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Refugee Crisis Builds as Taliban Considers Deal
Wednesday September 19, 2001
By Luke Harding and Rory McCarthy in Islamabad, and Richard Norton-Taylor in London

The Guardian
Thousands of refugees were last night trying to scramble across Afghanistan's newly closed frontiers, as the Taliban considered a last-minute deal to hand over Osama bin Laden and avoid US retribution.

The exodus to the border continued yesterday, and aid agencies warned there could be a humanitarian catastrophe. Some 2,000 refugees were halted at the Torkham border and 5,000 piled up at the Chaman border.

Pakistani officials last night confirmed that "hundreds of thousands of Afghans" had fled urban areas.

In Kabul, Pakistani envoys met Taliban officials yesterday to warn of an imminent attack unless they gave into US demands. Those envoys last night met General Pervez Musharraf, Pakistan's military ruler.

The Taliban's ruling Islamic council is today expected to make a final decision on Bin Laden's fate. Reports yesterday suggested the Taliban were considering a compromise in which the Saudi dissident would be handed over for trial in a "neutral" country. In return, they want the west to lift sanctions and halt the supply of arms to Afghanistan's opposition, sources said.

There were conflicting reports as to the likelihood of success. One member of the delegation, Nasirullah Khan Babar, said: "If it was proven that Osama was involved I think this time the Taliban would extradite him."
(More: The Guardian News Source)

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