[gandalftb]

We will find bin Laden when we know where he is not. Good to hear that special ops are finally allowed into Pakistan. My guess Baluchistan, then Nuristan, then muslim Kashmir. Not likely in Waziristan, no water access, full of quarreling, gossipy shia Pashtuns, not remote enough and too far from Iran.

Balochis are sunni arabs and have 900 miles of remote coastline. Balochistan mountain valleys run N-S, mostly dead-ending on the Afghani border very hard for cross-border ops, and at higher elevations are forested for good cover. Couriers taking 2 months, very likely especially in the western areas near Iran.

Clearly, the Pakis are dragging their feet, milking us for weapons and money. OBL is their biggest "tourist" attraction and they don't want to lose him.

Goss' complaints of sovereignty issues refers to the degree of autonomy in Baluchistan which is now planned to increase to a federalized province.

Either all of this or he's driving a cab in Seattle.

[konaice]

Security sources say the pair are reported to wear explosive belts and their huge retinue of Arab bodyguards have orders to kill them if it is impossible to escape. He's hiding in the basement of tie Pakistani Intelligence.

[konaice]

Security sources say the pair are reported to wear explosive belts and their huge retinue of Arab bodyguards have orders to kill them if it is impossible to escape.

That will do nicely, thank you.

He's hiding in the basement of tie Pakistani Intelligence.

[AMERIKA]

LOL... We have GOOGLE EARTH where I can track my old lady on her way home from work but we can't find Bin Laden???

[agincourt1415]

I would think the Hunt for Bin Laden would need at least these resources.

10 Predator Aircraft

Satellite Survellence

Electronic Survellence

Some on the ground natives looking around

100 Man Special Operations Ground Force with regular backup of 2000 regular Grunts, and Helicopter Air Support.

Seems like these resources would produce a find at some point.

[Wiseghy]

Pakistan needs him as a bargaining chip and they know it.
He'll be like Elvis indefinitely unless the political situation there changes.

[Dog]

He is near Chitral in Northern Pakistan....IMHO.

[RightOnTheLeftCoast]

Here's what we need to do. Go to Kentucky and central/western Virginia and everywhere else there's a big frenzy on opening day of deer season. Organize a few dozen adventurous good ol' boys, fly 'em with their rifles to Afghanistan, tell 'em the reward is a case of Coors, and set 'em loose.

We'll have bin Laden bagged by Monday.

[TheHound]

I may be wrong, but I was pretty sure that al-Qaeda was never a big "operations organization" in and of itself. It supplied financing and logistics to a myriad of islamist groups. That is why you hear "groups with links to al-Qaeda". If the leadership is bottled up, and the flow of its money stopped, its effectiveness is nill. It seems lately, that the media has transformed al-Qaeda into a Hamas type organization, that is, an organization with foot soldiers. I believe OBL is bottled up and that we are fighting the individual islamist organizations (also a bunch of Baathist).

[ex-Texan]

Paul Williams was just on Michael Savage saying that Bin Laden has smuggled ten small nukes into the U.S. The alleged plan is to set them off all across the country at the same time. These weapons have supposedly been smuggled into the U.S. from Mexico by covert operatives. (Learn about border smuggling operations?) Williams has been preaching that message for the past year. Is he a just total nut case? Or, does he have good reason for his beliefs? He now has a book to sell but disclaims personal motives to push this nuke story. Savage is either a patriot or a demagogue jerk. I just don't know.

[b4its2late]

Either all of this or he's driving a cab in Seattle.

Or New York.

[dr_lew]

One key al-Qaeda suspect revealed under interrogation that bin Laden was using couriers travelling on foot or horseback instead of communicating by satellite telephone or the Internet, General Sultan said.

Yeah, "the CIA has verified that communique is in Bin Laden's handwriting."

[Bombay Bloke]

"Clearly, the Pakis are dragging their feet, milking us for weapons and money. OBL is their biggest "tourist" attraction and they don't want to lose him."

BING!

Bang on the money. Nice post.

[Bombay Bloke]

Y'know, UBL kind of reminds me of Dawood Ibrahim, the Pentagon-designated global terrorist and Indian mafia kingpin (kinda losing his grip these days) and also India's most wanted man - he's behind the 1993 serial bomb blasts in Bombay (with some help from the ISI in the form of RDX explosives) in which around 280 people were killed.

The Pakistanis say they don't know where he is. Which is funny, cos he's been living in downtown Karachi for years. Go figure!