Intelligence

Search for bin Laden gathers steam

Search for bin Laden gathers steam

February 29, 2004
BY KATHERINE PFLEGER SHRADER

-- The United States is rounding up and questioning the relatives of fugitive al-Qaida leaders to generate information on the possible whereabouts of Osama bin Laden and his top deputies. This tactic helped lead to Saddam Hussein's capture.

So far, the information received is unconfirmed and does not mean the terrorist leader's location has been pinned down or his capture is imminent. U.S. officials caution that rumors of significant progress are overstated.

Saturday, Pentagon and Pakistani officials denied an Iranian state radio report that bin Laden had been captured ''a long time ago'' in Pakistan's border region with Afghanistan.

But some U.S. officials do say they have been able to extract useful information from Afghan and Pakistani relatives and friends of al-Qaida fugitives, providing hints on the possible whereabouts of the organization's leaders.

Meanwhile, Pakistani troops hunting for terrorists Saturday in a remote tribal region along the border with Afghanistan killed 11 people riding in a minibus that did not stop at a rural checkpoint, an army spokesman said.

Gen. Shaukat Sultan said troops opened fire on the minibus after someone fired on the paramilitary forces at a roadblock in Zeri Noor, a village just outside of Wana, the main town in tribal South Waziristan. Counterterrorism operations there last week netted 25 suspects.

Sixteen people were arrested.

The deaths were sure to raise the anger of fiercely independent tribal leaders already enraged by the presence of troops in their territory.

With the weather improving in Afghanistan, the U.S. military has sent troops and technology to the country to aid the search and to give forces on the ground more opportunity to track down bin Laden. He is the United States' most-wanted terrorist for his leadership in planning the attacks of Sept. 11, 2001.

Rounding up relatives for questioning helped bring about the Dec. 13 capture of Saddam, the former Iraqi leader. U.S. officials hope the tactic could lead to information on the whereabouts of bin Laden and his top deputies, especially when combined with information from spy satellites, communication intercepts and prisoner interrogations.

U.S. military officials have said they are planning a spring offensive in Afghanistan in the hopes of capturing bin Laden, former Taliban leader Mullah Mohammed Omar and their associates.

AP

February 29, 2004 at 10:15 PM in Al Qaeda | Permalink | TrackBack (2) | Top of page | Blog Home