October 6, 2001

Britain readies for military action against Afghanistan
Sunday October 7, 8:57 AM
LONDON, Oct 7 (AFP) - Britain was on Sunday gearing up for military strikes against Afghanistan's Taliban regime after Prime Minister Tony Blair returned from a whirlwind tour abroad stressing

Bush, Blair Hint Afghan Strike Could Come Soon
By Steve Holland and Zeeshan Haider
Saturday October 6 8:03 PM ET
WASHINGTON/ISLAMABAD (Reuters) - President Bush gave the clearest indication yet on Saturday that the United States would soon launch military action against Afghanistan for last month's

France wants to help plan U.S. attacks
Sunday October 7, 2:32 AM
DOHA (Reuters) - French forces are ready to join any U.S. military strike against Afghanistan if they are allowed to participate in planning military operations and defining targets, a senior French navy

Taliban threaten to attack Uzbekistan if it aids U.S.
Sunday October 7, 2:16 AM
ISLAMABAD (Reuters) - Officials of Afghanistan's ruling Taliban on Saturday threatened to attack Uzbekistan if it aided the United States in pursuing Osama bin Laden and the Taliban leadership

Rabbani Says Bin Laden Can Be Captured Without War
Saturday, October 06, 2001 4:33 PM EST
BERLIN (Reuters) - The United States can capture Osama bin Laden without going to war, the leader of Afghanistan's anti-Taliban Northern Alliance opposition was quoted as saying.

U.N. says Afghan situation returning to normal
By David Fox
Sunday October 7, 8:51 AM
ISLAMABAD (Reuters) - The United Nations says life inside Afghanistan is returning to normal following internal panic at the prospect of U.S. strikes against Osama bin Laden and his Taliban protectors.

Taliban fire at plane and offer to free aid workers
By Zeeshan Haider and Jeff Franks
Saturday October 6, 8:35 PM
ISLAMABAD/WASHINGTON (Reuters) - Anti-aircraft guns fired on an unidentified plane over Kabul on Saturday, as Afghanistan's isolated Taliban rulers braced for a U.S. military strike

Afghan guns open fire on plane in sky over Kabul
KABUL, Oct 6 (Reuters) - Anti-aircraft guns opened fire on at least one plane high in the sky over the Afghan capital, Kabul, on Saturday, and a Defence Ministry official said the army was trying

White House Rejects Latest Taliban Offer
Saturday, October 06, 2001 10:54 AM EST
WASHINGTON (Reuters) - The Bush administration on Saturday rejected the Taliban's offer to free eight aid workers in exchange for the United States halting its threats against Afghanistan.

Afghan Opposition Says Makes Gains Against Taliban
Saturday October 6 11:59 AM ET
ISLAMABAD (Reuters) - Afghan opposition groups battling the ruling Taliban said on Saturday they were closing in on the provincial capital of the northern province of Samangan.

U.S. shifts emphasis to inducing Taliban self-destruction
WASHINGTON, Oct. 6 (Kyodo) - The United States is shifting its Afghan policy to emphasize inducing the self-destruction of the Taliban rather than conducting military strikes targeting Osama bin Laden

Bush warns Taliban time is running out
By Steve Holland
Saturday October 6, 10:27 PM
WASHINGTON (Reuters) - U.S. President George W. Bush warned Afghanistan's Taliban rulers on Saturday that "time is running out" for them to turn over Osama bin Laden or face the consequences

Pakistan given key to post-Taliban scenario
Saturday October 6, 5:20 PM
ISLAMABAD, Oct 6 (AFP) - Western powers appear ready to grant Pakistan a major stake in any post-Taliban administration in Afghanistan, but Afghan opposition forces are fiercely opposed

US, Britain vow to topple Taliban as first ground troops deploy
NEW DELHI, Oct 6 (AFP) - Britain's Prime Minister Tony Blair on Saturday promised a relentless campaign to unseat Afghanistan's ruling Taliban as the vanguard of a US-led ground force

Pakistan protesters blast Blair, U.S. over bin Laden
By Scott McDonald
PESHAWAR, Pakistan, Oct 6 (Reuters) - Pakistan religious groups protested on Saturday against British Prime Minister Tony Blair and the United States for their push to isolate or oust Afghanistan's

Pakistan has no plans for new Taliban talks
ISLAMABAD, Oct 6 (Reuters) - Pakistan has no plans to send further delegations or envoys to Afghanistan to try to persuade the ruling Taliban to hand over Osama bin Laden, the Foreign Ministry said on Saturday.

Rumsfel Due Tomorrow in Pak
Frontier Post
ISLAMABAD: Window for operation against Osama bin Laden and Taliban in Afghanistan narrow down to come within days after Rumsfeld the US Defence Secretary makes a trip to Pakistan on Sunday.

Zahir seeks UN help to resolve Afghan tangle
Frontier Post
WASHINGTON (Agencies): Former Afghan King Zahir Shah has suggested that the United Nations should get involved in the creation of a new government in Afghanistan to take over the regime

Pashtuns tell Bush, Blair leave Osama, Taliban to us
By John Fullerton
QUETTA, Pakistan, Oct 6 (Reuters) - Pakistan's Pashtun nationalists appealed on Saturday to the United States and Britain not to intervene militarily in Afghanistan, saying Afghans would smoke out Osama bin Laden

Taliban say U.S. food drops a ploy,suggest roads
By Sheree Sardar
ISLAMABAD, Oct 6 (Reuters) - The ruling Taliban on Saturday decried U.S. plans to parachute food aid to Afghanistan's hungry and drought-stricken people, saying all roads into the landlocked

UN donors pledge more than 600 mln dlrs for Afghans
Saturday October 6, 8:47 PM
GENEVA, Oct 6 (AFP) - United Nations donor governments have pledged more than 600 million dollars to combat the humanitarian crisis in Afghanistan, during a two-day forum on the crisis

Afghan Leader Orders Release of UK Reporter - AIP
Saturday October 6 2:08 AM ET
ISLAMABAD (Reuters) - Mullah Mohammad Omar, spiritual leader of the ruling Taliban, has ordered the release of British reporter Yvonne Ridley, detained a week ago for illegally entering Afghanistan

Pakistan to welcome ex-Afghan King's envoy: Spokesman
 Islamabad, Oct 6, IRNA -- Pakistan would welcome any move former Afghan King Zahir Shah could play any role to bring about national reconciliation, Foreign Office spokesman Riaz Muhammad Khan said Saturday.

Taliban accuse Blair of pushing America for anti-Afghanistan war
 Islamabad, Oct 5, IRNA - Taliban Friday accused British Prime Minister Tony Blair of pushing the United States for attack against the war-ruined Afghanistan, urging the British Prime Minister to be aware

A shortcut to demystifying Afghanistan
Sam McManis    Friday, October 5, 2001 – San Francisco Chronicle
Don't know about you, but I've been cramming these last three weeks to learn as much as I can about Afghanistan. There's no easy CliffsNotes version, no quick reads like an "Afghanistan For Dummies"

News from home
Afghan media in U.S. mix reporting with rhetoric
Jonathan Curiel, Chronicle Staff Writer    Friday, October 5, 2001
On April 4, anti-Taliban leader Ahmad Shah Masood pleaded with President Bush to intervene in Afghanistan, saying that if peace was not restored there, "this problem will not only haunt Afghanistan

The Effects of Posttraumatic Stress Disorder Among  Women and Children of Afghanistan
The catastrophic effects of war, destruction, and oppression always leaves deep psychological scars on people of a nation who are forced to experience unusual fear and constant nightmares.