U.S. strike in Pakistan kills wanted British militant

7 posts / 0 new

Sat, 2008-11-22 12:13

Manitoba Girl

Reuters

November 22, 2008 at 9:25 AM EST

PESHAWAR, Pakistan — Rashid Rauf, a British militant with al-Qaeda links, was killed along with an Egyptian by a suspected U.S. missile strike in northwest Pakistan on Saturday, Pakistani television channels and intelligence officers said.

Mr. Rauf, the suspected ringleader of a 2006 plot to blow up trans-Atlantic airliners using liquid explosives, was among five victims of an attack believed to have been launched by a U.S. drone aircraft in the North Waziristan tribal region.

The plot, which was uncovered with the help of Pakistani intelligence, had the potential to kill on the scale of the Sept. 11, 2001 al-Qaeda attacks and resulted in tighter controls on cabin luggage hand-carried on board by air passengers worldwide.

Intelligence officers in northwest Pakistan, speaking on condition of anonymity, told Reuters that Mr. Rauf, who escaped from custody after appearing in an Islamabad court last December, had been killed, though there was no official confirmation.

http://www.theglobeandmail.com/servlet/story/RTGAM.20081122.wrauf1122/BNStory/International/home

Sat, 2008-11-22 12:15

Manitoba Girl

I can't edit the post. I should of added that the US is striking inside Pakistan. Does this mean Pakistan is oK with this? Or elements of OK with it?

Sat, 2008-11-22 12:30

Unionist

Yes.

Mon, 2009-02-16 18:50

NorthReport

It appears that the US is more interested in Pakistan than Afghanastan, maybe because of the nuclear weapons there. Is this where our Canadian troops are headed next?

Pakistan agrees Sharia law deal

http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/south_asia/7891955.stm

Quote:
The people of Swat have been caught in the crossfire between the army and the Taleban, our correspondent says.

More than 1,000 civilians have died in shelling by the army or from beheadings sanctioned by the Taleban. Thousands more have been displaced.

The Taleban now control the entire countryside of Swat, limiting army control to parts of the valley's capital, Mingora.

Many people in Swat now would favour an early exit by the army as they have failed to roll back the Taleban or protect the Taleban's opponents, says our correspondent.

Tue, 2009-02-17 17:02

NorthReport

Here we go again!

Secrecy and denial as Pakistan lets CIA use airbase to strike militants

http://www.timesonline.co.uk/tol/news/world/asia/article5755490.ece

The CIA is secretly using an airbase in southern Pakistan to launch the Predator drones that observe and attack al-Qaeda and Taleban militants on the Pakistani side of the border with Afghanistan, a Times investigation has found.

The Pakistani and US governments have repeatedly denied that Washington is running military operations, covert or otherwise, on Pakistani territory — a hugely sensitive issue in the predominantly Muslim country.

The Pakistani Government has also repeatedly demanded that the US halt drone attacks on northern tribal areas that it says have caused hundreds of civilian casualties and fuelled anti-American sentiment.

But The Times has discovered that the CIA has been using the Shamsi airfield — originally built by Arab sheikhs for falconry expeditions in the southwestern province of Baluchistan — for at least a year. The strip, which is about 30 miles from the Afghan border, allows US forces to launch a Drone within minutes of receiving actionable intelligence as well as allowing them to attack targets further afield.

Thu, 2009-02-19 09:13

NorthReport

Google Earth reveals secret history of US base in Pakistan

http://www.timesonline.co.uk/tol/news/world/asia/article5762371.ece

The US was secretly flying unmanned drones from the Shamsi airbase in Pakistan's southwestern province of Baluchistan as early as 2006, according to an image of the base from Google Earth.

The image — that is no longer on the site but which was obtained by The News, Pakistan's English language daily newspaper — shows what appear to be three Predator drones outside a hangar at the end of the runway. The Times also obtained a copy of the image, whose co-ordinates confirm that it is the Shamsi airfield, also known as Bandari, about 200 miles southwest of the Pakistani city of Quetta.

An investigation by The Times yesterday revealed that the CIA was secretly using Shamsi to launch the Predator drones that observe and attack al-Qaeda and Taleban militants around Pakistan's border with Afghanistan.

US special forces used the airbase during the invasion of Afghanistan in 2001, but the Pakistani Government said in 2006 that the Americans had left. Both sides have since denied repeatedly that Washington has used, or is using, Pakistani bases to launch drones. Pakistan has also demanded that the US cease drone attacks on its tribal area, which have increased over the last year, allegedly killing several “high-value” targets as well as many civilians.

The Google Earth image now suggests that the US began launching Predators from Shamsi — built by Arab sheiks for falconry trips — at least three years ago.

The advantage of Shamsi is that it provides a discreet launchpad within minutes of Quetta — a known Taleban staging post — as well as Taleban infiltration routes into Afghanistan and potential militant targets farther afield.

http://extras.timesonline.co.uk/pdfs/2006image.pdf

http://extras.timesonline.co.uk/pdfs/recentimage.pdf

Thu, 2009-02-19 09:26

NorthReport

I thought he was dead, killed years ago.

Is this another resurrection?

Geography professor claims to have found Osama bin Laden

A Californian geography professor has used techniques for hunting endangered species to pinpoint three houses in Pakistan where Osama bin Laden could be hiding.

http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/worldnews/asia/pakistan/4681736/Geography-professor-claims-to-have-found-Osama-bin-Laden.html