Troop shifts may signal offensive in Afghanistan

Soviet and Afghan government troops were redeployed throughout the country recently, Western diplomats said. The diplomats added that large forces were grouping near rebel infiltration routes from Pakistan. One of the most significant redeployments was the movement of up to 15,000 troops to Kandahar, 80 miles from the Pakistan border. The troop movements could signal that the year's first major offensive against Muslim rebels is imminent, the diplomats said.