighters, backed by U.S. forces, have taken up positions around a village where former Taliban leader Mullah Mohammad Omar is believed to have taken refuge. Rumors of Omar's capture have been flying. Afghanistan's Minister for Reconstruction said on German television on Thursday he believed Omar had been captured, and Australia's ABC television said Friday it had heard the same from a senior official of the Northern Alliance. But the U.S. said it had no knowledge of it.

U.S. forces in the area were making house-to-house searches for Omar around Baghran in southern Helmand province, 100 miles northwest of Kandahar. Afghan forces had taken up positions at the front line near Baghran, as local leaders considered demands to hand over both Mullah Omar and their weapons.

U.S. MILITARY OPERATIONS

U.S. Said Skeptical About Reports That Omar Is Ready To Surrender

[Terror Group Reference: al-Qaeda and/or Taliban]

By Paul Anderson, ERRI Analyst

AFGHANISTAN: U.S. military officials said they have no evidence that deposed Taliban leader Mullah Mohammed Omar is ready to give up, even as a tribal commander reported

that negotiations are under way for his surrender. In Washington, Pentagon officials said some 1,000 to 1,500 Taliban fighters holding out near Baghran, northwest of the U.S. Marine base at Kandahar airport, were trying to "negotiate themselves out of a predicament."

In Jalalabad on Thursday, more than 800 fighters belonging to Nangarhar province's ruling council began hunting for al-Qaeda members in the city's southern area. The hunt started in Chaparhar area, located between Jalalabad and Tora Bora, the last stand of al-Qaeda fighters in eastern Afghanistan.

In the capital, Kabul, the new government confirmed that U.S. bombs killed the Taliban's intelligence chief, Qari Ahmadullah, who was high on the U.S. list of targeted officials from the fanatical Islamic regime that ruled Afghanistan before being overrun easily by U.S.-led forces. The 40-year-old Ahmadullah is believed to be the highest-ranking Taliban official killed during the U.S.-led military campaign. He was eliminated during U.S. bombings of Naka, in Paktia province.

During a 29-hour mission that began on Monday, U.S. Marines found documents, guns and other items that could be useful. About 200 Marines from the Kandahar airport bases searched a 14-building compound west of the city, trying to locate former Taliban rulers who went underground after the fall of Kandahar.

Also on Wednesday, the U.S. commander of the Joint Special Operations Task Force said bin Laden isn't likely to be found in the caves in the Tora Bora area of eastern Afghanistan. Colonel John Mulholland said: "I don't think he's up there. I do think he's either dead, buried under some tonnage of rock or he's out of there."

Other U.S. commanders said U.S. military teams are still searching the Tora Bora caves for anything that might help learn more about or dismantle bin Laden's al-Qaeda network, or to actually help locate bin Laden.

From: ERRI DAILY INTELLIGENCE REPORT-Wednesday, January 2, 2002-Vol. 8 - 002-10:00CST

U.S. MILITARY OPERATIONS

Search For Omar Intensifies

[Terror Group Reference: al-Qaeda]

By Paul Anderson, ERRI Analyst

AFGHANISTAN: US and Afghan forces readied a final push to find the one-eyed Mullah Mohammad Omar, ex-leader of the Taliban regime that was routed from power. Since the collapse of the Taliban regime, both suspected terrorist mastermind Usama bin Laden and Omar have fled their former Afghan strongholds and gone into hiding, fearful of what might happen to them should they find themselves in US custody.

A US military spokesman confirmed that US Marines and Afghan forces were conducting an intelligence gathering operation at a suspected Taliban and al-Qaeda compound in Afghanistan's Helmand province, where the town of Baghran is located.

Elsewhere, the Pakistani newspaper Dawn said about 150 of bin Laden's al-Qaeda followers were to be taken from Pakistani custody to a US base in Afghanistan to face interrogation about the fate of the bearded radical. The newspaper said the detained al-Qaeda men -- mostly from Egypt, Yemen, Saudi Arabia and other unspecified Arabian peninsula countries -- would be flown to Kandahar in batches.

Citing unnamed military officials, ABC News reported that US armed forces had "circumstantial but compelling" evidence that bin Laden was alive and still in charge of his followers. The report quoted one of the officials as saying the United States had intercepted al-Qaeda communications originating in Iran.

