lennart
29-01-04, 18:13
US Plans Offensive Vs Al-Qaida Inside Pakistan - Report
NEW YORK -(Dow Jones)- The Bush administration is preparing a U.S. military offensive that would reach inside Pakistan with the goal of destroying Osama bin Laden's al-Qaida network, the Chicago Tribune reported Wednesday, citing military sources.
The report said the administration is motivated by deep concern about recent assassination attempts against PakistanPresident Pervez Musharraf and a resurgence of Taliban forces in neighboring Afghanistan.
Citing sources familiar with details of the plan and internal military communications, the Tribune reported that U.S. Central Command is assembling a team of military intelligence officers that would be posted in Pakistan ahead of the operation. As currently envisioned, the offensive would involve Special Operations forces, Army Rangers and Army ground troops. A Navy aircraft carrier would be deployed in the Arabian Sea, the report said.
The Tribune cited sources as saying the operation, referred to in internal Pentagon messages as "the spring offensive," would be driven by certain undisclosed events in Pakistan and across the region. It cited a source familiar with details of the plan as saying this is "not like a contingency plan for North Korea, something that sits on a shelf. This planning is like planning for Iraq. They want this to be executable, now."
The report said the Defense Department declined to comment on the planned offensive or its details.
Such an operation would almost certainly demand Musharraf's cooperation, the report said. The Pakistani president has previously allowed only a small number of Special Operations forces to work alongside Pakistani troops in the semi- autonomous tribal regions. The Tribune quoted a military source in Washington as saying last week, "We are told we're going in to Pakistan with Musharraf's help."
The plan is characterized within the Pentagon as "a big effort" in the next year, the report said. A series of planning orders for the offensive were issued in recent weeks, the Tribune said, and the deadline for key planning factors for the military was Jan. 21.
Thousands of U.S. forces would be involved, the report cited planners as saying. Some of the 10,600 U.S. troops now in Afghanistan would be shifted to the border region as part of regular troop movements, and some would be deployed within Pakistan.
The Tribune cited internal Pentagon communications as saying the U.S. is also weighing how and if Iran can be persuaded to lend help, through direct or indirect channels.
Military planners said the offensive wouldn't require a significant increase in U.S. troops in South Asia, the Tribune said, but Special Operations forces that shifted from Afghanistan to Iraq in 2003 will return.
Chicago Tribune: http://www.chicagotribune.com
http://news.nasdaq.com/news/newsStory.aspx?&cpath=20040128%5CACQDJON200401280801DOWJONESDJONLI NE000926.htm
Pakistan, Syrie, Libanon, Somalie... welke landen willen ze eigenlijk niet aanvallen?
NEW YORK -(Dow Jones)- The Bush administration is preparing a U.S. military offensive that would reach inside Pakistan with the goal of destroying Osama bin Laden's al-Qaida network, the Chicago Tribune reported Wednesday, citing military sources.
The report said the administration is motivated by deep concern about recent assassination attempts against PakistanPresident Pervez Musharraf and a resurgence of Taliban forces in neighboring Afghanistan.
Citing sources familiar with details of the plan and internal military communications, the Tribune reported that U.S. Central Command is assembling a team of military intelligence officers that would be posted in Pakistan ahead of the operation. As currently envisioned, the offensive would involve Special Operations forces, Army Rangers and Army ground troops. A Navy aircraft carrier would be deployed in the Arabian Sea, the report said.
The Tribune cited sources as saying the operation, referred to in internal Pentagon messages as "the spring offensive," would be driven by certain undisclosed events in Pakistan and across the region. It cited a source familiar with details of the plan as saying this is "not like a contingency plan for North Korea, something that sits on a shelf. This planning is like planning for Iraq. They want this to be executable, now."
The report said the Defense Department declined to comment on the planned offensive or its details.
Such an operation would almost certainly demand Musharraf's cooperation, the report said. The Pakistani president has previously allowed only a small number of Special Operations forces to work alongside Pakistani troops in the semi- autonomous tribal regions. The Tribune quoted a military source in Washington as saying last week, "We are told we're going in to Pakistan with Musharraf's help."
The plan is characterized within the Pentagon as "a big effort" in the next year, the report said. A series of planning orders for the offensive were issued in recent weeks, the Tribune said, and the deadline for key planning factors for the military was Jan. 21.
Thousands of U.S. forces would be involved, the report cited planners as saying. Some of the 10,600 U.S. troops now in Afghanistan would be shifted to the border region as part of regular troop movements, and some would be deployed within Pakistan.
The Tribune cited internal Pentagon communications as saying the U.S. is also weighing how and if Iran can be persuaded to lend help, through direct or indirect channels.
Military planners said the offensive wouldn't require a significant increase in U.S. troops in South Asia, the Tribune said, but Special Operations forces that shifted from Afghanistan to Iraq in 2003 will return.
Chicago Tribune: http://www.chicagotribune.com
http://news.nasdaq.com/news/newsStory.aspx?&cpath=20040128%5CACQDJON200401280801DOWJONESDJONLI NE000926.htm
Pakistan, Syrie, Libanon, Somalie... welke landen willen ze eigenlijk niet aanvallen?