Troops Hunting Al Qaeda Members Withdrawn

The Pakistani army announced Saturday that it would withdraw hundreds of troops from a tense tribal region near Afghanistan where Osama bin Laden and his top deputy were believed to be hiding. The withdrawals from the South Waziristan area come after several military operations by thousands of troops against bin Laden's al Qaeda organization and its supporters in recent months. Although the tribal region is considered a possible hiding place for bin Laden and his deputy, Ayman Zawahiri, a senior Pakistani general said this month that no sign of bin Laden had been found. Bin Laden, architect of the Sept. 11, 2001, attacks against the United States, has been on the run since U.S. forces invaded Afghanistan in October 2001, routing the Taliban rulers who harbored al Qaeda militants. [more]