US officials also confirmed that one US soldier was wounded in the leg when a vehicle carrying US troops came under fire near Jalalabad in eastern Afghanistan. The wound was not life- threatening.

U.S. Navy Patrols Arabian Sea For Al-Qaeda Leaders

[Terror Group Reference: al-Qaeda]

While U.S. soldiers search for terrorist mastermind Usama bin Laden and others in the caves and mountains of Afghanistan, the U.S. Navy is combing the vast stretches of the Arabian Sea in a manhunt of immense scope and intensity. P-3C Orion surveillance planes linked to a regional operations center and U.S. and allied ships are guarding against an attempt by Al-Qaeda and Taliban leaders to escape by boat to Yemen, Somalia or some other country.

U.S. intelligence is providing the Navy with a constantly updated list of ships the Taliban and al-Qaeda could possibly use to make their escape via Pakistan into the open sea. Officials say that it has become a kind of cat-and-mouse game, with many ships changing their appearance regularly for reasons that are unclear. Some of the ships are repainting their hulls, painting over their numbers, and changing things on their deck to look

More than 1,000 "bridge-to-bridge" radio contacts have been made since November between foreign ships at sea and a net- work of U.S. planes and ships. The foreign ships are asked a series of questions about their cargo, route, destination, home port and other matters the U.S. can check against its intelligence files. Sometimes the same ship is quizzed multiple times. Five ships have been boarded and searched by heavily armed U.S. Naval personnel, equipped with mug shots, including that of the criminal bin Laden. There have been no incidents but also no arrests.

There are ten P-3C Orions in the region. Just weeks before 9/11, the planes underwent an extensive upgrade to increase the range and clarity of their surveillance cameras and the ability of their computers to transmit real-time photos to onshore analysts. When an Orion spots a possible "high- interest target," images are flashed back to the operations center and then to U.S. ships in the area.

Al-Qaeda is known to have a small flotilla. It has airplanes too, but with the U.S. military superiority in the skies, an escape by air would seem foolhardy.

U.S. MILITARY OPERATIONS:

A Huntin' We Go For Omar

[Terror Group Reference: Taliban]

AFGHANISTAN: Afghanistan's interim prime minister Hamid Karzai has confirmed that U.S. special forces have launched an operation to find the fugitive leader of the Taliban. The operation comes after the Pentagon said it had a "fairly consistent body of intelligence" suggesting where the crazed Mullah Mohammad Omar might be hiding. The United States has been hunting Omar since he fled for his life from the former Taliban stronghold of Kandahar shortly before it easily fell to anti-Taliban forces on 7 December.

The search for the ex-Taliban leader appeared to intensify as dozens of heavily-armed U.S. marines were seen boarding three CH-46E Sea Knight helicopters at their base in Kandahar late on Monday. U.S. defense officials said they believed Omar was "holed up" near Baghran, in Helmand province, about 100 miles northwest of Kandahar. Official sources refused to confirm or deny that any operation was actually underway, citing security concerns for the personnel concerned.

From: ERRI DAILY INTELLIGENCE REPORT-Monday, December 31, 2001-New Year's Eve-Vol. 7, No. 367

U.S. MILITARY OPERATIONS:

Forces Gear Up For Possible Mountain Battle

[Terror Group Reference: al-Qaeda and Taliban]

By Paul Anderson, ERRI Analyst

AFGHANISTAN: Afghan government sources said that at least 4,000 Afghan fighters, along with an unknown number of U.S. special forces, are headed toward a mountainous region northwest of Kandahar, possibly in pursuit of crazed former Taliban leader Mullah Mohammed Omar. There is some speculation that terrorist mastermind Usama bin Laden may be there with the one-eyed Omar.

Afghan sources in Kandahar said the local governor called together all the local chieftains and commanders and asked each of them to supply 60 to 100 fighters for this campaign. They believe that Omar and between 2,500 to 3,000 of his fanatical supporters may be holed up in the rough, inaccessible mountain country about 100 miles northwest of Kandahar near the town of Baghran, which could take several days to reach on foot.

