The US Attorney General has said that more than four planes may have been targeted for hijacking as part of the terrorist attacks last week. John Ashcroft also told a news conference today that there were associates of the hijackers with connections to terrorist organisations that may still be in the United States.
President George W Bush is due to meet the French President Jacques Chirac this evening to discuss options for retaliation. Mr Chirac is set to reiterate his country's commitment to the fight against terrorism.
Members of his entourage have insisted that this does not mean "a blank cheque" to launch retaliation. The British Prime Minister, Tony Blair, is set to visit on Thursday.
The Egyptian President has said that it was too early to talk of such an alliance. Hosni Mubarak has appealed to the United States to think twice before taking military action that would kill innocent civilians.
The United Nations Secretary General, Kofi Annan, said that consensus was all-important. The UN high commissioner for refugees will also travel to Washington today. Ruud Lubbers will plead with United States leaders to recognise the humanitarian consequences of any military action against Afghanistan.
United Nations officials said that there were reliable reports that around half the population of the southern city of Kandahar, or some 100,000 people, had fled fearing US strikes.
Meanwhile, the United Nations General Assembly has been postponed indefinitely due to the strained security services in New York following last week's attacks. The general debate of the 189-nation General Assembly had been scheduled to start on Monday.
