Taliban: No Leadership Casualties
ISLAMABAD, Pakistan - Osama bin Laden's al-Qaida network and the Taliban have survived 13 days of U.S.-led bombing without a single casualty in their leadership, the Taliban ambassador to Pakistan said Friday.
Ambassador Abdul Salam Zaeef spoke to reporters after returning from Afghanistan, where he said he met with both bin Laden and Mullah Mohammed Omar, supreme leader of the country's ruling Taliban militia.
Zaaef also flatly rejected reports of defections within the Taliban, saying there have been none. The Taliban "are strong and united," he insisted.
The Taliban earlier Friday confirmed the death of a veteran militant comrade of bin Laden, Egyptian militant Abu Baseer al-Masri, the Pakistan-based Afghan Islamic Press said.
The Taliban denied reports a U.S. bomb had killed al-Masri, saying he was killed when a grenade accidentally exploded in his hands near Jalalabad on Oct. 11, the news agency said.
Al-Masri was a longtime member of al-Qaida, but was not considered to be among its leadership.
Bin Laden, the prime suspect in last month's terror attacks on the United States, and al-Qaida are targets of the U.S.-led military campaign.
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