Date: September 30th 2005

From: Ram Narayan Date: 28.09.05


THE WALL STREET JOURNAL ONLINE

Al Qaeda Digs in Deeply in Pakistan

Attacks in Waziristan Belie
Government Claims Network
Of Bin Laden Is Shattered

By ZAHID HUSSAIN
Staff Reporter of THE WALL STREET JOURNAL
September 27, 2005

KUNDIGAR, Pakistan -- Despite official claims to the contrary, experts say Pakistani security forces have been unable to establish control over the lawless mountain redoubt used by al Qaeda fugitives along the border with Afghanistan, nearly two years since launching a bloody offensive against the terrorists and their local tribal supporters.

Local residents say Islamic militants have reorganized and tightened their grip on many parts of the troubled Waziristan province. This contrasts with Pakistani President Pervez Musharraf’s recent claims to have cleared the region of terrorists.

The situation is dimming hopes that the U.S. and its allies are any nearer to capturing Osama bin Laden in Waziristan, the region where many security experts believe he and his chief lieutenants are hiding.

In recent weeks, militant attacks on military installations in Waziristan have become more frequent and deadly. Local residents interviewed in Waziristan, in which Kundigar is located, say the guerrillas have become bolder and operate freely, despite the heavy presence of security forces.

This month, Pakistan dispatched 3,500 troops and a helicopter gunship to the remote Shawal mountainous region -- an area that for the past several years has served as the base for militants fighting U.S. and Afghan government forces across the border.

Lt. Gen. Safdar Hussain, the top Pakistani army commander responsible for counterterrorism in the region, said the latest offensive was launched after intelligence reports that al Qaeda operatives were hiding there. He said his forces captured about two dozen foreign militants and seized a huge cache of sophisticated weapons. He refused to reveal the identities of the captured people.

The latest operation coincided with a visit by Gen. Musharraf to the U.S., where he claimed his forces were defeating militants holed up in Waziristan.

Analysts and residents say the situation on the ground is quite different. Last Tuesday, a soldier was killed when an army convoy was hit by an explosive device planted on a dirt road in South Waziristan. That was the third such attack by militants in one week. "Waziristan remains a simmering embarrassment," said a local official.

The rugged mountains of Waziristan became a primary focus of Pakistani officials after hundreds of al Qaeda militants found it a haven following the rout of Afghanistan’s Taliban regime in November 2001. Two years ago, the Pakistani army entered this fiercely autonomous region for the first time in its 58-year history. Since then, it has lost more than 350 soldiers in the fighting.

Pakistan has used a combination of force, economic sanctions and negotiations to seek to compel tribesmen to withdraw their support from al Qaeda and Taliban fighters. Officials said million of dollars have been paid to tribal chieftains to buy their loyalty.

Collaboration with the Pakistani military is costing tribal leaders their lives. One by one, many of those who have aided the military in its operations have been killed, local officials say. They include government functionaries, intelligence operatives and tribal chieftains. More than 60 such cases have been reported this year alone.

"There is a complete reign of terror, and people are fleeing to other areas for safety," said one Waziristan resident.

American military officials in Afghanistan complain bitterly that Pakistan continues to host Taliban insurgents in Waziristan. Pakistani army officials admit that scores of Islamic religious schools along the border harbor militants. They also say the U.S.-led coalition isn’t deploying enough troops to protect eastern and southern Afghanistan.

This year alone, 75 U.S. soldiers have been killed in Afghanistan, more than the combined U.S. casualties in the first three years after the late 2001 fall of the Taliban regime.

The Associated Press said Sunday that there have been no fresh clues to the whereabouts of Mr. bin Laden. Pakistani military and intelligence say he probably is hiding out in the Pakistan-Afghanistan border region with a small core of mainly Arab supporters and the al Qaeda leader now only sends messages by courier because his communications network has been destroyed, the AP reported.

The news agency also quoted Maj. Gen. Shaukat Sultan, chief spokesman for Pakistan’s army, as saying, "In our opinion, the reports on the whereabouts of Osama bin Laden are more speculative stories rather than based on accurate intelligence."


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