US planes and Afghan militia tanks on Tuesday bombarded the mountains around Tora Bora in eastern Afghanistan as they stepped up pressure on followers of accused terrorist leader Osama bin Laden.
At least four big tanks were brought in to join the artillery barrage on positions of foreign volunteers in bin Laden's al-Qaeda army, which started around 10:00 am (0530 GMT), an AFP reporter in Tora Bora said.
Three Soviet-made T-55 tanks were on one hillside opposite the mountain, which has an intricate cave complex.
A fourth light tank was in operation from a valley below the hillside and near the village of Tora Bora.
US jets have been intensely bombing Tora Bora mountain since the start of December in a bid to flush out bin Laden and his followers. The air raids went on through the night.
The latest shelling was concentrated on a wooded zone near the summit of Tora Bora mountain. Explosions followed by clouds of smoke could be clearly seen.
The sound of automatic gunfire, machine guns and mortars also rang around the mountains in another sign that a fight was under way – Afghanistan (AFP)
© 2001 Al Bawaba (www.albawaba.com)
