Bin Laden hunters armed with hit-list of caves

American forces were today searching for Osama bin Laden with a hit-list of cave networks in Afghanistan where the terrorist leader may be hiding.

The list of targets has been drawn up from spy planes, satellites, patrols by special forces and information from Russia’s secret service, which is using files dating from the Soviet invasion to aid the American effort.

Giving the list to commanders on the ground is part of the US high command’s decision to give as much autonomy as possible to its forces - resulting in hundreds of al-Qaida and Taliban casualties, military sources claim.

Special forces, including the elite Delta Force and other army units, have been given orders to use their own initiative in finding targets, according to reports.

A senior official said: ‘‘From the reports I’ve seen, they have killed in the hundreds. There have been no deaths on our side.’’

Another official said the special forces’ rules of engagement were an ‘‘unrestricted hunting licence’’ which had thrown al-Qaida and the Taliban into disarray.

The commandos are working by night in small teams to attack enemy forces around Kandahar, the Taliban’s spiritual capital and the centre of its remaining territory.

An official said: ‘‘You’ve got to give these guys freedom to plan direct action because the intelligence is so fragile.

‘‘In conventional warfare, you can rely on older intelligence of enemy positions because the enemy is not as mobile. In direct action, they’re going after people. They have to do their own intelligence and act on it right away. You have to give these guys some slack.’’

Some teams have set up snipers with 50-calibre weapons, which can kill a soldier or destroy an armoured vehicle from almost a mile away.

Others are directing airstrikes on Taliban positions as the bombing campaign concentrates on the area around Kandahar.

The effort is attempting to push bin Laden into an ever-smaller area, making him

easier to hunt down.

A senior officer said the tactic was not specifically designed to flush him out but added: ‘‘We are trying to deliberately push back his perimeter, shrink the area where he can move.

‘‘When we hit the caves, we are trying to kill as many of the enemy as we can while denying bin Laden another place he can hide.’’

Special forces are working with Air Force and Navy pilots to co-ordinate where caves are attacked.

But top brass are not in favour of the cave complexes being stormed by commandos.

Marine General Peter Pace, vice-chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, said: ‘‘Our specialised approach to caves and tunnels is to put 500lb bombs in the entrance.’’