A Hostile Land Foils the Quest for bin Laden

The C.I.A. established a series of small, covert bases in the rugged mountain frontier of northwest Pakistan in late 2003. Mr. bin Laden, the terrorist leader, was being sheltered there by local tribesmen and foreign militants, the agency had concluded, and controlled a group of handpicked operatives dedicated to attacking the United States.

An American military officer said in another article that Bin Laden is probably living with a family in the mountains above Chitral, Pakistan. That is a place that is surrounded on three sides by Afghanistan. The NYT article is actually talking about Chitral.

The Pakistanis reacted very negatively to this article and stated repeatedly that the CIA is not in Pakistan and that Bin Laden is not in Chitral. They have to say that, I think. I pray the people in Chitral will stay safe and that their youngsters will not be tricked into helping Osama.

I have some contacts in that area. They are very sweet people. Most are illiterate with little information of the outside world. One young student from the region said many have joined the radical parties. He blamed this on American policies. Several admitted Osama might be up in the mountains. They are mortified by this.

There are a number of educated, dedicated, professional people up there who work very hard on development issues. They are intelligent, well-educated, and proud of what they are accomplishing. They are not anti-Christian bigots or fans of Osama. They welcome contacts with Americans. BE POLITE. BE COMPLIMENTARY.

Recently, some Pakistani shepherd was kidnapped by armed Afghan shepherds. This was depicted as a cross-border family feud. One shepherd disappeared with 2000 goats. The speculation was that he was covered by an avalanche. Check out the Chitral News. http://www.chitralnews.com

Please be very polite. VERY POLITE and DIPLOMATIC. This is a case of "If you can't say something nice, don't say anything at all." Many people there are suspicious of Americans. Please don't confirm their prejudices. We need FRIENDS, not ENEMIES. Express concern for their safety and their children's safety if Osama is there. Tell what you find interesting about Chitral--it is a base camp for trekking/jeeping into the Hindu Kush. It is a very beautiful place--a valley in the Hindu Kush. It is cut off by snow half the year. I mean, it's like Shangra La. They are very proud of it. They have recently been damaged by too much rain. Afghan refugees are going home so there is a labor shortage. They are trying to rebuild their tourism industry which was destroyed by 9-11. All foreigners had to leave but now are coming back.

Quoting the article:

Mr. bin Laden remains much more than just an iconic figurehead of Islamic militancy, most American intelligence officials now say. From a presumed hiding place on the Pakistani side of the Afghan-Pakistan border, he controls an elite terrorist cell devoted to attacking in the United States, the officials say they suspect. They contend that he personally oversees the group of Qaeda operatives, which he hopes to use for another "spectacular" event, like the Sept. 11 hijacking plot.

American counterterrorism analysts say this special Qaeda unit is probably dispersed, though they do not know where. This "external planning group" can communicate with regional affiliates around the world to work with them when needed, one senior intelligence official said. "There is a strong desire by bin Laden to attack the continental United States, and he wants to use the external planning node to do it," the official said.

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