U.S. general says military still aims to catch bin Laden alive

McChrystal, briefing reporters in Washington via teleconference from Afghanistan, said if bin Laden enters Afghanistan, the military would certainly try to "capture him alive."

The comment contradicts Attorney General Eric Holder's Tuesday comment that bin Laden will never appear in a U.S. courtroom because he won't be brought in alive.

"The reality is that we will be reading Miranda rights to the corpse of Osama bin Laden. He will never appear in an American courtroom," Holder said during a House appropriations subcommittee hearing.

"He will be killed by us or he will be killed by his own people, so he's not captured by us," said Holder.

McChrystal also said Wednesday that efforts to retake Taliban strong-hold Kandahar is already underway.

NATO and Afghan armies have recently launched a major operation in Afghanistan's Helmand province, adjacent to Kandahar. David Petraeus, commander of U.S. Central Command, said Tuesday the offensive is the beginning of a larger campaign which will "unfold over the next 18 months", Kazinform refers to Xinhuanet.

See www.xinhuanet.com