US special forces target Bin Laden hideout
October 22, 2001
Further air strikes followed on Sunday. Low-flying US warplanes dropped bombs on Kabul and the Taliban stronghold Kandahar overnight. The Taliban's air defences are reported to be clearly subdued. The overnight bombings drew less anti-aircraft fire than usual.
According to Reuters news agency, more than 30 aircraft took part in the attacks. With the deployment of US special forces, the focus of the air strikes has changed - from buildings and facilities to targets essential to the Taliban's ground resistance.
More than 100 US commandos and light infantry special rangers fought with Taliban forces near Kandahar on Saturday, the Taliban's spiritual centre. Around 20 Taliban soldiers are reported to have been killed in the battle.
The forces seized a complex near Kandahar, hoping for clues as to the whereabouts of Bin Laden and Taliban leader Mullah Mohammed Omar. Bin Laden is supposed to have been a frequent visitor in the area around Kandahar.
The special forces raids have meanwhile caused their first casualties. A US helicopter, providing rescue assistance to elite ground troops Friday night, crashed in Pakistan. Two US soldiers were killed.
The crash is said to have been an accident. President George W Bush said on Saturday: "These soldiers will not have died in vain. This is a just cause."
The exact cause of the accident is not known. The Taliban claims they shot down the helicopter.
Chaos at Pakistani border
Pakistani officials confirmed that the US will now be making use of a further airport in Pakistan. The small airstrip Dalbandin close to the Afghan border is, alongside Jacobabad and Pasni on the Arabian Sea, the third airport handed over to US forces.
The use of the airports is regarded as part of Pakistan's commitment to the US-led fight against terrorism. However, Pakistani officials were anxious to emphasize that the air bases were not being used to attack Afghanistan, but to launch search and rescue operations.
The presence of foreign troops inside Pakistan has sparked violent opposition since the start of US-led attacks in Afghanistan. Hard-line religious groups say they will continue to protest.
Meanwhile, more than 5, 000 Afghan refugees fled across the Afghan border to Pakistan. They arrived in the border town of Chaman on Friday and Saturday. Futher 10, 000 refugees are reported to be still behind the border, attempting to get in to Pakistan.
Border guards refused to let more refugees in. Their refusal led to chaos, with desperate Afghans throwing stones at Pakistan border security.
Afghan aid threatened
United Nations humanitarian agencies say their aid effort is becoming increasingly threatened by the outbreak of chaos and the collapse of law and order in Afghanistan. UN spokesman Antonio Donini said UN ability to operate was "diminishing day by day".
Various UN aid agency offices are reported to have been looted. Guards have been beaten up and food and vehicles stolen.
What with the oncoming winter, the situation is becoming desperate. The first snows have already fallen on the Hindu Kush mountains and the isolated highlands of Hazarajat.
The Afghans, whether refugees,displaced persons or still living in their home areas have no money for food or drink. Many Afghans do not have the means to leave the country, and try to avoid the bombing by fleeing from the cities to more rural areas. However, these areas are only more inhospitable - and more difficult for aid workers to reach.
According to the World Food Programme, 52,000 tonnes of wheat must be distributed in Afghanistan each month in order to avoid mass starvation. Since the start of the aid programme on September 25 only 20,000 tonnes have been supplied and 15,000 distributed.
The United Nations is set to issue an appeal to the United States and its coalition allies to stop the attacks on Afghanistan in order to allow time for a huge relief operation.
UN aid officials estimate that up to 7.5 million Afghans might be threatened with starvation this winter.
Final day of Apec summit
Today's talks at the Apec summit in Shanghai will be dominated by the terrorism issue. The 21 leaders of countries from the Asia-Pacific Economic Co-operation group are expected to release a statement on Sunday, the final day of the summit, which condemns terrorism but ignores the US-led air strikes in Afghanistan.
Both Chinese President Jiang and his Russian counterpart Putin stated hopes for an end to the US-led military campaign earlier, calling for a political solution.
Bush is using the summit to shore up international support for his campaign against terrorism. Both Indonesia and Malaysia, however, object to the air strikes. The Muslim leaders of both countries have decided not to support the summit's declaration to turn off terrorist groups' funding in their countries.
Despite taking a united stand with the US against terrorism, Chinese President Jiang also showed worries. "We are fighting a battle against international terrorism," he said. But Jiang also stated that the attacks had made "an already grave economic situation worse".
Further traces of anthrax in Capitol Hill
Further traces of anthrax have been found in the US House of Representatives. The finding follows the first discovery of anthrax in Senate Majority Leader Tom Daschle's office at Capitol Hill earlier this week. On Wednesday, most parts of the Capitol Hill complex were closed for further investigations.
Saturday's new finding is the first time anthrax has been found on the House side of the complex. The discovery was made in the Ford Office building, from where post is delivered to both the House and the Senate.
Friday saw the eighth case of anthrax infection. A postal worker in New Jersey was infected with skin anthrax while handling mail. He is thought to have handled the letters sent to NBC in New York and to the Senate Majority Leader's office in Washington.
All three major TY networks are now sites of anthrax infection, as well as the tabloid newspaper New York Post and the Capitol Hill complex in Washington.
The anthrax scare is now a global problem. Spores of the bacteria were found in in a letter sent from the US to Argentina. This is the second conformation of contamination outside the US, following the discovery of anthrax in a letter in Kenya.