WASHINGTON (voa) – President Bush is cautioning against judging the success of the U.S.-led war on terrorism on the fate of terrorist mastermind Osama bin Laden.
Mr. Bush says people preoccupied with the al-Qaida leader and are elevating him to a status he does not deserve.
While in the southern U.S. state of Florida to promote White House policies, Mr. Bush also met the families of two U.S. soldiers killed earlier this week in fighting in Afghanistan. With tears in his eyes, Mr. Bush told the soldiers’ relatives America aches for them. He says the two men are heroes who died for a just and noble cause.
On Monday, Mr. Bush hosts a White House ceremony to mark the half-year point since the September 11 attacks. The event will be attended by relatives of people killed in the attack and ambassadors from more than 100 countries backing the U.S. campaign against terrorism.
Snow, Winds Slow Fighting in Afghanistan
U.S. military officials in Afghanistan say driving winds and snow are forcing al-Qaida fighters to retreat into their caves in the country’s eastern mountains.
An American spokesman says the bad weather has slowed fighting in the second week of Operation Anaconda, the U.S. effort to surround and defeat remaining elements of the al-Qaida terrorist network and their Taleban allies.
Speaking Saturday at the Bagram air base outside Kabul, the U.S. military spokesman, Major Bryan Hilferty, said forces of the U.S.-led coalition suffered no casualties overnight. The spokesman says fighting mainly involved search-and-destroy missions in the mountains of Paktia province, near the border with Pakistan.
So far, eight American soldiers and seven Afghan troops have been killed in the current operation. American officials say their troops have killed more than 500 al-Qaida soldiers.
Major Hilferty revealed for the first time that U.S. forces have captured prisoners, and are interrogating them.
In Washington Friday, Defense Secretary Donald Rumsfeld revised his earlier forecast that the battle in eastern Afghanistan would end this weekend. He now says the fighting may last several more days.
The estimate that 500 al-Qaida fighters have been killed is higher than initial estimates of the size of the entire enemy force when Operation Anaconda began.
With recent reinforcements, the U.S.-led force in eastern Afghanistan stands at about 3,500 soldiers, including Afghan allies and troops from several other Western countries.
