| Manhunt For Bin Laden |
FrontPageMagazine.com | Friday, September 19, 2008 The surge to find Osama bin Laden and destroy al Qaeda has begun.
A report on National Public Radio this week stated President George Bush had personally approved a plan to attack al Qaeda in its Pakistani border sanctuaries, from which it organized the 9/11 attack against America. The increased use of missile-armed Predator drones, the deployment of more CIA personnel “from around the world”, and cross-border raids by American forces to decapitate the al Qaeda leadership and locate bin Laden are major parts of the new strategy.
But the first raid into Pakistan by American special forces last September 3, in which about 20 people were killed, encountered a problem. Pakistanis were angry their borders had been violated by the American, helicopter-borne attack. The media-savvy Taliban also inflated this anger, as it usually does after military actions involving Western forces, by claiming innocent civilians were killed. A New York Times story stated, however, that the American commando force spent several hours on the ground, battling al-Qaeda fighters that had been attacking an American base.
In reaction to this anger, Pakistan’s government briefly suspended fuel shipments across Pakistani territory from its port of Karachi to NATO forces in Afghanistan. Pakistan’s Prime Minister, Yousef Giliani, also protested the American raid, saying military action against extremists “inside our territory” is the right of the government alone. The army supported the government’s stand and ordered its field commanders on Monday to oppose any further cross-border incursions.
“The orders are clear,” said Major General Abbas, an army spokesman. “In case it happens again in this form…:open fire.”
But the new Pakistani civilian government and military are just posturing for their home audience. Pakistan has received billions of dollars in American aid since the War on Terror began and obviously would not like the well to dry up. So when Chairman of the US Joint Chiefs of Staff, Admiral Michael Mullen, and Defense Secretary Robert Gates, leave Pakistan this week after security talks, one can expect the raids to continue.
Despite the diplomatic drawback, the American government is pleased with the Pakistani army’s six-week old offensive against the jihadists in Pakistan’s border regions . About 100,000 soldiers of Pakistan’s 600,000 man army are engaged in the conflict. An estimated 700 enemy fighters have been killed against a loss of 40 government soldiers.
The offensive represents Pakistan’s largest and most determined attack on the Taliban and al Qaeda since the American-led invasion of Afghanistan in 2001. Taliban fighters are experiencing serious difficulties standing up to the heavy weaponry of a disciplined, modern army and are slowly retreating. Government forces killed dozens of jihadists last Thursday in the Bajuar tribal agency, an al Qaeda and Taliban stronghold, and captured 50 yesterday, of which half were foreign fighters. Heavy government attacks also forced the Taliban to announce yesterday it was leaving the Swat Valley, another extremist bastion. A year ago, the Taliban leader there, Maulana Fazlullah, who negotiated the retreat, had declared jihad against the government for the destruction of the Red Mosque.
Due to such successes, the Pakistani army does not believe American cross-border raids are necessary.
But the army’s progress is slow. One reason is the rugged, mountainous terrain of the battlefield. Another is that the Taliban and al Qaeda, due to former Pakistani president Pervez Musharraf’s lukewarm attitude in confronting them, have had seven, mostly uninterrupted years to dig in and form supportive alliances with the local tribes. Like the war in Iraq, it will probably take several years for the Pakistani government to bring the border areas under its control.
However, with the September 3 cross-border attack, the American military has shown its long and frustrating wait is over and will now attack al Qaeda’s border sanctuaries and go after bin Laden. Up until now, American intelligence had to inform the Pakistanis about al Qaeda targets and allow the Pakistanis to conduct the raids themselves. This often ended in frustrating and disappointing results.
The problem was the enemy had often been tipped off about the coming attack by Islamist sympathizers in the Pakistani military or intelligence agency. This had also happened in Vietnam when South Vietnamese would inform communist forces about upcoming military operations. Facing the same intelligence sabotage, American forces are almost forced to act unilaterally against al Qaeda and Taliban targets.
The same security reasons also apply concerning the Predator flights. The Predators, which fire 100 pound Hellfire missiles, are regarded as a major weapon for disabling al Qaeda in Pakistan’s border areas, as they were credited with “crippling the insurgency in Iraq.” So there have been five Predator attacks in ten days in Pakistan’s border region.
But the main reason why cross-border ground and air attacks will continue is the unsettling situation in Afghanistan. While the Afghan war is still a low-intensity conflict, 113 American soldiers have been killed there so far this year. Military commanders have also noticed an increased sophistication in enemy attacks as well as in number. This is owed to the Taliban having had years to develop “mature” havens in Pakistan to train and organize their attacks.
