ISLAMABAD, Pakistan -- Pakistani forces moved into areas of their country's border with Afghanistan after satellite telephone intercepts indicated al-Qaida members were hiding there, security officials said yesterday . There was no indication al-Qaida leader Osama bin Laden was involved, but two intelligence officials said participants discussed a man called "Shaikh," a code name for bin Laden.
"Some people who were speaking in Arabic have been heard saying Shaikh is in good health," one official said.
The conversations took place last year, but it was not clear when the U.S. shared its information with Pakistan.
Although security officials caution they have no confirmed information on bin Laden's whereabouts, Pakistani rapid reaction forces have been deployed to areas along the border, a mountainous landscape that runs 3,200 miles from the Himalayas in Pakistan's northern territories to the desert of southwestern Baluchistan.
"We are not close to capturing Osama, but all efforts and operations are directed at finding clues about his whereabouts," a senior government official said.