Hunt for bin Laden

WASHINGTON, Dec. 9 (UPI) -- The capture or death of al-Qaida leader Osama bin Laden is important in the fight against the militant organization, a U.S. military commander said.

U.S. Army Gen. Stanley McChrystal, appearing Tuesday before the Senate Armed Services Committee said the new U.S. effort in Afghanistan wasn't aimed directly at bin Laden but he remains important because "he is an iconic figure at this point whose survival emboldens al-Qaida as a franchise organization across the world."

Bin Laden has been the target of U.S. searches since before the Sept. 11, 2001, attacks on New York and Washington, which he admitted to planning. He has been linked to attacks as far back as 1992. When the Taliban gave him a haven in Afghanistan, the United States attacked that country in 2001 -- a war that McChrystal now commands -- but the militant leader has remained elusive.

There have been contradicting messages about bin Laden by U.S. leaders recently. U.S. Secretary of Defense Robert Gates said there hasn't been "strong intelligence" about bin Laden's location for years but White House national security adviser Jim Jones said bin Laden is known to cross the border of Afghanistan and Pakistan. McChrystal suggested bin Laden is in Pakistan.

McChrystal testified about U.S. President Barack Obama's plan -- drawn up on recommendations from McChrystal -- to increase the U.S. military presence in Afghanistan by 30,000 troops. The first additional U.S. forces are to be deployed to Afghanistan this month. The United States will eventually have more than 100,000 personnel in the theater.