Special Report: Operation Enduring Freedom

War on Terrorism Enters New Phase

By GORDON I. PETERSON, Senior Editor

The war against international terrorism that commenced with the surprise attacks on the World Trade Center and the Pentagon on 11 September entered a new phase in October with the execution of a broad-based U.S. strategy aimed at destroying the forces of Osama bin Laden and his Taliban allies militarily while simultaneously undermining their cause around the world diplomatically, legally, and financially.

The United States also confronted the possible specter of biological terrorism when separate incidents involving the suspected dispersal of the deadly anthrax bacteria were reported in New York City, in Florida, and in the Capitol Hill office of Senate Majority Leader Thomas A. Daschle (D-S.D.).

While the FBI said in mid-October that there were certain similarities in the letters sent to NBC News headquarters in New York and to Daschle's office, no direct links to organized terrorism were initially found. "We're now testing, analyzing, and comparing powders from these letters to each other and to what we know from Florida," said FBI Director Robert S. Mueller III at a press conference on 16 October.

News that the letters had tested positive for traces of the bacteria, however, added impetus to the Bush administration's earlier initiative to name former Pennsylvania Gov. Tom Ridge to head the new Office of Homeland Security. Ridge assumed his duties as director of that office on 8 October.
"Sustained, Comprehensive, and Relentless Operations"

On 7 October, in announcing his decision to order military strikes against the al Qaeda network of terrorist camps and the military installations of the Taliban regime, President George W. Bush said that the carefully targeted strikes had been designed to disrupt the use of Afghanistan as a terrorist base of operations and to attack the military capability of that country's Taliban regime.

"Our military action is also designed to clear the way for sustained, comprehensive, and relentless operations to drive them [the terrorists] out and bring them to justice," Bush said.

He again emphasized that the U.S. military actions were not directed against the Afghan people or the Islamic religion. In addition to military strikes by U.S. Air Force and Navy aircraft--and sea-launched cruise missiles fired from U.S. Navy and Royal Navy ships and submarines--Bush ordered the Department of Defense to commence humanitarian airdrops of food, medicine, and other supplies to Afghani refugees.

"The United States of America is a friend to the Afghan people, and we are the friends of almost a billion worldwide who practice the Islamic faith," Bush said. "The United States of America is an enemy of those who aid terrorists and of the barbaric criminals who profane a great religion by committing murder in its name."

The president used his announcement of military action also to speak directly to the men and women of the armed forces.
"To all the men and women in our military--every Sailor, every Soldier, every Airman, every Coast Guardsman, every Marine--I say this: Your mission is defined; your objectives are clear; your goal is just," Bush said. "You have my full confidence, and you will have every tool you need to carry out your duty."

The beginning of overt U.S. and British military operations in October, which intensified as the month progressed, was but one component of a broad-based U.S. strategy to forge and sustain a global coalition arrayed against international terrorism and those nations either sponsoring or harboring terrorists within their borders.

"This military action is a part of our campaign against terrorism, another front in a war that has already been joined by diplomacy, intelligence, and the freezing of financial assets and the arrests of known terrorists by law-enforcement agents in 38 countries," Bush said.

A War of Many Fronts

As the unrelenting U.S. and British military campaign continued through October, Secretary of Defense Donald H. Rumsfeld reported progress in creating the conditions that would allow sustained anti-terrorist operations inside Afghanistan.

"We continue to use all appropriate means to root out, find, and destroy al Qaeda and Taliban targets throughout the country," Rumsfeld said at a Pentagon press conference on 15 October.

Initial objectives of the U.S. military campaign all were aimed at creating the necessary conditions for more sustained operations in Afghanistan. For this reason, Taliban air defenses, command-and-control facilities, and aircraft were initially targeted. Rumsfeld also acknowledged, without providing details, that a process to develop relationships and improve communications with rebel Afghan forces on the ground was moving forward. Actions also were in motion to develop a capability to provide much more precise and timely information on potential targets.

News media reports that U.S. and British special operations forces were already on the ground in Afghanistan to obtain needed intelligence, coordinate activities with the loosely aligned Northern Alliance of Afghan tribes, and pave the way for future U.S. ground operations were not confirmed by official spokesmen. Asked to comment on a possible U.S. ground component to ongoing air strikes, Rumsfeld simply said, "We are not going to discuss that."

"The war is being fought on many fronts--military, humanitarian, information, diplomatic, financial, as well as economic," Rumsfeld said. "All of these are critical elements in a long, sustained campaign that will continue until we have finished the job of rooting out terrorist networks and putting them out of business--not just the Taliban and the al Qaeda, but other networks in other nations as well."

Rumsfeld vigorously denied Taliban charges that the U.S. military was indiscriminately killing Afghan civilians. "The United States does not target civilians," Rumsfeld said on 11 October. "We do know who does target civilians, and it's the terrorists who have killed thousands of Americans--and it comes with ill-grace for the Taliban to be suggesting that we're doing what they have made a practice of doing."

