US Plans Base on Iraq-Iran Border

In order to curb the alleged flow of weapons to Shia militants to Iraq, the US military is planning to build its first base near Iraq's border with Iran. That base would be located four miles from the border and house at least 200 US soldiers, according to Major General Rick Lynch who was advising the Wall Street Journal. US forces also plan to build fortified checkpoints on major roads leading to Baghdad from Iran. Washington has frequently accused Iran of supplying and training insurgents.

New US Led Offensive in Tora Bora

Hundreds of US and Afgan soldiers have returned to launch a new attack on the last known hideout of the fugitive al-Qaeda leader Osama Bin Laden. They have launched an air and ground assault in the Tora Bora region, near the border with Pakistan. A US military spokeswoman said the mountainous terrain was an ideal environment to conceal militant bases. Tora Bora was the scene of a failed major US operation to capture Osama Bin Laden in 2001.