The Pentagon says U.S. forces in eastern Afghanistan have killed 16 people in an attack on a convoy believed to be carrying al-Qaida terrorists trying to flee a battle zone near the Pakistan border. 

A Pentagon spokesman says U.S. Army Special Forces conducted the attack in the same area where more than 2,000 U.S. and coalition troops battled al-Qaida fighters for much of the past two weeks. 

General John Rosa said weapons and ordnance were seized in the raid, and said no U.S. forces were hurt in the operation. 

Meanwhile, the commander of American forces in Afghanistan says the main coalition force conducting Operation Anaconda will be withdrawn Monday. Army General Tommy Franks called the offensive, which was the largest coalition attack in the five-month war on terrorism, an absolute success. 

But the general says the overall battle in Afghanistan is not yet over, and warned there may be a need for further operations if enemy fighters begin to regroup. 

Sustained fighting in Paktia province ended several days ago. However, U.S., Canadian and Afghan coalition forces continue to search caves and tunnels in the mountainous Shah-e-Kot region, looking for pockets of resistance. 

An American military spokesman at the Bagram base, Captain Steven O'Connor, says the troops have searched 30 caves so far, finding many enemy weapons and supplies, along with sensitive information. 

Officials say this month's offensive killed hundreds of al-Qaida and Taleban members, although few bodies have been found. 

U.S. warplanes carried out intensive bombing raids during the operation, and a U.S. spokesman said bodies blown apart by bombs could remain unidentified. U.S. Secretary of Defense Donald Rumsfeld said last week that enemy forces buried their dead quickly, making it difficult to find bodies. 

Afghan militia leaders say they suspect many Taleban and al-Qaida fighters fled to Pakistan during the recent fighting. 

Some information for this report provided by AP and Reuters.

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