-Caveat Lector- w w w . h a a r e t z . c o m -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Last update - 01:44 12/09/2004 Bin Laden is still issuing orders, U.S. general says By The Associated Press
BAGRAM, Afghanistan - Three years after the September 11 attacks, Osama bin Laden and his deputy are still issuing orders, a top American commander said yesterday. Major General Eric Olson also said that an Al-Qaida-linked group was suspected of being behind a deadly car bombing at a U.S. security firm in the Afghan capital last month. "There are senior leaders of Al-Qaida who are working through operatives in Afghanistan," Olson said in an interview. "They are involved in planning and in some cases directing attacks inside of Afghanistan." Olson, the operational commander of U.S.-led forces in Afghanistan, said the military had no fix on either bin Laden or his deputy, Ayman al-Zawahri. But the involvement of well-trained foreign fighters in attacks near the Pakistani border convinced him that the fugitive leaders were pulling the strings. "What we see are their techniques and their tactics here in Afghanistan, so I think it is reasonable to assume that the senior leaders are involved in directing those operations," he said. Olson, a native of New York City, spoke after a ceremony at the main American base north of Kabul to mark the anniversary of the 2001 terrorist attacks. About 300 soldiers from the 18,000-strong coalition force gathered in a dust-smeared tent to hear readings from the Bible and the Quran, patriotic songs and speeches reminding them of their mission. Several wept as they watched videos of how the hijacked planes toppled the World Trade Center towers in New York and devastated a wing of the Pentagon. "We're here to prevent future ceremonies, future Sept. 11ths," said Major Andy Preston, an infantryman from Edmond, Oklahoma, who was working at the Pentagon when it was hit. Operation Enduring Freedom quickly ousted the government of the hard-line Taliban movement and scattered the Al-Qaida fighters and leaders it had harbored. Still, the Taliban has regrouped and sustained an insurgency across the south and east of the country, which Olson said was supported also by foreign fighters. Olson said some militants attacking U.S. forces along the Pakistani border with mortars and rockets expertly adjust their aim - betraying a high level of training that is not commonly seen among Taliban fighters. www.ctrl.org DECLARATION & DISCLAIMER ========== CTRL is a discussion & informational exchange list. Proselytizing propagandic screeds are unwelcomed. Substance—not soap-boxing—please! These are sordid matters and 'conspiracy theory'—with its many half-truths, mis- directions and outright frauds—is used politically by different groups with major and minor effects spread throughout the spectrum of time and thought. That being said, CTRLgives no endorsement to the validity of posts, and always suggests to readers; be wary of what you read. CTRL gives no credence to Holocaust denial and nazi's need not apply. Let us please be civil and as always, Caveat Lector. ======================================================================== Archives Available at: http://www.mail-archive.com/[EMAIL PROTECTED]/ <A HREF="http://www.mail-archive.com/[EMAIL PROTECTED]/">ctrl</A> ======================================================================== To subscribe to Conspiracy Theory Research List[CTRL] send email: SUBSCRIBE CTRL [to:] [EMAIL PROTECTED] To UNsubscribe to Conspiracy Theory Research List[CTRL] send email: SIGNOFF CTRL [to:] [EMAIL PROTECTED] Om
