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CNN Live Event/Special

America Strikes Back: Air Strikes Continuing in Afghanistan

Aired October 17, 2001 - 06:28   ET

THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.

THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.
KYRA PHILLIPS, CNN ANCHOR: Well extremely intense U.S.-led air strikes pounded Kabul and Kandahar overnight and this morning. CNN sources in Kandahar say the AC-130 Spectre was used again to hit its targets.

CNN national correspondent Bob Franken is at the Pentagon with word on one Kabul target that was mistakenly hit.

Good morning, Bob.

BOB FRANKEN, CNN NATIONAL CORRESPONDENT: Well, first of all, the AC-130s, they are being used again. The Pentagon said that the AC- 130s, which are these gunships that really provide an awesome, awesome military attack, are being used. It's an effort, said one Marine briefer yesterday, to eviscerate the Taliban, which has been successful.

Now that is just part of what's been going on. There's been a relentless attack the last couple of days, been really throwing the book at them with aerial strikes. But the Taliban claims civilian casualties, the most recent near Kandahar. They claim that air strikes hit a bus and that 15 to 20 civilians were killed. Now this is a matter of extreme sensitivity to the Pentagon, as you might imagine, and it was a subject that was readily addressed by Defense Secretary Donald Rumsfeld as he was interviewed by the Mideast news television station Al-Jazeera.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

DONALD RUMSFELD, DEFENSE SECRETARY: We care a great deal about civilian casualties. We have to. I mean think of the thousands of innocent Americans that were killed by the terrorists. And what we have done is to exercise great care, but the reality is when there is that much ammunition and ordnance and munitions being -- flying around in a country, there will inevitably be some unintended casualties.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

FRANKEN: Now the Pentagon has no comment on the latest charge by the Taliban about some bomb or missile hitting the bus with 15 to 20 casualties near Kandahar. There is an investigation going on we're told. Up until now, no comment -- Kyra.

PHILLIPS: Bob, back to the Red Cross warehouse, was there anybody in this warehouse? What was in there? Can you give us the status on that?

FRANKEN: Well, it took the Pentagon several hours to actually respond to that before putting out a statement saying that one of its jets -- quote -- "inadvertently struck one or more warehouses used by the International Committee of the Red Cross." The Pentagon said "it was among a series" -- I'm quoting now -- "of warehouses targeted by U.S. forces because the Taliban used them for storage of military equipment."

But the Red Cross says the -- this compound has been used quite some time for humanitarian supplies, food, blankets and the like. And as a matter of fact, the Red Cross says that this mistake should not have been made. But as I said, the Pentagon took several hours before it even acknowledged that it was a U.S. bomb that had hit it -- Kyra.

PHILLIPS: Bob Franken, live at the Pentagon, thanks so much.

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