“Osama bin Laden was believed to be among Al Qaeda fighters battling to stave off advancing Afghan troops and US Special Forces commandos in two cave-riddled valleys of eastern Afghanistan,” a senior US military official has said.
“A combination of indications -- the fierceness of the fighting, reported sightings of bin Laden by Afghan troops, and anecdotal information from a variety of intelligence sources -- points to his presence among the fighters in the Agam and Wazir valleys,” the official, who spoke on condition of anonymity, said on Thursday.
“No one of those by itself would be very convincing, but when all three of those things come to the same conclusion, you'd better pay attention and at least check it out and make that the area of your focus,” the official said. The official said that the two valleys where Al Qaeda fighters were concentrated run north and south from Afghanistan into Pakistan.
“To the south, opening up into Pakistan, you've got Pakistani troops in perfect blocking position,” he said. “In the north, in the Agam valley, you've got the fighters of Hazrat Ali, and coming down from the north in the Wazir valley you've got the fighters of Mohammad Zaman.”
“They are fighting Al Qaeda fighters in both valleys, and the fighting is really fierce,” the official said.
“ The fighting was most intense in the Agam valley and the rugged terrain favours the Al Qaeda defenders even though they are outnumbered by the Afghan troops,” he said. Bureau Report