Yesterday, after the death of al Qaeda emir Osama bin Laden was announced, hundreds of Pakistanis, including a “federal lawmaker,” took to the streets of Quetta in Baluchistan province to mourn the death of the terrorist leader and denounce the US raid. From The Express Tribune:
Hundreds took to the streets of Quetta on Monday to pay homage to Osama bin Laden, chanting death to America and setting fire to a US flag, witnesses and organisers said.
Angry participants belonging to a religious party in Quetta, the capital of southwestern province Baluchistan, were led by federal lawmaker Maulawi Asmatullah. They also torched a US flag before dispersing peacefully.
It was the first rally in Pakistan after the United States announced that bin Laden had been killed in an overnight commando mission in Pakistan.
Organisers said between 1,000 and 1,200 people attended the rally, but witnesses put the figure closer to 800.
“Bin Laden was the hero of the Muslim world and after his martyrdom he has won the title of great mujahed (Muslim fighter),” Asmatullah said.
Meanwhile, the upper house of the Pakistani parliament spent their time worrying over the optics of bin Laden’s death in Pakistan, as well as voicing concerns over the US’ “assault on Pakistan’s territorial sovereignty.” From Daily Times:
The killing of al Qaeda chief Osama Bin Laden echoed in the Upper House of parliament on Monday as the senators questioned the operation of US forces inside the country which, they said, was a direct assault on Pakistan’s territorial sovereignty.
They also deplored the silence of the government to give its version of the events involving US military operation in Abbottabad which killed Bin Laden.
They noted that “the killing of al Qaeda chief has given an opportunity to the international community to blame Pakistan for having safe sanctuaries of terrorists on its soil”.
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12 Comments
federal lawmaker says it all about this terrorist state!
“the killing of al Qaeda chief has given an opportunity to the international community to blame Pakistan for having safe sanctuaries of terrorists on its soil”.
That’s the Quote of the Day, hands down.
I hope that the Senator expands his quip into a full-page essay. I’d like to know more about this “blame” issue. Does he mean to fault the ISI for discrediting Pakistan by sheltering terrorists? Is he whining that the”international community” notices? Or, is he claiming that the memory of honored guest Osama bin Laden is being maligned by the use of the word “terrorist”?
We’re all ears, Senator.
It might be time to tell Pakistan’s Senators our violations of theirterritorial sovereignty can be lots worse.
i think it is time to set up a new “territory” in NWA,
the operation couldn’t take over a couple weeks, after all, Pakistan can’t even tell if there are heli’s over their own capital in the middle of the country…
what are they going to do when they lose NWA? as if they had ever owned it ever in the first place.
it is time to stop pussy footing civilian casualties, they are fact of war, and it is time to make real war on NWA for two weeks, instead of half assed war for 10 years, the war in Afghanistan would be over in two weeks with such a strategy of total war in NWA
(a much much smaller target and easily defined, and easily coordinated because of such a small area compared to all of Afghanistan.)
this is where the Taliban are, like banks, you go where the money is. much quicker.
“assault on Pakistan’s territorial sovereignty.”
—-
Sovereignty, like virginity, is a bubble–once pricked all gone!
I wonder if this raid gives the US military confidence that if it wants to twist the knife in this monster called Pakistan that, it can get into Baluchistan by air, land and sea and establish a logistics pipeline in a matter of days.
The top myths about Pakistan are that:
A) That it is a one ‘nation’ at all. (Just as there are ‘good’ terrorists and ‘bad’ terrorists, there are good and bad, and rotten parts of Pakistan. But it is riddled with conflict all round, pervasively and at every level.)
B) It has a great military. (Its crap, without going into details, esp. given the length of their borders on all fronts. They are all quantity/no quality, inept and inexperienced, led by corrupt generals who are filled with hot air.)
C) That somehow this basket-case can be turned around. (You have to be an alchemist to turn around a piece of junk. Their leaders, all round, are their for the power and on the take. They give two hoots about the future of their people.)
D) That their nukes are a great shield. (The elite are not suicide bombers, they love their creature comforts–whisky, good food, clothes, big houses, a US uni education for their kids etc–way too much to pull any triggers and risk annihilation.)
E) That Pakistan is anyone’s “ally” at all. (Even Pak and China are like trying to blend oil and water. Besides, China (silent thru the OBL raid) has larger ambitions and will toss Pak into the winds rather than be the last friend standing.)
My BIG ISSUE with Pakistan is that it is holding up the progress of this whole world in this 21C. The world has lost 10 years in this new ‘rainbow’ century, all thanks to this one wretched place.
Well, if we have to lose another five, ten years to get back on track, it’ll still have been worth it.
I care less about what goes on inside Pakistan; more about what spills outside. Sovereignty is a two-way street–you don’t want others coming in, well we don’t want any of your crap oozing out either. Sort yourselves out or someone else will. That is the message from May Day Sunday night.
The only way forward for this hellhole is to split the country into four different countries as the Punjabis,Balochs,Pasthuns and Sindhs all hate each other!
The death of OBL could provide the cover that the ISI would need to break with AQ. It would be nothing new. Their patrons the Saudis made the break five years ago or so. If the ISI broke with the AQ — so would the Taliban.
I don’t want to hear about Pakistan’s sovereignty. Bottom line is that Bin Laden was in Pakistan despite years of denials.If the ISI would’ve been notified of this operation in advance we wouldn’t have gotten Bin Laden.The ISI is a terrorist organization that supports,shelters and enables terrorists to operate freely in their own country. Hello?? Every major catch or kill has been in Pakistan from Ramzi bin Alshibh to KSM to Bin Laden and countless others that went there to blend in and seek shelter from US forces.Pakistan just got their lunch handed to them and I personally love it!!
God Bless America, our intelligence services, our military, and even Obama for pulling this one off!!
Cheers!!
Yes, it was. So what?
One begins to question the profit gained from supporting such a country. I recognize the strategic value of Pakistan but still, what has several billion a year in aid, millions spent on flood recovery bought us? What good will have we generated, what stability have we built? I am beginning to wonder why I am paying someone who burns my flag and mourns my enemy.
I really don’t think, given wat we now know, that this is a valid argument. Pakistan=State sponsor of terror. Bottom line.
Beast of the beast is death, no more money to Pakistan under the pretext of the so called war against terrorism. i think we should boost up to our special ops raids within Pakistani soil. terror and terrorism has its deepest roots in Pakistan, we should cut its root rather than spending billions of dollars and losing thousands of men cutting the leafes in Afghanistan.