Operation Enduring Freedom - March 2002

• Day 176: Sun, 3/31/02 - The Afghan government claims to have evidence that Pakistan's Inter-Services Intelligence (ISI) is aiding and sheltering the escaping Taliban/al Qaeda fighters.  The captured man believed to be al Qaeda leader Abu Zubaydah will be sent to Guantanamo Bay.  US troops in the Persian Gulf region and Central Asia have increased from fewer than 25,000 to almost 80,000 since 9/11/01.  7,000 are in Afghanistan and from 5,500 to 10,500 are now in Kuwait (the southernmost border of Iraq).  A formerly secret base in the desert in Qatar is being equipped as a US command center.  Israeli Prime Minister Ariel Sharon declared that his country is at war with terrorism, i.e. against Palestinians, and dubbed Yassar Arafat "the enemy of Israel and the enemy of the free world."
• Day 175: Sat, 3/30/02 - A man bearing a strong resemblance to Abu Zubaydah, believed to be the new head of the al Qaeda network, was among those arrested Thursday in Pakistan. 
• Day 174: Fri, 3/29/02 - US-led coalition makes fresh assault in the Paktika province, 12-miles south of the Shah-e-Kot valley, killing 50 al Qaeda fighters.  Taliban/al Qaeda forces are expected to launch a full-scale guerrilla war in April.  Shots were fired near German international peacekeepers in Kabul.   Rock-eating Afghan wants to marry a US female pilot.  Israel seized control of Yasser Arafat's compound.  Homefront: Upon arriving in Miami on a flight from Spain, Egyptian Aly Sabra Galal Abdell was arrested when officials found he had an immigration violation as well as was carrying box cutters.
• Day 173: Thur, 3/28/02 - Pakistani police and US forces arrested 35 Islamic militants near the Indian border in Pakistan's eastern Punjab province.  Homefront: Delta passenger Richard Lambertsen was pulled from a flight following boarding at Boston's Logan International Airport after making a threat that "people could be killed".
• Day 172: Wed, 3/27/02 - US Navy Seal killed when a land mine or other ordnance on the ground exploded southeast of Kandahar.  US State Dept. and Embassy in Rome warn US citizens of possible Easter attacks directed at them in four Italian cities.  London-based al-Quds al-Arabi Arabic newspaper claims to have received a credible e-mail from bin Laden, entitled "Statement from Sheikh Osama bin Laden on the initiative of Prince Abdullah".  It claims the Saudi plan is "a Zionist-American one in Saudi clothes" and that "the battle of New York came... proclaiming the beginning of the end, God willing".  Opening day of 22-state members' Arab League summit in Beirut: Palestinians walk out when Arafat is not allowed to speak live; 12 No Shows, including Palestinian leader Yassar Arafat, President Hosni Mubarak of Egypt, and King Abdullah II of Jordan; Prince Nawaf, the Saudi intelligence chief and #2 Saudi delegate had a stroke.  Purpose of the summit is to unite the Arab world - Saudi Crown Prince Abdullah proposed a comprehensive "land-for-peace pact with Israel".  Homefront: The USS Theodore Roosevelt arrived home in Norfolk, Va.
• Day 171: Tue, 3/26/02 - The US and France advised the United Nations Security Council that the international peacekeeping force would remain limited to Kabul.  US forces are searching for Egyptian Ayman al-Zawahri, three other top Taliban clerics and 26 al Qaeda officials who were seen a week ago near the site of Operation Anaconda.  Another earthquake in Afghanistan/Pakistan struck, killing over 1800.
