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CNN Live Saturday

Fighting Continues in Afghanistan

Aired October 20, 2001 - 15:10   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.
CATHERINE CALLAWAY, CNN ANCHOR: Let's go right now to General William Odom, he's joining us from Washington, to get some more insight on this mission. He's former director of the National Security Agency, now directs the National Security Studies at the Hudson Institute. Thanks for joining us this afternoon.

GENERAL WILLIAM ODOM, FORMER DIRECTOR OF THE NATIONAL SECURITY AGENCY: Thank you.

CALLAWAY: We saw some incredible video from the Rangers dropping in there into Afghanistan. Tell us more about this kind of mission. We saw that they were carrying, as you can see, quite a bit there. Are they heavily armed troops?

ODOM: They are very heavily armed for light infantry. They qualify as light infantry, but they're better armed than any other light infantry we have, and the range of specialized weapons is quite wide, so they can do some fairly remarkable things that ordinary troops can't do.

CALLAWAY: Give us an idea of some of the things that they can do.

ODOM: Well, they can open up difficult places to get into. They can -- they're very good at demolitions. They have all sorts of night vision capabilities.

I think more than anything else, it's their very special training. Everyone of these soldiers and officers has had to perform outstandingly in some other unit. There is no better trained organization. The kind of raid that you've just witnessed there is practiced frequently by the Rangers. So, for them, this is sort of standard operating procedure. In a real mission, however, it's very high risk but...

CALLAWAY: Yes. We had some word -- there was some report that there was some Taliban resistance, but you're saying these Rangers were more than prepared for this type of encounter.

ODOM: Well, I think it's the finest light infantry in the world. I don't think there's any other light infantry. Now, the Afghans, sure, they're great fighters, but they haven't been up against this kind of capability before. The Soviets had no units of any size, maybe some small commando intelligence (UNINTELLIGIBLE) units, but nothing compared to the capabilities of these have the Taliban or other Afghan units faced before.

CALLAWAY: Now General, we heard Jamie say that there's no word from the Pentagon on how these troops were removed. In your opinion, do you think they are still operating in that region?

ODOM: Well, they can come out any number of ways. One of your commentators just suggested that they secured an air base or an airfield, that an airplane could have landed and taken them out, that's possible. Helicopter extraction is possible. These troops are quite capable of marching thirty miles in one night. They might march out, so there are any number of ways that they can be withdrawn. They might move from this place to another place and be picked up at some other site.

CALLAWAY: Yes, I was getting ready to ask you if they could be moving to another location to possibly set up another base. Could they, indeed, be setting up a base of operation there when they drop in.

ODOM: They could. Not only that, I heard the Pentagon correspondent say that officials there say there will be no maintenance of forces in Afghanistan for any period. These kinds of forces could easily secure an air field where a fairly large ground force could be put in, which could defend itself and stay for awhile and come out. The number of things that can be done with this kind of capability is fairly wide and they're easy to tailor a wide range of special missions, special objectives.

CALLAWAY: So, it's possible that it could be the beginning of a ground war?

ODOM: Well, it's not possible, you just saw it. It's on the ground.

CALLAWAY: A larger, I should say.

ODOM: Well, they can modify the number of these kinds of missions. I would not be surprised to see a more enduring US ground presence in Afghanistan once we have some Afghan units that seem to be having a great success and can secure some territory, however, these forces could secure an air head which then could be reinforced and maintained for quite some time against anything that the Taliban could probably rally against it.

CALLAWAY: All right. General William Odom, thank you for joining us and giving some insight into that raid. Thank you General.

ODOM: Thank you.

