M A I N   N E W S

2 Red Cross godowns flattened
180 Taliban fighters taken captive

Kabul, October 26
US warplanes dropped two bombs on the outskirts of Kabul in an afternoon raid today, residents said.

Two large explosions were heard, one near the airport on the northeastern side of the city and the other in the northwest, close to the headquarters of the Taliban’s 16th Division.

Residents said a cloud of thick black smoke was pouring from the site of the explosion in the northwest but it was not known what was hit.

US bombs destroyed two Red Cross warehouses in Kabul today, wiping out vital stocks of food and cooking oil intended for widows and disabled people, Red Cross officials said.

An AFP reporter at the scene said the two warehouses were totally destroyed and ablaze, with trucks upturned and sacks of humanitarian supplies such as wheat and peas scattered among the debris.

“I do not know how to explain my feelings. I’m very sorry about it especially when I look at this fire and I imagine the widows and disabled people who would have received this aid,” one ICRC official at the scene said.

There were no immediate reports of casualties.

DUSHANBE: Opposition Northern Alliance forces have taken 180 Taliban fighters captive in Shurch settlement of Mazar-i-Sharif province, sources in the Afghan Embassy here said.

Novosti quoted the source as saying that the city was surrounded by Northern Alliance troops. Advanced units were very close to the Mazar-i-Sharif aerodrome, he added. Agencies

USA wants to use Mianwali airport

Karachi, October 26
The USA is considering shifting its operations from Jacobabad to Mianwali airport. A formal request to Pakistan is being made but Islamabad is not yet clear on how to respond, according to sources.

The US forces are already enjoying logistic facilities at Jacobabad, Pasni, Panjgur and Dalbandin.

However, they are mainly using Jacobabad airport. But due to the resentment expressed by the residents here and a firing incident on an American aircraft, the US authorities now want to shift their major operations to Mianwali.

The Mianwali airport, adjacent to Dera Ismail Khan, has a unique location. It has a major set-up of the Pakistan Air Force and the security situation is said to be much better. Moreover, Kandahar and Kabul are located at about equal distance from Mianwali.

The Pakistani authorities are said to be reluctant to give permission for Mianwali due to its proximity to the Chashma atomic power plant.

On the other hand, the USA and allied forces are also trying to use the facilities of a private airstrip at Al-Shamsi in Kharan district. This 9,000 ft long airstrip is owned and used by a royal family of the UAE which has so far not agreed to its use for military purposes by the USA. ANI