U.S. Steps Up Attacks; Rumsfeld Voices Confidence

Oct. 28, 2001 -- U.S. military strikes in Afghanistan are proceeding well and the international anti-terror coalition remains stable, Defense Secretary Donald Rumsfeld said today.

"It's going very much the way we expected with we began," he said this morning on ABCNEWS' This Week, as government officials dampen expectations for a quick victory, while still voicing confidence in the military operations.

"The progress has been measurable," he said. "We feel the air campaign has been effective."

The defense chief said that allied forces were getting better targeting information in recent days to help identify new bombing targets.

Rumsfeld moved to reassure the public that the military effort could overcome recent apparent setbacks in its campaign to topple Afghanistan's ruling Taliban and bring accused terror mastermind Osama bin Laden to justice.

He emphasized, however, that the war would not likely be over soon, as early hopes fade that airstrikes would quickly cripple the Taliban and cause mass defections.

Key opposition Afghan leader — Abdul Haq — was captured and killed, and there have been new reports of errant U.S. bombs killing civilians.

More Heavy Bombing

U.S. warplanes continued to pound the Afghan capital of Kabul and other cities today, amid more reports of civilian casualties. Witnesses say at least 13 people were killed in Kabul. Witnesses and wire reports said that U.S. bombs were responsible, but there was no official comment from the Pentagon.

In another report, American forces accidentally bombed a village controlled by the Northern Alliance, killing at least two people and injuring 10.

Meanwhile, Northern Alliance fighters facing off with the Taliban have voiced frustration with the U.S. campaign, complaining that the United States has not helped them sufficiently.

In Pakistan, a key U.S. ally and neighbor of Afghanistan, thousands of protestors took to the streets today, after the Taliban called for worldwide demonstrations this weekend.

Several thousand armed Pakistanis reportedly crossed the Afgan border to join the Taliban Saturday. Witnesses said truckloads of men armed with Kalashinikov rifles, rocketlaunchers and anti-aircraft guns left for Afghanistan's eastern Kunar province, according to reports.

"The president of Pakistan has a very difficult situation," Rumsfeld admitted.

He reiterated that the coalition would hold and that Pakistan President Pervez Musharraf was doing a "terrific job."

In an interview with ABCNEWS' Peter Jennings, Musharraf warned that collateral damage caused by some stray U.S. bombs this week as well as continued U.S.-allied strikes during the Muslim holy month of Ramadan could stir up dangerous unrest.

"Personally, I would be against it," he said, referring to the prospect of bombings during Ramadan. "Because that would give an excuse for all those who are against the action in Afghanistan — that would give them an excuse to raise their voices more against action in Afghanistan."

Musharraf added that he believes there has been "a little bit of excessive collateral damage — that needs to be checked."

Weighing the Connection to Iraq

Officials downplayed a possible connection between the recent anthrax attacks and Iraq today, saying it was too soon to know if Saddam Hussein was involved.

"I have seen no evidence which links the Iraqi regime to Osama bin Laden's and Al Queda's guilt to what happened on Sept. 11," said British foreign minister Jack Straw.

Without such evidence connecting Iraq and the Sept. 11 attacks or the recent anthrax attacks, no military campaign against Iraq would be justified, he said.

The anthrax in the letter sent to Senate Majority Leader Tom Daschle may have been laced with sophisticated chemicals that Iraq is believed to have used in its bio-weapons programs.

Afghan Opposition Leader Buried

Family and supporters today buried Abdul Haq, a veteran Afghan commander who was killed by the Taliban last week.

Haq was captured and executed by firing squad after crossing from Pakistan into Afghanistan to try to rally opponants of the Taliban. He had received limited support from U.S. forces in the air, American officials said.

The Taliban refused to allow Haq's family to take his body for burial in Pakistan. Instead, they interred the well respected mujahedeen leader in Surkhrod, Afghanistan.

Haq's death was a sharp setback for efforts to assemble a coalition against the Taliban, U.S. and British officials admitted.

Bombs Strike Red Cross Warehouses

The Pentagon admitted late Friday that jets had inadvertently dropped bombs on warehouses belonging to the International Red Cross.

"The U.S. sincerely regrets this inadvertent strike on the ICRC warehouses and the residential area," a U.S. government statement said.

The Red Cross reported no injuries, according to the Defense Department. However, the International Committee of the Red Cross has been unable to distribute food to hungry Kabul residents because of the bombing, Reuters reported on Saturday.

Heavy aerial assaults on Taliban positions Friday marked the first time since the bombing campaign began on Oct. 7 that the bombardment was not eased in respect for the Islamic Sabbath.

Service at Ground Zero for Victims’ Families

In other developments:

Families who lost loved ones in the September 11th attacks on the World Trade Center will gather at Ground Zero for a memorial service, include readings by various religious leaders and performances from Andrew Lloyd Webber and Andrea Bocelli.

One of America's staunchest allies, British Prime Minister Tony Blair, will visit Saudi Arabia on Wednesday, according to Reuters.

British Armed Forces Minister Adam Ingram said Friday that 200 Royal Marine commandos, who are trained for warfare in harsh, mountainous terrain and arctic weather, will be sent to the region. Another 400 will be on standby in Britain.

An Islamic cleric in Pakistan said 10,000 people had already answered his appeal for Muslims to join the Taliban's fight against the United States.

Libyan leader Moammar Gadhafi told a French official that he would be willing to trade information and provide police assistance to the U.S.-led anti-terror coalition. French Minister for Cooperation Charles Josselin said "exchanges of information and police cooperation are conceivable," but that Gadhafi told him Libya would not offer any military assistance.

The latest numbers of victims from the attacks on the World Trade Center, according to New York City officials are: 4,167 reported missing and 454 identified dead.