• Day 170: Mon, 3/25/02 - Pentagon officials revealed that US troops found a laboratory near Kandahar that may have been used in Anthrax production.  The 4500+ International peacekeepers, representing 18 nations, stationed in Kabul are being threatened with car bombings and kidnapping by Taliban/al Qaeda forces.  Turkey is not ready to assume command of the International peacekeeping force in Afghanistan.  The only Muslim nation member of NATO, they want assurance that the US will evacuate their troops if unrest breaks out in Kabul.  US has moved A-10 Thunderbolt ("warthogs") attack jets to Bagram air base, north of Kabul, to allow for quicker response.  They previously were stationed outside Afghanistan.  It's armed with a 30 millimeter Gatling gun which can fire 3,900 rounds per minute and also carries AGM-65 Maverick and AIM-9 Sidewinder missiles.  It can fly slow and low and can survive armor-piercing and high-explosive projectiles.  The first of Great Britain's Royal Marines arrived in Bagram, also.  Pakistan is refusing to allow any British troops to land on its soil.  US government assisted with a ransom payment last week to the terrorist group Abu Sayyaf in the Philippines for the release of the Bumhams, kidnapped last May.  The husband and wife have still not been released.  Homefront:  Airport security screeners are not catching most knives, simulated explosives and one out of three guns carried by undercover agents in tests carried out since November '01 by the Transportation Department.  Security at nuclear reactors in the US is "dangerously inadequate" also according to the Transportation Department, and just as terrorists attended flight schools, there may be terrorists presently employed at nuclear reactor sites across the country.
• Day 169: Sun, 3/24/02 - More assaults on American troops in Afghanistan are planned by Taliban/al Qaeda, according to intelligence sources.  Afghanistan canceled all Taliban-era issued passports and those issued at other times must be updated with a new state stamp.
• Day 168: Sat, 3/23/02 - Taliban clerics hiding in Pakistan live comfortably while preparing for next move.  According to Hajji Mullah Sahib, "Our neighbors are also terrified of the United States, and they want to make trouble for America.  Now they are sending us money, guns and men."  They also claim the Shah-e-Kot offensive was a US failure, because very few Taliban/al Qaeda were killed.  US must decide what action to take on those hiding in Pakistan.  One of the 9/11/01 hijackers, Ahmed Ibrahim A. Al Haznawi, may have been treated for an Anthrax lesion on his leg three months prior to the hijackings.  Homefront:  Federal officials are looking for four Pakistani nationals that entered the US illegally after leaving a freighter, the Progresso, that docked in Virginia a week ago.  The crew members Ahmad Salman, Thulan Qadar, Mohammad Nazir and Adnan Ahmad were given shore-leave visas by the INS.  The Malta-chartered freighter was carrying a chemical used in fertilizer.  FBI cleans house following the Robert Hanssen spy case.
• Day 167: Fri, 3/22/02 - The urgent request for the 1700+ British forces was based on the discovery of a biological weapons lab during Operation Anaconda.  A goodwill basketball game between US and Afghan teams ended in violence when an Afghan spectator kicked a fallen American player in the head.
• Day 166: Thur, 3/21/02 - Three new ways to war have emerged from the Afghan fighting:  "Precise airstrikes backed by special forces on the ground, armed unmanned aerial vehicles, and bombers dominating the attack."  US forces now face new problem of "where is the enemy now", as rebels have melted back into the Afghan population.  Lebanese President Emile Lahoud claims all Arab states are united against a US-led strike on Iraq, and called for permanent lifting of sanctions against Iraq.
• Day 165: Wed, 3/20/02 - Coalition forces in Khost were attacked by machine gun fire, rocket-propelled grenades and mortars.  A US AC-130 gunship counter-attacked the enemy position while a B-1 bomber illuminated the area with flares.  A car-bombing just four blocks from the US Embassy in Lima, Peru, killed at least nine people, including two embassy security guards.  US Embassy in Bosnia has been closed after receiving threats of an attack.  Apparently, al Qaeda militants met recently in Sofia, Bulgaria to plan attacks on Americans by identifying European targets, including the embassy in Sarajevo.  A surveillance video found in an Afghan al Qaeda safehouse shows links to Singapore-based Jemaah Islamiya (JI) and its plans to "bomb the US Embassy and US commercial and military targets in Singapore".  Operation Jacana ("a small tropical wading bird with large feet") will begin in April with 1700+ British Royal Marines hunting for Mullah Mohammad Omar, former Taliban leader, and is expected to last three months.  Homefront:  US plans to pay Turkey $228 million as it takes command of the international peacekeeping force in Afghanistan.
