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Pakistan Pulls Diplomats from Afghanistan
Monday, September 24, 2001
An Associated Press report

ISLAMABAD, Pakistan -- AP
Pakistan announced Monday it had removed its diplomats from Afghanistan, and the hardline Taliban leader said the United States should withdraw its forces from the Persian Gulf and end its "bias" against Palestinians if it wants to eliminate the threat of global terrorism.

The statements came as the United States geared up for military strikes in Afghanistan because of its refusal to hand over Osama bin Laden and his lieutenants. Bin Laden, the prime suspect in masterminding the Sept. 11 terrorist attacks in New York and Washington, has used Afghanistan as headquarters of his Al-Qaeda terrorist network since 1996.

Faced with the prospect of attack, Afghanistan's ruling Taliban militia said it was dispatching 300,000 fighters to defend its borders -- even as fighting stepped up in the north of the country with a coalition of opposition forces.

Despite the threat, the Taliban remained defiant. In a statement faxed to news agencies here, Taliban leader Mullah Mohammed Omar said the elimination of bin Laden would do little to remove the threat against the United States.
(More: TampaBayLive.com News Source)

Dan