John Lehman: Pentagon knows exactly where Osama bin Laden is hiding in Pakistan.

The Daily Bulletin ^ | Thursday, October 21, 2004 - 9:56:16 PM PST | JIM MOHR

[Smogger]

CLAREMONT - The Pentagon knows exactly where Osama bin Laden is hiding in Pakistan, it just can't get to him, a member of the 9-11 Commission said Thursday. Commissioner John Lehman's remarks echoed those made Tuesday by Secretary of State Colin Powell, who asserted the al-Qaida terror kingpin was alive and operating in the western part of that country.

Bin Laden is living in South Waziristan in the Baluchistan Mountains of the Baluchistan Region, Lehman said, after delivering a keynote speech on terrorism at Pitzer College in Claremont to kick off the university's three-day writer's festival.

In the exclusive interview, Lehman said, "There is an American presence in the area, but we can't just send in troops. If we did, we could have another Vietnam, and the United States cannot afford that right now."

When pressed on why the United States couldn't send troops into the region to capture the world's No. 1 terrorist, Lehman said the Baluchistan Region of the country is filled with militant fundamentalists who do not recognize the legitimacy of President Pervez Musharraf, a close ally of the United States.

"That is a region filled with Taliban and al-Qaida members" he said, acknowledging that Pakistan's security services also are filled with many who agree with bin Laden's beliefs and would aid him if U.S. Special Forces entered the region.

"Look," he said, "Musharraf already has had three assassination attempts on his life. He is trying to comply, but he is surrounded by people who do not agree with him. This is not like Afghanistan, where there was no compliance, and we had to go in. We'll get (bin Laden) eventually, just not now."

Asked how bin Laden was surviving, Lehman said he was getting money from outside countries, such as the United Arab Emirates and high-ranking ministers inside Saudi Arabia.

"He is not a wealthy man," Lehman said. "We ran that information into the ground, and discovered he only receives about $1 million a year from his family's fortune. The rest of what he gets comes from radical sympathizers."

Department of Defense spokeswoman Capt. Ronnie Merritt confirmed that the U.S. military believes bin Laden is in Pakistan. However, she would not comment on Lehman's remarks, except to say that he normally didn't speak about these issues, and she was surprised he had.

Lehman is one of 10 members of the bipartisan commission that authored "The Final Report of the National Commission on Terrorist Attacks Upon the United States," which is a New York Times bestseller. The ardent Republican also is the author of three books about military tactics.

Jim Mohr can be reached by e-mail at jim.mohr@sbsun.com or by phone at (909) 386-3891.

[TexKat]

Security pound hideouts of al-Qaeda linked militants in Pakistanfs tribal belt to capture the mastermind of Chinese engineersf captivity.

Caging Instigator: Pakistan Security Hits Militants Hideouts

Pakistan Times NWFP Bureau Report / PT Monitoring Desk

WANA (South Waziristan): As the crusade against al-Qaeda militants got stepped-up in the tribal belt of Pakistan to put in cage Abdullah Mehsud, the ringleader of Chinese engineersf captivity, dozens of families left their mountainous abode near the Afghan border on Thursday.

Backed by helicopter gunships, the security forces kept up a barrage of artillery and mortar fire, which was aimed at foreign antagonists, who were reported to be taking shelter in the terrain with their local collaborators, known as the turncoats all-around the vicinities.

Three civilians were killed when a mortar exploded at a roadside restaurant in Spinkai Raghzai village Wednesday, a foreign news agency report says. "We could hear artillery fire the whole night," said Alam Gul Bitani, who lives in neighboring Jandola village.

He said dozens of families, carrying their children and bundles of possessions, were streaming into his village to avoid the siege by troops, which began Wednesday.

Of the Militants

The militants, led by Abdullah Mehsud, a former Guantanamo Bay prisoner blamed for masterminding the kidnapping of two Chinese engineers have fired back at the troops with mortars and guns.

The rebels also fired rockets Thursday at a nearby checkpoint, but they landed in a field and caused no casualties, said an official in Wana, the main town in South Waziristan.

Authorities say the militants suspected of having al-Qaeda links are in South Waziristan. But there has been no hard evidence about the whereabouts of the two top al-Qaeda heads.

Mehsud and Men

On Thursday, Interior Minister Aftab Khan Sherpao told reporters in Islamabad that their security forces had surrounded a South Waziristan village where Mehsud and men were thought to be hiding. "We are optimistic that Abdullah Mehsud would be captured soon," he said.

Sherpao reiterated Pakistan's pledge that bin Laden or Taliban chief Mullah Mohamnmed Omar were not present in Pakistan. "Osama and Mullah Omar are not here, but they could be somewhere in Afghanistan, where they have more options to hide," he said.

Pakistan, a key ally of the United States in its war on terror, has arrested more than 600 al-Qaeda suspects.

Arrests

Officials on Wednesday said they had captured a suspected al-Qaeda communications expert of Middle Eastern origin. They identified him as Abdul Rahman.

Information Minister Sheikh Rashid Ahmed confirmed the arrest of a terror suspect, but would not give details. Rehman, who was known as "Electronic" within al-Qaeda, was also wanted by U.S. intelligence, Sheikh said.

