Bin Laden Requested to Determine Himself Where to StayAfghanistan's Islamic clerics, after a two-day meeting in Kabul, on Thursday appealed the Taliban authorities to request Saudi-born Osama bin Laden to leave Afghanistan voluntarily at a convenient time, a source in the Taliban-run Bakhtar Information Agency told Xinhua by telephone from Kabul."If Osama bin Laden doesn't want to leave Afghanistan, he may stay here," the source added. He said the clerics expressed deep sympathy and sorrow for the loss of life in last week's attacks in New York and Washington which left some 6,000 people dead. The clerics appealed to the United States, U.N. General Assembly and the Organization of Islamic Conference (OIC) to hold thorough investigations and search for the real culprits, according to the source. He said the clerics appealed to the United States not to attack Afghanistan. Should it do so, a "Jihad" or "Holy War" would be launched against it, the source said. It's expected that the Taliban government will follow this final decision made by the religious scholars. |
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