Military strategists have long known the situation in Afghanistan is the consequence of what is happening in Pakistan. President Bush had this in mind when, for the first time, he included Pakistan with Afghanistan and Iraq as a “major ‘war on terror’ battleground” and authorized the unilateral raids. But Bush’s authorization is also fitting since the Pakistani border regions are where the War on Terror started and also where he now wants bin Laden to meet his end.
Stephen Brown is a contributing editor at Frontpagemag.com. He has a graduate degree in Russian and Eastern European history. Email him at alsolzh@hotmail.com.
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| The carnage at the Marriott Hotel in Islamabad. |
The bombing at the Marriott hotel in Pakistan's capital of Islamabad is shaping up to be one of the country's most deadly attacks. The complex attack is the latest in a series of al Qaeda attacks that have occurred in the Middle East and South Asia.
More than 70 people have been reported killed and 257 have been reported wounded so far in what the Pakistani press has dubbed "Pakistan’s 9/11." The death toll is expected to rise as more people are believed to have been trapped in the hotel. Dozens of Westerners have been wounded in the attack, and there are unconfirmed reports one or more Westerners have been killed.
The massive blast left a crater 25 foot deep by 20 feet wide. The blast detonated a natural gas line in the hotel, which then set several floors of the hotel ablaze. Several floors of the hotel are still on fire. The hotel is essentially destroyed, there are fears the structure will collapse due to fire and blast damage. Buildings blocks away were heavily damaged.
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| The blast crater in front of the Marriott Hotel in Islamabad. Photo from CBS News. |
The attack was well planned and executed. The strike occurred in a so-called secure zone in Islamabad. Two vehicles were involved in the attack, according to Geo TV. A small vehicle breached the outer security barrier. A large dump truck packed with more than one ton of explosives then moved through the breach and detonated at the front of the hotel.
The Taliban may have been gunning for a high value target. It was believed President Asif Ali Zardari would be visiting the hotel, but he was reportedly nearby when the blast occurred. Reports indicate teams from the US Central Intelligence Agency as well as US Marines were in the hotel at the time of the attack. Western diplomats, tourists, and businessmen favor the five-star hotel. The attack began in the evening after Muslims broke fast for Ramadan, ensuring the restaurants were filled.
The Marriott attack is one of the largest suicide strikes inside Pakistan over the past year, and the second large-scale bombing in over a month. More than seventy Pakistanis were killed and more than 100 were wounded after two suicide bombers detonated their vests nearly simultaneously outside the gates of the Wah military installation on Aug. 21. The Wah facility hosts elements of Pakistan’s nuclear weapons program.
The largest attack in Pakistani history occurred in Karachi on Oct. 18, 2007. Suicide bombers killed more than 130 Pakistanis and wounded more than 500 at a rally held to celebrate the return of Benazir Bhutto, the leader of the Pakistani People's Party. A gunman and suicide bomber killed Benazir Bhutto as she campaigned in the military garrison city of Rawalpindi just two months later.
A potent enemy
The attack on the Islamabad Marriott is the latest in series of complex strikes against hardened locations or military formations in the Middle East and South Asia over the last five years by al Qaeda, the Taliban, and their allies. These attacks require logistical and financial support, training, coordination, intelligence gathering, and access to weapons and explosives.
Al Qaeda and allied movements have conducted multiple complex attacks in Saudi Arabia, Iraq, Jordan, Yemen, Afghanistan, and Pakistan. The first strike occurred in Saudi Arabia, before al Qaeda in Iraq even began its insurgency and terror campaign.
Al Qaeda has reformed Brigade 055, the infamous military arm of the terror group made up of Arab recruits, US military and intelligence sources told The Long War Journal in July. The unit is thought to be commanded by Shaikh Khalid Habib al Shami.
Brigade 055 fought alongside the Taliban against the Northern Alliance and was decimated during the US invasion of Afghanistan. Several other Arab brigades have been formed, some consisting of former members of Saddam Hussein’s Republican Guards, an intelligence official told The Long War Journal. These units have helped to increase the Taliban's sophistication in military operations in Afghanistan and Pakistan.
A look at some of the more high-profile complex attacks throughout the Middle East and South Asia over the past five years:
Riyadh, Saudi Arabia
May 12, 2003
Four vehicles, three carrying explosives and two carrying the assault teams breached the gates of three compounds housing Westerners in the capital city. The assault teams breached the gates and the car bombs were driven into the compounds. Thirty-four people, including eight Americans, were killed and more than 160 were wounded.
