Space War
The believed killing of Baitullah Mehsud in a US drone attack points to closer cooperation between Pakistan and the United States in the covert war against Taliban and Al-Qaeda suspects, analysts say.
Mehsud killed while getting 'leg massage': report
Taliban chief Baitullah Mehsud was killed last week in a CIA drone attack while getting a leg massage on the roof of his father-in-law's house, CNN said Monday, citing an unnamed US official. A US counterterrorism official told AFP, meanwhile, that "there are strong indications (Mehsud) is dead" following a drone attack. "No one is expecting him home for dinner tonight," the official said. US President Barack Obama is being told Mehsud was killed after a "dramatic escalation" of nine unmanned drones specifically targeting the Taliban leader in recent weeks, the US official told CNN television. On Wednesday night, US surveillance in Pakistan spied a man on the roof of Mehsud's father-in-law's home in South Waziristan. The description was of a "short, stocky man who was following the physical description" of Mehsud, CNN said, citing the intelligence official. A woman was massaging the man's leg and the Central Intelligence Agency knew Mehsud had diabetes, experienced pain in his legs, and often sought relief in that way, the report said. Officials already had authorization from Obama to strike Mehsud if they thought they had a clear shot. "That's when the CIA decided to move in," the network said the official said. A top Taliban commander, Hakimullah Mehsud, earlier Monday challenged Pakistan to prove that Mehsud was dead, insisting in a telephone call to AFP that the warlord was still alive. Although Pakistan said it believed Baitullah Mehsud was killed in a US drone attack along with his wife on Wednesday, confusion has reigned and the government there has stopped short of confirming his death. White House national security advisor Jim Jones said on Sunday that the United States was "90 percent" sure Baitullah Mehsud is dead after a US missile strike. "The Pakistani government believes he is and all the evidence we have suggests that," Jones said in an interview with Fox News Sunday. Hakimullah Mehsud claimed the insurgent group would issue a message in the next three to four days proving Baitullah Mehsud was still alive. Hakimullah said only that Baitullah was "a bit sick." Hakimullah did confirm to AFP, however, that Baitullah's wife had been killed in an attack, adding that the Taliban would soon avenge her death.
Mehsud's purported death last Wednesday when a US drone fired two missiles into his father-in-law's home in remote South Waziristan would mark the biggest success of the covert CIA war against militants in Pakistan's tribal belt.
Although the United States refuses to confirm individual attacks, US officials say air strikes are effectively eliminating militants they accuse of plotting terror attacks on the West and the region from inaccessible mountains.
US national security adviser Jim Jones welcomed the reported killing as "a big deal" which he told NBC News meant US efforts to forge closer security ties with the Pakistani military were "moving in the right direction".
Last May, the director of the Central Intelligence Agency Leon Panetta said unmanned aircraft had been "very effective" in targeting the leadership of Al-Qaeda, believed to be hiding in Pakistan's border regions with Afghanistan.
Despite more than 50 such attacks over the last year, Pakistan recently noted a US shift of attention towards Mehsud, having complained that US spies targeted those considered a threat to US troops fighting in Afghanistan.
"The US and Pakistan say they have a common enemy and a common fight," said Ishtiaq Ahmed, international relations professor at Quaid-i-Azam University.
"If the intelligence for striking Mehsud was provided by Pakistan, then we are seeing a different level of cooperation between the two countries.
"The Pakistani public should now say 'thank you America', because it has eliminated the greatest threat to Pakistan," Ahmed added.
Pakistan has in the past vociferously opposed drone attacks as a threat to sovereignty which risk whipping up a spiralling anti-American backlash that could destabilise the weak civilian government.
But if a US missile killed Mehsud -- blamed for the death of ex-premier Benazir Bhutto, hundreds of others and for cosying up to Al-Qaeda -- Islamabad will have less room to object and US attacks will increase, analysts said.
"Elimination of Baitullah Mehsud has widened the space for drones to operate in Pakistani tribal areas," said Ahmed.
Huge public opposition to Taliban encroachments into territory under direct government control last April and the wide support for Pakistan's offensive to push them back have also changed the dynamic.
Analysts say the US decision to target Mehsud has given a shot in the arm to Islamabad's battle against Islamist footsoldiers in western Pakistan, who are now deemed a domestic threat instead of a counter-balance to rival India.
"The US will be able to strike more now saying it is effective and Pakistan will have no justification to oppose these attacks," Pakistani tribal affairs expert, Rahimullah Yusufzai, told AFP.
"The killing of a key Pakistani enemy by the US will improve public opinion and create a soft corner for the United States in Pakistan," Yusufzai said.
But pressure will also mount on Pakistan to take advantage of the US drone attacks to step up its fight against Islamist militants and assert more control over the wild, semi-autonomous terrain.
"The death of Mehsud has opened up a window of opportunity for Pakistan, but it is limited in time and should not be wasted. Pakistan must establish its sovereignty or writ in tribal areas as soon as possible," said Ahmed.
Mehsud's Tehreek-e-Taliban Pakistan (TTP) movement appears to have been thrown in turmoil following Mehsud's believed death and reports have widely circulated of a deadly shootout between the camps of different contenders.
"The United States launched eight or nine drone attacks in recent months, targeting Mehsud's area. They did help Pakistan," said analyst Hasan Askari.
No comments:
Post a Comment