U.S. Sending Bombers to Middle East
Sept. 19 -- The U.S. military ordered about 100 aircraft today to begin heading overseas for an operation unofficially called "Infinite Justice," to root out Osama bin Laden and his al Qaeda terrorist network in Afghanistan, Pentagon sources said.
Government sources say the order calls for several dozen B-52 and B-1 bombers, plus intelligence gathering aircraft to be in the region by Sept. 24 or Sept. 25.
The military movement is the strongest sign of U.S. resolve in the wake of the Sept. 11 terrorist attacks on the World Trade Center and the Pentagon. As hope fades in the search for survivors, President Bush also worked today to build an international coalition to strike back at the suspected terrorists.
In other developments today:
Bush stressed that the United States is declaring war on terrorism, not Islam.
Pakistan's President Pervez Musharraf addressed his divided nation and explained his decision to support the United States.
The criminal investigation continued with the FBI intensifying its search for 37 people with pilot training who have ties to the hijackers. See story.
The nation's two largest passenger airlines — United and American — announced they would each lay off 20,000 workers. To help the ailing airline industry, the White House has settled on a bailout package of $5 billion in immediate cash. See story.
Aircraft, Troops Could Leave Thursday
Secretary of Defense Donald Rumsfeld signed the order to position the aircraft at bases used by the U.S. military in the Middle East and at Britain's island Diego Garcia in the Indian Ocean.
They could begin leaving as early as Thursday.
Several thousand support personnel also will go to the region, but the order does not include ground troops.
No additional fighter aircraft are part of this buildup. There already are two Navy aircraft carriers in the region, each with some 80 aircraft and there are as many as 100 Air Force fighter jets at bases in the region.
A third carrier, the USS Theodore Roosevelt, and accompanying ships left for region today.
"This is certainly no longer just a routine deployment after last week," Secretary of the Navy Gordon England said to the crew before they departed. "Now is the time for us to pick up the mantle to destroy terrorism and remove this cancer."
National security adviser Condoleezza Rice also told reporters today, "The United States is repositioning some of its forces to support the president's goal," but did not elaborate.
The military has dubbed the mission "Infinite Justice," but the name is still subject to White House approval.
Bush to Address Congress
Bush, who has labeled bin Laden the "prime suspect" in the Sept. 11 terror attacks on the World Trade Center and Pentagon, said he has accepted an invitation to address a televised joint session of the Congress on Thursday evening to explain who may have wanted to attack the United States and why. Rice said Bush will not use the opportunity to announce any forthcoming military action.
