Allies deploy more troops in offensive against al-Qaida

Fierce fighting has raged for a fifth day in Afghanistan as the United States deployed hundreds of reinforcements for an offensive aimed at finishing off al-Qaida.

The US-led coalition mounted round-the-clock airstrikes in eastern Afghanistan and some US officers predicted the operation could be wrapped up in days.

The Pentagon says opposition fighters were still putting up stiff resistance after five days of battle, some of it above 10,000 feet in snow-covered mountains.

As fighter jets and bombers hit targets, more attack helicopters were called in to boost the firepower in the largest US-led offensive of the five-month-old war.

The al-Qaida and Taliban forces are armed mainly with mortars, cannons, rocket-propelled grenades, shoulder-fired anti-aircraft missiles and AK-47 automatic rifles.

The commander of the operation, code-named Operation Anaconda, says US-led troops had the upper hand after killing hundreds of fighters - about half the al-Qaida members estimated to be holed up in the hills around the village of Shah-e-Kot.

"We own the dominant terrain in the area," Major General Frank Hagenbeck said. "We truly have the momentum at this point."

General Tommy Franks, the US commander in the war in Afghanistan, says he has increased the number of Americans in the operation by 200 to 300 over the past two days, for a total of roughly 1,100.

"I think the days ahead are going to continue to be dangerous days for our forces," he said in Washington. "But the alternative to taking such a risk is not acceptable."

About 1,000 or so more Afghans have been fighting alongside the Americans, and their commander said they were also bringing in fresh units.