Al-Qaeda 'killing' spawns doubts
By Rahimullah Yusufzai
Peshawar
It was unusual for Islamist websites to break the news of the death of an
important al-Qaeda operative as they did this week in the case of Abu Laith
al-Libi.
Two such websites - Ekhlaas.org and as-Sahab - which usually carry
statements from al-Qaeda leaders, reported the story.
These websites and al-Qaeda and its affiliates usually deny any report of
their operatives' deaths because the loss of a leading member of the network
could be demoralising for its rank and file.
This change could mean one of two things.
Perhaps it was no longer possible to keep secret al-Libi's killing in an
apparent US missile strike on a hideout of militants in a village near Mir
Ali town in North Waziristan.
Or perhaps the intent was to say that he was dead, even though he may be
alive, and prompt all those closing in on him to give up the chase.
'Significant loss'
Conclusive evidence about his death is difficult to obtain as the village
near Mir Ali is presently outside the writ of the government of Pakistan.
It is also far from the bases of the US and Nato forces in neighbouring
Afghanistan.
Even four days after the missile strike on Khushali Torikhel Wazir village,
2km (1.2 miles) south of Mir Ali, the Pakistan government was still unable
to officially confirm or deny anything about the airstrike or provide
details about the death toll and the identity of those killed.
The government and the military have been finding it difficult and risky to
send men to the targeted village to seek details about the missile attack.
ABU LAITH AL-LIBI
Born: Libya, around 1967
Description: 193cm (6'4") tall, solid build, dark hair and eyes, scars on
back
Role: Senior operations commander; al-Qaeda spokesman
Source: Globalsecurity.org
The new governor of North-West Frontier Province (NWFP), Owais Ahmad Ghani,
told reporters that the government had finally sent officials to the
village.
However, it is doubtful if the government would share any information gained
with the media and the public.
In the absence of more solid information, there is lots of hearsay and
speculation.
Pakistani Taleban in North Waziristan are claiming that al-Libi was not
among the 13 mostly Arab and Central Asian militants who intelligence
sources say were killed in the missile strike by a pilotless, CIA-operated
Predator aircraft.
However, they conceded that al-Libi had been seen in that area recently.
Some reports suggested that al-Libi was not present at the targeted house at
the time of the attack, but that his deputy Abu Sahel was there and had been
killed.
Disruption
If al-Libi was killed in the airstrike, this would be a significant loss for
al-Qaeda.
It has been some time since someone considered as important has been killed.
Although the network is known to quickly replace its fallen or captured
operatives, the loss of such an important member would be painful for the
group and could degrade its effectiveness and disrupt its immediate plans
for attacks against the US and its allies.
Apart from the operational impact, al-Libi's death could also have political
and symbolic effects because he was seen a few times with al-Qaeda's deputy
leader, Ayman al-Zawahiri, in video-tapes and had given speeches to preach
"jihad" and attract Muslims to his cause.
If al-Libi's death is confirmed in the airstrike in Pakistan, the belief
that Dr Zawahiri or even Osama bin Laden were also hiding in the Pakistani
tribal areas such as Waziristan will gain more strength.
This would put greater pressure on the Pakistan government to hunt down
al-Qaeda and Taleban operatives hiding in Waziristan and elsewhere in the
country.
The US too would find justification for its troops to be allowed to deploy
in the tribal areas bordering Afghanistan to carry out operations against
the hideouts of the wanted al-Qaeda and Taleban fighters.
Story from BBC NEWS:
http://news.bbc.co.uk/go/pr/fr/-/2/hi/south_asia/7223741.stm
Published: 2008/02/02 09:56:56 GMT
C BBC MMVIII
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