One hundred eleven years of editorialfreedom
ti
NEWS: 76-DAILY
CLASSIFIED: 764-0557
wwwmichigandaly.com
Tuesday
November 13, 2001
I
eq A
'Y Y
I
Taliban forces abandon Afghan
Northern alliance celebrates return to Kabul a
capital
KABUL, Afghanistan (AP) - Taliban military
forces deserted the capital of Kabul today, after a
series of stunning military victories by opposition
forces. At dawn, residents shouted congratulations
to one another and northern alliance soldiers, honk-
ing car horns and ringing bicycle bells.
Northern alliance forces began moving into the
capital in pickup trucks loaded with soldiers armed
with rifles and rocket launchers. They met no resis-
tance as they gained control of military barracks
that only three hours before had been in Taliban
hands.
The northern alliance soldiers worked their way
through neighborhoods, doing house to house
searches looking for any remaining Taliban soldiers
and their Arab supporters.
Associated Press reporters heard sporadic small
arms fire coming from the hills overlooking the city
- apparently the work of northern alliance soldiers
celebrating their return to the capital.
Residents moved cautiously. They rode bicycles,
stopping to ask each other, "Where are the Tal-
iban?"
As they retreated, the Taliban took eight foreign
aid workers, including two Americans, accused of
spreading Christianity in Muslim Afghanistan, wit-
nesses told AP.
"I saw them with my own eyes. They put them in
the truck and then left at midnight. They said they
are going to Kandahar," said Ajmal Mir, a guard at
the abandoned detention center in the heart of the
city where the eight had been held.
From the rooftop of the Intercontinental Hotel on
a hill overlooking Kabul columns of Taliban vehi-
cles could be seen heading south beginning last
night. The exodus continued after sun rise.
"I think it is great news. It means the initial phase
of the campaign is going well," Army Secretary
Thomas White said.
White said he thought "a combination of well-tar-
geted air power along with movement on the ground
by northern alliance forces" prompted the Taliban to
flee Kabul. He spoke on CNN's "Larry King Live."
Weeks of bombing by the United States weakened
the Taliban sufficiently for the northern alliance to
move across enemy lines. President Bush launched
the air campaign on Oct. 7 after the Taliban refused
to hand over bin Laden, prime suspect in the Sept.
11 terrorist attacks in the United States.
The Taliban forces, which took control of Kabul
in 1996, were heading south toward the town of
Maidan Shahr, about 25 miles south of Kabul. As
they had in the north of the country, the Islamic
militia appeared to have decided to surrender terri-
tory rather than fight. By moving south, the fighters
seemed ready to fall back toward the last major Tal-
iban stronghold of Kandahar.
The area around the Taliban spiritual capital is
rugged, mountainous terrain littered with caves that
are believed to provide hideouts for Osama bin
Laden and his al-Qaida terrorist organization.
The opposition had broken through Taliban front
lines yesterday and taken the hills above Kabul after
a string of victories that started Friday with the tak-
ing of Mazar-e-Sharif.
Before abandoning the capital, the Islamic militia
circled the mile-high city with tanks to defend
against an all-out assault and had vowed to defend
the city.
"We have decided to defend Kabul," the Taliban
ambassador to neighboring Pakistan, Abdul Salam
Zaeef, said in Islamabad. "It is true that the opposi-
tion breached our front line near Kabul, but we have
erected another one and are strengthening our posi-
See WAR, Page 7
AP PHOIO
Two Northern Alliance fighters hold guns in Kabul, Afghanistan, after they moved
into the capital today. Talban military forces deserted Kabul at dawn today after a
series of stunning military victories by opposition forces over the past four days.
I
News sties
up fears of
terrorism
By Rachel Green
Daily Staff Reporter
After hearing the news that an Ameri-
can Airlines jet had crashed in New
York yesterday, Nursing sophomore
Carrie Marshall ran home to call her
family and make sure her father and her
step-father, who are both pilots for
American Airlines, were safe.
"I knew my dad was flying, so I ran
home and made sure they were OK,"
she said. "I just hope it's not terrorism.
All I could think was, 'Oh God, not
again."'
Marshall was unable to reach her
father, who was in flight, but said she
talked to her step-father, who assured
her that he did not think the crash had
the markings of a terrorist attack.
With a scheduled trip to Texas
planned for winter break, Marshall said
she still intends to fly and hopes yester-
day's apparent accident will lead to
tightened air safety and security.
Marshall, like most Americans living
in the post-Sept. 11 world, has begun to
fear the worst upon hearing of any dra-
matic disruption to life as usual.
Other students crowded around a tele-
vision monitor in the basement of the
Michigan Union watching the news
reports expressed their sympathies for
the residents of New York but said they
were not worried about flying in the
See REACTION, Page 7
Crash was
likely an
accident
NEW YORK (AP) - A jetliner en route to the Dominican
Republic broke apart minutes after takeoff and crashed in a
waterfront neighborhood yesterday, engulfing homes in flames
and sowing initial fears of a new terrorist atrocity-At least 265
people were killed, police said.
