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The Battle of Tora Bora was a military engagement that took place in Afghanistan from December 6, 2001 to December 17, 2001, during the opening stages of the War in Afghanistan launched by the United States following the September 11 attacks. The U.S. and its allies believed that Osama bin Laden, the founder of al-Qaeda, was hiding in the mountains at Tora Bora. The allied forces overran Taliban and al-Qaeda positions and heard bin Laden's voice in intercepted radio transmissions several times, but they failed to kill or capture him. Bin Laden escaped to the Federated Tribal Areas of Pakistan, where he would stay for nearly a decade before being located and killed by Navy SEALs of the United States Navy Special Warfare Development Group in May 2011. Tora Bora ((パシュトー語:تورا بورا), ''black cave'') is a cave complex situated in the White Mountains of eastern Afghanistan, near the Khyber Pass. In 2001, the United States and its allies suspected the complex was being used by al-Qaeda and was the location of the commander Osama bin Laden's headquarters. It was variously described as a multi-storied cave complex harnessing hydroelectric power from mountain streams, or a lower-rise dwelling with hotel-like corridors capable of sheltering more than 1,000 people. It was said to contain a large cache of ammunition, such as Stinger missiles left over from the 1980s. Based on a description leaked from government source, national US newspapers carried a cartoon drawn of the complex. Donald Rumsfeld, Secretary of Defense, displayed the cartoon in a discussion of Tora Bora on ''Meet the Press'' in October 2001. In the early 1980s, the United States CIA officers had assisted the mujahideen in extending and shoring up the caves in Operation Cyclone to use for resistance during the Soviet invasion of Afghanistan. The US then supported their effort, and it was not until several years later that the Taliban formed and took control of the country, enforcing fundamentalist rule. Several cave areas likely were used in much earlier periods, as the difficult terrain formed a natural defensive position and had been used by tribal warriors fighting foreign invaders since ancestral times. The British journalist Abdel Bari Atwan, author of (''The Secret History of Al Qaeda'' ) (2006), had visited Bin Laden at Tora Bora in 1996. He wrote that at the time, bin Laden lived in a "humble cave" with basic heating equipment. ==Battle== At the end of 2001, al-Qaeda fighters were still holding out in the mountains of the Tora Bora region. Aerial bombardment ensued, including the use of large bombs known as daisy cutters. On December 3, 2001, a group of 20 U.S. CIA NCS and 5th SFG(A) ODA572 team members, code name Jawbreaker, were inserted by helicopter in Jalalabad, Afghanistan to begin an operation against them. On December 5, 2001, Afghan Northern Alliance fighters wrested control of the low ground below the mountain caves from al-Qaeda fighters. The Jawbreaker team and SF teams equipped with laser markers called in Air Force bombers to take out targets; non-stop heavy air strikes including laser-guided bombs and missiles lasted for 72 hours.〔(The CIA Museum )〕 The al-Qaeda fighters withdrew to higher fortified positions and dug in for the battle. Approximately a week later, 70 special forces operators from the Army Delta Force's A Squadron, Navy DEVGRU, and Air Force STS arrived overland by vehicle to support the bombing campaign with ground forces. The Northern Alliance fighters continued a steady advance through the difficult terrain, backed by air strikes and U.S. and British Special Forces. Facing defeat, al-Qaeda forces negotiated a truce with a local Afghan militia commander to give them time to surrender their weapons. In retrospect, however, some critics believe that the truce was a device to allow important al-Qaeda figures, including Osama bin Laden, to escape.〔Biddle, Stephen D. ''Afghanistan and the Future of Warfare Implications for Army and Defense Policy''. Carlisle, PA: Strategic Studies Institute, U.S. Army War College, 2002.