July 29, 2007:
The United States has publicly
pointed out the location of nine terrorist training camps in the North
Waziristan area of the Pakistani tribal areas. It's in this area that
senior al Qaeda leaders are believed to be hiding, and the U.S. is trying to
persuade Pakistan to make a major move into the area to shut down the camps and
round up al Qaeda and Taliban members. The United States also refuted
reports that they would bomb targets in Pakistan without permission from the
Pakistani government.
The Pakistani government is now at war with al
Qaeda and the Taliban. The Islamic terrorists from both organizations threaten
to launch a major suicide bombing campaign, but, so far, this is off to a slow
start. Over the past six years of terrorist activity in the area, the
terrorists have made themselves very unpopular. So the Islamic radicals have to
be careful, as most Pakistanis are inclined to turn them in. The government is
also installing a network of video cameras in the capital, apparently inspired
by British security advisors, who have been working with Pakistani
counter-security forces to trade information and experiences.
July 28, 2007: In Pakistan's capital, the Red
Mosque complex was reopened. Islamic conservatives held demonstrations, and an
Islamic terrorist set of a suicide bomb, killing 14 and wounding 70.
July 27, 2007: In Kashmir, Islamic radical
tried to improve their image by ordering all migrant workers out of the region.
There are thousands of skilled workers and laborers in the area, and at least
ten percent of the them promptly fled. The cause of all this was the recent
death of a ten year old girl, apparently at the hands of two migrant workers.
The Islamic radicals have been having a hard time of it lately, with more and
more of their leaders getting caught or killed. Local Moslems are increasingly
turning terrorists in. That's because locals are losing confidence in Islamic
terrorists, who seem to bring violence, threats and death, and not much
else.
July 26, 2007: The caretaker military government in
Bangladesh is prosecuting politicians who, while holding senior government
poses, aided terrorists. There is also an ongoing crackdown on
corruption. But when the elections are held next year, most people expect the
corruption to return, and perhaps even attempts to use Islamic terrorism as a
political tool.
July 24, 2007: Pakistani police surrounded,
and tried to arrest Pakistani Taliban leader Abdullah Mahsud. They did capture
several of Mahsud's staff, but the man himself committed suicide rather than
give up. Pakistan hailed Mahsud's death as a great victory in the war on
terror. But it was several other things as well. Abdullah Mahsud was captured
in late 2001, while serving as a Taliban commander in Afghanistan. Since he was
a Taliban leader, he was sent to Guantanamo Bay, where he was interrogated for
over two years. He was believed to be hard core Taliban, but the Pakistani
government convinced the U.S. to let Mahsud go. The reasoning behind this was
that Mahsud came from a Pushtun family that was loyal to the Pakistani
government (he had a brother and brother-in-law that were officers in the
Pakistani army). The Pakistanis promised that Mahsud would no longer be a
problem. When Mahsud got back to Pakistan, he rejoined the Taliban and became a
big problem for the Pakistanis. The U.S. urged Pakistan to arrest Mahsud, but
there were always excuses. The real reason Mahsud was not picked up was that
the Mahsud family had influence with the Pushtun tribes, and grabbing Mahsud
would cause more bad feelings. But with the growing aggressiveness of the
Taliban and al Qaeda, Pakistan finally felt they were better off taking Mahsud
down.
July 23, 2007: In Pakistan's tribal areas,
rebellious tribesmen are going after para-military (tribesmen working for the
government) forces, since these men live in the area. Paramilitaries are
kidnapped and murdered. This causes tribal feuds, which can go on for
years.
July 22, 2007: In Pakistan's tribal areas,
attacks on army road checkpoints are being repulsed, leaving at least twenty
tribesmen dead today. The dozens of helicopters the army now has makes it
difficult for the pro-Taliban tribes to bring armed men together for attacks.
The army can spot any concentrations early on, and hit them with air strikes or
artillery. The tribes are forced to rely on guerilla attacks, which leaves the
roadblocks up, and the tribal economy crippled.