Taliban due to respond to demands

Afghanistan, after a meeting tomorrow of its religious leaders, is to give a formal response to the demand from a high level Pakistani delegation that it surrender the Saudi-born Islamic fundamentalist, Osama bin Laden. Bin Laden is suspected of being behind last week's attacks on the World Trade Centre in New York and the Pentagon in Washington.

In talks with the delegation today, the Taliban government is reported to have refused to hand over bin Laden. A Taliban spokesman said that over three hours of talks had not resolved the key issue of turning over the multi-millionaire. The spokesman said that there was no clear discussion on the topic.

The Pakistani Foreign Minister, Abdul Sattar, has said that time was running out for the Taliban which, he said, must surrender Osama bin Laden.

The US President has said the United States wants Osama bin Laden "dead or alive". George W Bush warned Afghanistan's ruling Taliban militia it would be held accountable for harbouring him.

There is increasing tension on the frontier between Pakistan and Afghanistan over the issue. The ruling Taliban movement in Afghanistan is reported to have moved troops and scud missiles near the border.

As Afghanistan continues a military build up near its frontier with Pakistan, the United States is proceeding with plans to put its forces on a war footing. Mr Bush has already authorised the calling up of more than 35,000 reserve military personnel.

In a further development, a newly formed coalition of radical Islamic parties in Pakistan has warned that the country could be plunged into civil war. The warning comes following the support by the president of Pakistan, Pervez Musharraf, for US action against Afghanistan.

However, hardline religious parties in Pakistan, which make up the coalition, said that they would "consider any US attack on Afghanistan as an attack on Pakistan". They warned it could lead to civil war.

In a statement, the coalition said that if Afghanistan declares jihad against America it would stand by its neighbour.

It was reported earlier that Taliban officials had started to flee Kabul amid growing expectations of American attacks on the city. It is not known whether or not they are escaping Afghanistan's capital under the instructions of their spiritual leader, Mullah Mohammad Omar.

Meanwhile, Iran's supreme leader, Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, today condemned the attacks in the United States but said punishing Afghanistan could cause a human catastrophe and could trigger more problems for America. Khamenei, a staunch opponent of the United States, has the final say on all state matters in Iran, including foreign policy.