Taleban didn't bring Bin Laden to Afghanistan, says former aid worker

[mogster]

(This is a translation from Norwegian)

- Not the Taleban who brought Bin Laden to Afghanistan

It wasn't the Taleban who fetched Osama Bin Laden and his arab fighters to Afghanistan, but the West's allies.

That says one of Norways foremost Afghanistan experts, senior researcher Arne Strand at Chr. Michelsens Institute (CMI).
He worked for the Norwegian Church Aid in Afghanistan when Osama Bin Laden arrived in the country in 1996.

- It wasn't the Taleban who fethced Osama Bin Laden and all of his entourage back to Afghanistan, it was then president Barhanuddin Rabbani and Abdul Rasoul Sayyaf, which now is sitting in the Parliament and has a major influence on president Hamid Karzai, he says.

- He was fetched in Sudan by a plane from the Afghan state airline Ariana, and was met by then governor in Jalalabad, says Strand.

When Taleban later grabbed power they viewed Osama Bin laden as an enemy, not an ally.

- I was in Jalalabad the day after the Taleban had taken over the city and saw how they hunted for Bin Ladens arab fighters, says Strand.

- Later, probably with help from Pakistan, the Taleban entered some sort of alliance with Bin Laden, but as far as ideology goes, Sayyaf and Rabbani were much closer to Al-Queda.

Strand does not rule out the possibility that Bin Laden was fetched back to Afghanistan in understanding with the US government. Sudan did no longer want the Al-Queda leader to stay, and both the US and Saudi-Arabia said no to extradition.

- The only people willing to receive Osama Bin Laden was his old brothers in arms in the Mujahedeen, lead by Sayyaf, says Strand.

Org. article (NO):
http://www.vg.no/nyheter/utenriks/krigen-mot-terror/artikkel.php?artid=513634

[SpiralHawk]

1. "Smirk." - Commander AWOL & corrupt cabal of reublicon cronies