20 October 2004 -- The commander of U.S. forces in Afghanistan said yesterday that he believes the 9 October presidential voting in Afghanistan marked a "significant defeat" for the Taliban and Al-Qaeda, international news agencies reported.
Lieutenant General David Barno, speaking to reporters during a visit to Washington, noted that the Taliban failed to follow through on repeated threats to disrupt the poll.
Barno also conceded that the U.S. military does not know the whereabouts of suspected Al-Qaeda leader Osama bin Laden, although he said he has seen no evidence that bin Laden is in day-to-day control of that terrorist network.
Afghan Transitional Administration Chairman
reportedly leads the field of 16 presidential candidates with roughly one-quarter of the estimated 8 million ballots counted. Vote counting is expected to produce a winner by the end of October, although a two-candidate runoff is required if no candidate receives a majority of the vote.
index page