The Department of Defense confirmed on 13 October that a U.S. Navy F/A-18 Hornet aircraft missed its intended target and inadvertently dropped a 2,000-pound Joint Direct Attack Munition (JDAM) on a residential neighborhood near Kabul Airport. Its intended military target was approximately one mile away. The accident, attributed to a targeting-process error, was said to have killed and injured several civilians. The Navy and Air Force have relied extensively on their arsenal of modern precision-guided munitions in an effort to avoid such accidents.

Independent news reports filed by journalists embarked on U.S. Navy aircraft carriers confirmed that air strikes were planned in ways that would limit collateral damage and minimize the risk of killing civilians on the ground. Reporter Steve Vogel of The Washington Post, for example, reported from the nuclear-powered aircraft carrier USS Carl Vinson in the North Arabian Sea that a number of aircraft were returning to the ship from strike missions with unexpended bombs when targets could not be identified and attacked precisely.

"A Continuing Campaign"

Just as the United States and its coalition partners developed a military component to the overarching strategy to destroy international terrorism, so too did U.S. diplomatic efforts continue apace during the weeks following 11 September.

Prior to ordering military action, Bush ordered that classified briefings be given to NATO's North Atlantic Council on the initial results of the U.S. investigation into who was responsible for the terrorist attacks. Ambassador Frank Taylor, the U.S. Department of State coordinator for counter-terrorism, briefed NATO members on 2 October.

"The facts are clear and compelling," said NATO Secretary General Lord Robertson after the briefing. "The information presented points conclusively to an al Qaeda role in the 11 September attacks."

On the basis of the U.S. briefings, NATO determined that the attack against the United States was an action covered by Article 5 of the Washington Treaty, which states that an armed attack on one or more members of the NATO Alliance--in Europe or North America--shall be considered an attack against all of them.

"I want to reiterate that the United States of America can rely on the full support of its 18 NATO allies in the campaign against terrorism," Robertson said.

British Prime Minister Tony Blair was especially supportive during the critical early weeks of Operation Enduring Freedom, speaking out forcefully on the need for the entire civilized world to stand firm in the fight against international terrorism. The joint U.S.-U.K. military strikes that began in October further solidified the special security and diplomatic relationships of the two countries.

Support from abroad came from many other members of the loose coalition that the Bush administration has forged in recent weeks. Russia offered to share information and the use of its airspace for humanitarian flights. India and Pakistan also have shared information with the United States and pledged assistance and support for U.S. actions.

Australia offered combat forces and invoked Article IV of the ANZUS Treaty, declaring the 11 September attack an attack on Australia as well. The United States also secured overflight and landing rights from 27 countries prior to the commencement of military air strikes.

"We shouldn't see this campaign just in terms of discrete phases," said Secretary of State Colin L. Powell on 10 October. "It is a continuing campaign that will really never stop in any of its phases."

Powell traveled to Pakistan and India in mid-October at the president's request in an effort to bolster U.S. diplomatic understanding and support in each country. "We are also looking forward to strengthening our cooperation on a full range of bilateral and regional issues," Powell said in a joint press conference on 16 October with Pakistani President Pervez Musharraf.

Powell said that the United States and Pakistan have a mutual interest in promoting a stable Afghanistan. "I shared with him and he shared with me our thoughts on how to begin the process of rebuilding Afghanistan even as the military element of our strategy continues," Powell said.

National Security Advisor Condoleezza Rice took the unusual step of communicating directly with Arab-speaking peoples around the world through an interview on the Qatar-based Al Jazeera television network. During her interview, Rice emphasized the U.S. desire to implement the "Mitchell Plan" for resolving the Israeli-Palestinian political impasse at the earliest opportunity. She also reiterated the Bush administration's position that a Palestinian state should be created--provided it recognizes the existence of Israel and security for all parties could be achieved.

A Battle Joined

Some early successes in the new war on international terrorism occurred on fronts normally well-hidden from public view--the arenas of international finance and law enforcement.

Since 11 September, according to the White House, the United States has frozen nearly $4 million in assets belonging to the Taliban and the al Qaeda network. Several million more in additional assets were said to be under review. More than 100 countries have committed to joining the global effort to freeze terrorist assets, and 62 countries already have put blocking motions into place that would keep more than $24 million in assets out of the hands of terrorists.

Spearheading a massive international criminal investigation, the FBI had, as of 15 October, already interrogated more than 600 people who may have been involved in the 11 September attacks. More than 400 people have been arrested or detained in the United States, and 25 other countries reported the arrest and detention of approximately 150 terrorists or suspected supporters of international terrorism.

The FBI has openly turned to the general public for assistance with its investigation, asking anyone who has information that relates to the 11 September attacks, or who knows anyone on its new list of "most wanted" international terrorists, to contact the nearest FBI office, call its toll-free hotline number (1-866-483-5137), or submit information online at: www.ifccfbi.gov .

The White House said that counter-terrorist operations had been intensified with more than 200 intelligence-and-security services worldwide.
"The battle is now joined on many fronts," Bush said on 7 October. "We will not waver; we will not tire; we will not falter; and we will not fail. Peace and freedom will prevail." *