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Politics : Foreign Affairs Discussion Group -- Ignore unavailable to you. Want to Upgrade?

To: Karen Lawrence who wrote (39936)	8/26/2002 10:10:04 AM
From: Karen Lawrence	Respond to of 281500

U.S. to stay in Afghanistan indefinitely By Cesar G. Soriano, USA TODAY BAGRAM AIR BASE, Afghanistan — The commander of U.S. forces in Afghanistan said Sunday that American troops will remain here indefinitely and won't be able to leave until it's clear this war-torn country has stabilized and is no longer a safe haven for terrorists. "Before we bring all the U.S. troops and all the coalition troops out of here," those forces need to make sure that "we set conditions ... (that) prevent a reintroduction of the sorts of people that caused us to be standing where you and I are standing right now," Army Gen. Tommy Franks said during a visit to the largest allied base in Afghanistan. There are 12,000 coalition troops in Afghanistan, including 7,000 Americans. "I am very proud of what (U.S. soldiers) have been able to accomplish in 10 months or so over here," Franks said. "(We have a) long ways to go before this is finished. Long ways to go. But an awful lot's been done." "We are, in fact, seeing improved security," Franks said. "(But) the fact of the matter is Afghanistan is a very dangerous place." The dangers were underscored over the weekend. Just hours before Franks' arrival here Sunday, three rockets were fired at U.S. special operations soldiers in the eastern province of Konar. The closest rocket exploded just 100 yards from the soldiers' outpost, said Col. Roger King, a military spokesman. Two Air Force A-10 warthog jets patrolling the area retaliated by firing nearly 1,000 rounds of 30mm cannon ammunition and seven 2.75-inch high-explosive rockets at the spot where the rockets were believed to have been fired from. King did not say what the soldiers were doing in the uninhabited area when the attack occurred between midnight and 3 a.m. Sunday. A battle assessment is underway to see what, if anything, was hit. As for the whereabouts of al-Qaeda leader Osama bin Laden, Franks said: "We have not seen any convincing proof that bin Laden (or top aide Ayman) al-Zawahri are dead. A great many nations on this planet are very interested in the man if he is still alive. If he is still alive, it's only a matter of time" before he is found. Sunday, a Qatar-based Islamic Web site (www.islamonline.net) reported that one of its correspondents had obtained a copy of a letter purportedly written by bin Laden just two weeks ago. The letter, a copy of which was carried on the Web site, praised Afghanistan because it had repelled invaders in the past and "because the peaks of the mountains of this blessed land reject stubborn atheists." The letter, in Arabic, was not dated and no independent analysis of the handwriting could be obtained. No event was cited in the letter to suggest it had been written recently.