Miranshah, 7 Dec. (AKI/DAWN) - The authorities in North Waziristan, the tribal areas that lie on the border between Pakistan and Afghanistan, have not been able to trace the whereabouts of a local journalist who was kidnapped on Monday, but have said that the Taliban could be involved in the kidnapping of Hayatullah Khan. Hayatullah, a correspondent for an Islamabad newspaper and contributor to a German wire service, is also the nephew of Haji Mohammad Siddiq, the owner of the home in Waziristan which is believed to have been hit in a missile attack last Wednesday in which the al-Qaeda leader Hamza Rabia was allegedly killed.
Speaking to a delegation from the Tribal Union of Journalists on Tuesday, a tribal official from the North Waziristan Agency, Zaheerul Islam, said that although investigators had not yet reached any conclusions, it was possible that “Taliban elements” had a hand in the kidnapping of Hayatullah Khan.
Islam told journalists that investigations were underway to trace the whereabouts of Hayatullah and promised them that the government would provide security to local journalists and enable them to continue their professional duties.
Haji Mohammad Siddiq has been summoned for questioning by the local authorities after last Wednesday's attack.
According to Pakistani officials, the al-Qaeda leader, Hamza Rabia, and four others were killed while they were handling explosives on Wednesday night, while US news reports said he was killed by a US missile attack. According to US intelligence officials, Hamza Rabia, an Egyptian, was a close associate of al-Qaeda number two Ayman al-Zawahiri, who is wanted in connection with the September 11, 2001 terrorist attacks in the United States. Reports also suggest that Hamza Rabia had replaced Abu Faraj al Libbi, another al-Qaeda leader who was captured in Pakistan in May.
Officials and sources within the the journalist's family have said that unidentified gunmen kidnapped Hayatullah near the town of Mirali on Monday. The journalist is believed to have been kidnapped while he was on his way to the Kajori check-post when five masked men armed with assault rifles bundled him into a car and sped away.
According to sources, Hayatullah had been captured sometime ago by allied forces in Angor Adda in the South Waziristan Agency. He was kept in detention for two months at the Bagram airbase.
The North Waziristan Union of Journalists has condemned Hayatullah’s kidnapping and appealed to the government to ensure his safe recovery. The union has asked the administration to arrest the culprits and provide security to journalists in the agency.
http://www.adnki.com/index_2Level.php?cat=Security&loid=8.0.237256694&par=0
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Hezbollah boosting ties to al-Qaida claim
By Martin Sieff Dec 7, 2005, 1:03 GMT
WASHINGTON, DC, United States (UPI) -- Lebanon and Israel may be facing the prospect of massively increased terror attack threats.
New reports claim that al-Qaida has set up an organizing center in Lebanon and that Iran has boosted its ties to West Bank Palestinian militants, especially Islamic Jihad, who have launched a new suicide bomber campaign against Israel.
The Lebanese Shiite weekly Shiraa, which opposes the Iranian-backed Hezbollah, or Party of God, is claiming this week that al-Qaida has already set up an operational command base in the country.
It also claims that Imad Mughniyeh, the prominent Hezbollah leader, is representing al-Qaida in talks with potential sympathetic Palestinian leaders in the south of the country.
Al-Shiraa said Mughniyeh also met with Jemal Suleiman, head of the Palestinian Ansar Allah, and with Abu Mahujayn, Shehada Jawahr and Khaled Safayn, who lead Palestinian militias in the Bureij camp.
The report follows other indications of growing al-Qaida influence in Lebanon.
Excerpted - more at link
THANKS Oorang.
WAZIRISTAN again -- not a surprise.
D'ya think? Journalists, scientists, coalition troops and aid workers in that part of the world must be very brave souls indeed.