With a week of airstrikes against Kabul's Taliban regime under their belt, US officials have made no secret of plans to follow up on the ground with soldiers from the Afghan opposition and/or US special forces.

Whether it be the US Army's Green Berets or Rangers, Navy SEALS or the super-elite Delta Force, commandos could be used to identify new bombing targets, kill enemy troops or "snatch" terrorist personnel.

Slithering down ropes from Blackhawk helicopters or parachuting from low-flying transport planes, the commandos would be amply equipped in their hunt for terror suspect Osama bin Laden and his al-Qaeda network.

Their high-tech arsenal would run from the newly designed M-4 Carbine rifles fitted with laser and infrared aiming devices to night-vision goggles, grenade launchers and stun grenades.

They would have a global positioning system receiver to guide them and ground laser target designators to "light up" Taliban or terrorist positions for US bombers, gunships or attack helicopters.

But military analysts said it would be painstaking work to roll up the terrorist network operating in Afghanistan, known for its rugged mountains and some of the most extreme weather in southwest Asia.

Even more problematic is the prospect of getting to bin Laden, the world's most wanted man and suspected mastermind of the September 11 suicide attacks on New York and Washington.

The Saudi-born millionaire is said to move around constantly, often spending the night in different mountain caves under Taliban protection. One expert said the chances of finding him in any particular raid were 100 to one.

"It's like chasing one particular rabbit in the entire state of West Virginia," a US official told the Washington Post.

Defense analysts gave a variety of scenarios for pursuing al-Qaeda, but they all revolved around the same principles: developing intelligence, forcing network members to go on the move and narrowing their room for maneuver.

"You methodically develop the situation in the country to get the intelligence necessary for further operations," said retired Army major general William Nash, a veteran of the Vietnam and Gulf wars.

"Methodically, with the information that is available, you tighten the noose around their elements," said Nash, a senior fellow at the Council on Foreign Relations in New York.

John Pike, director of the GlobalSecurity.org think tank based outside of Washington, added: "You grab an informant to get to another and you work your way up the food chain. Of course, this is easier said than done."

Officials are aware they need to establish themselves on the ground before the onset of the harsh Afghan winter. Among the approaches available for the operation, experts suggested the following:

• Creating outer borders in a designated area of Afghanistan and working in towards the center.
• Delineating kill zones with pilots authorized to blow up anything that moves. Seeking to isolate the terrorists from the Taliban protectors and progressively reducing the area available to them.
• Using satellite intelligence and intercepts to eliminate certain areas. Then raiding specific zones to create movement and garner more intelligence to locate the next target for attack on a case-by-case basis.
• Focusing on the cities at first, then branching out to control main roads and working towards the mountains.

A 1980 raid to free the US hostages in Iran ended with a C-130 transport colliding with a helicopter in the Iranian desert, leaving eight men dead.

A 1993 operation to snatch aides to Somalian warlord Mohamed Farrah Aidid triggered a firefight in the middle of Mogadishu in which 18 US commandos were killed.

But Army Captain Richard Kidd, who worked in a UN demining program in Afghanistan in 1998 and 1999, said it was critical that US troops be ready for hand-to-hand combat against the al-Qaeda and Taliban.

In a widely distributed e-mail analysis, Kidd said US missile attacks on Afghanistan following the 1998 bombings of US embassies in Africa left the impression the Americans were cowardly, unwilling to take casualties.

"It is essential that we communicate to OBL (Osama bin Laden) and all others watching that we can and will 'engage and destroy the enemy in close combat,'" he said.

The captain also suggested another potent arm to use -- cash. He suggested providing the Afghan opposition with money to buy off elements of the Taliban leadership and paying for others to be killed.

He recommended maintaining low-level covert action over the winter to allow cracks to open up in the Taliban. "Expect that they will quickly turn on themselves and on OBL. We can pick up the pieces next summer, or the summer after."

Related Links
SpaceDaily
Search SpaceDaily
Subscribe To SpaceDaily Express

Thanks for being here; We need your help. The SpaceDaily news network continues to grow but revenues have never been harder to maintain. With the rise of Ad Blockers, and Facebook - our traditional revenue sources via quality network advertising continues to decline. And unlike so many other news sites, we don't have a paywall - with those annoying usernames and passwords. Our news coverage takes time and effort to publish 365 days a year. If you find our news sites informative and useful then please consider becoming a regular supporter or for now make a one off contribution.
SpaceDaily Contributor $5 Billed Once credit card or paypal		SpaceDaily Monthly Supporter $5 Billed Monthly paypal only