President Bush is cautioning against judging the success of the U-S-led war on terrorism on the fate of terrorist mastermind Osama bin Laden.
Mr. Bush says people preoccupied with the al-Qaida leader and are elevating him to a status he does not deserve.
While in (the southern U-S state of) Florida to promote White House policies, Mr. Bush also met the families of two U-S soldiers killed earlier this week in fighting in Afghanistan. With tears in his eyes, Mr. Bush told the soldiers' relatives America aches for them. He says the two men are heroes who died for a just and noble cause.
On Monday, Mr. Bush hosts a White House ceremony to mark the half-year point since the September 11th attacks. The event will be attended by relatives of people killed in the attack and ambassadors from more than 100 countries backing the U-S campaign against terrorism.