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American Morning

Sunday Sees Heavy Bombing in Afghanistan

Aired January 08, 2002 - 09:07   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.
PAULA ZAHN, CNN ANCHOR: Time to change our focus quite a bit. We move on to the war in Afghanistan, where the bombing has been steady, but the big prizes remain elusive. We're joined now by CNN's Bill Hemmer, who continues to stand by in Kandahar with the very latest -- hi, Bill.

BILL HEMMER, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Paula, good evening again from Kandahar. Just to pull one of the stories that Daryn just read about, the man the White House says ran the terrorist training camps in Afghanistan. His name was Ibn Al-Shaykh al-Libi, and right now, again, he is being on the Bataan. He was here in Kandahar being held separately from the other detainees.

Sources inside that detention facility had indicated they wanted him to have no contact with the other detainees. He is a highly prized prisoner right now. The White House considered him on their top-12 wanted list among al Qaeda leaders, and also on that same ship you have the former Pakistan ambassador for the Taliban, Abdul Salam Zaeef and the eight others, including the American John Walker, and as I say that, Paula, we are getting various reports here, in Southern Afghanistan, that other high ranking Taliban members may be in U.S. custody right now, or possibly in local control in Kandahar city.

Again, the military right now being quite tight on this, quite mum. They won't confirm it, but we suspect that it be true based on the comments of Tommy Franks yesterday who basically indicated, within a few days's time, more al Qaeda more Taliban leaders, again, will be taken into custody by U.S. officials.

Right now, 300 here, two more added last night so the official total, on deck in Kandahar right now is 302, here at detention facility.

Want to talk more about the deadly atmosphere, frankly, here in Afghanistan played out again, early this morning in central Kandahar. An al Qaeda fighter, who had been holed up inside a hospital with six other al Qaeda fighters, jumped from a two story building surrounded by guards immediately on the ground, detonated a grenade and blew himself up.

The six others, still inside, that standoff continues. They say they have food and they have weapons, they are not willing to turn themselves in now. Again, that standoff has continued for several weeks there. The latest on the U.S. bombing now. The most intense airstrikes we've seen, frankly, in a week got underway late Sunday afternoon in Eastern Afghanistan. This right along the Afghan-Pakistan border near the town of Khost. When we woke up earlier this morning, in fact, in the middle of the night our time locally, we heard several jet fighters streaking in the distant sky overhead.

On the ground, on the other end, our CNN crews confirmed that, again, bombs were falling there. The Pentagon trying to do two things basically: Drive out al Qaeda fighters who might be trying to assemble once again and fight again; and also knock out a lot of weapons, ammunition found inside the mountains and tunnels there in Eastern Afghanistan -- Paula.

ZAHN: Bill, thanks so much for that update. Appreciate it.

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