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CNN Live At Daybreak
Moonless Night in Kandahar Allows for More U.S. Bombing
Aired November 09, 2001 - 05:13 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.
DARYN KAGAN, CNN ANCHOR: U.S. Allied war planes are blasting targets in both north and south Afghanistan today. Bombings are reported on Taliban positions in the north and on targets around Kandahar.
And on that note, let's check in in the southern part of Afghanistan in the area of Kandahar with our Kamal Hyder, joining us now by phone -- Kamal, hello.
KAMAL HYDER, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Hello, Daryn.
This afternoon after the Friday prayers and the call for prayers, about an hour after that, Allied -- at least one Allied bomber flew over Kandahar, drew anti-aircraft fire again from the Taliban, from the west of the city. Yesterday the attacks were quite intense, continuing from the afternoon going on all till late night and into the early hours of Friday morning, those attacks intensifying as a moonless Kandahar night drew in more and more AC-130s.
People here feel that without the moon, there will be more special operations on the ground. And, of course, the activity on Kandahar extremely heavy with AC-130s, fighter bombers working over Kandahar -- Daryn.
KAGAN: Kamal, I realize you're in the southern part of the country in Kandahar, but can you tell us more about what's happening near Mazar-e-Sharif in the northern part of the country as the Northern Alliance claims that it is getting closer and closer to taking that city?
HYDER: Daryn, it is very difficult to verify the facts on the ground. The Northern Alliance had made claims earlier also which did not substantiate with the reality on the ground. The Northern Alliance is very strategically -- knows the strategic importance of Mazar-e-Sharif, but the Taliban here are saying that they are determined and that morale in Mazar-e-Sharif is good and that the Taliban feel they will be able to hold onto the city.
Whether that can be -- whether that is the case or not remains to be seen. But the Taliban remain defiant and continue to say that they will hold not just Mazar, but even Kabul, to the last man -- Daryn.
KAGAN: Kamal Hyder in Kandahar, thank you. Now, let's go to the Pentagon and check in with Brian Nelson, who can tell us a little bit more on that battle for Mazar-e-Sharif and why it is so important to U.S. military interests -- Brian, good morning. Good to see you at the Pentagon.
BRIAN NELSON, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Thank you. Good morning, Daryn. Yes, good to see you, too.
Well, to understand the importance of Mazar-e-Sharif, you have to understand that if the U.S. bombing allows the Northern Alliance forces to move on and eventually take Mazar-e-Sharif, it would deal a huge blow to the Taliban. Not only would the city's fall isolate many of the Taliban troops up in that area, but it would also hand the U.S.-led coalition a crucial airport and a highway network.
And today the U.S. general leading the war in Afghanistan made no secret of that strategic value.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
GEN. TOMMY FRANKS, COMMANDER, U.S. CENTRAL COMMAND: Yes, we are interested in Mazar-e-Sharif. We're interested in it because it would provide a land bridge, as has been said, up to Uzbekistan, which provides us, among other things, a humanitarian pathway for us to move supplies out of Central Asia and down into Afghanistan.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
NELSON: But that pathway would also include military shipments of ammunition, tanks and artillery, which are badly needed supplies, to keep the Northern Alliance a viable fighting force. But it is Mazar-e-Sharif's airport which may be the biggest prize of all. If the city and the airport fall to the Northern Alliance, it would permit the U.S. to base fighters and perhaps even bombers from that location, and that would shorten the distance from thousands to perhaps hundreds of miles, the distance needed for some of those aircraft to fly even to reach Afghani air space. So the net effect would be to allow the U.S.-led coalition to crank up its air campaign against the Taliban and perhaps, at least in the view of the United States, turn the tide in that war toward the Northern Alliance -- back to you, Daryn.
KAGAN: Brian Nelson at the Pentagon.
Brian, thank you.
Now let's check in south of Afghanistan in Pakistan, where officials say three people died today on a main southwestern highway as police fought demonstrators who were protesting the U.S.-led bombing campaign in Afghanistan. Violence was also reported in Karachi and Peshawar. Police fired tear gas to break up a crowd of demonstrators in Karachi.
CNN's Rebecca MacKinnon reports from Peshawar that there was intense but brief clashes between police and protesters earlier today. But there is a heavy police presence in Pakistani cities today as Islamic political and religious parties have called for a national strike. Generally we hear the situation is calm.
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