Bush: War on Terror 'Gaining Momentum'

Sept. 29, 2001 -- President Bush told Americans today that international cooperation is "gaining momentum" and that "the cause of freedom will prevail."

"The United States respects the people of Afganistan and we are their largest provider of humanitarian aid. But we condemn the Taliban, and welcome the support of other nations in isolating that regime," the president said in his weekly radio address.

Bush met with national security advisers at Camp David Saturday morning. In a photo released by the White House, Bush and his aides were seated around a table on which a map of Afghanistan had been laid out. CIA Director George Tenet could be seen gesturing towards an area in the west of Afghanistan, near its border with Iran.

The White House outlined the U.S. policy towards Afghanistan's ruling Taliban in a written document. The document is a comprehensive explanation of U.S. policy of the Taliban. In part, it reads, "The Taliban do not represent the Afghan people, who never elected or chose the Taliban faction...We do not want to choose who rules Afghanistan, but we will assist those who seek a peaceful, economically developing Afghanistan, free of terrorism...We will support the Afghan people in the future. They deserve peace and stability, freedom from foreign terrorists and a government that represents all Afghans. We call on others to join us so we can help Afghans recover and rebuild."

Meanwhile, the ruling Taliban in Afghanistan is denying a report today by Arabic language Al-Jazeera television that three American commandos and two Afghans assisting them were captured in Afghanistan. A U.S. official also suggested the report was untrue.

President Bush has named Afghanistan-based Saudi exile Osama bin Laden the "prime suspect" in September 11 terrorist attacks on the United States, which left more than 6,400 people dead or presumed dead.

British Journalist Detained

In another development, the fate of a British reporter captured Friday by the Taliban inside Afganistan remains unknown. Yvonne Ridley, a 43-year-old reporter for Britain's Sunday Express was nabbed shortly after she snuck over the border from Pakistan to write about the plight of the refugees who are flooding toward that border.

Britain's foreign office reports it is in contact with Taliban officials, urging them to resolve the situation as soon as possible.

Ridley's mother, Joyce, said these are tense times and had a message for her daugher.

"We just want you home as quickly as possible because we love you and miss you," she said.

Clinton, Dole Head Fundraising Effort

To help generate $100 million in scholarships for the children and spouses of September 11 victims, former President Clinton and 1996 Republican presidential nominee Bob Dole announced today their plans to spearhead a new group called "Families of Freedom."

The new organization will join forces with the already existing, Minneapolis-based group called Citizens Scholarship Foundation of America and will kick-off with a public service announcement featuring Clinton and Dole.

"I predict that there will be at least a dozen children of victims of this crisis that within 25 years will have made major contributions to the United States of America, because they lost their fathers and mothers to this terrible event," former President Clinton said at Georgetown University in Washington, D.C., announcing the new effort.

Cutting Off the Money Supply

In a sweeping show of international support, the United Nations Security Council approved an ambitious proposal Friday night designed to identify terrorists and clamp down on illicit financing of their activities. It represents the fruit of the latest effort by the Bush administration to root out those responsible for the recent terrorists attacks on the United States.

The new U.N. plan calls for greater international intelligence and law-enforcement cooperation, and it requires states to change their banking laws in order to police the global network of terrorism's financiers. It makes providing funds for terror activities a criminal offense and would freeze bank accounts of those sponsoring terrorism. The U.N. Security Council itself would monitor compliance.

The resolution also could enhance international support for military actions when taken in response to terrorist attacks.

Authorities now believe the hijackings were developed and funded by terrorists based in Europe and the Middle East, and are pursuing a man believed to have helped mastermind the suicide hijackings. Additionally, British officials have accused an Algerian pilot, under arrest in London, of training four of the pilots involved in the concerted attack.

U.S. investigators have also turned up a letter, written in Arabic, containing instructions to the men who they say carried out the attack. See Story

Taliban Won't Budge on Bin Laden

In Afghanistan, a Pakistani delegation of Muslim clerics failed to make progress Friday in efforts to convince the Taliban regime to surrender bin Laden and avoid possible U.S military strikes.

Mufti Mohammed Jamil, leader of Pakistan's Jamiat Ulema e-Islam party who joined the delegation, said the Taliban "is willing to cooperate with the United States if the United States is willing to soften its position." But that cooperation would not include handing over bin Laden.

Bush has stood firm in his refusal to negotiate with the Taliban over bin Laden, warning of possible military intervention if they did not give him up. But in an attempt to improve U.S.-Pakistan relations, Bush released $50 million in aid to Pakistan Friday evening, calling it "important to the security interests of the United States."

Troops, Food and Leaflets

With diplomatic overtures to the Taliban coming up empty, the United States continues to mobilize military power near the country and has already placed some of its special forces operatives inside Afghanistan. The special forces units have been performing reconnaissance work as a necessary part of the search for bin Laden.

"Soldiers, sailors, airmen and Coast Guardmen are being deployed to points arouind the globe, ready to answer when their country calls," Bush said today in his radio address.

The United States is also planning a bombing campaign, although it is not yet clear when it will start. The targets in Afghanistan will be strategic military bases, included those used for air defense, sources told ABCNEWS.

Another part of the campaign will involve air drops of food into Afghanistan, intended to help alleviate the famine-like conditions some Afghans have been experiencing. Additionally, the United States will drop leaflets and use radio broadcasts from nearby posts to try to explain to the native population what the campaign is intended to accomplish.

Will National Airport Reopen?

Meanwhile, debate continues about the status of National Airport in Washington, which has been closed since Sept. 11 for security reasons. It is the only U.S. airport still closed.

Transportation Secretary Norman Y. Minetta told ABCNEWS on Friday that the airport will "definitely reopen," although White House spokesman Ari Fleischer said later that no decision has yet been made. The airport is a major national security concern because of its proximity to central Washington.

Rep. Jim Moran, D-Va., said Bush may make an announcement on Tuesday about the matter. Members of Congress have threatened to pass legislation mandating the reopening of the airport if the administration does not.

In Boston, the head of the Federal Aviation Administration's security field office at Logan International Airport was reassigned Friday, becoming the first person at Logan to be moved from a sensitive security post, according to a report in The Boston Globe. FAA officials in Washington discovered that Mary Carol Turano, who had been on the job for more than two years, did not have a security badge as of Sept. 11.

Empire State Building is Open Again

In New York, where the massive recovery effort continues at the site of the World Trade Center's demolished twin towers, city officials said it could take up to a year to clean up the estimated 1.2 million tons of rubble and cost $7 billion. So far, only 130,000 tons of debris has been removed.

New York Mayor Rudolph Giuliani has begun preparing victims' families for the probability that the bodies of some of the 5,960 missing may never be found. As of Friday, 306 bodies had been recovered.

In one hopeful sign that the city is getting back on its feet, the observation deck of the Empire State Building — now New York's tallest building — reopened today. The popular tourist attraction had been closed since the day of the attacks. Tourists lined up around the block to go up to the top.

"No fear," said Paul Short, from Tampa, Fla. "You know, I'm pretty confident in the New York people and police and all the security they've got going on. We're up here to support these guys. What a tragedy. But we really are proud of New York."