Negotiations End, Bombs Rain On Tora Bora Caves

TORA BORA, Thursday - US warplanes staged massive air strikes yesterday and US-backed Afghan militiamen girded for a fresh ground assault on al-Qaeda fighters cornered in the east highlands, saying the surrender of Osama bin Laden’s fighters was no longer an option. “There are no more negotiations,” said local commander Haji Mohammad Zaman as he climbed aboard a vehicle heading for the front lines. “We are launching the battle now.” The new offensive against the last al-Qaeda redoubt near the Pakistani border came after talks for their surrender to local Afghan militia collapsed on Wednesday. Some 4,000 Pakistani troops were fanned out opposite the White Mountains to prevent the escape of bin Laden and his followers, Pakistani officers said in Peshawar. In New Delhi, at least 11 people, including six terrorists, were killed in an armed assault on the Indian parliament, which a cabinet minister linked to the situation in Afghanistan. India had received reports of a planned attack following the rout of the Taliban regime, Health Minister C.P. Thakur said. AFP Ends