Source: Bin Laden directing al-Qaida figures

[Thrill]

Source: AP

WASHINGTON – The wealth of information pulled from Osama bin Laden's compound has reinforced the belief that he played a strong role in planning and directing attacks by al-Qaida and its affiliates in Yemen and Somalia, senior U.S. officials said Friday.

And the data further demonstrates to the U.S. that top al-Qaida commanders and other key insurgents are scattered throughout Pakistan, not just in the rugged border areas, and are being supported and given sanctuary by Pakistanis, a senior defense official said.

U.S. counterterrorism officials have debated how big a role bin Laden and core al-Qaida leaders were playing in the attacks launched by affiliated terror groups, particularly al-Qaida in the Arabian Peninsula, which is based in Yemen, and al-Shabab in Somalia.

Information gathered in the compound, officials said, strengthened beliefs that bin Laden was a lot more involved in directing al-Qaida personnel and operations than sometimes thought over the last decade. And it suggests bin Laden was "giving strategic direction" to al-Qaida affiliates in Somalia and Yemen, the defense official said.

Bin Laden's first priority, the official said, was his own security. But the data shows that he was far more active in providing guidance and telling affiliated groups in Yemen and Somalia what they should or should not be doing.

The officials spoke on condition of anonymity to discuss sensitive material.

Read more: http://news.yahoo.com/s/ap/us_bin_laden_al_qaida

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Guess he was more than just a symbol

[dkf]

1. If our focus had been on capturing him who knows how the op would have gone

[boppers]

4. "Bin Laden denies any active involvement in Al-Queda"

"Pleads not guilty on all counts, and accuses US of torturing him for keeping him in a jail cell and not allowing him private visits with his 'friends'"

[dkf]

6. Lol. Yeah that would have been a fiasco.

[No Elephants]

13. So what? He mde a video proving he was involved in 911 and Seals

picked up a ton of other evidence.

Are you implying he'd get anywhere with complaining if he were put in solitary, or that any jury or other tribunal in the U.S. would have acquitted him? Or is some massively false equivalency with Manning your point?

[boppers]

15. The SEALs did not have a warrant for their data collection.

It is arguably inadmissible in a court of law.

Oh, and according to some, the video in question was "faked", because it cast doubts on the BFEE executing a MIHOP.


edit: wrong word

[Dreamer Tatum]

17. You mean the video that scores of DUers now call the "Fat Osama" video?

The right thing to do in light of conspiracy enthusiasts, hand wringers, and doubting Thomases was to put a pill in the fucker.

[Roy Rolling]

2. How many times was W wrong? Let me count the ways....

1. "BinLaden is neutralized and holed up where he has been marginalized so he can do us no harm" (paraphrased)

[dkf]

3. I sure hope the Pakistanis aren't implicated in protecting him.

[robinlynne]

5. the Pakistanis are in the streets with signs saying America go now and supporting Bin Laden.

It was on al jazeera tonight. If you think Pakistan is an "ally" think agian. we have been paying them off for all these years to pretend to be. It is a ridiculous farce. OF COURSE they protected Bin Laden. and the taliban.

[groundloop]

8. Agreed. HOWEVER - we're also paying off Pakistan in order to keep their nukes from Taliban

I heard an interesting analysis of this on NPR. If we abandon Pakistan altogether there's a possibility they will elect a Taliban govt., thereby turning control of their nukes to the Taliban and by extension Al Quida. I don't have a good answer for that, I hope the hell President Obama and Secretary Clinton do.

[No Elephants]

12. Good point. I couldn't figure out why we've been paying them.

[robinlynne]

14. I don't either. but propping up the Pakistani military has created the 5th largest army in the world

a tiny country!!!!! Another analysis on kcet this week said that the highest level of pakistani military is taking the money and "sort of keeping the taliban out of power", but that the next level down i.e. the soon to be leaders, are completely pro-taliban and bin laden. So we are stopping a rainstorm with a tiny umbrella....Maybe giving them so much money and weaponry is a really really really bad idea. Our money is going to the taliban right now. All of those weapons? perhaps if our money and weapons stayed far away from Pakistan there could be a democratic movement, like that which is sweeping the middle east.
how can paying off the Pakistani military be a good thing? It is inevitable that they will do damage to their people and the world. Perhaps without our interference the Pakistani people themselves would stand a chance of creating a better government. there are great thinkers there. I think, once again, we have created a military monster. 20 billion buys a lot of weapons. and influence.

[buddysmellgood]

7. Who is leaking this stuff?

[Ghost Dog]

11. Psyops central, I guess.

[Dreamer Tatum]

18. So...saying that OBL was directing Al Qaeda is now "psyops?"

Wow.

I call it "obviousops."

[JackRiddler]

9. The laptop fought to the final shot and used a human shield!

[TomCADem]

10. Bin Laden directing al-Qaida figures

Source: Associated Press

WASHINGTON – The wealth of information pulled from Osama bin Laden's compound has reinforced the belief that he played a strong role in planning and directing attacks by al-Qaida and its affiliates in Yemen and Somalia, senior U.S. officials said Friday.

And the data further demonstrates to the U.S. that top al-Qaida commanders and other key insurgents are scattered throughout Pakistan, not just in the rugged border areas, and are being supported and given sanctuary by Pakistanis, a senior defense official said.

U.S. counterterrorism officials have debated how big a role bin Laden and core al-Qaida leaders were playing in the attacks launched by affiliated terror groups, particularly al-Qaida in the Arabian Peninsula, which is based in Yemen, and al-Shabab in Somalia.

Information gathered in the compound, officials said, strengthened beliefs that bin Laden was a lot more involved in directing al-Qaida personnel and operations than sometimes thought over the last decade. And it suggests bin Laden was "giving strategic direction" to al-Qaida affiliates in Somalia and Yemen, the defense official said.


Read more: http://news.yahoo.com/s/ap/us_bin_laden_al_qaida

---

Bin Ladin was in a large, secure compound operating with impunity for about five years. Of course, all the files they seized who have some value, and it is just amazing how Republicans who were once hammering President Obama for not aggressively pursuing terrorists, are now trying to minimize the impact of the raid on Bin Ladin's compound.

[BOG PERSON]

16. now we know who was the diabolical genius behind the underwear bomb plot

and the times square bomb plot.