From The Associated Press, 12/3/04:
http://msnbc.msn.com/id/6639804
Bin Laden’s trail cold, U.S. acknowledges
Forces focus on Afghan democracy, pursuing Taliban
The Associated Press
KABUL, Afghanistan -
For a time, the U.S. military in Afghanistan was talking as if it
would smoke Osama bin Laden out of a cave on the rocky Pakistan border
within months, perhaps even ahead of President Bush’s re-election.
Now, U.S. commanders say protecting the country’s fragile new
democracy, reviving its economy and keeping Taliban militants on the
run are the priorities, although tracking the cold trail of bin Laden
and other al-Qaida leaders remains the focus of intelligence efforts.
Spies, informers, electronic listening devices and surveillance from
the air all belong to the U.S. arsenal.
However, U.S. officials acknowledge that videotapes featuring a
sprightly-looking bin Laden -- released days before the Nov. 2
election in the United States -- and his deputy, Ayman al-Zawahri,
have yielded no clues to their whereabouts, even though one was
delivered to a TV channel in Islamabad, Pakistan.
"They’re pretty sterile in terms of intelligence value," Maj. Gen.
Eric Olson, the operational commander of U.S. forces here, told The
Associated Press.
Despite initial high expectations on the other side of the border,
Pakistan’s yearlong crackdown against foreign militants near the
tribal town of Wana also has yielded no trace of bin Laden or
al-Zawahri.
"We have no specific indication that they are in the Wana area or
really any other location" in the region, Olson said.
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Oh, well, easy come easy go. At least we got Saddam, right? What does
he hafta do with the World Trade Center bombing? Don't ask
embarrassing questions.
Harry
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