Posted on 09/20/2008 11:00:49 AM PDT by Perdogg
Several senior officers of Central Intelligence Agency (CIA) who are reported to be currently visiting Islamabad were the target of the blast at the Marriott Hotel which took place here tonight.
Well placed sources said that Marriott Hotel is usual hotel choice of the US officials and it seems that militants tipped off that certain high level US intelligence officers were currently staying at the hotel.
(Excerpt) Read more at thaindian.com ...
Militants tipped off?
CNN, NBC? /s
DNC? /s
Would the CIA let everyone in Pakistan know where they stay ?
Would all the personnel stay at the same hotel ?
I think it was directed to the Marriot as it is an American concern.
That link is a browser security threat according to my McAfee.
I doubt that the CIA let anybody other than someone high up in the Pakistani Government or military know where they were staying or when they’d be there. So that means...well, someone high up in the Paki gov or military tipped off the terrorists.
It would be nice to think that the CIA would keep such matters confidential.
But I would imagine that high-up CIA people would not deign to stay anywhere but a Marriott or a Hilton or some such high-class place. These are not covert agents, these are big-time bureaucrats.
What, stay in a Pakistani bed & breakfast? I doubt it.
Not even 007 would do that!
Islamabad Marriott Hotel Blast Leaves 40 People Dead (Update2)
Anyone, bureaurocrat or agent, in the intelligence business is a target. They would not be staying any place where they were not in total control of the environment. They would not want to chance their lodging being bugged.
IMO this is a planted story. It’s purpose is to 1. Blame America for the bombing and/or 2. Encourage Pakistani gov’t to have CIA agents recalled. I think the heat’s on the jihadists in Pakistan and our military and covert people are responsible.
About the same time frame, another bomb targeted a building supposedly used by the CIA. The story goes that the bomber blew up the wrong building.
I wouldn’t put this kind of carelessness past the CIA from military friends I have that have had the displeasure of working with the CIA.
I would imagine that probably one of the most difficult things in the intelligence world is figuring out who - even in a supposedly allied government - you can trust. I’m sure the CIA has rightly decided that there’s nobody who can be trusted in Pakistan. But if this report is true, somebody somewhere must have gotten word far enough in advance to set up the attack. This wasn’t somebody just strapping on the old suicide vest and waltzing into the lobby...
Maybe the CIA were just collateral damage, not the intended targets. According to the NYT, the dining rooms were full of all the Pakistani leaders, who were breaking the Ramadan fast.
http://www.nytimes.com/2008/09/21/world/asia/21islamabad.html?hp
“The blast, one of the worst acts of terrorism in Pakistan’s history, went off just a few hundred yards from the prime minister’s house, where all the leaders of government were dining after the president’s address to Parliament.”
BBC is reporting that there were over 200 people in the dining rooms, http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/south_asia/7627135.stm They showed up directly after Zadari had given a big address at the Parliament buildings a feet yards away. “The bomb attack came just hours after Pakistan’s newly installed President, Asif Ali Zardari, said he would not allow Pakistan’s territory to be violated by terrorists or foreign powers fighting them.”
The CIA guys might have just been there to show support for Zadari, and Zadari and his party were the real targets.
And how would the Messiah handle this??
maybe the first thing john mccain should do after he becomes pres, is to nominate barack to be ambassador to pakistan
He would make sure that America apologized right away.
Wow. Prayers.
Most likely it was a CIA planned op. This would encourage the Pakistani’s to re-seek our help. Hopefully it is a planted story and no-one died.
The explosion was too big and the whole thing made too newsworhty.
We need to be in Pakistan.
Are you implying that the Agency bombed the hotel?
I don’t buy the title of this post. The new president just made a pledge he was going to get tough of the Taliban and al Qaeda. They responded with an “up yours”.
In addition, they would risk total alienation of the Paki government if even a suspicion were ever raised. It would be a VERY, VERY high risk operation with little to no chance of success. IMHO, the CIA is smarter than that.
There WERE State Dept. people there. People reported seeing three or four of them leaving the hotel after the explosion.
The way I see it, the Paki government, which ever one it might be, is walking a very thin, very shaky, tight-wire. There are violent Islamists from EVERYWHERE traipsing all over their country. No matter how much “help” they SEEM to be giving us, they ARE an important ally and they may be helping more than we know. As such, we should ALWAYS afford their government the option of “probable deniability” in the aftermath of any operation conducted with the U.S.
That’s my favorite theory.
I visited the Islamabad Marriott about a year and half ago. It did have some security, but was not heavily guarded and did not have strong defensive walls around the property.
We saw some of that speculation with the 2005 Amman hotel bombings.
There was lot of talk about Palestinian Authority and PLA intelligence officers being killed in the attack, which may have just been bad luck on their part.
Pakistan ping
The bell hops at that Marriot know more than the highest level officials in Pakistan’s elected government.
And that info was worth alot of money.
There is only so many Westerners running around Pakistan’s halls of power, the terrorists just have to target the white guys. Racial profiling works!
since the terrorists would like him to win, what could be better than to have him as our ambassador?
bombings would cease, peace would breakout between factions that have wared for centuries........./s
If they were tipped off, it was most likely by the ISI, the Paki intelligence service. They’ve been openly pro-Taliban for some years now.
Pakistan is the US’ ally like the North Koreans are... Pakistan takes American funds and uses it to fund terrorists like the Taliban and alQaeda — they still do that.
...........
Thanks Ernest!
Pakistan blames Al-Qaeda for hotel bombing
Breitbart | Sept 21 2008 | AFP
Posted on 09/21/2008 10:45:11 AM PDT by Ernest_at_the_Beach
http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/2087146/posts
Dozens dead in Pakistan hotel blast ( Marriott Hotel - Number now 50+ )
Al Jazeera and agencies | Al Jazeera and agencies
Posted on 09/20/2008 10:23:44 AM PDT by Ernest_at_the_Beach
http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/2086605/posts
Dozens Reported Dead in Huge Blast at Peakistan Hotel [55 dead]
Fox News | Sept 20, 2008
Posted on 09/20/2008 8:04:13 AM PDT by Red Boots
http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/2086539/posts
-better news-
Higher-tech Predators targeting Pakistan
(incorporating see-through-the-wall technology)
LA Times | 9/12/08 | Mel Melcon
Posted on 09/20/2008 11:29:59 AM PDT by LibWhacker
http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/2086647/posts
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