Bush warns Taliban again

By Sridhar Krishnaswami

WASHINGTON, OCT. 2. The U.S. President, Mr. George W. Bush, has once again warned the Taliban that it will have to face the consequences of harbouring terrorists and their outfits. ``There is no timetable for the Taliban, just like there are no negotiations,'' the President remarked during a meeting of the Republican and Democratic Congressional leaders at the White House.

``I have said that the Taliban must turn over the Al- Qaeda organisation members living in Afghanistan and must destroy the terrorist camps. They must do so, otherwise there will be a consequence. There are no negotiations. There is no calendar. We will act on our time,'' the President said.

The Democratic leader in the House of Representatives, Mr. Richard Gephardt, echoed the sentiments of the President when he argued that time was running out for the Taliban.

In turning on the heat on the Taliban, hoping that it would either bring about the desired result or end up cracking the extremist militia, the Bush administration is keeping a close watch on the political developments surrounding the alternative to the Taliban. For instance, Washington is paying close attention to the manoeuvring going on between the former King of Afghanistan, Mr. Zahir Shah, and the leadership of the Northern Alliance. The White House has maintained that it is not for the U.S. to get into the business of ``choosing who rules Afghanistan''. The message is clear: the U.S. ``will assist those who are seeking a peaceful and economically-developed Afghanistan that does not engage in terrorism''.

Meanwhile, there are intelligence reports that the Al- Qaeda group is moving out of Afghanistan. It may have already started moving out some of its arms and equipment to Somalia.

The Washington Times , quoting intelligence agencies, says that cargo shipments, including small arms, grenade launchers and anti-aircraft missiles, have been detected by intelligence agencies.

``There are indications that Osama bin Laden is setting up a new base of operations in Somalia,'' an official has been quoted.

Send this article to Friends by E-Mail

Section  : International
Previous : People have rejected results: Hasina
Next     : Target all outfits like Al-Qaeda: Jaswant