Khost bomber
Dawn Editorial
Monday, 11 Jan, 2010
A video purporting to show a Jordanian suicide bomber, who killed several CIA agents in Khost, seated next to Hakeemullah Mehsud, the leader of the TTP, raises some very troubling questions. While the authenticity of the video has not yet been established, the initial consensus seems to be that it is genuine. Even if it is not, what is clear is that statements claiming responsibility for the attack have been attributed to the TTP and that the TTP has not contradicted those claims as yet.
Here, then, seems to be a spectacular example of collaboration between the TTP, Al Qaeda and the Afghan Taliban. (Al Qaeda has already released a video paying tribute to the Jordanian bomber, while the CIAs forward operating base in Khost was almost certainly being used to direct operations against the Haqqani network on both sides of the Pak-Afghan border.) So does the attack signal a new phase of heightened cooperation between the various militant groups straddling the Pak-Afghan border? We must recall that Waliur Rehman, a South Waziristan TTP kingpin, recently boasted that the TTP has sent thousands of its men to fight the American-led forces in Afghanistan a claim that has largely been dismissed as propaganda, but which indicates the keenness of the TTP to drum up its role in Afghanistan.
Moreover, do recent events make nonsense of the so-called good Taliban/bad Taliban distinction that the Pakistan Army allegedly makes? Certainly, many have pointed to the problem inherent in the armys strategy of focusing its operations on those groups that are directly attacking the state here: cross-pollination between discrete militant groups has made such a distinction hard to justify. In some cases, the army has had some limited, short-term tactical success with its approach, but the strategic and long-term costs are hard to justify. For example, before the operation in South Waziristan, an understanding was reached with Hafiz Gul Bahadur in North Waziristan to stay out of the battle. He did, but then in many cases he has either given sanctuary to TTP militants from South Waziristan or allowed them safe passage.
While we remain aware of the fact that the Pakistan Army does face some very real constraints opening too many fronts may cause violence to spike even higher inside Pakistan, operations need to planned and paid for, etc and that the American do more demand is problematic, there is also the reality of a hydra-headed enemy. And, as with the mythical Lernaean Hydra, cutting off only some of those heads will not defeat the threat.
DAWN.COM | World | Khost bomber