such as Afghanistan or Iran. 2001 Dr Amer Aziz, a Pakistani surgeon who had been traveling to Afghanistan since 1989, to treat wounded mujahideen, acknowledged he examined Osama bin Laden at a temporary clinic he set up at the University of Jalalabad, Nangarhar in November 2001. Aziz refuted the rumors that bin Laden was suffering from kidney disease, or any other chronic conditions. 2004 January 23: Hassan Ghul, a courier of bin Laden is arrested by the Peshmerga in Iraqi Kurdistan after trying to cross the Iranian border. February 27: Iranian news agency IRNA reported that bin Laden had been caught some time earlier in Pakistan. The news was spread by Asheq Hossein, director of the state-sponsored radio station, who mentioned two sources. The first source was a reporter of the Pakistani newspaper "The Nation," Shamim Shahed, who denied ever telling this to Hossein. The second source was "someone closely related to intelligence agencies and Afghan tribal elders." Both the Pentagon and a spokesperson of the Pakistani armed forces have denied the capture of bin Laden. Similar rumours have appeared from time to time since the start of U.S. military operations in Afghanistan but none have been confirmed. October 21: John Lehman, a member of the 9/11 Commission, reported that Osama bin Laden was indeed alive, and that the Pentagon knew exactly where he was. According to Lehman, bin Laden was living in South Waziristan in the Baluchistan Mountains of the Baluchistan region, surviving from donations from outside countries such as the United Arab Emirates and high-ranking ministers inside Saudi Arabia. "There is an American presence in the area, but we can't just send in troops," Lehman said. "If we did, we could have another Vietnam, and the United States cannot afford that right now." 2005 June: Taliban commander Mullah Akhtar Mohammad Osmani tells Pakistani GEO News that bin Laden and Mullah Mohammed Omar are both alive. He does not reveal anything about bin Laden's location, stating "All I can tell you is that Osama bin Laden is alive and well." September 25: Pakistani ISI counterterrorism chief "Ali," whose true identity has not been publicly revealed, tells CBS News' 60 Minutes that he believes that bin Laden is hiding in Afghanistan with a small group of supporters, possibly with as few as 10 men. October 4: The 2005 Kashmir earthquake strikes the northeastern Pakistani area of Pakistan-administered Kashmir. In November,