Pakistan is to urge Afghanistan to hand over Osama bin Laden in a meeting with Taliban leaders that may take place today. Bin Laden is the terrorist suspected of masterminding the attacks on New York and Washington.
News of the meeting came as the United States readied its forces for what it warned could be a long fight, and as Vice-President Dick Cheney said he had "no doubt" Osmam bin Laden played a major role in the attacks last Tuesday morning.
The Pakistani ambassador to the United States, Mr Maleeha Lodhi, confirmed last night that officials will be urging the Taliban leadership to accede to the demand of the international community and "to hand over the person that they are harbouring, Osama bin Laden, so that he is brought to justice".
A senior Pakistani delegation will travel to Kandahar in Afghanistan today, where the Taliban inner circle is based, if it gets approval from the United Nations.
Such approval is necessary because of existing sanctions on Afghanistan that prohibit travel to the country. Sources said last night that it was highly likely permission to travel would be granted given the circumstances.
Meanwhile, it was reported that the Pakistan President, Gen Pervez Musharraf, told meetings with religious leaders, politicians and newspaper editors yesterday that Pakistan could give the United States logistical support and would even allow US ships to dock along its coast in any attack on Afghanistan.
In off-the-record briefings, the military leader revealed details of his telephone conversation he had with President Bush late on Saturday evening.
According to reports, Gen Musharraf said that while President Bush gave little away about any possible military action, he got the impression the US president would look to Pakistan for logistical support in prosecuting the first war of the 21st century.
Pakistan's president said the US could base its troops either in Pakistan or neighbouring Afghanistan, but added he had no concrete details.
In addition, he said it was possible that US ships would want access to Pakistan's coast to reach landlocked Afghanistan, a request Islamabad would be able to meet,
The editor of the Friday Times, Najam Sethi, said the general "appeared to be very clear in his mind that there was no choice and this was the right thing to do."
Meanwhile, the Taliban leaders called for a jihad against anyone who attacked or assisted an attack on Afghanistan.
The threat came as almost all remaining westerns in the Afghanistan capital, Kabul, evacuated ahead of expected US attacks.
There were reports of thousands of Afghan refugees fleeing the country in anticipation of strikes. They were heading toward the border with Pakistan over the weekend.
Yesterday, The Irish Times visited one of the Afghan refugee camps near Pershawar in north-west Pakistan, where conditions are deplorable and where up to 14 people, mostly young children, are dying every week.