Military

DATE=10/15/01

TYPE=CORRESPONDENT REPORT

NUMBER=2-281818

TITLE=PAKISTAN/STRIKE (L-ONLY)

BYLINE=JON TKACH

DATELINE= ISLAMABAD

CONTENT=

VOICED AT:

INTRO: U-S warplanes continued bombarding sites across

Afghanistan in daylight Monday, in a second week

of its bid to flush out suspected terrorist Osama bin

Laden and his supporters. Pakistan is vital to the

effort, but anti-American protests are mounting. V-O-A's Jon Tkach reports from Islamabad that U-S Secretary of State Colin Powell is visiting the Pakistani capital in a bid to shore up support.

TEXT: Most businesses in the Pakistani border cities of Quetta and Peshawar were shuttered Monday -- heeding a national strike call by Islamic religious leaders, angry over their government's support for the U-S led bombing campaign.

Other cities have also been affected, including the

southern city of Jacobabad, where anti-American

protesters clashed with police Sunday, leaving one

person dead and more than 20 others injured.

Hundreds of people are reported to still be gathered

near the town, angry over reports that U-S personnel

are using the city's airport.

Witnesses described Monday's attacks on targets in

Afghanistan as the strongest of the campaign.

Afghanistan's ruling Taleban says more than 300

civilians have been killed. There has been no independent confirmation of the claims, though a group of foreign journalists in

Afghanistan reported seeing major damage on a village

the Taleban says was flattened by the bombing

campaign.

Pakistan's newspapers have been widely reporting the

unconfirmed casualty claims and religious leaders

have been using them to fuel anti-American sentiment.

Foreign Ministry spokesman Riaz Mohammed Khan says

that is one of the reasons Pakistan hopes the strikes

will end soon.

/// KHAN ACT ///

Prolongation of the military operations will be a

source of concern to us because with the prolongation

of the campaign you can always expect mishaps in which

innocent lives will be lost.

/// END ACT ///

Pakistan has repeatedly stressed that it regrets any

innocent loss of life and Mr. Khan says Pakistani

leaders expect to receive a progress report on the

campaign when they meet with Secretary Powell.

Mr. Powell is also expected to address Pakistani

concerns over the possible makeup of a future Afghan

government in case the Taleban falls.

/// REST OPT ///

He is also aiming to quell tensions between India and Pakistan over Kashmir, the disputed Himalayan region that both countries claim. Pakistan has given diplomatic support to militants in the region fighting Indian rule and recent attacks there have caused

added strain between the two sides.

Mr. Powell is planning to visit New Delhi later this

week.

NEB/JON/FC