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Shah-e-Kot Battle Over, Hunt for al-Qaida Still On
Thursday, March 14, 2002
(9:16 PM)
By Kathy Gannon
Associated Press Writer

A U.S. special forces soldier on an off-road vehicle talks with allied Afghan fighters before leaving the Paktia province village Shah-e-Kot on Wednesday. U.S. and Afghan troops have seized control of the area where al-Qaida and Taliban forces were holed up.
Image Credit: Lefteris Pitarakis -- The Associated Press.

“Some got out and are on the run,” said a U.S. special forces soldier who identified himself only as Mark. “There's a pretty good rat line that leads out of here.”

SHAH-E-KOT, Afghanistan -- AP
The road twisted past homes -- hide-outs of al-Qaida warriors -- flattened by American bombs. A dead al-Qaida fighter lay forgotten on a rocky ridge, his rocket-mangled body hidden beneath a black shawl.

An Afghan soldier, barely out of his teens, stooped over the body and removed the man's watch.

Overhead, Apache attack helicopters came in waves, skimming the snow-streaked mountain peaks looking for fleeing al-Qaida and hidden caves tucked into the mountain crevices.

The 12-day battle for the Shah-e-Kot Valley is over, but not the war against al-Qaida in Afghanistan. “It's not over by a long shot,” said a U.S. special forces soldier as he stared at the distant mountains. “It's such a formidable task. The terrain is tough. It is not an easy task.”
(More: The Athens Banner-Herald News Source)
2002 © The Associated Press.

Dan