SOS
03-02-2002, 07:25 PM
WSJ (http://www.wsj.com)
AFTERMATH OF TERROR
[b]At Least One U.S. Soldier Is Killed
In Raid on al Qaeda in Afghanistan[b]
Associated Press
WASHINGTON -- At least one U.S. soldier was killed and several were injured in an assault on Taliban and al Qaeda fighters regrouping in eastern Afghanistan, the Pentagon said Saturday
Two Afghan fighters also were killed and an unknown number injured in the operation against members of the terrorist network and non-Afghan Taliban, the Pentagon said.
Separately, an U.S. F-14 Tomcat fighter jet crashed Saturday during a training exercise in the Mediterranean Sea, killing one of the two crew members, the Navy said. The jet went into the water immediately after being launched from the USS John F. Kennedy aircraft carrier, which is on its way to deployment in the war in Afghanistan. The cause of the crash is under investigation.
Not including the latest casualties, four members of the U.S. military had been killed in combat in the U.S.-led campaign in Afghanistan that began Oct. 7. A Central Intelligence Agency agent was killed during a prison riot while interrogating detainees.
It appeared the U.S.-backed Afghans made little headway on the first day of the offensive.
Afghan forces broke off the attack in early afternoon and withdrew, possibly to allow U.S. bombers to soften up Taliban and al Qaeda positions overnight. Heavy bombers could be heard flying toward the area late Saturday.
Even before word of the casualties, the new operation reinforced what the Pentagon long has maintained -- that the war against terrorism in Afghanistan is far from over.
Military officials said the offensive was the largest U.S.-led ground operation in the anti-terror campaign since December.
The battle plan called for a combination of American special forces and Army 101st Airborne assault troops fighting alongside Afghan allies on the ground with U.S. bombing support from the air, said Pentagon officials, speaking on condition of anonymity.
The most recent and largest sustained bombing was in January, when warplanes bombed caves and exploded enemy weapons and ammunition for more than a week at Zawar Kili -- where intelligence officials said al Qaeda and Taliban were regrouping.
The new offensive opened near Gardez, in the eastern part of the country, and was backed by 60 American and 600 Afghans on the ground, Afghan officials said.
Afghan fighters interviewed in Gardez said the Americans told them there were about 4,000 al Qaeda and Taliban warriors holed up in the eastern mountains.
The last known ground operation was on Jan. 23 when U.S. special forces raided a compound where the U.S. mistakenly believed enemy figures were holed up. The Pentagon has said 16 people who turned out not to be to al Qaeda or Taliban were killed when they resisted.
Since then, there have been small unpublicized raids, said a U.S. defense official, speaking on condition of anonymity.
Coalition troops continue to gather intelligence on pockets of resistance, seizing material and interrogating people during these raids, the official said.
U.S. officials and Afghan sources estimate 4,000 to 5,000 foreigners who fought for the Taliban and al Qaeda remain inside Afghanistan.
"We've said all along that it is not over... in Afghanistan and that for some time there would be pockets of resistance," Pentagon spokeswoman Victoria Clarke said Friday.
Copyright © 2002 Associated Press
Updated March 2, 2002 3:36 p.m. EST
AFTERMATH OF TERROR
[b]At Least One U.S. Soldier Is Killed
In Raid on al Qaeda in Afghanistan[b]
Associated Press
WASHINGTON -- At least one U.S. soldier was killed and several were injured in an assault on Taliban and al Qaeda fighters regrouping in eastern Afghanistan, the Pentagon said Saturday
Two Afghan fighters also were killed and an unknown number injured in the operation against members of the terrorist network and non-Afghan Taliban, the Pentagon said.
Separately, an U.S. F-14 Tomcat fighter jet crashed Saturday during a training exercise in the Mediterranean Sea, killing one of the two crew members, the Navy said. The jet went into the water immediately after being launched from the USS John F. Kennedy aircraft carrier, which is on its way to deployment in the war in Afghanistan. The cause of the crash is under investigation.
Not including the latest casualties, four members of the U.S. military had been killed in combat in the U.S.-led campaign in Afghanistan that began Oct. 7. A Central Intelligence Agency agent was killed during a prison riot while interrogating detainees.
It appeared the U.S.-backed Afghans made little headway on the first day of the offensive.
Afghan forces broke off the attack in early afternoon and withdrew, possibly to allow U.S. bombers to soften up Taliban and al Qaeda positions overnight. Heavy bombers could be heard flying toward the area late Saturday.
Even before word of the casualties, the new operation reinforced what the Pentagon long has maintained -- that the war against terrorism in Afghanistan is far from over.
Military officials said the offensive was the largest U.S.-led ground operation in the anti-terror campaign since December.
The battle plan called for a combination of American special forces and Army 101st Airborne assault troops fighting alongside Afghan allies on the ground with U.S. bombing support from the air, said Pentagon officials, speaking on condition of anonymity.
The most recent and largest sustained bombing was in January, when warplanes bombed caves and exploded enemy weapons and ammunition for more than a week at Zawar Kili -- where intelligence officials said al Qaeda and Taliban were regrouping.
The new offensive opened near Gardez, in the eastern part of the country, and was backed by 60 American and 600 Afghans on the ground, Afghan officials said.
Afghan fighters interviewed in Gardez said the Americans told them there were about 4,000 al Qaeda and Taliban warriors holed up in the eastern mountains.
The last known ground operation was on Jan. 23 when U.S. special forces raided a compound where the U.S. mistakenly believed enemy figures were holed up. The Pentagon has said 16 people who turned out not to be to al Qaeda or Taliban were killed when they resisted.
Since then, there have been small unpublicized raids, said a U.S. defense official, speaking on condition of anonymity.
Coalition troops continue to gather intelligence on pockets of resistance, seizing material and interrogating people during these raids, the official said.
U.S. officials and Afghan sources estimate 4,000 to 5,000 foreigners who fought for the Taliban and al Qaeda remain inside Afghanistan.
"We've said all along that it is not over... in Afghanistan and that for some time there would be pockets of resistance," Pentagon spokeswoman Victoria Clarke said Friday.
Copyright © 2002 Associated Press
Updated March 2, 2002 3:36 p.m. EST