U.S. dismisses Taleban assurances on bin Laden

04:00 p.m Dec 22, 1999 Eastern

WASHINGTON, Dec 22 (Reuters) - The United States dismissed on Wednesday assurances from the Taleban rulers of Afghanistan that Saudi-born Islamist Osama bin Laden, wanted for bombing U.S. embassies last year, plans no attacks on Americans.

``These statements that continue to come out of the Taleban are laughable on their face. The Taleban is willing to say anything that sounds positive or reassuring,'' State Department spokesman James Foley told his daily briefing.

``They are unwilling to do anything which actually gets to the heart of the matter, which is that this man .... is enjoying their hospitality, enjoying their protection, is living in territory that they control,'' he added.

Bin Laden has stayed in Afghanistan despite repeated U.S. requests that the Taleban extradite him for trial in connection with bombs at the U.S. embassies in Nairobi and Dar es Salaam.

The United States says it has credible evidence that his group may be planning more attacks on Americans over the next three weeks, during Christmas or New Year festivities.

The Taleban ambassador to Pakistan told a news conference in Islamabad on Tuesday the Taleban gave the United States the assurances in a letter sent on Monday.

The letter was in response to a U.S. warning last week that Washington will hold the Taleban responsible for any attack on Americans by followers of bin Laden, he added.

Foley said the United States had learned not to take seriously Taleban statements on bin Laden, whom the United States has now linked to a group arrested in Jordan this month on suspicion of planning attacks on Americans.

He quoted the Taleban as saying that bin Laden no longer has a telephone or fax machine and then ridiculed this claim.

``We have reliable information that bin Laden is in frequent contact with terrorists ... in various parts of the world, and the group indeed uses modern communications,'' he said.

The United Nations imposed sanctions on the Taleban last month, including a ban on flights and a freeze of the movement's assets, in an attempt to persuade the movement to hand bin Laden over.

Asked if the United States would hold the Taleban responsible for the plans of the people arrested in Jordan, Foley said: ``I'm not going to give the Taleban a pass here.''

``The Taleban are at risk on an ongoing basis simply because this terrorist, with his global network, is enjoying their protection, and, therefore, things can go wrong from their perspective at any time,'' he added.

The United States fired cruise missiles at what it said were bin Laden training camps in Afghanistan in August 1998, shortly after the embassy bombings.