US special forces in hunt for bin Laden

American special forces slipped into the Afghan capital to offer ‘‘advice and counsel’’ to triumphant opposition forces, and small numbers of US troops were operating against the Taliban in southern Afghanistan, US Defence Secretary Donald H. Rumsfeld said.

Rumsfeld was careful not to boast about the string of northern alliance military successes in northern Afghanistan against the Taliban, a stern Islamic militia that has ruled most of the country for five years.