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CNN Live At Daybreak

Search Continues for Bin Laden at Pakistani Border

Aired November 30, 2001 - 06:34   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.
KAGAN: And now overseas to Pakistan where officials there maintain that Osama bin Laden has not crossed into their country. Border guards there are on the lookout for al Qaeda or Taliban members. CNN's Tom Mintier reports from Islamabad.

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TOM MINTIER, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Here on the border between Afghanistan and Pakistan, the search goes on for the most wanted man on earth, Osama bin Laden.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: The official said we (INAUDIBLE)

MINTIER: This man is a member of the Taliban and claims to have permission to cross the border.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: (INAUDIBLE)

MINTIER: The guards are not impressed. He is turned away. In the light of day the controls are tight. Everyone who approaches the border is screened. In the middle of the night it may be easier. Pakistani border patrols are on the lookout not only for Osama bin Laden, but members of his al Qaeda network or senior Taliban officials.

PERVEZ MUSHARRAF, PRESIDENT OF PAKISTAN: I don't know his whereabouts, but I'm very sure he's not in Pakistan and he has not crossed over into Pakistan. We've made all arrangements on the border to seal the border and to ensure checks that includes even including the Army doing this.

MINTIER: The search for Osama bin Laden is not limited to border crossings. Military patrols have been stepped up, but Pakistan's rugged terrain runs for more than 1,000 miles. Smugglers use these routes daily. Coming across the mountains in the middle of the night could be possible.

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MAJ. GEN. RASHID QURESHI: No presence of this man or anyone else related to al Qaeda inside Pakistan.

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MINTIER: Pakistan's foreign minister Abdul Satter told CNN in an interview that some Taliban had been arrested crossing the border.

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ABDUL SATTER, PAKISTAN FOREIGN MINISTER: There are some people who had come and they have been put under detention, but to the best of my knowledge they are not Afghans, they are foreigners.

MINTIER (on camera): How about al Qaeda or Osama bin Laden?

SATTER: I don't think they have been identified as yet, but investigations will be conducted. Interrogation will be done.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

MINTIER (voice-over): Just who they are or what role they had in the Taliban or al Qaeda is not clear, but this is the first time that Pakistan has indicated they have detained what they term foreigners. It may be an indication of how some Taliban were attempting to get out of Afghanistan. But it appears to be an exit route that is being watched closely.

Tom Mintier, CNN, Islamabad, Pakistan.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

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