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Afghanistan
Taliban take a hit, but the fight goes on
2008-02-02
With the killing of Abu Laith al-Libi this week, the Taliban have suffered their biggest loss since being ousted from power in 2001, and they are left without their finest military brain just two months before their spring offensive.

All the same, while there will undoubtedly be a short-term negative effect over the loss of the talisman commander, the Taliban have a groundswell of support in place that is unlikely to be affected in the longer term. According to reports, Libi, 41, a Libyan, was killed on Monday in an attack by a US Predator drone in Mir Ali, a town in Pakistan's North Waziristan tribal area near the border with Afghanistan.

The US military placed Libi on its most wanted list in 2006, behind al-Qaeda leader Osama bin Laden, his deputy Ayman al-Zawahiri and Taliban leader Mullah Omar. Libi had a reward of US$200,000 on his head following his involvement in the February 2007 bombing at Bagram airbase in Afghanistan during a visit by US Vice President Dick Cheney.
Posted by:Fred

#6  Moose: That is, when al-Qaeda gets whupped, they move somewhere else and begin again as best they can. But the Taliban have nowhere left to go. If they lose, that is the end of them, and even the tribesmen will slit their throats.

Moosey besides Afghanistan and depending on the particular tribe, the Talibs move freely 'tween Wazoostan, Baluchistan, Iran, Turkmenistan, Uzbekistan, Tajikistan and greater Pakistan, SOME have even been sighted in Freemont Ca USA!

*************************************
Asia Times
Taliban take a hit, but the fight goes on
By Syed Saleem Shahzad

This assbite verily gushes over the genius, lion heart, and the Nobel qualities of Warrior Guru Abu Laith al-Libi. A veritable Giant amongst Goat Fondlers!! Pity by comparison the mere mortals in the Talib organization.

real objective eh, imagine a NYT reporter exclaiming the genuine greatness of Tommy Franks and General Petraeus.

BTW AND to repeat, these two American Heros really were and are GREAT!!
Posted by: RD   2008-02-02 18:13  

#5  "But the Taliban have nowhere left to go. If they lose, that is the end of them, and even the tribesmen will slit their throats."

What's the downside, 'moose? ;-p
Posted by: Barbara Skolaut   2008-02-02 16:20  

#4  The difference between al-Qaeda and the Taliban is that al-Qaeda has the luxury of attacking, but the Taliban is in a fight for their life.

That is, when al-Qaeda gets whupped, they move somewhere else and begin again as best they can. But the Taliban have nowhere left to go. If they lose, that is the end of them, and even the tribesmen will slit their throats.
Posted by: Anonymoose   2008-02-02 15:19  

#3  No Justice = Know Peace

(yes, it was said yesterday - it's always appropriate)
Posted by: Pappy   2008-02-02 14:18  

#2  Magnetic surveys can detect the presence of concentrations of iron or steel, and if the survey is complex enough, how deeply that concentration is buried and how big it is (in a simple survey a small shallow chunk of steel looks like a big deep one.) It would not identify non-magnetic weapons materials (plastique, lead, powder etc.) and it would not distiguish between, say, a sign post and a rifle.

In my opinion it should be possible to create a survey tool that would locate munitions with electrically-triggered detonators - by causing those detonators to spontaneously trigger. Lots of variables and unintended side-effects from something that is kind of like a controlled EMP, but it would be fun to watch mosques randomly and spontaneously self-destruct.
Posted by: Glenmore   2008-02-02 11:07  

#1  Can weapons caches be detected from above, say by magnetic anomolies, or must they be found by ground search? If the first, wouldn't it be lovely if, night after night after night, the many weapons caches of the many jihadi groups on the Pakistani side of the border were to suddenly decide to go boom?
Posted by: trailing wife   2008-02-02 10:29  

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