Taliban leader Mullah Mohammad Omar on Saturday rejected US President George W. Bush's offer of a "second chance" to end US air strikes by handing over Osama bin Laden, the Afghan Islamic Press reported.
According to AFP, the Pakistan-based news agency quoted Omar as saying the hunt for the Saudi dissident, blamed for the September 11 terrorist attacks on New York and Washington, was just a pretext for war against Islam.
Al Jazeera satellite channel quoted earlier in the day Taliban official sources as rejecting Bush’s offer, reiterating that handing over bin Laden is against Islamic teachings and Afghan people’s norms and values.
Mullah Omar has reiterated the same position in an interview with the London-base Al Majalla Arabic magazine – Albawaba.com
© 2001 Al Bawaba (www.albawaba.com)