• Day 164: Tue, 3/19/02 - Up to 1,000 Taliban/al Qaeda are hiding with the help of sympathetic clerics in Pakistan, waiting for when the US leaves Karzai and the Afghan interim government to itself.  Throughout fighting in the Shah-e-Kot valley, rebel forces called for reinforcements and supplies by connecting to the Internet via satellite phones, and also used the Web to communicate to each other as they ran from cave to cave.  The Voice of America overseas broadcast agency is calling for the Arab media to stop reporting lies that incite hatred of Jews.  The Saudi daily paper Al-Riyadh claimed "Jews use human blood to make pastries for the Purim holiday 'by killing a mature adolescent…that is, a Christian or a Muslim.'"  Opium is allowed to grow undisturbed in Afghanistan.  160 medals have been awarded to US troops so far during this Operation Enduring Freedom.  "Smuggler Road" is the route used by illegal Afghans seeking sanctuary in Pakistan.  US government warns Americans overseas to "Avoid places where fellow Americans congregate, even churches and schools. Drive to work a different way each day, with the windows up. Be cautious. Remain vigilant."  Homefront:  A government banned "persistent" cookie, which would track users until 2010, was being used by the CIA's Electronic Reading Room webpage.  Since its discovery, it has supposedly been removed.
• Day 163: Mon, 3/18/02 - All US and Canadian forces have withdrawn from Shah-e-Kot valley, ending Operations Anaconda and Harpoon.  General Tommy Franks, chief of US military Central Command called it an absolute success.  Afghan commanders say differently:  "Americans don't listen to anyone.  They do what they want. Most people escaped.  You can't call that a success."  The first of those listed on Bush's 22 most dangerous men list, Abu Anas Al-Liby, was captured in Khartoum, Sudan.  Homefront: Round-the-clock air patrols over New York will be replaced by intermittent patrols and keeping fighter jets on fly-within-15-minute strip alerts.  The 24-hr combat patrols will continue over Washington DC.  For security reasons, NASA is now keeping shuttle launch times secret, as well as when astronauts arrive for preparations.
• Day 162: Sun, 3/17/02 - Five people, including two Americans, were killed in a grenade attack on their protestant church, located 1/2 mile from the US Embassy in Pakistan.  The two Americans were a woman who worked in administration at the Embassy and her teenage daughter.  President Bush is outraged by the attack and pledges to find those responsible.  US forces in eastern Afghanistan attacked a three-vehicle convoy ferrying al Qaeda fighters out of the area.  The Defense Ministry of Afghanistan accused Pakistan of harboring Taliban leaders and al Qaeda fighters, saying 95% of the movement went to Pakistan when the Taliban fell.  "Pakistan is the one who gave birth to the (Taliban) movement and when they were
  defeated, they went back to their masters," said ministry spokesman Saranwal Mir Jan.  US is planning new attacks on al Qaeda pockets in Afghanistan.  Fleeing Taliban/al Qaeda left an extensive paper trail.  Lists showed members were from Pakistan, Uzbekistan, Turkmenistan, Tajikistan, Kyrgyzstan, Syria, Egypt, Morocco, Algeria, Jordan, Turkey, Iraq, Kuwait, Saudi Arabia, Yemen, Libya, Sudan, Somalia, Bosnia, Bangladesh, China, the Philippines, Russia, Britain, Canada and the United States.  
• Day 161: Sat, 3/16/02 - Cave-by-cave searches revealed more weapons and "spider holes", holes in the rocks large enough for a man to exit through, that led to an underground chamber containing ammunition, medical supplies, and even IVs hanging from the ceiling.  Al Qaeda network's financial activity has picked up again over the past few weeks and there's an enormous increase in their internet traffic.  Top prospects for possible al Qaeda regrouping are Yemen, Somalia, Sudan and Indonesia.  US government is tracking a newly formed muslim extremist group in northern Iraq called Ansar al-Islam.
