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Many Al-Qaeda men captured
KABUL, DEC. 15. Several fighters of Osama bin Laden's Al-Qaeda network were captured or killed after they put a stiff resistance as U.S. and Afghan forces firing mortar bombs made the first major advance against the Al-Qaeda's last known stronghold today in the Tora Bora caves in this mountainous region in eastern Afghanistan.
The bodies of 33 Al-Qaeda fighters were found while four were captured and at least 50 of Osama's men surrendered in fierce cave battles in the thrust by the Northern Alliance forces and a small number of elite American troops.
The forces advanced about 2 km on the ground near Tora Bora as U.S. jets and AC-130 gunships attacked the cornered Al- Qaeda forces in the mountain valleys and hundreds of U.S. bombs were unleashed on the caves.
``Thirty-three Al-Qaeda fighters have been killed and four captured by the forces of a militia commander Hazrat Ali,'' according to his spokesman.
The U.S. Defence Secretary, Mr. Donald Rumsfeld, said some 50 Al-Qaeda fighters surrendered to the advancing forces, with the Alliance forces doing most of the fighting while the American commandos were engaged mostly in directing U.S. air strikes to their targets.
Osama is believed to be among his diehard followers cornered in the Tora Bora area. The Pentagon estimated that there were between 300 and 1,000 of those fighters.
Alliance commanders said the doggedness and resistance of the Al-Qaeda fighters indicated that they were defending their leader even as the recent infusion of American special troops into the mountainous area has allowed U.S. planes to step up their assault.
``A very energetic battle is still under way,'' Mr. Rumsfeld said amidst reports that groups of Al-Qaeda fighters were reported to be fleeing towards Pakistan from the onslaught by Alliance and American special forces.
An Afghan commander, Mr. Adji Moussa, said his men had captured between six and eight new caves from the Al-Qaeda forces and found heavy weapons, ammunition and more video cassettes, but no sign of Osama.
According to a spokesman for the Afghan commander, Mr. Haji Zahir, a ``special push'' was made overnight while some Northern Alliance sources said the Al-Qaeda was split internally, with Chechens among them wanting to keep fighting. The hundreds of fighters who are under siege in the caves for the past two weeks are mainly Arabs and Chechens.
There was no sign of a promised surrender by 300 Al- Qaeda fighters as they failed to give themselves up even after four hours after the set time.
A local Afghan militia commander, Mr. Mohammad Palawan, had earlier said that 300 of the fighters besieged in the Tora Bora mountain region had promised to start surrendering.
Three-hundred check points were also set up by the Pakistan army along the Afghan border to nab Osama and his associates if they try to escape into Pakistan.
Meanwhile, U.S. Marines moved into Kandahar to take control of the airport that was once the Taliban's political and spiritual base.
- PTI
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