〕 On December 12, 2001, the fighting flared again, possibly initiated by a rear guard buying time for the main force's escape through the White Mountains into the tribal areas of Pakistan. Tribal forces backed by U.S. special operations troops and air support pressed ahead against fortified al-Qaeda positions in caves and bunkers scattered throughout the mountainous region. Twelve British SBS commandos, and one British Royal Signals Specialist from 63 Signals squadron (now known as 18SFUK), accompanied the U.S. special operations forces in attacking the cave complex at Tora Bora. Special Forces Operators of the German KSK took part in the battle as well. They were reportedly responsible for protecting the flanks in the mountains and conducted reconnaissance missions. The U.S. focus increased on the Tora Bora. Local tribal militias, paid and organized by Special Forces and CIA SAD paramilitary, numbering over 2,000 strong, continued to mass for an attack as heavy bombing continued of suspected al-Qaeda positions.〔Krause, Peter John Paul. The Last Good Chance: A Reassessment of U.S. Operations at Tora Bora. ''Security Studies'', Volume 17, p. 644-684, 2008.〕 Matthew Forney of ''Time Magazine'' reported on December 11, 2001 that the allied forces did not find massive bunkers but small outposts and a few minor training camps. He said reporters were allowed to see the "rough bunkers" deep in the mountains were still "remarkable." By December 17, 2001, the last cave complex had been taken and their defenders overrun.〔Cordesman, Anthony H. ''The Lessons of Afghanistan: War Fighting, Intelligence, and Force Transformation''. Washington, D.C.: CSIS Press, 2002.〕 US forces continued searching the area into January, but did not find any signs of bin Laden or the al-Qaeda leadership. According to his book published in 2005, the former CIA officer, Gary Berntsen, led the CIA team (consisting primarily of CIA Paramilitary Officers from Special Activities Division) in Afghanistan tasked with locating bin Laden during the armed conflict.〔Gary Berntsen, ''Jawbreaker'' (2005)〕 In his book ''Jawbreaker'' (2005), Berntsen said that his team had pinpointed bin Laden's location. He wrote that a number of al-Qaeda detainees later confirmed that bin Laden had escaped into Pakistan via an easterly route through snow-covered mountains to the area of Parachinar, Pakistan. He believed that bin Laden could have been captured at the time if the United States Central Command had committed the troops which Berntsen had requested.〔 In a 2005 interview, the former CIA officer Gary Schroen concurred with Berntsen's opinion.〔(【引用サイトリンク】title=Transcript for May 8, 2005 – Guests: Gary Schroen, former senior CIA agent, author; James Carville; and Mary Matalin )〕 Pentagon documents suggest bin Laden escaped at Tora Bora.〔(Mike Mount, "U.S. document suggests bin Laden escaped at Tora Bora" ), CNN, 24 March 2005〕 In an October 2004 opinion article in ''The New York Times'', General Tommy Franks wrote, "We don't know to this day whether Mr. bin Laden was at Tora Bora in December 2001. Some intelligence sources said he was; others indicated he was in Pakistan at the time...Tora Bora was teeming with Taliban and Qaeda operatives ... but Mr. bin Laden was never within our grasp.〔Kerry, John. ''(Tora Bora Revisited: How We Failed to Get Bin Laden and Why It Matters Today )''. Report to Members of the Committee on Foreign Relations, United States Senate, John Kerry, Chairman. One Hundred Eleventh Congress, First Session, November 30th, 2009. Washington: U.S. G.P.O., 2009.〕"Franks retired in 2003, but had commanded U.S. forces in Afghanistan at the time. Many enemy fighters made their escape in the rough terrain and slipped away into the tribal areas of Pakistan to the south and east. Allied forces estimated that around 200 of the al-Qaeda fighters were killed during the battle, along with an unknown number of anti-Taliban tribal fighters. No coalition deaths were reported.〔 In 2009, the United States Senate Committee on Foreign Relations under John Kerry's chairmanship reviewed the failed attempt to capture or kill Osama bin Laden in the mountains of Tora Bora and placed the blame with Secretary of Defense Donald Rumsfeld and General Tommy Franks for not assembling enough U.S. troops to seal the mountainous area during the operation. After studying the matter, the Committee came to a conclusion that Osama bin Laden most likely was present at Tora Bora and his subsequent escape prolonged the war in Afghanistan.〔 抄文引用元・出典: フリー百科事典『 ウィキペディア（Wikipedia）』 ■ウィキペディアで「Battle of Tora Bora」の詳細全文を読む スポンサード リンク
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