WASHINGTON – What a relief to know we have Pakistan to help us fight terrorism.
Since its “reform-minded” president, Gen. Pervez Musharraf, agreed to “crack down” on Pakistani terrorists (many of them in his own army and intelligence agency), they’ve only managed to:
- Give refuge to “the evil one,” Osama bin Laden, and his top al-Qaida leaders and their families – as well as some Taliban leaders (on or before Dec. 7, when Kandahar, Afghanistan, fell).
- Attack the Indian Parliament in New Delhi (Dec. 13), and come close to igniting a nuclear war.
- Nearly blow up an American Airlines jumbo jet with a shoe bomb (Dec. 22).
- Attack the U.S. Information Center in Calcutta, India (Jan. 22).
- Kidnap an American journalist investigating the Pakistani links of shoe-bomber Richard Reid (Jan. 23), then decapitate him (likely between Jan. 29 and Jan. 31).
- Shelter the lead suspect in the murder-kidnapping, Ahmed Omar Saeed Sheikh (Feb. 5-Feb. 12) – the same 28-year-old, London-schooled, playboy terrorist who was allowed to roam Pakistan freely, despite kidnapping three Brits and an American in 1994.
Sheikh – a leader in the outlawed Army of Mohammed, al-Qaida’s branch office in Pakistan – is the same psycho who wired $100,000 to Mohammed Atta to help finance the Sept. 11 hijackings here.
Now that it looks like he’ll finally be imprisoned again, possibly in the U.S., don’t think the Pakistan-based terror will grind to a halt. Rather, expect another, possibly larger wave of Paki-led violence involving kidnappings of Americans, or hijackings of American or British jetliners.
Why? Because Sheikh’s Pakistani confederates hijacked an Indian Airlines jet in 1999 to free him and two others from an Indian jail. And Sheikh himself kidnapped the four tourists in 1994 to get a group of Islamic militants released from Indian jails.
Of course, Musharraf claims the murder of Wall Street Journal reporter Daniel Pearl was the last straw. He now promises to go after Islamic militants in his country with an “iron hand.”
Ever-trusting President Bush, meanwhile, continues to praise the administration’s key ally for its “strong leadership” and “help” in fighting America’s war on Islamic terror.
But with friends like Pakistan, who needs enemies?
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Osama bagman tied to Pearl kidnapping
Did ally Pakistan play role in 9-11?
U.S. delayed blacklisting Paki terror group
