US ``85 Percent of Targets Destroyed . . . Complete Control of Airspace``

``Complete control over Afghanistan airspace, American jet fighters are capable of around the clock deployment in Afghan airspace.``

Donald Rumsfeld, US Secretary of Defense and Richard Myers, chairman of Joint Chiefs of Staff announced that the US air attacks on Afghanistan since October 9 has been a complete success and that the Taliban forces have lost all capacity to stop US planes from flying freely in the air space.

``On the first day of the attack, October 7, we destroyed 85 percent of the 31 targets. The attacks on the 7th and the 8th have destroyed the Taliban air defense system.``

All but one of the airports under Taliban control was destroyed, as were most of the radar and surface-to-air missile facilities.

Secretary Rumsfeld stated that US fighters are searching for emerging targets and flying in the daytime. They are, however, having difficulty finding new targets and in some cases ending up not using the loaded bombs.

The US Department of Defense showed satellite photos of the attacks and confirmed their success. Two photographs of an airport in the vicinity of Kandahar show a runway that has been turned into rubble by the attacks. Photos of destroyed airbases in Shindand and the Al-Qaeda terrorist training camps around Kargah.

General Myers boasted that the bombing of the terrorist base camp in Kargah was comparable to bombing the Marine training base in Virginia.

The US disclosed that the attack on the airbase in Shindand, the second largest airbases built by the former Soviet occupation, destroyed six jet fighters. Furthermore, there is a report that two other jet fighters were destroyed in the process of landing.

General Myers added that although the Taliban has Stinger anti-aircraft missiles, they do not have the range to shoot down US fighters.

He confirmed that there were two attacks on the private residence of the Taliban leader, Mullah Mohamed Omar on the 7th and 8th. Omar is reported to have fled on the 7th before the attacks and is in safety.

US forces are expected to target Taliban ground forces next.

Kwon Chae-Hyun confetti@donga.com