Al Qaeda Weighs In
On Waziristan peace talks, offs 8 tribal elders who were talking to Pak security forces.
If not AQ, then Taliban, or someone who shares their goals, not to put to fine a point on it. H/t Reader Steve who suggests these scalps belong to NYT, all the news that’s fit for a jihadi headsup, but I’d suggest the timing puts this hit on its own schedule, and separate peace(s) with Paks who are at best lukewarm to cooperating with the Americans is something that has worked well for Waziri jihadis, AQ to date.
Topics: GWOT, Pakistan, al qaeda
Posted by Jules Crittenden at 6:57 am Comments (4) on Monday, January 7, 2008
4 Responses to “Al Qaeda Weighs In”
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January 7th, 2008 at 7:03 am
But, they are the religion of peace! Just as long as we submit.
January 7th, 2008 at 8:43 am
That’s really a tragedy.
It’s exactly the modus operandi in Lebanon and (for awhile) in Iraq.
Kill anyone who isn’t on board for the radical agenda.
January 7th, 2008 at 12:42 pm
Murdering tribal leaders may work for a while, but I suspect al Qaeda will become just as popular in Pakistan as they are in Iraq.
January 7th, 2008 at 4:55 pm
No doubt Jules’ measured approach is closer to reality.
Through my lens, tribal elders would be a vital source for actionable intelligence on the whereabouts of high value targets and their associates. I doubted the Pakis were looking to make a truce this soon after burying Bhutto, but their tactics never have made much sense. Still, it’s hard to say what was going to take place at that meeting.
The NYT revelation the US was on the verge of striking could have resulted in a stepped up timetable or bigger hit list. The jihadis could not risk letting the elders go the meeting. The hits were also meant to send a message to the rest of the region, as stated by others here.