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CNN Live At Daybreak

U.S. Officials Believe Al Qaeda, Taliban Regrouping in Pakistan

Aired March 07, 2002 - 05:12   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.
CAROL COSTELLO, CNN ANCHOR: We want to talk more about Operation Anaconda. U.S. officials say they believe al Qaeda and Taliban fighters are actually regrouping in Pakistan with the aim of returning to Afghanistan.

CNN's Kamal Hyder joins us by phone from the Pakistani-Afghan border -- Kamal, what's happening there?

KAMAL HYDER, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Carol, there is no evidence to suggest that any people are regrouping in Pakistan. We have been at the border today. We have seen the Pakistani border, and this has now a three tier defense line.

The first line of defense, the Hasadar (ph) force, which is the tribal militia with intense patrolling of the border. And this second line of defense would consist of paramilitary forces, followed by regular forces, which is the last line of defense. So there is no way people can regroup in this area, and the areas that we have visited do not indicate that people are regrouping in this area.

However, there was a huge camp at Zhawar Kili which was being bombed earlier by allied forces and huge stockpiles of ammunition and ordinance remain in that area, which was the prime target. There are suggestions here also that al Qaeda and Taliban forces must have prepositioned large quantities of ordinance and arms in the mountains in the Shahi Kot area, that such a large logistical operation could not have taken place after the attack, the coalition attack on Afghanistan, since it would make it impossible to move large amounts of men or material.

And therefore the suggestion that people are crossing from Pakistan has not been validated, at least from where we stand -- Carol.

COSTELLO: Well, I guess that is a good thing because that means reinforcements aren't going to the troops who are fighting now.

HYDER: Carol, this is mountainous area, very difficult terrain here and the Pakistani frontier, along which these secret routes once existed, have been completely sealed off. This is the largest, most unprecedented deployment of Pakistani defense forces and paramilitary forces along with the political militias since 1947, which is when Pakistan became independent. So for the last two months, for the government of Pakistan it has been a burden that it has carried and carried responsibly -- Carol.

COSTELLO: All right, thank you.

Kamal Hyder reporting live for us on the phone from the Pakistani-Afghan border this morning.

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