Turn him in: U.S.

WASHINGTON, SEPT. 20. The White House today demanded Afghanistan's ruling Taliban to turn over ``to responsible authorities'' the Saudi dissident, Osama bin Laden, Washington's prime suspect in last week's terror strikes.

The U.S. President, Mr. George W. Bush, ``has demanded that ... Osama bin Laden be turned over to responsible authorities and that the Taliban close terrorist camps in Afghanistan, and the President stands by these demands,'' the White House spokesman, Mr. Ari Fleischer, said.

``It's time for action not words,'' he said after Islamic clerics issued an edict calling on the Taliban to ask Osama to leave the country. The edict ``doesn't meet America's requirements.''

`Army ready for combat'

The Army is ready to conduct ``sustained land combat operations'' as part of Mr. Bush's promised war against terrorism, the Army's top civilian official said. The Army Secretary, Mr. Thomas E. White, told presspersons at the Pentagon that a deployment order signed by the Defence Secretary, Mr. Donald H. Rumsfeld, on Wednesday, included the Army and the Air Force troops. It was only the first step in a broader military plan that would unfold in the weeks ahead.

Mr. White declined to say which Army forces were included in the deployment but made clear that his service was gearing up for a lengthy war that would involve every aspect of the Army's combat power. Special operations forces, such as the Rangers and the Green Berets, almost certainly would play an important role.

On Wednesday, the officials disclosed that the Air Force was taking the first steps to dispatch dozens of warplanes to the Persian Gulf area, setting in motion ``Operation Infinite Justice.''

Mr. Bush's National Security Adviser, Ms. Condoleezza Rice, had said ``the U.S. is repositioning some of its forces to support the President's goal.'' She would not elaborate.

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