On Thursday, another official, said an al-Qaeda suspect, a Yemeni in his 20s identified as Saleh Nauman was arrested in Lahore city on Tuesday as he was leaving for the airport.

Nauman had allegedly been trained as a terrorist in Afghanistan. Info Minister said he could not confirm the arrest.

Yet, Sherpao confirmed both arrests, but gave no details. "At this stage, I can only say they are al-Qaeda suspects, and our security agencies are questioning them," he said.

Another report says that security tracked him as he traveled from Wana, near the Pakistan-Afghanistan border, through Islamabad and on to Lahore. Minister said he was planning to return to Yemen through the Arabian Sea.

Pakistani authorities said; he was carrying some important documents with him.

Spinkai Raghzai

Sherpao said troops have surrounded Spinkai Raghzai, about 55 kilometers (35 miles) northeast of Wana, to capture Abdullah Mehsud.

Officials say Mehsud has forged ties with al-Qaeda, although his whereabouts have not been known since Oct. 14, when commandos raided a house where five of his men were holding the two Chinese engineers.

One of the Chinese was freed, but the other was killed in the assault. All five kidnappers were killed. Security chiefs then vowed to hunt down Mehsud, who disappeared after the attack.

Series of Offensives

Pakistan has launched a series of offensives this year targeting al-Qaeda fighters in South Waziristan, and says it has broken up several terrorist hideouts and training camps.œ

[pctech]

And now bin LAden knows we know if Lehman is correct. And if Lehman is correct, he should keep his damn mouth shut

In other words, LOOSE LIPS SINK SHIPS! You're right, if he knows where he is then he should keep his mouth shut!

[oceanview]

Bodansky claims he is living "as part of a normal family" in Pakistan - which means he doesn't have any type of protective structure around him that someone mught take notice of, he appears to be somebody's old uncle just puttering around the house I guess. So they may know what area he is in - but they probably don't know exactly what house. I think if they did know exactly where he was, they would have taken him out with a missile from a drone and that would have been it. But absent a precise location, what can you do? Carpet bomb that area and hope to get him? Its not going to happen, we all know that, especially inside Pakistan.

[WestVirginiaRebel]

If these people are so sure they know where Bin Laden is, then they should go get him for us. What say you, Jimmy?

If he's alive (A very big if) then he's got nowhere to go and we will get him eventually. Until then, these idiot know-it-alls should keep their traps shut.

[WestVirginiaRebel]

I mean Johnny, of course.

[oceanview]

how? that is the question. simply saying that he is generally in this area, doesn't mean you know where he is with enough specificity to go and get him. Its like saying you are someplace in Parkersburg West Virginia. OK, what do I do next? Its not like OBL just went to DMV for a license renewal or applied for an AMEX card in Pakistan - the kinds of things law enforcement uses to trace people in the US aren't available over there.

[WestVirginiaRebel]

Well, that's why I said a very BIG if. Personally, I think it's so hard to find Osama because both he and Elvis use the same line for seances and they keep getting mixed up.

[Scott from the Left Coast]

No...get him AFTER the election. Don't Churchill Bush. No time to the RATS say: "the war is over let's do healthcare."

[FreeReign]

Reading the article, I think we know "exactly" where he is meaning the region.

It's interesting that you quoted the word "exactly" in your post because the author of this article, Jim Mohr -- didn't.

Which leads to the question: Why not?

[rdl6989]

A Bin Laden video was shown on Al-Jazeera April 15, 2002.

"In one of the clips shown today, Bin Laden and Zawahri kneeled side by side. Zawahri said: "Those 19 brothers who went out and worked and sacrificed their lives for God, God granted this conquest that we enjoy today." -The Guardian http://www.guardian.co.uk/afghanistan/story/0,1284,684901,00.html

It is important to note that when the video was made is diputed.

Gen. Tommy Franks said recently that Intel at the time disputed whether Bin Laden himself was in Tora Bora, Kashmir or just across the Pakistan border. http://www.chron.com/cs/CDA/ssistory.mpl/editorial/outlook/2856222

I had thought for a long time that he was dead, but Franks comment makes me a lot less sure.

[ILS21R]

Here he is.

[PROSOUTH]

October 31st Trick or Treat?

[rob3006]

Thanks for the Froggy Ruminations link. Very interesting.

[RedwM]

Find him, kill him and hang him up like Mussolini, and let the 'rats have their fun.

[Prost1]

For those interested in what the religion of peace is about, please check this link:

http://news.daylightonline.com/Quetta.html

Quetta, capital of Baluchistan. A very unfriendly place.

[rdl6989]

If he is dead, his grave may look something like this, plus a few bomb craters.

[SunkenCiv]

Heh heh... this puts Pakistan on the spot -- get him, and get him now!

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George W. Bush will win reelection by a margin of at least ten per cent

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[Rockitz]

Drop one of those bunker busters on him.

That would be a nice proof of concept.

[Rockitz]

Cruise Missile

There may be too much valuable information to be gained by apprehending him without vaporizing everything within a 500 meter radius of him. Seizure of his computer may hold the keys to every other Al-Qaeda cell in the world in addition to his funding sources.

[SoCal Pubbie]

In the words of Miracle Max, he's only partly dead. If he was all dead, that's another story