• Day 160: Fri, 3/15/02 - US warned fleeing al Qaeda/Taliban that they would be hit hard if they returned, "Beware the Ides of March".  Australian SAS troops, responsible for cutting off the southern escape route of al Qaeda militants from the Shah-e-Kot valley, raided the rebel-sympathetic village Oryakhail.  There, they "blew up a mobile anti-aircraft gun stored in the local commander's mudbrick fort".  FBI chief Robert Mueller said al Qaeda needs a new base and may turn to Southeast Asia or the Middle East, and that much intelligence gathering is needed.  Germany signed an agreement with Afghan interim leader Karzai to rebuild its police force.
• Day 159: Thur, 3/14/02 - Combing caves and bunkers for more intelligence information and stray rebels in the Shah-e-Kot Valley, US and Canadian troops killed three more enemy fighters during a 90-minute gun battle.  Some civilians have also been killed during Operation Anaconda because al Qaeda set up mortar positions between homes.  DNA tests will be done on some of the dead militants to see if any senior leaders were among them.  Some of those killed include foreigners from Sudan, Egypt, and Indonesia, as well as Chechens, Uzbeks, and Chinese.  The tally of the dead now stands at between 25 and 500.  Found in the area so far are "bomb-making devices, extensive weapons caches, manuals on how to attack individuals in cars and blow up bridges".  US helicopters are patrolling for fleeing al Qaeda.  Pakistan's President Musharraf says the war in Afghanistan is over.  Homefront: US aid officials want $1 billion for battle against hunger, disease, and illiteracy in Afghanistan; Congress wants more anti-drug efforts to take effect there before the first poppy crop is harvested next month.
• Day 158: Wed, 3/13/02 - US-led forces claim control of the Shah-e-Kot valley, in the 60 sq mi battle area near Gardez where Operation Anaconda has been under way.  So far, the coalition has taken only 20 prisoners.  Marine Cobras and other helicopter gunships continued blasting cave entrances to prevent al Qaeda militants from escaping, although many fighters, along with their commander, Saif Rahman Mansour got away earlier in the day.  The Pentagon has maintained "surrender or die", but the allied Afghan commanders were prepared to let the rebels walk away.  US choppers brought in 100 US and 500 Canadian troops to search for al Qaeda fugitives on the snow-covered "whaleback" ridge mountain, beginning an additional  offensive called Operation Harpoon which is expected to last 48 hours.  US officials estimate 800 al Qaeda fighters have been killed during this 13-day operation, including Chechens, Uzbeks, Pakistanis and Arabs.  Anaconda is expected to continue on a smaller scale for about a month.  Two other al Qaeda pockets are also being investigated, one northwest of Kandahar and one in southern Afghanistan.   The US Army base at Kandahar may be holding an Iranian general at its detention center.
• Day 157: Tue, 3/12/02 - Al Qaeda will not be allowed to walk away and fighting will not stop for the rebels to surrender.  The coalition front line broke through seven enemy trenches with tanks and armored personnel carriers, killing at least "three rebels in every trench".  Homefront: The US Department of Homeland Security unveiled a new five-level Security Advisory System.  The program "was designed to motivate local governments to develop plans that will guide the actions of residents."
• Day 156: Mon, 3/11/02 - US-led coalition begins "mopping up" attacks on al Qaeda rebels hiding in caves in the Paktia province and resumed bombing at nightfall.  Apparently, al Qaeda/Taliban had been tipped off earlier in the week of the impending coalition mission, some of the Afghan troops have not performed well, and local residents have been assisting the rebels.  More US troops left the front lines today, and Afghan warriors began filling in, armed with weapons including knives and rocket-propelled grenades.  Now is their time to shine, as they prepare to fight Afghan style - crawling up silently on the enemy and attacking them in their caves.  They also look forward to seeing what bounty they can recover.  British Prime Minister Tony Blair offers US its support against Iraq, based on Iraq's breach of "at least nine UN Security Council resolutions about weapons of mass destruction".  According to US Vice President Dick Cheney "[We] have to be concerned about the potential marriage, if you will, between a terrorist organization like Al Qaeda and those who hold or are proliferating knowledge about weapons of mass destruction."  The US flag flew at half-staff at the US Embassy in Kabul, marking six months since the 9/11 attacks.  Homefront: US Immigration & Naturalization Service notified Huffman Aviation of Venice, FL that Mohamed Atta and Marwan Al-Shehhi were approved for student visas, which would change their tourist visa status.  Hmm, those names sound familiar.  Oh yes, they flew planes into the NY World Trade Center six months ago!
