Daily Press from Victorville, California • 8

4 a a turn if rewNr- -if' P9taiWbY WwWiftgi Daily Press Victorville Calif FROM THE FRONT Saturday August 31 2002 PAGEA8 Troops: McNeill cites weapons seizures arrests HAVING i lilt UAW 'we lj jhi si 'al TTlt -T -y t- WI I i FROM Al 7- by- are doing things each day that make it harder and -harder for the terrorists not only to operate but to sur- vive "McNeill said He listed the discovery of weapons caches Taliban and al-Qaida documents and arrests of' peoplewith information about the terror network continuing to chip away at the al-Qaida orgarii zation "McNeill said He said' there is no compelling fevi-zdence whether bin Laden is- alive or dead: McNeill added that if bin Laden is alive "we -have to find him bet cause we are going to shut' down his terrorist As evidence McNeill cited tbe seizure-: of weapons' and ammunition caches and the 'ongoing arrests of people believed linked rto the terrorist network- McNeill did not ad--dress the issue of ail-Qaida as-' sets outside Afghanistan and beyond his command A 7 When -President Bush first launched the assault on the Taliban and al-Qaida in Afghanistan He vowed to find bin Laden alive -though administration officials haye since insisted the campaign is not targeting single man but bin -entire terror network: 1 7 On Wednesday Afghan: troops accompanied by US: special forces arrested 95 al- -legcd Taliban supporters in a raid on the town of Meivand about 30 miles west of Kan- dahar The raid angered resi- dents who said some of those arrestpd were policemen -working for the central government in the latest US combat mission Operation Mountain Sweep US officers sai troops found several large weapons caches and arrested 10 people during an eight-day sweep in Khost province along the Pakistani However there were no major battles'with al-Qaida or Taliban forces Some offl-cers in the field speculated that the mission was compro- mised by security lapses Mc- Neill said the expectations may have been too' high: McNeill predicted more clashes albeit on a small scaleas coalition troopsy press the hunt for al-Qpida and Taliban fugitives in the rugged Afghan terrain "We won but McNeill insisted He cited the fact that a new transitional government under President Hamid Kafzai had been -selected by an: Afghan grand council or loya jirga in June and had begun to function 7 -Schools have opened crops have been planted homes rebuilt and markets are operating 'he said Some crltjcs say that the return to normalcy has been largely limited to the capital Kabul where nearly 5000 international peacekeepers maintain security in a mission separate from the ongoing US-led wan International aid agencies and human rights organizations have urged expansion of the International Security and Assistance Force or ISAF to other parts of the country' However the proposal has Won little support within the UN Security Council because the United States' Britain France and other major powers do not want to commit additional forces The United States hopes that an Afghan National Army undergoing training by US and French soldiers will be' able' to assume security responsibilities nationwide onecan dispute the degree of security and stability that ISAF has brought to Kabul and the areas around the McNeill said-: If any expansion were to take place he said of the international commu-- would have to' "come forward with their resources get them out of Kabul and out to the hinterlands and be- gin to do these things build roads bridges help with the schools and the din- ics help set up a system where teachers get back into their communities1? McNeill noted the contribution of other countries in Afghanistan singling but dan Tor opening a hospital in Mazate-Sharif Poland for clearing land mines and Italy for repairing the battered runways at Bagram Air Base the coalition headquarters SWIM Vlfil Stiff PfcttefnfMr Tim Porter of Victorville kicks off the Labor Day weekend by kicking a football to his son Cody 9 The two took advantage of a sunny breezy Fkiday