About 100 US commandos battled in southern Afghanistan for several hours, opening a new phase of the war on terrorism after nearly two weeks of punishing airstrikes, a US official said. Officials said the commandos returned to base after the raid, which occurred early Saturday in Afghanistan.
AC 130 gunships gave the Special Forces and rangers air cover.
The official, who spoke on condition of anonymity, would provide no details on the operation except to say it was carried out overnight.
The commandos were safely outside Afghan airspace, the official said.
Earlier in the day, officials had confirmed that Special Forces were in northern and southern Afghanistan, searching for Taliban targets to strike and searching for Osama bin Laden and his al-Qaida lieutenants. Bureau Report