Share this article
Print this page
Email a friend
- RSS
- Today's Paper
- Subscribe
- beta 2.0
High: 34°C
Low: 27°C
Alerts
Osama’s death a blow to al Qaeda
Osama was a symbol/icon for jihadis all over the world and his followers are likely to be demoralised by his death.
The writer is a retired brigadier who has served in Khyber-Pakhtunkhwa and Fata asad.munir@tribune.com.pk
Efforts for capturing Osama bin Laden were initiated in 1998 and now, after almost 13 years, the US has finally been successful in killing the most wanted man in its history. The death is a serious blow to al Qaeda and the aim set by America immediately after 9/11, to disrupt, dismantle, and defeat al Qaeda, has been largely achieved.
Osama was a symbol and icon for jihadis all over the world and his followers are likely to be demoralised by his death. Ayman alZawahiri could take his place, but since he does not have the charisma and stature of Osama, groupings on an ethnic basis might emerge. US President Barack Obama will obviously be a very happy man since Osama’s death is likely to help him in his exit strategy from Afghanistan, as well as in the next US presidential election.
The CIA had established a special cell for getting bin Laden way back in 1995. An operation was planned using Pakistani soil, but had to be abandoned after the military took over on October 12, 1999. The US has always been insisting that Osama and other al Qaeda leaders were hiding in the border regions of Fata but no specific location was ever indicated. He was last spotted in November 2001 in the Afghan-Shinwari area. There had been reports about his presence in different parts, including Kashmir, Mansehra, Chitral, Sialkot and Waziristan and even Kunar province in Afghanistan, but all these turned out to be untrue.
In March 2003, then president Pervez Musharraf claimed that Osama was dead since he was a kidney patient and could not survive without dialysis. However, he changed his stance once Khalid Sheikh Mohammed was arrested and evidence showed up that Osama was indeed alive.
Now, with the passing on of Osama, jihadis all over the world may adopt the manifesto of Abu Musab alSuri, who rejected the idea of a structured jihadi organisation and advocated the formation of small independent terrorist cells spread over the entire world, without any central leader.
The death is also likely to affect terrorists/militants in Pakistan. Osama was a symbol of unity for the Pakistani Taliban and is believed to have played a role in the formation of the Tehreek-i-Taliban Pakistan (TTP). The TTP may now resort to violence, but that could mean them going for so-called ‘soft’ targets.
Reports that he was living in this compound for the last five years may not be true as he kept on moving and never stayed in one place for more than 15-20 days. Those who are saying that pressure on Pakistan may now increase may be missing the point that Pakistani agencies had also, since long, suspected that he may have been hiding in some inaccessible remote area of Fata.
Published in The Express Tribune, May 3rd, 2011.
Read more:
binladen
Reader Comments (5)
Latest News
Junk-yard finds: ‘We’re glad the rich have garbage’
Our business thrives on rich people, if they were not there we would not have things to sell, says shopkeeper.
Post-prandial delights: ‘Don’t chew just because it looks cool’
Chew a paan the right way and for the right reasons, not because it looks cool, says Ahmed Bhai.
Cylinder explosion: 2 killed and 18 injured
An estimated 100 workers were present at the factory when a cylinder exploded, burring them under rubble.
Turkmens close to gas deal on trans-Afghan pipeline
Turkmenistan plans to sign the sales and purchase agreement for the TAPI pipeline.
Japan train with rice balls to sharpen soccer skills
The ball is irregular in shape so it behaves irregularly too. It sharpens reactions and helps improve concentration.
Recent Slideshows
More in Opinion
The curious case of Osama bin Laden
This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, redistributed or derived from.
Unless otherwise stated, all content is copyrighted © 2012 The Express Tribune News Network.
Technical feedback? webmaster@tribune.com.pk
It is amazing to note how intelligence sensitivities are taken so lightly. Osama bin Ladin’s strategic blunder to target United States and Allies first made him famous, then compelled him to become a fugitive and ultimately resulted in his death. His death will send a strong message to the so-called terrorists to re-prioritize their objectives and review their targets. Now they will focus on national targets instead of global agenda which will be far more embarrassing and unmanageable for United States because legitimate internal political upheavals will not provide legitimacy to American overt political, diplomatic and military intervention. Can America take action against protestors in Egypt or Libya, Bahrain or Syria? On what grounds will America do that? Military intervention in Libya has already been condemned across the globe.
So Obama’s death will not reduce American concerns it will immensely add to them!
Asad Munir has also made following intelligent observation:
**”Reports that he was living in this compound for the last five years may not be true as he kept on moving and never stayed in one place for more than 15-20 days.”**
If it is true that Osama was living in Abbotabad since October last year and he was moving in and out after every fortnight or even if he did that only once then why his movements were not detected by our intelligence agencies? May be they were waiting for an appropriate time or were asked to wait for an action?
Than he concludes with following interesting observation:
**”…those who are saying that pressure on Pakistan may now increase may be missing the point that Pakistani agencies had also, since long, suspected that he may have been hiding in some inaccessible remote area of Fata.”**
Pakistani agencies, according to him, **suspected** that he **may** have been hiding in some inaccessible remote area of FATA. They were not sure that he was living right under their nose in a militarily sensitive cantonment area!
Americans have produced a feature film **”FRANCIS”** on how intelligence is gathered. According to that film it is not necessary to be intelligent for qualifying to work for an intelligence agency. This is what Asad Munir practically demonstrates through his contributions! KEEP UP THE GOOD WORK GENTLEMANRecommend
a poor defense. go away. you will never speak the truth. you people have embarrassed this nation. shame on you allRecommend
Your bottoms are now clearly bare you ‘generals’ and ‘brigadiers’! Just shut your mouth instead of spreading non-sense!Recommend
How conviently Brig ignores the complicit role played by the ISI in the failed missile strike back in 1999. Had he been killed 12 years back, history surely would have been different!!!Recommend
Well written.
Very important issues which make easier for America to justify its interference into the any country to sub-potash its sovereignty, especially for Muslim countries like Pakistan. The recent scenario is still not quite visible. Look! What will be next?Recommend