afternoon at Vlctof Valley Christian School in Victorville planning to drive Murder: She FROM Al his 46-year-old wife Victoria and their 9-year-old son Key-' naldo Jr were dead by the Jime paramedics arrived Fra- her was not injured About an hour after the crash a breath test showed Fraher'if blbod-alcoholTevel was between 19 and 18 percent The legal limit in Cali- fornia is 08 She had also taken Prozac Valium and Dilantin Deputy District Attorney -Cary Epstein said lie filed second-degree murder-: charges against Fraher be-' cause of her prior drunken driving conviction in 1998 pur opinion she was aware of the hie said i -V 0 vit'f'' 7 had gone tp the alcohol awareness classes and thd MADD panel Epstein showed juror a videos Fraher watched dur- ing a 16-week alcohol aware ness course she was required to take and even bad instruct' tors testify about the classes during the trial i Under an implied malice theory a person can bp found guilty of second-degree murder by doing something hie or ihe knows 'esn result in death Harris said she was suir-prised jurors decided Fraher had implied malice "Implied malice is the blackened heart where you rn TV Iru UiJ wnnni I If ti i 1 I jw- i air tanker drops fire retardant on V- if rf have no regard for human life" she said 7 Fraher who testified dur-lng the trial told jurors she wasn't planning on driving the day she killed the family Slit 'someone called her and' asked fora ride Fraher said she had no memory of the crash and also apologized for killing the She said if she could change places with the' vie- -rims sbe would do so in a heartbeat" Harris said': Scott Vanhorrie can be reached at kottVartfKrne9iiikfreedofflcoffl or ti i 'jf rj )f I AWt'M '-T the wildfire in the hills near Lytle Creek i fml! i -fROMAKr The pilot walked away fromthecnsh Forest Service ground- vyy ed alt aircraft battling the fire J'- for is short time after the crash but fourairtankerS and 1 five helicopters were' back at work by Friday afternoon' Before the helicopter crashed a water tender fire vehicle that hauls water -tt spilled gasoline prompt- iiig a hazaidous materials in- cident in the burned area Forest Service Spokeswoman Ruth Wenstrom said' A It was unclear what caused the fuel spill she said' is unusual for this many things tobe going on during' a fire" Wenstrom said The fire burned in an tin- -populated area -among heavy-timber and steep' terrain as' ashes from the blaze rained' dbwn on West Cajon Valley have any evacua-- tions or any structures threatened at this- McKinley said- McKinley said firefighters' hoped to stop the 1 N0IVTERE5TF0R1 YEAR SALES Check in ALL GOLFERS WANTED Tee Time 7:30 AM NCNW 8TH Annual 7 8:15 AM Golf Tournament IiixiLPRESS -commumm Proceeds to benefit iti v'V JbAr Tilt AuacUM PlM northward progression at Stockton Flat Road a dirt road that cuts through the forest1''' McKinley said impossible to say if the' wildfire will affect tourism in the San Bernardino National Forest this Labor Day weekend lot of times smoke doesn't keep people she said -''-'V i Scott Vanhorn can be reached at ScottVanhorne9linkfreedomcom or It 951-6276'- w- y-High DesertYbufh Center and NCNW Community Projects CoVer and NCNW SATURDAY SEPTEMBER 28TH 4002 ly Come And Join GREEN TREE GOLF COURSE 9 14144 GreenTrea Blvd ceoj PiMiewtoi Victorville CA W'fJSSW' (760) i REGISTRATION: Sign up from 1 to 4 players -Return checks payable to: NCNW-High Desert Section -V 8359 SVIDox Victorville CA 92392 Entry Fee Includes: v' Due by September 21 2002 Goff Green Fee -v' Golf Cart For More Information Call: Golfer Goody Baa 4 760 240-3024 Sandra or 1 760) 95H 01 27 Olivia 7 Early Bird Discount $6500 Entry Fea If received By September 7 2002 Door Prizes Buffet Luncheon and Awards 'I r-f -T 7-4 V- fi riv ti fl Oii ACCESSCiZS tert Down Bear no mm Ati I fce ttl OieAOUtiWCMalSIMM I I I pis tef ton mm mm I Cl ImmtfiiimmilmimM rstIMINfMi i MMCf WDfB iron MW-IW hLMMMMlBLt14 1 NAME ADDRESS -t PHONE 2 NAME ADDRESS' REGISTRATION CARD: 1 NAME ADDRESS PHONE- 0 11 2 NAME ADDRESS- V-- A jL Him hmmA I UW.