CHAMAN, Pakistan, January 31 (IslamOnline & News Agencies) - Hand-written leaflets urging attacks against U.S. troops and their local supporters have been distributed in this Pakistani town on the borders with Afghanistan, witnesses said Friday, January 31.

"God willing, guerrilla attacks will soon be launched on Americans and their lackeys," said one of the photocopied Pashtu-language pamphlets obtained by Agence France-Presse (AFP).

Witnesses saw “bearded” men handing out the leaflets in mosques around Chaman on Wednesday and Thursday, AFP said.

"The time is very critical, so all Muslims should forge unity and extend their support to us by joining the jihad (holy war)," the pamphlets urged.

Addressed to "our Pashtun brothers" and signed by a group calling itself 'Al-Qaeda-Al-Jahad', they made direct threats against Afghans providing the U.S. troops with intelligence on remnant al-Qaeda and Taliban fighters.

"We warn the lackeys of Americans that they should give up their support and stop cruelties on young Taliban, who were arrested to please the lackeys' (American) fathers," the pamphlets said.

"We know everything about who is behind these arrests and they will soon meet their fate," it threatened.

The letters made apparent reference to U.S. military preparations for a war against Iraq, and recalled the defeat of Soviet troops in the 1979-1989 war to oust them from Afghanistan.

"Today America is making preparations to attack Muslims and dreams of capturing the whole world. But they have forgotten the fate of Red Russians.

"With the grace of God, we have waged jihad, and those mujahedin (Islamic fighters) who have taken part in jihad against Russians are leading us."

Chaman lies across the border from Spin Boldak, near the sight of fierce fighting earlier in the week between U.S. special forces and some 80 Afghan fighters.

The fighters had been holed up in a network of caves in the Adi Ghar mountains, some 20 kilometers north of Spin Boldak.

The identities of the fighters who fought pitched battles with American troops around Adi Ghar is unclear.

U.S. military spokesman Colonel Roger King said there were indications they were aligned with ex-Afghan premier Gulbuddin Hekmatyar, who has issued repeated calls for jihad against U.S. troops he calls "occupiers."

Local Afghan officials called the fighters ex-Taliban and al-Qaeda members.

The caves appeared to be an operations and supply hub, U.S. military spokesmen said.