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CNN Saturday Morning News

War Planes Resume Strikes in Kandahar

Aired October 13, 2001 - 09:12   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: Turning overseas now, the latest on the U.S. air strikes in Afghanistan. American war planes resumed intense strikes in the southern city of Kandahar early today, and overnight there were bombing raids near the capital city of Kabul. The airport and a major road junction were reportedly among the targets that have been hit.

So let's go live now to the region for the very latest. CNN's John Vause joins us from his post in neighboring Islamabad, Pakistan -- John.

JOHN VAUSE, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Hello again, Marty.

Yes, well, as you say, those air strikes over the last 24 hours, less intensive overnight, but resuming again today. We understand that the U.S. forces may have let up some out of respect for the Muslim day of prayer, and also, because this is a weekend when the Muslim world celebrates the ascent of the prophet Muhammad to heaven.

But as you say, those air strikes are beginning again. We have some video from the al-Jazeera TV network of what appears to be a strike around Kabul, the capital. We understand that there have been some strikes there in the last few hours. We understand that to be the case. We also understand that the air strikes resumed in Kandahar around 4:00 this morning. The primary target there, it seems, was the airport, which is about 30 kilometers outside of the town.

But as far as the air strikes overnight go, we're told by our people within Afghanistan that this was the first time that they actually managed to get a good night's sleep, the first time in seven, going into eight days of air strikes.

Now, here in Pakistan, no protests today, nothing like we've seen overseas, but we're expecting another rally here tomorrow, the Islamic clerics have called for anti-U.S. rallies, for protesters to take to the streets to demonstrate against the U.S. action in Afghanistan.

And we're also being told that their religious leaders are calling for a national strike on Monday to coincide with the visit here of U.S. Secretary of State Colin Powell -- Marty.

SAVIDGE: And I presume that security, obviously, is going to be beefed up even more so than it is for the secretary of state's visit there. VAUSE: Yes, security extremely tight, and all those protests around Pakistan, there are hundreds and hundreds of policemen on the streets. The President Musharraf, the Pakistan president, has warned that he will send in the army if it gets out of control. He has done that already. Security forces were sent to Quetta, where there were those violent demonstrations earlier in the week, also in Peshawar, there's security forces on the streets there.

So far here in Islamabad and the neighboring city of Rawal Pindi, police on the streets.

It's a major escalation here when they send the troops in. That is a definite signal of the government cracking down and getting tough.

A note from those demonstrations yesterday here in Pakistan, the end toll, one death, one policeman was shot, it's not known who by, whether he was shot by accident by another police officer or by a demonstrator. That is not known. Also a dozen injured, and we're told a 3-year-old girl was injured in one of those demonstrations in Karachi. She is still in a critical condition, we understand, at this stage -- Marty.

SAVIDGE: All of that troubling news. John Vause, thank you very much.

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