9 Dec 2003 10:42 ET DJ US Warn Of Terror Threat To Afghan Constitutional Council
KABUL (AP)--U.S. officials said Tuesday they have "specific" intelligence that Taliban insurgents and their al-Qaida allies are planning attacks against a historic constitutional council set to get underway this weekend, and warned that they are anticipating an all out campaign by the rebels to hit the council and those taking part in it.
The Afghan government announced Tuesday that the grand council -or loya jirga -would begin Saturday, four days late, because of delays in electing delegates and in order to allow participants from Afghanistan's 32 far-flung provinces time to travel to the capital.
"We anticipate that they (insurgents) will try to be more active. To go after loya jirga-related activities and the loya jirga itself," new U.S. ambassador Zalmay Khalilzad said at a briefing for foreign journalists at the heavily-fortified embassy grounds.
Khalilzad said a new U.S. military operation focusing on the lawless south and east of the country -touted as the largest since the Afghan war ended two years ago -is part of a concerted effort to knock the rebels off balance ahead of the gathering, "to keep them busy protecting and defending themselves."
The U.S. military said it was on guard after receiving indications attacks were being planned against the gathering.
"We have intelligence of specific threats against the constitutional loya jirga," military spokesman Lt. Col. Bryan Hilferty said from Bagram air base, north of the capital. But he added that "we think we have a pretty good security plan."
Hilferty said the fact that delegates have so far been able to travel safely to Kabul for the loya jirga was a strong indication that security was improving in the country.
"There is no doubt in my mind that (fugitive Taliban leader) Mullah Omar would like to kill all the delegates to the loya jirga," Hilferty said. "He can't."
The military on Monday announced a 2,000-strong operation -dubbed Avalanche -over a large swath of the south and east. On Tuesday, several hundred American soldiers launched an air assault on an area near the Pakistani border, Hilferty said. He had no information on possible casualties.
The loya jirga is considered a cornerstone event in Afghanistan's long path to recovery. Some 500 delegates have already begun trickling into the capital for the event, to be held in an enormous tent in the northwest of the city. The delegates must ratify a new constitution, paving the way for national elections scheduled for June.
Khalilzad hailed the meeting, saying it was a sign of the progress Afghanistan has made after decades of bloodshed.
"The Afghans are discussing issues that they have not discussed with a freedom they have not had during the past 5,000-year history," Khalilzad said at a briefing for foreign journalists. "The issues that they are discussing include the role of religion, form of government, balance of power between the center and the regions, the role of women, the national anthem and so on. They are debating it with freedom and with confidence."
Security has always been of great concern for the gathering.
The capital, patrolled by a 5,000-strong international peacekeeping force, has been relatively stable, but Taliban rebels and their al-Qaida allies have been launching increasingly virulent attacks in the provinces. A bomb exploded Nov. 22 outside the capital's upscale Intercontinental Hotel, the site of the press center for the loya jirga.
The government had planned the loya jirga -or grand council -to start Wednesday, but spokesman Farooq Wardak said that would not be possible.
"The delegates need more time to get here," he told The Associated Press. He said the meeting would start Saturday, with addresses from former king Mohammad Zaher Shah and President Hamid Karzai. Wardak said pre-council meetings have already begun.
The 50-page draft constitution was unveiled Nov. 3 after a year of work and many delays. It envisions an Islamic republic with a powerful presidency and a bicameral legislature. The president would be commander in chief of the military, appoint one-third of the legislature's upper house and name judges, military officers, police and national security officials.
It also guarantees a role for women in running the country and enshrines their right to an education. The former Taliban regime imposed a harsh version of Islamic law and banished girls and women from schools and public life.
The grand council is open-ended, though Wardak said they were hoping to wrap things up in about 10 days. The delegates will be allowed to approve amendments.
(END) Dow Jones Newswires
December 09, 2003 10:42 ET (15:42 GMT) |