"Everything points to an accident;' said Marion Blakey,
chairwoman of the National Transportation Safety Board.
"The communications from the cockpit were normal up until
the last few seconds before the crash."
If there was an explosion on the plane - and many wit-
nesses heard one - it was probably caused by a mechanical
failure, investigators said.
"I just thought, 'Oh, no, not again,"' said Milena Owens,
who was putting up Thanksgiving decorations when she heard
an explosion.
American Airlines said 260 people were aboard the jetliner
and authorities said none survived. Deputy Police Commis-
sioner Joseph Dunne said 265 bodies had been recovered, but
didn't provide details on how many people might have died on
the ground. He said six to nine people in the neighborhood
were missing.
As night fell, several hundred people working under the
glare of lights formed bucket brigades and separated debris
into gruesome piles of luggage, plane parts and human
remains. Police said the bodies were being recovered "relative-
ly intact" - including a man found clutching a baby.
American Airlines Flight 587, a European-made Airbus
A300, left Kennedy Airport at 9:14 a.m., 74 minutes late
because of security checks put in place after the World Trade
Center attack, according to American Airlines chairman Don
See CRASH, Page 7
AP PHOTOS
TOP: The American Airlines Airbus A300 that crashed yesterday morning Is seen departing from John F. Kennedy International Airport in this July
1998 file photo. ABOVE: A New York City firefighter walks past the remains of a car and house that were destroyed in a fire caused by the crash of
American Airlines Flight'587 yesterday in the Queens borough of New York. The jetliner en route to the Dominican Republic crashed minutes after
takeoff, landing in the waterfront neighborhood, engulfing homes in flames.
Student fee increase
up for vote tomorrow
MSAetections
Fa8l 2001
Voting begins at midnight
tonight. Cast your ballot at
vote. www. umich. edu
Election Board votes to
eject 2 Blue candidates
By Kara Wenzel
Daily Staff Reporter
By Kara Wenzel
Daily StaffReporter
The Michigan Student Assembly wants to
increase funding for student groups, and they
will be asking students to help foot the bill.
A ballot initiative asking for a $1 increase in
the student government fee will be on the ballot
during the election, which begins tonight at
midnight and will run through Thursday night.
Every student at the University is assessed a
$5.69 fee as a part of their tuition each semes-
ter. If the ballot initiative passes, it will increase
that fee to $6.69.
Since 1998 the number of student groups on
campus has risen to more than 1,000, said
MSA President Nolan, and the amount of
money groups have asked for has tripled, but
requested was six times the amount of money,
we have to allocate. Student group funding is
really tight,'" Nolan said. "We're asking for a
buck increase. What you get for that is $73,000
a year or more for funding. That's a lot of really
cool stuff on campus that could be happening
but isn't because of funding problems."
Nolan said he does not think the fee increase
is significant when comparing the University's
fee to other Big Ten Universities. Michigan
State University' has a $13 student fee and the
University of Wisconsin at Madison currently
charges a $139 fee for student government.
The MSA code requires that $1 of the fee
automatically go to child care services. Of the
remaining $4.69, more than 50 percent is allo-
cated to two committees, Budget Priorities and
Community Service. These groups, composed
rest of the money goes into a committee discre-
tionary fund and is allocated to projects and
groups as representatives see fit,
The assembly code also requires funding the
Ann Arbor Tenants Union with about $20,000
per year. The tenants union provides students
who live off campus with counseling and legal
assistance.
The MSA budget also funds expenses such
as office supplies, equipment rental, staff
salaries, an annual conference and advertising.
Nolan said MSA is required to keep a mone-
tary reserve in case of emergency shortages
because the allocations are made before the
final budget is known.
Student organizations, including 'club sports
teams, glee clubs and fraternities or sororities
can petition BPC or CSC for funds by complet-
The Michigan Student Assembly Election
Board last night disqualified two members of
the Blue Party from this week's MSA elec-
tion and disciplined 10 other party candidates
amid allegations of improper entry into Uni-
versity buildings to post campaign flyers.
While the Election Board would not com-
ment on why they removed the two candi-
dates and assigned demerit points to the
others, The Michigan Daily obtained a copy
of a complaint report that details accusations
of multiple violations of the MSA Election
Code by Blue Party members.
Election Board Director Elizabeth Ander-
son said Jonathan Clifton and Scott Meves,
two of the Blue Party's MSA representative
candidates, were given five demerit points,
ing the decision.
The complaint also contained a copy of a
Department of Public Safety report describ-
ing incidents of alleged trespassing by Blue
Party members who were taping campaign
posters to the walls of the Modern Languages
Building and the David M. Dennison Build-
ing during the early mornings of Nov. 6 and
7.
MSA President Matt Nolan, a Blue Party
member, said that it has long been "common
practice" for candidates to put up posters in
the middle of the night.
"There's no rule in the Election Code that
says you cannot be in the buildings past a
certain time," Nolan said.
In the DPS report, Blue Party members
said they were able to enter the buildings
through unlocked doors.
The complaint centers around a section of the