That's "Byronic good looks"?
Posted on 06/17/2004 11:16:30 PM PDT by AdmSmith
ISLAMABAD (CNN) -- A tribal leader accused of harboring Al Qaeda militants in Pakistan's western border region was killed Thursday night in a targeted missile strike, according to Pakistan intelligence sources. The Associated Press quoted an army spokesman Friday as identifying the tribal leader as Nek Mohammed, a former Taliban fighter.
He was killed late Thursday at the home of another tribal chief, the spokesman said.
"We were tracking him down and he was killed last night by our hand," Maj. Gen. Shaukat Sultan told The Associated Press.
(Excerpt) Read more at edition.cnn.com ...
Profile of Nek Mohammed:
http://www.dawn.com/2004/06/18/latest.htm
LoL.
Good news. Good riddance.
LoL.
Good news. Good riddance.
That's "Byronic good looks"?
Finally?!?!?
80 terrorists killed by the U.S. Marines in the past few weeks, well over 50 killed by the Pakistanis, dozens captured - including KSM's nephew...
This is good.
"obstinate determination to carry out his will no matter how mindless it might be."
"This earned him the nickname of Bodogay implying a thoughtless, stubborn person."
"When will the left print Teeshirts...?
You wearing a watch?
Look for them at the next rally.
"Previous Pakistani operations have netted no top al Qaeda and Taliban figures, and Afghan officials say Islamabad has failed to crack down on militants it says cross into Afghanistan to wage a bloody insurgency ahead of elections in September."
No point in netting them if you can kill them. Good kill.
Way to go!
WOT?
Somehow, I don't think that Pakistani tribal leaders are the brightest people on this planet.
But they have a killer sense of fashion. Just look at Nek-he looks glorious!
Yes, a deadly look!
Pakistani Security Forces Kill Alleged Al-Qaida FacilitatorSecurity forces in Pakistan have killed a rebel tribal leader in an operation against al-Qaida-linked terror suspects in a remote mountainous region. Pakistani officials say that nearly 70 suspected terrorists have been killed in the area in less than two weeks.
Officials and witnesses say Nek Mohammad was killed, along with four associates, in a late night rocket attack near the Afghan border.
The military described the 27-year-old Mr. Mohammad as "an al-Qaida facilitator." He had been staying at a friend's house in a village in the South Waziristan tribal region.
"We had the information about presence of Nek Mohammad and his associates in this particular area, which was targeted last night, and it is believed that he is amongst those five killed," explained Major-General Shaukat Sultan, chief spokesman for the Pakistan army.
Mr. Mohammad was allegedly sheltering and protecting dozens of suspected foreign al-Qaida militants in the area. The Pakistani military has lately intensified efforts to flush out the foreign forces and their local supporters hiding in the mountains along the border.
Boot Hill has some nice maps http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/1155547/posts?page=19#19
and Jeffers got satellite maps http://host1.in-motion.net/~jefft/tech/Mapping/afghanistan/index.html
Thanks Boot and Jeff!
And more
Wanted Tribal Leader Killed in Pakistan
Friday June 18, 2004 3:16 PM
By AHSANULLAH WAZIR
Associated Press Writer
http://www.guardian.co.uk/worldlatest/story/0,1280,-4218833,00.html
WANA, Pakistan (AP) - Pakistani forces killed a renegade tribal leader allied with suspected al-Qaida militants in a helicopter assault on a mud-brick fortress near the Afghan border, the army spokesman said Friday.
Nek Mohammed was tracked down by tracing an intercepted satellite phone call, a senior security official told The Associated Press on condition of anonymity. Six others were killed with Mohammed in the missile strike late Thursday.
Mohammed, a former Taliban fighter, led fierce resistance to the army's offensive to flush out foreign militants from the rugged tribal belt near the Afghan border where al-Qaida is believed to be active.
``We were tracking him down and he was killed last night by our hand,'' Maj. Gen. Shaukat Sultan told The Associated Press in Islamabad, the Pakistani capital.
