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January 24, 2006
Is There A New Al-Qaeda Strategy Behind Bin-Laden's Recent Message?
Topics: Terrorism
[Image - Pakistani militia search for militants. Photo: Reuters (They must not be looking very hard)]
Syed Saleem Shahzad writes in ADNKI - Osama bin Laden's reappearance after a one-year absence marks a new strategy that al-Qaeda has been honing for two years or more.
According to the AKNDI report, we could be seeing the beginings of an 'open' approach from Al-Qaeda that would imply a worldwide offensive, not with sporadic attacks carried out by its own members, but as an organisation which could call for mass insurgencies and organised guerilla warfare.
Well-placed intelligence sources say that for the core of al-Qaeda 2005 was dedicated to a major overhaul and focused on consolidating its network for future operations. During the second half of the year al-Qaeda achieved many of its objectives, in particular the establishment of various secure operational bases, something that had been wiped out in the US bombings of the hostile Tora Bora region in Afghanistan.The al-Qaeda leadership has secured a series of safe havens in Khost-North Waziristan, South Waziristan, Kunar-Chitral, Kunar-Bajur; all remote mountainous tribal areas on the Afghan-Pakistan border where 'enemy' intelligence services or military have little hope of penetrating.
Of these, South and North Waziristan are considered the most significant as the government of Pakistan has lost any semblance of control in a traditionally lawless zone. Pakistani security operatives are unable to move far beyond South Waziristan's heaquarters of Wana and North Waziristan's headquarter of Miramshah.
Pro-Taliban militants have almost complete control and Waziristan is an information 'black hole'. Local journalists are not allowed to file stories without prior approval by local militants and no journalists from Pakistan's mainstream media are allowed to enter the area.
Apparently, The tribal areas are off limits to foreign journalists, but Pakistani officials and former residents say the militants - who call themselves Taliban - dispense their own justice, run their own jails, rob banks, shell government compounds and attack convoys at will. They recruit men from local tribes and have gained a hold over the population through a mix of fear and religion.
Sometimes Pakistani President General Pervez Musharraf reminds me of Baghdad Bob, especially when he says, "There is no Osama Bin Laden in Pakistan"! (Remember 2003?)
And while we're on the subject of Pakistan, could there possibly have been an Iran-related motive for the U.S. attack on that village in Pakistan?
Posted by Richard at January 24, 2006 7:57 AM
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