Pakistan killing weakens Al Qaeda, inflames tribes

[acmavm]

http://www.csmonitor.com/2004/0621/p07s02-wosc.html

Naik Mohammad, a top Al Qaeda supporter in the tribal regions, was killed in a rocket attack last week.

By Owais Tohid | Correspondent of The Christian Science


<snip>
PESHAWAR, PAKISTAN – For many tribesmen, he was like David fighting the Goliath of Pakistani and US forces, and his "martyrdom" Thursday ensures him a place in the myths and legends of Pashtun culture.

Naik Mohammad, a top Al Qaeda supporter, led the armed resistance against Pakistan's security forces and protected hundreds of Arab, Chechen, and Uzbek guerrillas hiding in the tribal region of South Waziristan.

<snip>
"This is a big success in our ongoing war against terrorism," said military spokesman, Maj. Gen. Shaukat Sultan. In Kabul, Lt. Col. Tucker Mansager of the US coalition forces said, "It is our hope that his death will help disorganize the ongoing fight by foreign terrorists in the tribal areas of Pakistan and allow the Pakistan military to better destroy the terrorists that remain in the area."

<snip>

Rumors are circulating among tribesmen that an unmanned US spy plane was in the vicinity prior to the attack and may have fired the deadly shot. Tribal elders say Mohammad's supporters are exploiting these stories to rally the tribes against Pakistan's security forces.

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Pakistan is going to be a big problem for the US one of these day. Not that Dr. Kahn's nuclear weapons to anyone and everyone business wasn't bad enough (why did this story just go away?). But there are a lot of Islamic Fundamentalists in Pakistan, and they are just as bloodthirsty and vengeful as our own Christian Fundamentalist fruit cakes here.

[varun]

1. Pakistan has been "killing" Al Qaeda since 911...

...but it seems like they are only multiplying.

Most probably these are stage-managed killing and arrests...where one local tribesman is killed and is labelled Al-Qaeda...

...and the purse strings of Bush admin are loosened...

[struggle4progress]

2. Oh, did they finally figure out who they killed?

I knew the Pakistanis had lots of dead bodies to compare to photographs.