WAR: Pakistan Raids Terrorist Camp

posted on Sep, 9 2004 @ 08:08 PM

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An assault claimed to be "among the fiercest in months'" had Pakistani jets pounding a suspected Al Qaeda training facility and killing 50 militants. The facility was believed to be Osama Bin Laden's hideout, near the Afghan border. It is not known whether any key figures of Al Qaeda were killed in the bombing.

guardian.co.uk
WANA, Pakistan (AP) - Pakistani warplanes pummeled a suspected al-Qaida training facility near the border with Afghanistan on Thursday, flattening a vast mud-brick compound and killing at least 50 fighters, the military said.

The assault was among the fiercest in months of fighting in the dusty border region, considered a possible hideout for Osama bin Laden and his deputy, who are still on the run nearly three years after the Sept. 11, 2001, attacks on the United States.

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Pakistan is known to claim the killing of foreigners who turn out to be local tribesmen. Heavy civilian casualties have been reported by villagers.

Alam Khan, a resident of Ladha, claims he witnessed 3 other areas being bombed. The battle reportedly lasted 2 hours, and two jets and about 10 army helicopters were witnessed flying over the scene.

Pakistan, an ally in the U.S.-led campaign against terrorism, has deployed tens of thousands of troops along the Afghan border to fight al-Qaida and Taliban fighters operating there.

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[edit on 9-9-2004 by deeprivergal]

[edit on 9-9-2004 by deeprivergal]

spngsambigpants

posted on Sep, 9 2004 @ 08:48 PM

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Every time I come to understand Pakistan's role in the war on terror more, I wonder (in the immortal words of David Rees) why our heads aren't exploding from cognitive dissonance. It's pretty obvious that Pakistan's alliance is a total and complete farce....

chaosrain

posted on Sep, 10 2004 @ 11:54 AM

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Imagine this senario:

1) This training camp is purported to be a potential hideout for OBL.
2) Yesterday a new terror tape came out with no OBL on it, only al-Zawahri.
3) Fox News has reported that followers of OBL are being called on to re-direct their allegiance to al-Zawahri.
4) OBL is already dead.
5) This operation was designed to provide an excuse for OBL's death to coincide with the lead up to the US elections in November.

If this plays out in such a way that the death of OBL becomes news in the next few days, I'll be really skeptical because of the tape not showing OBL and the calls to re-direct allegiance appearing in advance of the western world's 'knowledge' of the death of OBL.

Why make a tape w/o OBL and ask for a change of allegiance if he's still alive.

If he's dead, either Task Force 121 or the Pakistani's took him out and didn't tell anyone. Al-Qaeda has little to gain from his death and would probably prefer that everyone thought he was alive for as long as possible. This tape could point to an effort to 'gloss over' his death and prepare the faithful for the western announcement of his death which al-Qaeda is already quite aware is being delayed by the powers that be.

Something to chew on...

WAR: Pakistan Raids Terrorist Camp - 50 Dead