http://story.news.yahoo.com/news?tm...=564&e=1&u=/nm/20031121/ts_nm/afghan_laden_dc BAGRAM, Afghanistan (Reuters) - A senior U.S. general said on Friday that al Qaeda mastermind Osama bin Laden (news - web sites) had "taken himself out of the picture" and that his capture was not essential to winning the "war on terror." General Peter Pace, vice chairman of the U.S. Joint Chiefs of Staff, said at U.S. military headquarters just north of Kabul that the 11,500-strong U.S.-led force hunting al Qaeda and Taliban militants was not focusing on individuals. "He (bin Laden) has taken himself out of the picture," Pace told reporters after visiting U.S. troops serving in Afghanistan (news - web sites). "It is not an individual that is as important as is the ongoing campaign of the coalition against terrorists," he said. America's new ambassador to Kabul Zalmay Khalilzad said earlier this week that the U.S. military would "redouble" its efforts to find bin Laden and other al Qaeda and Taliban leaders. While appearing to contradict this, Pace, added: "That is not to say that we would not be glad to capture Osama bin Laden today or tomorrow." He said U.S.-led forces were winning their war against "terrorists" in Afghanistan, despite nearly 400 people being killed in just over three months in the bloodiest period since the Taliban's ouster two years ago. "The fact that the enemy is not pooling up in waves that can be attacked in large numbers to me means that in fact the coalition is being effective," Pace said. There have been very few major clashes between U.S. forces and Islamic militants in the past two years. In the most recent case, hundreds of Taliban were hunted down by U.S. forces and Afghan troops in the troubled provinces of Uruzgan and Zabul in August and early September, leading to the death of over a hundred rebels. But generally U.S. operations, including the latest launched in the northeast earlier this month, kill few militants due to their apparent ability to blend into local populations or flee into the hills, often crossing into neighboring Pakistan. "We will continue to pursue them to make sure that they don't re-establish any kind of a stronghold," said Pace. He added that civilian-military teams already in some cities were the ideal way for the international community to contribute to Afghan stability, and that Pakistan and Afghanistan should work together to fight militants active on their common frontier. Afghanistan suspects Pakistan is turning a blind eye to Taliban and al Qaeda remnants, but Islamabad says it is doing all it can to support the U.S. "war on terror." Also believed to be at large in Afghanistan or Pakistan are Taliban supreme leader Mullah Mohammad Omar and bin Laden's deputy Ayman al-Zawahri.
as pretty much any New yorker will tell you. That is total BS I am a peace loving bleeding heart liberal and I want his ass Dead. any distraction from that single purpose(including the Iraq BS) is a waste of our nations resources untill we have proof of his actual death. Spin
I’m glad general pace is in such close contact with osama that he knows he is no longer a factor -- never mind that his survival is a symbol of defiance and a rallying point for millions of terrorists.
Everybody needs a few juicy rationalizations to get through the day, but this rationalization is just too much. The General is in effect apologizing for the fact that the armed forces cannot find Bin Laden or cannot come to a definite conclusion that he is dead. Either way, it's a bad spin.
Osama bin Laden killed 3,000 Americans, forced us to invade Afghanistan, sparked the entire so-called "War on Terror" that created the P.A.T.R.I.O.T. Act, and led to the invasion and occupation of Iraq...and now he's not worth our time? He walks away, scot-free. I can't believe they shovel this crap onto our plates and expect us to eat it. It's absolutely insulting.
I hope you're right, giddy. Otherwise, I find it intolerable. Hope we get him or confirm him killed soon.
I can see the flawed rationale behind that tactic, but that essentially gives him a freebie. They're telling him, "You can kill 3,000 Americans this once, but don't do it again. Or we'll try to catch you." I'm not sure I'm willing to risk another 3,000 dead Americans for the possibility that we might catch him again. He's already proven he can orchestrate a massive attack on American soil and walk away -- why give him the chance to do it again?
I don't think that is necessary. Maybe he has just laid too low for too long. They just want some kind of movement chattering to get back on his track. I just heard one report on the radio that he is in Iran. Maybe that's why we are all over Iran's a$$. I do not intend to let bin Laden perpetrate another devastating attack.
I'd agree with you if this was just a general speaking about his personal beliefs. But President Bush has said the exact same thing about bin Laden: "I truly am not concerned about him."
Sort of like how we were all over Iraq because of our *solid* intel on the WMD? I'll believe it when we have his corpse or what's left of it.
So you think he was taking the Bush spin? He did give reasons for his opinion: "The fact that the enemy is not pooling up in waves that can be attacked in large numbers to me means that in fact the coalition is being effective," Pace said. I think he was just making a military assessment.
Doesn't this lack of intensity about bin Laden (maybe even Hussein) kind of fly in the face of all the arguments about how this war on terror is nothing but a personal vendetta for Bush and the neocons? Seems to me like they are looking at a bigger picture than you want to give them credit...
Well, for the idiots saying anything about a vendetta, you are correct. However, my view of the neocons (I mean Perle, Wolfie, et alia, the real thinkers behind the original doctrine) is that they are way too smart for vendettas. They want Pax Americana over the globe, and they think it can actually happen.
I see what you're saying. That may be true, and I hope to God it is. I guess I'm flabbergasted that we're allowing bin Laden to get away because he might not be a future threat. He killed 3,000 Americans, and *NOBODY* walks away from that. Either the Bush Administration sees no value in capturing him or they see value in his freedom. Either way, it's absolutely wrong.
Did I say I objected to the goal? No, I love the goal. The method of achieving it, via military dominance and intimidation, is what I object to. I love the goal of peace and global democracies flourishing in every corner. ... And thanks for the roll eyes -- they always brighten my day, a Friday no less in this case.