The US Consulate in Jeddah, Saudi Arabia
December 6, 2004
Al Qaeda hits the front gate of the US Consulate in Jeddah. The gate is breached and an assault force stormed the compound. The terrorist took hostages. Six local staff members, a security guard, and three Saudi soldiers were killed.
Camp Gannon, Husaybah, Iraq
April 13, 2005
Al Qaeda in Iraq attempted to breach the walls of a US military outpost on the Syrian border. Three trucks packed with explosives attempted to punch a hole in the outer wall. Al Qaeda then launched an infantry assault. US Marines repelled the attack, inflicting heavy casualties on al Qaeda forces.
Abu Ghraib Military Prison, Iraq
April 2, 2005
Al Qaeda in Iraq used car bombs in an attempt to breach the wall of a military prison in Abu Ghraib just west of Baghdad. The bombers were followed up by an infantry assault. US Marines repelled the assault, inflicting heavy casualties on the attackers.
Baghdad, Iraq
June 24, 2005
More than 100 al Qaeda fighters launched an attack on an Iraqi police station in Baghdad. Like the attacks in Abu Ghraib and Husaybah, the attackers used suicide car and truck bombs and followed up with an infantry assault. The Iraqi Police held their ground and defeated the attack.
The Palestine Hotel, Baghdad, Iraq
October 25, 2005
Al Qaeda launched several car and truck bombs in an attempt to breach the wall of the Palestine Hotel in Baghdad. One truck penetrated the perimeter but the driver detonated after it stalled on the road.
Amman, Jordan
November 10, 2005
Three suicide bombing teams penetrated security and struck nearly simultaneously at the Grand Hyatt, the Radisson SAS and the Days Inn in Amman. The attacks occurred during weddings and other events. Fifty-six civilians were killed and 97 were wounded.
Abqaiq Oil Refinery Facility, Saudi Arabia
February 25, 2006
Al Qaeda operatives in two cars made to look like ARAMCO vehicles got past the first ring of security but were destroyed after being detected and attacked by facility security guards.
Masila oil field, Hadhramout province, Yemen
September 15, 2006
Two teams of car bombers dressed in military-styled uniforms attempted to destroy two oil installations at the Masila oil field. Security guards repelled the attacks; one came close to destroying a natural gas line and control room.
Tarmiyah, Iraq
February 20, 2007
Three al Qaeda suicide car and truck bombs attempt to breach the perimeter of a combat outpost in Tarmiyah. The bombs were followed up by a conventional assault on the compound. The ground assault was repelled but one of the car bombs exploded near the inner wall. This caused a fuel explosion and the collapse of a tower, killing two US soldiers.
South Waziristan agency, Pakistan
August 31, 2007
Taliban fighters under the command of Baitullah Mehsud captured a Pakistani regular Army company without firing a shot. The Taliban fighters surrounded the convoy as it moved through the tribal agency, and the Army commander surrendered without firing a shot. The soldiers were exchanged for Taliban prisoners.
South Waziristan agency, Pakistan
January 2008
A large Taliban force estimated at 400 fighters overran a fort manned by the Frontier Corps in the town of Sararogha. The fort was taken after the Taliban breached an outer wall with a truck bomb. Sixteen Frontier Corps paramilitaries were killed and 24 were captured. A large force of Taliban fighters took control of the Saklatoi Fort the next day without firing a shot and conducted several complex attacks on the Lahda Fort but failed to take it.
Spera district, Khost province, Afghanistan
July 1, 2008
A large Taliban, al Qaeda, and Haqqani Network force launched a complex military attack against a combat outpost in eastern Afghanistan. The Taliban coordinated indirect fire to maneuver its infantry. US and Afghan forces defeated the attack, killing 33 Taliban fighters.
Wanat, Nuristan, Afghanistan
July 13, 2008
A joint Taliban, Lashkar-e-Taiba, and al Qaeda force launched a complex military attack against a newly-built combat outpost in eastern Afghanistan. The enemy force came close to overrunning the outpost. Nine US soldiers were killed in the assault.
US Embassy, Sana'a, Yemen
September 17, 2008
The Yemeni Islamic Brigades, an al Qaeda affiliate, launched a complex attack against the US Embassy in Sana'a. A car bomb detonated outside the main gate, and then assault teams opened fire on the Yemeni security forces outside the gates. Six terrorists, six Yemeni security guards, and four civilians were killed in the fighting.
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