The helicopter fired a missile at Mohammed's hideout near Wana, the main town in South Waziristan.
The British Broadcasting Corp. has conducted at least two phone interviews with Mohammed in the past week, though it was not clear whether either of those calls was used to track him down.
In one of the interviews, Mohammed acknowledged foreigners were living in the tribal areas, but denied that they were terrorists.
``Those foreigners who are living here are not terrorists - rather they are mujahedeen (holy warriors) who took part in the Afghan jihad,'' he said, a reference to the U.S.-backed war in the 1980s to drive the Soviet Union out of Afghanistan.
Sultan would not confirm whether Mohammed was traced through a satellite phone call.
It was not clear if the United States was involved in the effort to track Mohammed. Pakistan is thought to lack the sophisticated satellite technology necessary for such phone intercepts and acknowledges that it sometimes receives ``technical help'' from the Americans.
Mohammed's death was a major victory for the Pakistani army, which has been embarrassed by heavy losses in fighting with the militants, who are thought to enjoy protection from some tribes along the border.
The United States military, pursuing al-Qaida on the Afghan side of the border, has been pressing hard for Islamabad to step up military activity in Waziristan. The area is considered a possible hideout for al-Qaida chief Osama bin Laden, though there is no hard intelligence on his whereabouts.
``We are confident that this killing of Nek Mohammed will help the ongoing operation in South Waziristan, and counter the threat of terrorism in other parts of the country,'' Interior Minister Faisal Saleh Hayyat told lawmakers on Friday.
About 70 foreign militants have been killed in South Waziristan since June 9, when the army launched the latest offensive against them, he said, adding that the operation will continue until the last terror suspect is killed. Seventeen soldiers have also died.
Mohammed's men are responsible for several deadly ambushes against the army and led a group of heavily armed holdouts during a March standoff that left more than 120 people dead.
He later agreed to cooperate with authorities, but reneged on promises to turn over foreign fighters, prompting the latest round of hostilities.
Mohammed apparently was staying in the home of another tribal leader, Sher Zaman, when the army helicopters attacked late Thursday. Residents said two of Zaman's grown-up sons, his grandson and an associate of Mohammed also were killed.
The security official said two of those killed in the attack in the town of Pir Bagh were foreigners, but their identities were not known. They did not appear to be senior al-Qaida leaders.
Sultan said Pakistani forces were the ones who killed Mohammed. He said local reports that an unmanned U.S. aircraft may have fired the missile were ``absurd.''
Mohammed's body was taken to his village of Kaloosha, about six miles west of Wana, where thousands of people attended his funeral on Friday.
In the March assault, Pakistani troops were surprised on the first day, suffering heavy casualties and allowing hundreds of suspects to flee.
Government officials had said they believed a high-ranking al-Qaida operative - possibly bin Laden deputy Ayman al-Zawahri - was surrounded in the March attack, but no senior leaders were found. An Uzbek militant, Tahir Yuldash, reportedly was wounded in the assault, but he got away.
Pakistan, a key ally of the United States in its war on terror, has launched several operations in South Waziristan in the past year to flush out suspected al-Qaida militants. Hundreds of foreign fighters - including Arabs, Central Asians and Afghans, are still believed to be hiding there.
----
Associated Press reporter Munir Ahmad contributed to this report from Islamabad, Pakistan.
Guardian Unlimited © Guardian Newspapers Limited 2004
This is great news all around, but I like the "absurd" version best of all!
Here is an "absurd" predator:http://www.fas.org/irp/program/collect/predator.htm
"In one of the interviews, Mohammed acknowledged foreigners were living in the tribal areas, but denied that they were terrorists."
Can we say tourists?
Disclaimer: Opinions posted on Free Republic are those of the individual posters and do not necessarily represent the opinion of Free Republic or its management. All materials posted herein are protected by copyright law and the exemption for fair use of copyrighted works.