• Day 155: Sun, 3/10/02 - Very light fighting in Gardez region.  About 400 US troops withdrew from the region and returned to Bagram air base, north of Kabul.
• Day 154: Sat, 3/9/02 - US and allies scour the eastern Afghan mountains for a "high-value target" amidst extreme driving wind and snow.  New tensions begin among Afghan fighters, largely Pashtun, and the Tajik reinforcements sent by the Karzai administration.
• Day 153: Fri, 3/8/02 - Battle intensity of Operation Anaconda has slacked a bit in spite of continued bombing and al Qaeda gunfire.  Heavy snow blankets the mountain passes and rumbles from exploding bombs can be heard 20 miles to the north.  Winter conditions are limiting air strikes to satellite-guided bombs.  1,000 heavily armed Afghan soldiers joined the battle in the Gardez area of the Paktia province.  An on-site reporter gives his "trench-level view" of the first days of Operation Anaconda.
• Day 152: Thur, 3/7/02 - Ground fighting continues in Gardez and US pounded the area using B-52 bombers, F-16 fighter jets, and attack helicopters.  Over 400 al Qaeda/Taliban fighters have been killed since Saturday.  Al Qaeda fighters use strategy - throw stones, taunt and shout at the US soldiers, then just before US missiles strike, they run to their caves and launch mortars at the US troops below.  US counter strategy - launch 60mm mortars after the rebels duck into their caves, the sound disguised by the US fighter jets; as rebels emerge from cover, the mortars detonate overhead, spraying them with shrapnel.  Fuel, food, ammunition, and equipment is being sent to allied troops by helicopter.  Five international peacekeepers (2 Germans, 3 Danes) were killed in Kabul while trying to defuse two SA-3 Soviet-era ground-to-air missiles.  Each missile weighed 2,100 lbs.  An explosion at a Kandahar munitions depot may have been caused by accidentally tripping a booby trap, killing three US-allied Afghan fighters.  Afghan's Ariana Airline restarted operations with India with a flight from Kabul to New Delhi.  Turkmenistan and Afghanistan leaders discuss plans for a natural gas pipeline and for electricity.
• Day 151: Wed, 3/6/02 - Al Qaeda operatives are communicating in Pakistan via e-mail and new websites and continue to plot attacks on Western interests.  US-led infantry units have found AK-47 ammunition, medicine, night-vision devices, and documents, including a Saudi identification card in cleared out enemy caves and compounds.  Ground attacks killed over 100 al Qaeda militants today.
• Day 150: Tue, 3/5/02 - Five Marine AH-1W Cobra attack helicopters, which were on the USS Bonhomme Richard in the North Arabian Sea, joined the fighting in eastern Afghanistan to replace damaged Army AH-64 Apache attack choppers.  Two CH-53E Super Stallion transport helicopters accompanied the Cobras.  The Cobra, crewed by two, carries a 20mm cannon which fires precision guided missiles, including Hellfire, Sidewinder anti-air missiles, and TOW anti-armor missiles.  Fierce fighting continues with some troops advancing as close as 330 feet to rebel caves and bunkers.  Pakistani border forces fought with gunmen carrying guided missiles and rockets out of eastern Afghanistan, close to Gardez area.  US President Bush said bin Laden has not been heard from since December 11 and is either dead or running.  International peacekeeping forces may be doubled - presently, there are 4,500 troops limited to the Kabul area.  Flood waters resulting from Sunday's earthquake damage are submerging a north Afghan village.
• Day 149: Mon, 3/4/02 - US military base near Khost, 45 miles southeast of Gardez, was attacked by rockets, and gunmen bearing Kalashnikov rifles opened fire on the airport for five minutes.  Troops rushed to the area, but the gunmen had escaped, so a US plane bombed the firing site.  Bombing raids continued with US B-52s and F-16s.  There are now 1,000+ US and western troops deployed in the Gardez area.  Nine members of Congress, upon return from Afghanistan, said these people are fighting to the death.  They don't feel this battle is a last stand, but will be repeated in other parts of the country.
