Return-Path: <sentto-279987-4936-1025409867-fc=all.net@returns.groups.yahoo.com> Delivered-To: fc@all.net Received: from 204.181.12.215 [204.181.12.215] by localhost with POP3 (fetchmail-5.7.4) for fc@localhost (single-drop); Sat, 29 Jun 2002 21:06:09 -0700 (PDT) Received: (qmail 18183 invoked by uid 510); 30 Jun 2002 04:04:13 -0000 Received: from n28.grp.scd.yahoo.com (66.218.66.84) by all.net with SMTP; 30 Jun 2002 04:04:13 -0000 X-eGroups-Return: sentto-279987-4936-1025409867-fc=all.net@returns.groups.yahoo.com Received: from [66.218.67.192] by n28.grp.scd.yahoo.com with NNFMP; 30 Jun 2002 04:04:27 -0000 X-Sender: fc@red.all.net X-Apparently-To: iwar@onelist.com Received: (EGP: mail-8_0_7_4); 30 Jun 2002 04:04:27 -0000 Received: (qmail 49764 invoked from network); 30 Jun 2002 04:04:26 -0000 Received: from unknown (66.218.66.216) by m10.grp.scd.yahoo.com with QMQP; 30 Jun 2002 04:04:26 -0000 Received: from unknown (HELO red.all.net) (12.232.72.152) by mta1.grp.scd.yahoo.com with SMTP; 30 Jun 2002 04:04:26 -0000 Received: (from fc@localhost) by red.all.net (8.11.2/8.11.2) id g5U44RI15943 for iwar@onelist.com; Sat, 29 Jun 2002 21:04:27 -0700 Message-Id: <200206300404.g5U44RI15943@red.all.net> To: iwar@onelist.com (Information Warfare Mailing List) Organization: I'm not allowed to say X-Mailer: don't even ask X-Mailer: ELM [version 2.5 PL3] From: Fred Cohen <fc@all.net> X-Yahoo-Profile: fcallnet Mailing-List: list iwar@yahoogroups.com; contact iwar-owner@yahoogroups.com Delivered-To: mailing list iwar@yahoogroups.com Precedence: bulk List-Unsubscribe: <mailto:iwar-unsubscribe@yahoogroups.com> Date: Sat, 29 Jun 2002 21:04:27 -0700 (PDT) Subject: [iwar] [fc:Blair's.aides.denounce.US.'blundering'.in.Afghan.war] Reply-To: iwar@yahoogroups.com Content-Type: text/plain; charset=US-ASCII Content-Transfer-Encoding: 8bit X-Spam-Status: No, hits=3.2 required=5.0 tests=RISK_FREE,FREE_MONEY,DIFFERENT_REPLY_TO version=2.20 X-Spam-Level: *** news.telegraph.co.uk - Blair's aides denounce US 'blundering' in Afghan war<a href="http://portal.telegraph.co.uk/news/main.jhtml?xml=/news/2002/06/30/wus30.xml&sSheet=/portal/2002/06/30/ixport.html">http://portal.telegraph.co.uk/news/main.jhtml?xml=/news /2002/06/30/wus30.xml&sSheet=/portal/2002/06/30/ixport.html</a> Blair's aides denounce US 'blundering' in Afghan war By Christina Lamb, Diplomatic Correspondent (Filed: 30/06/2002) Senior officials in the Prime Minister's office have launched an astonishing attack on America's handling of the hunt for Osama bin Laden and al-Qa'eda fugitives. They have told The Telegraph that troops carrying out house-to-house searches in the remote tribal areas of Pakistan along the Afghanistan border were "blundering" with a "march-in-shooting" approach. The US action was "backfiring", increasing support for terrorism and making it harder for bin Laden and his henchmen to be caught. "The Americans think they and the Pakistanis can just march in shooting", said an official closely involved in the direction of the war. "They don't understand the sensitivities. We have years of experience in the tribal areas and we know using force will just backfire and increase sympathy for al-Qa'eda." The comments will put further strain on Anglo-US relations after a week of tensions over the Middle East policy and the introduction of steel tariffs. The scale of the divide between London and Washington was made plain by scathing comments about the Bush administration by one British minister involved in negotiations over the steel tariffs. "You have to remember that this is a rather unpleasant administration," the minister told The Telegraph yesterday. "The fact there has been a full-blooded attempt to forge a relationship with it hasn't changed its fundamental nature - protectionist and self-interested." A spokesman for US Central Command angrily rejected the criticism. Col Rick