Powell says Osama bin Laden a prime suspect in Tuesday's terrorist attack

By BARRY SCHWEID
AP Diplomatic Writer

WASHINGTON - Secretary of State Colin Powell identified Osama bin Laden as a prime suspect in the terror attacks on the World Trade Center and the Pentagon and was promised by the president of Pakistan information on bin Laden's operations.

When the Bush administration is certain who sent suicidal hijackers on their horrific mission, Powell said Thursday, "We will go after that group, that network and those that have harbored, supported and aided that network, to rip that network up."

And, he added grimly, "When we are through with that network, we will continue with a global assault against terrorism in general."

At a news conference, Powell became the first senior Bush administration official to say openly what many have been saying privately: that bin Laden is suspected of engineering the attacks.

"We are looking at those terrorist organizations who have the kind of capacity that would have been necessary to conduct the kind of attack that we saw," Powell said.

Close to 5,000 people are unaccounted for in the coordinated attacks that knocked down the Twin Towers of New York's World Trade Center and heavily damaged the Pentagon outside Washington. All three buildings were rammed by hijacked jetliners.

Powell noted that the administration was not on the record with the identity of the organization it believed responsible and added: "When you look at the list of candidates, one resides in the region."

Asked whether he was referring to bin Laden, the Saudi-born exile who runs a terrorist network from Afghanistan, Powell replied: "Yes."

After the news conference, Powell telephoned President Pervez Musharraf of Pakistan, a neighbor of Afghanistan, to seek "a specific list of things that we think would be useful for them to work on with us."

After they talked for nearly 10 minutes, State Department spokesman Richard Boucher said they had had a positive conversation and Powell had received a commitment of cooperation.

Deputy Secretary of State Richard Armitage met separately with the Pakistani ambassador to Washington, Maleeha Lodhi, and the South Asian country's intelligence chief, Mahmoud Ahmed.

Armitage gave them a list of what the United States wants from Pakistan, which includes information on terror networks, and specifying a number of areas where Pakistan can be helpful, a senior U.S. official said.

In Islamabad, Musharraf pledged "unstinted cooperation in the fight against terrorism" and said it was difficult to describe his nation's sorrow and grief at a time of tragedy for the American people.

Bin Laden, a one-time Saudi billionaire, has enjoyed sanctuary in neighboring Afghanistan, most of which is controlled by the Taliban, a staunchly Muslim fundamentalist movement.

Pakistan has close ties with Taliban.

Powell's statements indicated the United States could strike Afghanistan if it concludes bin Laden was behind the attacks.

Iraq's role in helping the terror network also is under scrutiny, a U.S. official told The Associated Press.

Powell would not discuss a connection to Baghdad but spoke scornfully of President Saddam Hussein as "one of the leading terrorists on the face of the Earth."

Meanwhile, Armitage scheduled a trip to Moscow on Wednesday for a meeting on Afghanistan and to follow up on a Russian offer to help in the investigation.

The Soviet Union fought a 10-year war with Muslim fundamentalists after invading Afghanistan and setting up a puppet government in 1979. The United States opposed the Soviet invasion and provided weapons to the insurgents through Pakistan.

The Central Asian countries that formed the underbelly of the Soviet Union have emerged as the battleground for an Islamic insurgency aided by Afghanistan that threatens to destabilize the region.

Sen. Richard Lugar, R-Ind., said "this support of Russia against terrorism will be critically important. ... The Russians have a great deal of experience in dealing with terrorism."

Sen. Charles Schumer, D-N.Y., said the support of Russia, China and the Europeans would influence "nations like Iran, Iraq and Syria that aid and abet terrorists." He predicted Armitage's visit "will deal more with economic, diplomatic and other kinds of sanctions."