Al-Qaida flushed out of Tora Bora - fighters

Opposition forces say they have flushed al-Qaida fighters out of their Tora Bora cave hideouts and forced them to retreat to a mountaintop in eastern Afghanistan.

Afghan troops said dozens of US soldiers, thought to be from special forces units, made lightning raids against key al-Qaida positions overnight and returned to a nearby village before dawn.

Front-line commanders say hundreds of al-Qaida members loyal to Osama bin Laden are now making a stand atop of Enzeri Zur, a peak that overlooks the Milawa and Tora Bora valleys that were both captured on Monday amid fierce fighting.

They said the al-Qaida force, mainly consisting of Arabs and other foreign Muslims, was blocked on three sides and might attempt a retreat along the Kharoti Pass, a high and snowbound track that leads south into neighbouring Pakistan.

"All al-Qaida forces are now gathering on the mountaintop," said one tribal commander, Spin Jabarkhil. "We are trying our best to cut them off from going to Pakistan."

As heavy fighting raged on Tuesday, it was not possible to verify whether all al Qaida troops had been forced to abandon the vast network of caverns and tunnels at Tora Bora.

And, there was no indication that Osama bin Laden, who many believe might be hiding somewhere in or near the Tora Bora area, was with the al-Qaida fighters who were being targeted by US fighter jets.

Shelling and heavy machine-gun fire echoed across the valleys as several B-52s and US surveillance aircraft circled above. There were reports of US helicopters in the area as well.

Across the Afghan border in Pakistan, Pakistani soldiers have been deployed on mountains south of Tora Bora to stop al Qaida fighters from crossing the 15,400ft snowcapped White Mountains.

Meanwhile, in southern Afghanistan, US Marines stepped up their hunt for fleeing Taliban fighters by widening their operations near the city of Kandahar.