Blair reveals 'powerful evidence' against Bin Laden

Tony Blair has seen "absolutely powerful and incontrovertible evidence" linking Osama bin Laden to the US terrorist attacks, he said today.

He warned that the international community must destroy Osama bin Laden's suspected terrorist network in "whatever way we can."

"I think that we can certainly eradicate the bin Laden network, and we should do that," Blair told the BBC Breakfast with Frost programme.

When asked whether he wanted bin Laden "dead or alive," Blair said: "I think in the end the important thing is that we get him and stop him, and that is something that we'll pursue in whatever way we can."

He did not give any further details.

Blair said had seen "absolutely powerful and incontrovertible evidence" linking bin Laden to the 11 September terrorist attacks on the Pentagon and the World Trade Center.

He warned Afghanistan's ruling Taliban that they must give up bin Laden, who is living in Afghanistan as a guest, or "become our enemy."

"If they are not prepared to give up bin Laden, which they could do if they wanted to, then they become an obstacle that we either have to disable or remove to get to bin Laden," Blair told the BBC from Brighton, a seaside resort where the Labor Party's annual political conference begins later Sunday. "If they remain in the way of achieving our objective ... then the Taliban themselves become our enemy."

Blair said the first phase of the international fight against terrorism ? to which he has given Britain's complete backing ? will be taken against bin Laden and his associates.

The second phase, Blair said, will be to "try to shut down this evil of terrorism."

He said nations must take steps to block financing for terrorist groups, prevent terrorists from moving freely across borders and impede their efforts to secure weapons.

In Britain, Blair said he would be introducing new measures in the coming weeks to speed up the nation's extradition procedures, tighten asylum laws and tackle money laundering at the street-level foreign currency exchange booths.

"I hope in this new situation people realize we have got to act," he said, urging all political parties to support the measures. "We cannot have a situation in which it takes years to extradite people. We cannot have a situation in which people come in and abuse our asylum procedures and are then allowed to remain in this country claiming asylum."

"And we cannot have a situation where if we know someone is a suspected terrorist we do not have the legal power to detain them indefinitely until we find a country to deport them to," he added.

Blair also said that he believed Britain's main task was to protect its people even if that meant curtailing some civil liberties. But he promised to proceed carefully, and said that he had not yet reached a decision about the introduction of compulsory identification cards.