BILL HEMMER, CNN ANCHOR: As we've been talking here, and if you heard, last night's commando raids likely hit several different targets, some near the Taliban stronghold of Kandahar. In neighboring Pakistan, the capitol city of Islamabad, CNN's John Vause now brings us up to date from that part of the world, where it is now well into the night already. John, hello. JOHN VAUSE, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Yes, well good evening from Islamabad. Bill, just want to give you some information which we have been receiving from Afghanistan tonight. We know, in fact, we have confirmed reports from our people there of the sounds of helicopters over Kabul, the capital. They have confirmed what sounds like helicopters over the city, but at this stage we have -- apparently, it's all fairly quiet, but they do confirm the sounds of choppers, and there have also been reports of the sound of the Taliban firing anti- aircraft artillery.

But as of a few moments ago, no reports of anything else happening in Kabul. We also know that Kabul was the scene of some fairly intensive fighting by the Northern Alliance. They are fighting on a number of fronts and have been pushing to try and get into Kabul for quite some time now with no success. The Taliban standing strong in that part of the country. We also have those night scope pictures of what appears to be Northern Alliance shelling into the city, but no word on their progress as yet.

Now moving on to Kandahar. Our people on the ground in Kandahar have told us that they have been hearing the sounds of those AC-130s, those (UNINTELLIGIBLE) gun ships flying over the city. But at this stage, we hear all quiet in Kandahar.

Certainly not the case earlier. We know there have been, in fact, fairly intensive air strikes on Kandahar. In fact, yesterday just before those ground forces went in, we had reports of very, very intensive air strikes on Kandahar. Our people, they said that the city was being repeatedly rocked by very loud explosions. The CNN people, they've told us how they could feel the ground shaking.

We also know that the situation in Kandahar, as far as those ground troops going in, our people there told us that they heard about 30 minutes of fairly intensive small arms fire. Now, I mention that because that confirms the word out of the Pentagon, as far as confronting light resistance. The Taliban here in Islamabad telling us tonight that, in fact, there was no resistance. So, in fact, we've had confirmation from our people on the ground that there was fighting in the streets around the city of Kandahar -- Bill.

HEMMER: John, quickly here, the world from the Taliban that it shot down a U.S. helicopter -- the Pentagon says that's simply not the case. How did the Taliban make the claim, and how did they deliver that message?

VAUSE: Well, basically they delivered it over here. The Taliban ambassador, amongst other people, as well as the education minister. There are reporters in Afghanistan, who they are delivering these messages to, but word on that from Pakistan at least is supporting and confirming the Pentagon claim that this was, in effect, an accident. It appears that dust went up in the rotors of that chopper. It went down about 50 miles from the Afghanistan border.

But effectively, the Taliban delivering that message to a number of wire agency reporters in Afghanistan, as well as the ambassador here in Islamabad. HEMMER: OK, John. John Vause, live in Islamabad. John, thanks -- Catherine.

CALLAWAY: Fighting is reported today on several fronts between the Taliban and opposition Northern Alliance, and as CNN's Chris Burns tells us, while the Northern Alliance admits loosing ground, they say that they are gaining in other aspects.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

CHRIS BURNS, CNN CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): The Taliban are fighting back. The Northern Alliance admits that on several fronts the Taliban are on the attack around the city of Mazar-e-Sharif. The Northern Alliance says that they have lost two kilometers. They are now seven kilometers away from the city, that because of those counter-attacks by the Taliban.

Northern Alliance says that there were defections in the area, some seven commanders and 200 troops on the Taliban's side have come over. Of course, that's difficult for us to confirm from this end.

The Northern Alliance also says that their commander, Dostum, is working with U.S. special forces, some 20 U.S. military personnel who are on the ground since the last couple of days that are working as liaison, perhaps exchanging intelligence information, because at the same time, in Samangan province, where the Northern Alliance is fighting the Taliban toward Mazar-e-Sharif, U.S. air strikes have been softening up, at least targeting the Taliban troop positions there -- also, in the western province of Herat.

Along the front between here and Kabul, the fighting goes on as well. Today, there was a fierce exchange of artillery, mortar and machine gun fire between the two sides. However, little progress on either side was reported.

Chris Burns, CNN, in Northern Afghanistan.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

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