The local intelligence chief in Kandahar has been saying for more than a week that he has had reports bin Laden could be with Omar near Baghran. But reports of his whereabouts have conflicted wildly, with some saying the al-Qaeda leader is dead. On Sunday, Afghan foreign minister Abdullah Abdullah said bin Laden "might be in Afghanistan." But just a day earlier, Defense Minister Mohammed Fahim repeated claims that bin Laden probably has fled to Pakistan.

POTUS said on Friday the U.S.-led effort eventually would get bin Laden. The President said: "Bin Laden is not escaping us. I mean, this is a guy who, three months ago, was in control of a country. Now he's maybe in control of a cave."

Appearing Sunday on the ABC News program "This Week," Michael O'Hanlon, a senior fellow in military studies at the Brookings Institution, a Washington-based public policy think tank, said bin Laden continues to present a danger because of his potential to think of new terrorist tactics and approaches. He said: "It's good that he's (bin Laden) on the run. It's good that he doesn't have a sanctuary in Afghanistan the way he used to. But, it's still much better to have him in our hands, or have him dead, than have him loose."

In other developments, the U.S. military is investigating allegations by local villagers that a bombing raid early Sunday left more than 100 civilians dead in east Afghanistan.

U.S. MILITARY OPERATIONS:

Taliban Complex In Eastern Afghanistan Hit By U.S. Strikes

[Terror Group Reference: al-Qaeda]

By Paul Anderson, ERRI Analyst

AFGHANISTAN: The U.S. Central Command said on Saturday that two B1-b bombers struck a complex occupied by members of the fallen Taliban leadership. British and U.S. forces joined hundreds of Afghans in searching caves of the former al-Qaeda complex near Tora Bora, looking for documents and other intelligence as well as al-Qaeda that may still be hiding there. And U.S. troops doubled to nearly 140 the number of Taliban and al-Qaeda prisoners they detained for questioning or possible prosecution. From among thousands captured by Afghan fighters, the prisoners were selected for interrogation in the hopes they will give information about bin Laden, other terrorists or plans for future attacks.

Twelve weeks after the start of the bombing campaign in Afghanistan, the fate of bin Laden remained unknown but the subject of different reports and rumors daily. Pakistan Foreign Minister Abdul Sattar called "very far-fetched speculation" the idea that bin Laden had escaped to his country. He said in an interview to be broadcast Sunday on CNN: "There is no information at the disposal of the government, not an iota of information, which should lead to the speculation that Usama bin Laden or any of his associates are on Pakistan territory, except those who tried to enter, were apprehended at the border." Pakistan holds hundreds of such prisoners.

Meanwhile, in the first air strike since Wednesday, U.S. forces bombed a building about ten miles from Gardez in the eastern Paktia province late Friday night, Afghan time. The air portion of the war has wound down to only occasional strikes since Afghan fighters in conjunction with U.S. bombing raids ousted Taliban rulers and al-Qaeda terrorists from most of the country.

With another transfer of prisoners Friday, the United States was holding 125 at a Marine-built jail at the Kandahar air- port in southern Afghanistan. Eight prisoners were being held on the amphibious assault ship USS Peleliu in the Arabian Sea. Three more were at other smaller detention facilities elsewhere in Afghanistan, bringing the total to 136.

Also, some U.S. Marines at the Kandahar base were planning to leave, with U.S. Army and possibly U.S. Air Force personnel expected to arrive soon to replace them. The Marine expeditionary units sent in to establish bases in Afghanistan have completed that mission, setting up the one in Kandahar as well as one to the south named Camp Rhino.

From: ERRI DAILY INTELLIGENCE REPORT-Friday, December 28, 2001-Vol. 7, No. 364

U.S. MILITARY OPERATIONS:

Taliban Hideout Hit By US Bombers

[Terror Group Reference: al-Qaeda]

AFGHANISTAN: US warplanes destroyed a compound southwest of Kabul which the Pentagon believes was used by senior figures in the former Taliban movement. General Richard Myers, chair- man of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, said the compound was near the town of Ghazni and that the US had "very good indications" Taliban leaders were inside. The news came amid mounting concern about civilian casualties from US air raids and calls for the bombing to stop soon.

On Thursday, an unconfirmed report by the Pakistan-based Afghan Islamic Press said 25 residents had been killed and more injured in a night-time US air raid on Naka, a village in the eastern province of Paktika. It is also known that certain segments of the Afghani interim government now desire that the U.S. end all bombing and withdraw from the country -- a possible key point in recent local reports of alleged bombings of "civilian targets." 

