| Local militia leaders said they were preparing to renew their assault on the Al-Qaeda at Tora Bora after attempts to persuade them to give up failed. "The Al-Qaeda fighters firmly refused to surrender before the Nangarhar provincial administration," said Amin, spokesman for local militia commander Hazrat Ali. At least two helicopters landed in what could be the start of a raid against the gunmen, a few hours after the fighters rejected the surrender deadline. At least one, and perhaps as many as three, "daisy cutters'' were dropped before dawn on a mountainside canyon where many al-Qaida men have been hemmed in since they were flushed out of their cave shelters during combat on Monday. Christian Science Monitor claimed that Osama bin Laden escaped Tora Bora to Pakistan 10 days ago with the help of Ghilzai tribesmen. Our guess is that he beat it while the "surrender" negotiations were occupying attention. |