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CNN Live Saturday

Taliban Says U.S. Should Avoid Hasty Action Against It

Aired October 06, 2001 - 14:01   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.
MARTIN SAVIDGE, CNN ANCHOR: Let's take you back to Pakistan, where CNN's Nic Robertson has been keeping track of what the Taliban are doing and saying -- Nic.

NIC ROBERTSON, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Well, Martin in the last 20 minutes or so, we heard a statement of what we understand will be a statement soon to be released from the Taliban supreme leader Mullah Omar.

This statement saying that the United States should not make the Taliban the fall guys of international intrigue. The statement also says that they -- the United States should not jump to any conclusions before taking action against the Taliban.

Now this comes in a day of some air activity, according to Taliban reports, over Afghanistan. Late this afternoon in Tadask (ph), the Taliban report over the western city of Harat (ph), close to the Iranian border, three aircraft, they say.

They believe them to be American aircraft, flying north, south they said for quite a period of time and then back again. They say that these aircraft had some flashing lights on them, but didn't shoot.

Also, over the city of Kabul, the capital, an aircraft in plain site. The Taliban say it was an American aircraft. They say they believe that because it wasn't theirs or the Northern Alliances. They say they shot at it from three different anti-aircraft positions, but people in the city there said that they saw a surface-to-air missile, the white contrail of it, going up into the sky of the aircraft.

The Taliban Ministry denies firing a surface-to-air missile. That missile missed, as did the anti-aircraft bullets. The Taliban say that the plane then disappeared over the horizon -- Martin.

SAVIDGE: What about the issue of these aid workers? The Taliban, they have been saying that they might release them. What is the connection that's being made?

ROBERTSON: Well, it's a very tight connection. Essentially, the Taliban saying we will release those eight aid workers: two Americans, four Germans and two Australians if, as they say, the United States stops its propaganda against the people of Afghanistan. The Taliban are saying that the people of Afghanistan are hearing all this propaganda that they're going to be attacked. And they're very afraid, they say. The people have gone out into the countryside into the villages. Some of this we know to be true.

However, the Taliban say there's a bad humanitarian situation in Afghanistan and these people need to be allowed to come back to their homes. The Taliban also say that they are not afraid of being attacked themselves. The leadership, what they're essentially trying to do, is bring the people back into the cities. If that were to happen, that would certainly make their management of the country of this time of intense crisis much easier -- Martin.

SAVIDGE: CNN's Nic Robertson in Islamabad. Thank you very much for the update.

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