• Day 148: Sun, 3/3/02 - US B-52s rained bombs on eastern Afghanistan and the ground assault was delayed due to fierce opposition.  There are about 60 US advisors in this Operation Anaconda battle and about 1,000 Afghan troops.  Afghan forces say the opposition consists of 3,000 to 5,000 fighters, but the Pentagon estimates only hundreds.  Other troops involved in this battle are from Australia, Canada, Denmark, France, Germany and Norway.  7 more US troops were killed when two CH-47 Chinook helicopters took enemy fire north of Gardez in eastern Afghanistan.  Six from the first crash died in ground fighting as they waited 12 hours for a rescue team.  One died after he fell out of the second chopper while it was trying to take off again following a hard landing.  He held off the enemy for 30 minutes until his machine gun jammed, then he was stormed and killed at close range.  The battle took place trying to land atop 10,200 ft Takur Ghar, which offered a "prime view of a valley where scores of al-Qaida fighters were battling U.S. and coalition troops."  See a Takur Ghar timeline.  US planes dropped thousands of pamphlets over eastern Afghanistan.  Written in Pashtu and Dari, the messages on the leaflets told people to hand over al Qaeda/Taliban and provide information about them, or risk being destroyed.  Of the 7,500+ al Qaeda captives in Afghanistan and 300 at Camp X-ray, most go by aliases and have no identifying papers.  The US Department of Justice is reviewing the idea of obtaining blood samples from them for creating a DNA databank, to be used for future identification.  7.2 magnitude earthquake hit northern Afghanistan.  Switzerland votes to join the United Nations.  Homefront:  The US Department of Energy is developing more advanced devices for detecting nuclear radiation.  Hundreds of sensors have been deployed for use at US borders, Washington DC sites, overseas and were used at the Super Bowl in New Orleans and the Olympics in Salt Lake City. 
• Day 147: Sat, 3/2/02 - A US fighter pilot was killed when his F-14 Tomcat crashed just after takeoff from the USS John F. Kennedy in the Mediterranean Sea, 50 miles south of Crete.  In Afghanistan, US warplanes dropped two 2,000 lb thermobaric bombs into mountain caves just south of Gardez, with bombing continuing into the night.  1 US soldier was killed during the assault.  The US pays each Afghan fighter $200 per month to help hunt down al Qaeda/Taliban warriors.  Homefront:  Back in October, an intelligence alert warned that terrorists had obtained a 10 kiloton nuclear weapon from Russia, destined for New York City - the public was not advised.  According to a US counterterrorism official, sooner or later America's luck will run out and "It's going to be worse, and a lot of people are going to die" next time.
• Day 146: Fri, 3/1/02 - Operation Anaconda launched today in Afghanistan.  This operation was developed in response to intelligence reports that al Qaeda/Taliban was planning an attack on the Afghan interim government.  The Pentagon said al Qaeda and Taliban fighters are regrouping in eastern Afghanistan, near the city of Gardez, and just over the border in Pakistan.  Jalaluddin Haqqani, former Taliban minister of frontier affairs, is believed to be a key organizer of the regrouping.  US troops survived "18 hour ring of fire", sustaining shrapnel injuries, as they held blocking positions in the opening round of Operation Anaconda.  A medic recounts the first 18 hours, pulling out shrapnel and bandaging bloodied soldiers.  "Operation Anaconda" is named after "the snake that encircles and crushes its prey".  War on Terror may expand to Yemen as military advisors will be sent there within 10 days to support local troops against terrorists taking refuge there.  Special forces troops will do the same thing there that they are doing in the Philippines.  There is also a mission to Georgia underway, but US troops will not join those troops in battle.  Almost two-thirds of the 300 detainees at Camp X-Ray have been party to an on-and-off hunger strike since Wednesday when a guard removed a turban, made from a bedsheet, from the head of a detainee.  Although they had already been given close-fitting white knit caps to wear if they chose, the policy was changed yesterday, allowing detainees to wear turbans made from towels or bedsheets.  Homefront: A backup government of rotating federal officials on standby in bunkers since 9/11/01 is still being practiced.