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| Terror Networks & Islam |
| Al Qaeda Has Spy Drones!! |
| 2005-09-13 |
| Pakistani forces recovered an unmanned drone aircraft and seized 21 militants in a raid on suspected Al-Qaeda hideouts in the tribal areas near Afghanistan, a top commander said. Militants used the Chinese-made vehicle to spy on security forces in the rugged area, where Pakistani soldiers have battled Islamic militants for more than a year, Lieutenant General Safdar Hussain told reporters. The find in North Waziristan, believed to be the first of its kind in Pakistan, came as President Pervez Musharraf unveiled plans to build a fence along part of the border with Afghanistan to curb the movement of militants. "The busting of this stronghold has broken the back of Al-Qaeda in the tribal area," Hussain, who commands troops in northwestern Pakistan, told reporters in Peshawar. The 21 suspects detained in Monday's raid on a compound and religious school near the region's main town of Miranshah included "important" militants and some were foreigners, Hussain said. He did not give their nationalities. "The terrorists used the RPV (remotely-piloted vehicle) to check the position of security forces and attack them," the general said, adding that the drone was capable of carrying weapons. The vehicle was shown to the media along with audio and video CDs about the anti-Soviet "jihad", or holy war, in Afghanistan, motivational songs in Arabic and a number of maps, mostly in Russian. A military officer from the army's Signal Corps said the vehicle had a sophisticated, wide-angle camera to take pictures of targets on the ground, while Hussain said they had seized a CD which pinpointed Pakistani troops. Security forces also found a "suicide jacket" and Jordanian, Afghan and Pakistani passports along with Al-Qaeda training material from the compound, Hussain said. Additionally they uncovered a cache of weapons including 17 machine guns, 29 rockets, 51 grenades, eight improvised bombs and 10 landmines, he added. Around 4,000 troops took part in the operation, which included raids on two other sites. Pakistan's network of Islamic schools, or madrassas, came under international scrutiny because one of the July 7 London suicide bombers attended one. "This madrassa (religious school) was an Al-Qaeda and Taliban stronghold and operational centre which we have secured now," General Hussain said. The buildings are owned by relatives of former Taliban minister Jalaluddin Haqqani. He was a former anti-Soviet fighter who later served as the Islamic regime's minister for frontier regions. He is still on the run. Last week key US ally Pakistan said it was sending 9,500 more troops to the border before the Afghan elections, bringing the total to 80,000. Around 250 Pakistani soldiers and many more alleged militants died last year in a crackdown on insurgents who fled to the area from Afghanistan in late 2001 and early 2002, after US-led forces toppled the Taliban regime. |
| Posted by:Captain America |
| #4 I got $20 that says that if this is turns out to be true that it is a Iranian drone like the ones Hezbollah has been flying over northern Iran. No discription but I dont think the Chineese care to see the Muslim radicals gain any more power in thier backyard. Thinking caucases and the Norks well thiey are just a Chineese proxy like Cuba was to Russia back in the day independent but any major moves with high risk would have to approved by the leadership. |
| Posted by: C-Low 2005-09-13 23:43 |
| #3 adding that the drone was capable of carrying weapons. Thanks for the laugh General. It's a $100 RC hobby plane setup with about a 3' wingspan. Payload is a few ounces. The "surveilance system" is probably nothing more than a fixed focus wireless camera with an attached RF amplfier. |
| Posted by: ed 2005-09-13 22:06 |
| #2 Looks like a RC hobby airplane |
| Posted by: john 2005-09-13 21:49 |
| #1 Chinese equipment. Direct purchase, or through the NorKs? |
| Posted by: Robert Crawford 2005-09-13 21:40 |