US's Gates: Bin Laden assumed alive, but no proof

US Defense Secretary Robert Gates said Friday he assumes al-Qaida leader Osama bin Laden is alive but has no proof one way or the other. US-led forces drove the head of the terror network from his Afghanistan haven in late 2001 by overthrowing the Taliban government. Al-Qaida was blamed for the September 11, 2001 attacks on the United States. Bin Laden is assumed to be living now in a rugged area of neighboring Pakistan, where remnants of the Taliban are living and attacking coalition forces in Afghanistan.