General Myers, confirming the new US air raids, said: "We did strike one target with both heavy bombers and tactical aircraft, using both precision and non-precision weapons, and destroyed a compound near Ghazni. We think the majority of folks in there would have been Taliban leadership." He said he knew of no civilian casualties.

Myers said that US forces had taken custody of about 20 pro-Taliban fighters handed over by Pakistan. They are being held in Kandahar. The Pentagon says its forces are now holding 45 Taliban and al-Qaeda prisoners.

US Defense Secretary Donald Rumsfeld said on Thursday he receives numerous conflicting reports on terrorist mastermind Usama Bin Laden's whereabouts everyday. He said: "We do know of certain knowledge that he is either in Afghanistan, or in some other country, or dead. And we know of certain knowledge that we don't know which of these happens to be the case."

U.S. MILITARY OPERATIONS:

Latest Afghan SitRep

WASHINGTON: It was, overall, a quiet day for U.S. forces in Afghanistan. The United States military is offering incentives to get Afghan forces to take the lead in searching the caves of Tora Bora for traces of Usama bin Laden.

CNN reported that U.S. Marines prepared on Thursday to shut down their initial forward compound, possibly in a few days, and move their operations to the logistically superior Kandahar airport. Seventeen al-Qaeda fighters are currently being held at the airport, and the completion of the second facility makes room for several hundred more.

U.S. MILITARY OPERATIONS:

Latest Afghan SitRep

Terror Group Reference: al-Qaeda

AFGHANISTAN: Here is the latest Situation Report from Afghanistan:

After a quiet Christmas, U.S. forces on Wednesday renewed their search for terrorist mastermind Usama bin Laden and members of his al-Qaeda terrorist network in the Tora Bora caves of eastern Afghanistan.

In the Afghan capital, Kabul, the country's interim government held its second cabinet meeting Wednesday. Leader Hamid Karzai has said establishing security in the country will be his priority.

An FBI team is in the northern Pakistani town of Kohat to interrogate dozens of al-Qaeda prisoners. Officials in Islamabad said Pakistani commandos had been dispatched to Kohat to facilitate the investigation.

U.S. MILITARY OPERATIONS:

U.S. Troops On Heightened State Of Alert After Possible Christmas Day Threat

Terror Group Reference: al-Qaeda

By Paul Anderson, ERRI Analyst

AFGHANISTAN: As tribal commanders searched cave to cave at a former al-Qaeda mountain base, U.S. Marines guarding an airport in the southern Afghan city of Kandahar moved to a state of heightened alert on Tuesday, ready for what officials said was a possible Christmas Day threat. A media pool report from Kandahar airport said Marines and other service members had received information on possible increased danger to their base. Major Chris Hughes, a U.S. Marine spokesman, said: "There are a number of factors that have driven us to this heightened state of alert, one of which is the holiday season."

Anti-Taliban forces, meanwhile, detained an Afghan commander in eastern Afghanistan for alleged ties to Usama bin Laden's al-Qaeda network. Awal Gul, who played a key role in persuading Taliban commanders to surrender Nangarhar province to a council of tribal leaders, was arrested on Sunday, according to the Pakistan-based Afghan Islamic Press. Gul had commanded a military unit in Jalalabad, capital of Nangarhar, which borders Pakistan.

Mohammed Zaman, the defense chief for Nangarhar, confirmed Gul had been arrested. It was not immediately known whether Gul was handed over to U.S. forces, who have taken custody of some suspected Taliban and al-Qaeda members.

On Monday, Afghanistan's new interim leader, Prime Minister Hamid Karzai, appointed well-known warlord Rashid Dostum as deputy defense minister. The move was designed to defuse a potentially disruptive force by bringing him into government. Dostum, an ethnic Uzbek who controls the largest northern city, Mazar-e-Sharif, with his own private army, had been angry because the key ministries of defense, foreign affairs and the interior all went to an ethnic Tajik group from the Panjshir valley.

The U.S. Central Command reported on Monday that the United States has conducted a total approximately 17,000 air missions since the beginning of Operation Enduring Freedom. Leaflets were dropped o