Pashtun Troops Launch Operation In Tora Bora

Malik Hazrat Ali, the new commander of Pashtun security force (militia,) claimed that his troops had launched an operation in the Tora Bora mountains 50 km South from the provincial capital of Jelalabad. This mountain is probably the place where Osama bin Laden and his fighters are hiding. The number of Pashtun troops involved in the operation is about 2,000 men. Hazrat Ali also stated that in the Tora Bora mountain they had found underground tunnels abandoned by bin Laden's supporters. According to the Dawn newspaper, a Pashtun filed commander participating in the offensive, has acknowledged that they face heavy Taliban resistance. The total strength of the Taliban force including Al-Qaeda's foreign mercenaries and their Pakistani allies, is approximately 1,500-2,000 men. Pashtun attackers use tanks, multiple launch rocket systems (MLRS) and heavy machine guns. All efforts to persuade Taliban troops to surrender resulted in a failure.