Thomas said: "Our entire approach to removing the Taliban from power and eliminating the al-Qa'eda threat has been sensitive to regional issues. "We have liaison teams co-ordinating with the Pakistani military but have not been directly involved in any operations in that area." Although officially part of Pakistan, the tribal areas have governed themselves since British colonial times. They live by a strict code of honour, attacking and kidnapping outsiders who stray into their mountain valleys. Federal forces carry no mandate beyond the main highways and disputes with the outside have traditionally been resolved through negotiation between political agents and their chiefs, usually involving large amounts of money. Pakistan and the people of the tribal areas, who are Pathans like the Taliban, with little sympathy for the war on terrorism, refused to allow the search for al-Qa'eda to move there. The Pentagon claims that at least 1,000 al-Qa'eda crossed into the tribal areas late last year, possibly including bin Laden, and are now regrouping. After pressure from Washington, Pakistan agreed to deploy 12,000 troops in April, backed by US Green Berets, CIA paramilitaries and British special forces. Tribal leaders were furious. "This is not how things work here", said Arsallah Hoti, a leading member of the powerful Yusufzai tribe. "They have been raiding our villages with less than an hour's notice and even burst in on a wedding because they heard the traditional firing of Kalashnikovs and assumed it was al-Qa'eda." Mr Hoti visited London last week and expressed his concerns to an adviser to Tony Blair. "I think people who were ambivalent to al-Qa'eda in the tribal areas are now supporting them" he said. "A lot more could have been achieved through the old colonial way of negotiations rather than the American way of bombing and killing. The British understand that." Although Mr Blair and Mr Bush have presented the war on terror as a united stand, the argument over how to proceed in the tribal areas is the latest in a series of clashes between the British and American forces on the ground. The biggest rift came when the Royal Marines launched Operation Condor without telling US commanders. Operation Condor failed to capture any al-Qa'eda and Brigadier Roger Lane, the British commander, was removed from his post. 28 June 2002: Blair's opposition to Bush puts special relationship to the test 26 June 2002: Rift with US over ousting Arafat 20 June 2002: Pakistani troops move to wild frontier 9 June 2002: Britain to withdraw Marines after failure to catch al-Qa'eda 19 May 2002: Marines' chief under fire for Afghan 'farce' 13 May 2002: Pakistan faces US pressure to attack al-Qa'eda enclaves 7 March 2002: Steel tariffs a setback for Blair's US policy Next story: Sack for teachers who fail to spot pupils abused at home Related reports Matthew d'Ancona: It will take more than Arafat to tear Blair from Bush Simpson on Sunday: 'Arrogant' Bush shakes Alliance Blair rebuffed as rift with Bush deepens Nervous America awaits July 4 External links Hunt for Al-Qa'eda alienates Pashtuns [29 Jun '02] - Washington Post America's world role: Present at the creation [27 Jun '02] - The Economist US Central Command US Department of Defence News - UK Ministry of Defence White House War on terrorism - 10 Downing Street Army Times [US] © Copyright of Telegraph Group Limited 2002. Terms & Conditions of reading. Commercial information. Privacy Policy. ------------------------ Yahoo! Groups Sponsor ---------------------~--> Free $5 Love Reading Risk Free! http://us.click.yahoo.com/3PCXaC/PfREAA/Ey.GAA/kgFolB/TM ---------------------------------------------------------------------~-> ------------------ http://all.net/ Your use of Yahoo! Groups is subject to http://docs.yahoo.com/info/terms/
This archive was generated by hypermail 2.1.2 : 2002-10-01 06:44:31 PDT