Pakistani Forces Detain 20 People During New Hunt for Bin Laden, al-Qaida Militants

AP/ABC ^ | Feb 24 2004 | NA

[Dog]

Pakistani Forces Detain 20 in New Hunt Pakistani Forces Detain 20 People During New Hunt for Bin Laden, al-Qaida Militants

The Associated Press

WANA, Pakistan Feb. 24 — Pakistani forces backed by helicopters and artillery leveled three houses and detained at least 20 people Tuesday, sweeping through villages in a remote border region where Osama bin Laden and al-Qaida militants are believed to be hiding. The searches near the town of Wana, just a few miles from the border with Afghanistan, began after dawn, as paramilitary and army troops moved into areas where the fugitives are believed to have taken refuge among local tribes. Using artillery, troops leveled homes belonging to three tribesmen who were allegedly sheltering fugitives.

Three Arab women were among those detained, though it was not immediately clear if they were under arrest.

"They were given an enough time," a government official supervising the operation told The Associated Press on condition of anonymity. "We launched the operation when they failed to hand the foreign terrorists over."

People in Wana reported hearing explosions and gunshots throughout the morning.

"We have heard 25 to 30 explosions. The shooting started in the morning and it's continuing," said Shahzad Wazir, a resident in Wana.

The operation, which included more than a dozen helicopter gunships, began in the village of Zarkai, a village in Pakistan's strategic South Waziristan tribal region. It is located about 190 miles west of Pakistan's capital, Islamabad.

Soon, two other villages were also under siege: Kaloosha and Azam Warsak. Both are west of Wana.

Authorities have been talking for days about launching the operation, saying it would go door-to-door if tribal elders did not voluntarily hand over any terror suspects.

The fact the operation was announced in advance suggested that officials saw little chance of surprising bin Laden or other senior al-Qaida men, but the maneuvers could be designed to make the area less hospitable and force the suspects to flee into Afghanistan, where the Americans lead an 11,000-strong military force and can operate more freely.

The Pakistani government had set Feb. 20 as the deadline for tribal elders to hand over al-Qaida fugitives and their supporters. So far, about 58 suspects have been turned over, though another 38 are still being sought, officials say.

In recent days, Pakistan stepped up security in the tribal areas, said Mohammed Azam Khan, a local official.

Authorities hope the sweep will yield clues about bin Laden, the al-Qaida leader. Intelligence officials have long believed that bin Laden is hiding in the rugged mountains between Pakistan and Afghanistan, though there has been no hard evidence of his whereabouts for nearly two years.

The operation comes weeks after CIA director George Tenet is believed to have made a secret trip to Pakistan to discuss the hunt for the Saudi fugitive as well as ways to fight nuclear proliferation.

Pakistan denies that any American troops are involved in operations on its soil, though local residents have in the past said they have seen what they believed to be U.S. special forces in the region.

Pakistan's government has limited authority in the tribal lands, but has been expanding its role under U.S. pressure to crack down on terrorism since the Sept. 11 attacks.

The operation is the fourth against al-Qaida and Taliban fugitives along the border since Pakistan became an ally of the United States following the terror attacks in Washington and New York.

More than 500 suspected al-Qaida and Taliban fugitives have been captured, including key figures in bin Laden's terrorist network. Most have been turned over to U.S. authorities.

Foreign Minister Khursheed Kasuri said Monday that any top al-Qaida fugitives wanted in the United States would be handed over. However, President Gen. Pervez Musharraf has assured tribal elders that suspects who turn over their weapons and surrender would not be extradited.

[Dog]

This is updated info....

[Dog]

fyi..

[ASA Vet]

no hard evidence of his whereabouts for nearly two years

His whereabouts hasn't changed in over two years.

[Dog]

You post that on every thread.

You have DNA proof he is dead?

[ASA Vet]

The ElvisBinLaden cycle is currently in high mode.
But you're right. I have been over doing it again.
I will retire the award. (Unless I get a request.)

[observer5]

I like it, it makes me feel fuzzy all around...

[ASA Vet]

Feel free to post it yourself. I don't plan on removing it from the server.

[HangThemHigh]

I too believe OBL's dead, we haven't seen any real proof to the contrary in quite awhile. Of course it would be nice if he were alive so we could kill him again just in time for elections.

[Prodigal Son]

Good stuff. I've got Wana on my world atlas but couldn't find it on an online map anywhere.

You can see the tribal areas on this one (411 kilobytes):


http://www.lib.utexas.edu/maps/middle_east_and_asia/pakistan_rel96.jpg

The village of Wana is directly due west of "Tank" and due north of "Zhob" and is very near the Afghanistan border. Pretty much an intersection of those two azimuths I just described.

Also, note, don't confuse the Khost on this map- which is in Pakistani territory- with the Khost in Afghanistan. The Khost we are working near in Afghanistan is to the east of Gardez (Gardeyz on this map) and to the north of the tribal areas of Pakistan.

[Dog]

Here is some more detail....I just found a story and it said the raids took place in two villages....Kaloosha and Azam Warsak...west of Wana.

I find anything else I'll post it here.

[Dog]

Here it is....

Kaloosha and Azam Warsak

[Cap Huff]

I like this:

"It was not clear if any senior Taliban or al-Qaeda fugitives were among the detained."

"Ammunition, passports, written materials and audiocassettes had been seized, General Sultan said."

Leaves it a little bit ambiguous, yet with promise for more to come. . .

[Coop]

Well, don't get your hopes up on nailing the biggies. Although anything is possible, I agree with this assessment:

The fact the operation was announced in advance suggested that officials saw little chance of surprising bin Laden or other senior al-Qaida men...

[Cap Huff]

Agreed. On the other thread dealing with this story I made a similar point:

http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/1084369/posts?page=12#12

I think this is the hammer and anvil strategy at work. If there are some of the biggies in the area, they are going to have to hunker down real low, or move. The net that has been strung is probably not perfect, but there is a chance of catching them. If they keep doing this they will eventually get them. Maybe real soon

[Coop]

Yep. Anytime they're moving, they're at risk.

[swarthyguy]

I dare to use Waziristan, Wana, Kaloosha and Asam Warsak at the next social gathering you attend. Say it with a straight face if you can, and enjoy the perplexed looks of people who think you're talking about craters on Mars.

[Dog]

Seems details from the Tenet visit are starting to leak out..

Stepping Up the Campaign to catch Bin Laden..

[Cap Huff]

Yes, and to think that many on this forum have been speculating about it for at least a week and a half. From your link it would seem that a lot of the speculation around here was pretty good (of course, officially nobody is yet acknowledging the visit or the agenda).

"Brig. Mahmud Shah . . . said Pakistan . . . would send 35,000 more troops this year. 'Once the deployment is complete, Pakistan will have a total of 75,000 troops in the area,' he said."

I just hope they don't sit around drinking tea and playing cricket, particularly since this operation is not very likely to be the end of all the problems along the border.

[Dog]

Did you see in that article they claim we gave the Pakistani's helicopters to use in the hunt. Want to bet there were US Special Ops in the helicopters used in todays raid.

[Cap Huff]

I saw that. I assumed that everything about them was U.S. - piloted and manned, with some Pakistanis on board, no doubt, but our guys running the show as far as the helicopters was concerned.

Well, the news as far as the WOT is light right now (lot's of other stuff going on though). I do hope I wake up tomorrow with big news in the WOT - OBL, Zawahri, Zarqawi, al-Douri, Habbush - those are just a few names I would like to see.