NATO forces have stepped up attacks on al Qaida and the Taliban inside Pakistan's tribal regions that border Afghanistan recently.
According to The Long War Journal,
There are currently 157 training camps and "more than 400 support locations" spread throughout the tribal areas and the settled districts of the Northwest Frontier Province.
In recapping this year's activity, Bill Roggio writes
The US has stepped up its attacks against al Qaeda and the Taliban's networks inside Pakistan over the past year. There have been 14 confirmed cross-border attacks by the US in Pakistan this year [see list below]. Six safe houses have been hit in North Waziristan, six have been hit in South Waziristan, and two have been targeted in Bajaur this year. Only 10 such cross-border strikes were recorded in 2006 and 2007 combined.
The most recent attack targeted the al Qaida-linked Haqqani madrassa
Fourteen people, including three women, were killed and 20 others injured in missile strikes by suspected unmanned US drones on a seminary linked to top Taliban Commander Jalaluddin Haqqani in Pakistan's restive North Waziristan tribal region today.
Explosions were resounded in the area as six to seven missiles hit the seminary and nearby houses in the region often suspected to be the haven for top Taliban and Al Qaeda leaders.
Though the officials maintained that those killed were civilians, including women and children, other reports said that upto seven militants, including those of foreign origins, could have been killed.
The target of the attacks was a seminary in Tanda Darpakhel, 2 kms from Miranshah, the headquarters of North Waziristan. Reports said atleast four missiles hit the madrasa run by Haqqani.
According to the International Herald Tribune
According to American officials, the two Haqqanis protect forces from Al Qaeda in their enclaves in North and South Waziristan, provide logistics and intelligence for Qaeda operatives, and act as a bridge between the Afghan and Pakistani Taliban, who share the common mission of driving American and NATO troops from Afghanistan.
This follows closely on a Special Operations raid inside the border regions of Pakistan
U.S. Special Operations Forces conducted a bold and unprecedented raid inside Pakistan early this morning on a suspected terrorist compound near the border with Afghanistan, U.S. and Pakistani officials told ABC News.
The raid was conducted at 3 a.m. local time by a Special Operations unit of about 40 troops operating on the ground and in the air, U.S. officials told ABC News. The officials described it as a successful operation but would not say specifically who was targeted.
According to one military official, a small number of militants was captured and several others killed.
The US military command in Afghanistan can plausibly deny its forces were involved in such a raid, as the operation have been carried out by Special Forces teams. Task Force 88, the hunter-killer teams assigned to take down al Qaeda and the Taliban's command structure, does not report to the conventional command in Afghanistan.
A raid of this nature - the insertion of US special operations team inside Pakistani territory - is rare. This would be only the second reported raid of this nature since 2006. Nearly every other attack was conducted by unmanned US Predator aircraft or missile strikes from Afghanistan.
US special operation teams raided an al Qaeda camp in Danda Saidgai in North Waziristan in March 2006. The camp was run by the Black Guard, the al Qaeda elite praetorian guard for Osama bin Laden, Ayman al Zawahiri, and other senior al Qaeda leaders.
The air assault resulted in the death of Imam Asad and several dozen members of the Black Guard. In addition to being the camp commander, Asad was a senior Chechen al Qaeda commander and associate of Shamil Basayev, the Chechen al Qaeda leader killed by Russian security forces in July 2006.
The insertion of US soldiers inside Pakistan is a risky venture. If this raid indeed occurred US intelligence must have believed that a senior-most al Qaeda or Taliban leader or leaders were present.
Senator Obama should be shouting "Go Team"
