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Afghanistan/South Asia
French Gen'l: U.S. Had Osama Within Reach
2004-06-03
KABUL, Afghanistan (AP) - U.S.-led forces in Afghanistan had Osama bin Laden "within reach" on at least two occasions, but were unable to prevent him from slipping away, France's top general said Wednesday. French chief of staff Gen. Henri Bentagoat Bentegeat, said the al-Qaida leader has evaded capture several times since 2002, but not recently. He didn't say where bin Laden had been tracked down, and refused to comment on whether French special forces operating in southern Afghanistan were involved. "Several times the coalition has had Osama bin Laden directly within reach," Bentegeat told reporters during a visit to the Afghan capital. "But between locating a person and arresting them there is a gap tied to all the uncertainties of all operations of this kind."
He's said this before.
A spokeswoman for the U.S. military in Kabul had no immediate comment on the general's remarks.
"What -- him again? Cheez, I can say no more!"
Bentegeat said several of bin Laden's top lieutenants also evaded capture. "At least two times they managed to escape," he said. "That's absolutely inevitable, normal in the conditions in which these kind of operations are carried out.
"Osama's people are constantly evading my guys. Happens all the time!"
Some 200 French troops work with the 20,000-member U.S.-led coalition in Afghanistan in the drive to track holdouts of the former ruling Taliban regime and bin Laden's al-Qaida terrorist group. They include special forces based in Spin Boldak in Kandahar province, close to the Pakistani border. Another 650 based in Kabul are part of the NATO-led peacekeeping force or are helping the United States train a new Afghan army. Bentegeat said France planned to add another 300 troops in August and that a French general would take command of the 6,400-strong international force, which is expected to expand from the capital into northern towns to provide security for September elections.
Expct Osama to keep evading the French then, too.
Posted by:Steve White

#11  The more I think about it, the more I find myself thinking if bin Laden were alive, he'd be very much at odds with Zarqawi at the moment for the latter's insistance on targeting Shi'ites in Iraq.

Not to mention the violence going on in Karachi.
Posted by: Phil Fraering   2004-06-03 9:12:05 PM  

#10  I'm with you Para. Until I see video of Bin Laden standing in front of evidence to date his continued existence, I say he is dead.

The media and administration walk hand in glove on this issue. While the press has failed to raise the question of his death, the administration would be foolish to declare it without stone cold flesh evidence.

The media likes the story better if he is alive. It satisfies their "wascally wabbit outwits Elmer Fudd" desires. Exactly what evidence is there to say he is alive?
Posted by: Zpaz   2004-06-03 8:11:31 PM  

#9  Now I wonder if the Saudi gendarme have French trainning..... come to think of it perhaps it's German training... Dunkirk and all that. We got your ass surrounded! ;)
Posted by: Shipman   2004-06-03 7:07:34 PM  

#8  Slipped away, did 'e? That's pretty good slippin' for a guy whose been dead for years.
Posted by: Parabellum   2004-06-03 6:22:47 PM  

#7  What is French for "I missed him by 15 minutes"?
Posted by: eLarson   2004-06-03 4:39:52 PM  

#6  French? General? What's next, a Muslim hog grower?
Posted by: Sorge   2004-06-03 2:51:08 PM  

#5  Who's helping the general out here, Inspector Clouseau?
Posted by: Raj   2004-06-03 12:25:36 PM  

#4  I understand the French had Paris in their hands during WWII for a short time. Somehow they let it slip away. . .
Posted by: Doc8404   2004-06-03 9:28:21 AM  

#3  "Ah, zees Americains! I do not understand zem! Zey 'ave 'ad three--how you say?--golden opportunities to surrender, an' zey 'ave not taken zem!"
Posted by: Mike   2004-06-03 6:33:19 AM  

#2  Hilarious followup to the "French guys singlehandedly almost catching Bin Laden" articles of the past.

If the big AQ baddies did get away, I expect it's because the frogs tipped 'em off.
Posted by: someone   2004-06-03 3:04:36 AM  

#1  French chief of staff Gen. Henri Bentegeat, said the al-Qaida leader has evaded capture several times since 2002, but not recently. He didn't say where bin Laden had been tracked down, and refused to comment on whether French special forces operating in southern Afghanistan were involved. "Several times the coalition has had Osama bin Laden directly within reach," Bentegeat told reporters during a visit to the Afghan capital. "But between locating a person and arresting them there is a gap tied to all the uncertainties of all operations of this kind." (emphasis mine)

So what's the deal here? Doesn't this guy or his underlings have any idea on how to solve or work around this "gap" problem? I mean, one failure in unfamiliar territory might be expected, two failures is understandable, but not three or more. Either something is terribly wrong or this guy is just dispensing BS.
Posted by: Bomb-a-rama   2004-06-03 1:39:11 AM  

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