From: "Macdonald Stainsby" <[EMAIL PROTECTED]> Subject: [R-G] Taliban Say Ready to Try Bin Laden on Proof Reuters. 5 October 2001. Taliban Say Ready to Try Bin Laden on Proof. ISLAMABAD -- Afghanistan's ruling Taliban are prepared to put Osama bin Laden on trial in an Afghan court if the United States provides solid evidence against him, Afghan Ambassador to Pakistan Mullah Abdul Salam Zaeef said on Friday. "We are prepared to try him, if America provides solid evidence of Osama bin Laden's involvement in attacks in New York and Washington," Zaeef told Reuters. Asked if the Taliban were prepared to allow a trial of bin Laden in another country, h e said: "We are willing to talk about that, but the first is that we must be given the evidence." "If America is not satisfied with our trial of Osama, we are also ready to find another Islamic way of trying him," the Afghan Islamic Press (AIP) quoted him as saying. When asked if the Taliban were ready to hand over bin Laden to the United States, Zaeef told AIP: "This is a later thing, we cannot take any step that hurts our Islamic or Afghan dignity." Even as the Taliban stuck to their refusal to hand over a "guest" who has sought sanctuary within their borders, diplomatic and military maneuvers were closing in around the isolated puritanical movement. The Taliban might still have a few days' breathing space to change their minds on bin Laden. Defense Secretary Donald Rumsfeld was visiting their northern neighbor Uzbekistan. His trip was shrouded in secrecy but was seen as a move to strengthen ties with a country that could provide a likely base for military strikes on the Taliban. The United States has said it will not hand over evidence to the Taliban, but insists it has enough put him on trial. AIP said Zaeef had again offered talks to the United States saying: "War is nothing but pain and death, blood does not wash blood, negotiations are a good path and we can discuss all issues including Osama." Washington has said there is nothing to discuss. ------------------------------------------- Macdonald Stainsby Rad-Green List: Radical anti-capitalist environmental discussion. http://lists.econ.utah.edu/mailman/listinfo/rad-green ---- Leninist-International: Building bridges in the tradition of V.I. Lenin. http://lists.econ.utah.edu/mailman/listinfo/leninist-international ---- In the contradiction lies the hope. --Bertholt Brecht _______________________________________________ Rad-Green mailing list [EMAIL PROTECTED] To change your options or unsubscribe go to: http://lists.econ.utah.edu/mailman/listinfo/rad-green
