Militants kill Pakistan brigadier in Islamabad

[maddezmom]

Source: AP

Suspected militants on a motorbike shot and killed a senior army officer and a soldier in the Pakistani capital today, striking at security forces as they pressed ahead with an anti-Taliban offensive in the north-west.

The assault in Islamabad showed the insurgents were able to hit the heart of the country, despite increased security, and deploy diverse tactics. In recent weeks, suicide bombings and attacks on a range of targets have killed more than 170 people.


In today's attack, two gunmen fired on an army jeep in a residential area of Islamabad. A soldier and a brigadier – a high-ranking army officer – were killed, while the driver was wounded, authorities said.

"Terrorists and extremists are behind this," Islamabad's top police officer, Syed Kalim Imam, said.

The offensive in South Waziristan, seen as a likely hiding place for the al-Qaida leader, Osama bin Laden, is considered a critical test of Pakistan's campaign against Islamist extremists. The military is advancing on multiple fronts, and in the past few days has been fighting for the hometown of the Pakistani Taliban chief, Hakimullah Mehsud. Kotkai is strategically important because it lies on the route to the militant base of Sararogha.



Read more: http://www.guardian.co.uk/world/2009/oct/22/militants-kill-pakistan-brigadier-islamabad

[Turborama]

1. I wonder...

...how long it will take for a post to appear saying it must have been the CIA who did it.

[demosincebirth]

5. Not long.

[Soylent Brice]

2. Army Brigadier, Soldier Killed in Pakistan Capital

Source: CBS News (AP)

Suspected militants on a motorbike shot and killed a senior army officer and a soldier in the Pakistani capital Thursday, striking at security forces as the military wages a major anti-Taliban offensive in the northwest.

Civilians fleeing the army operation in South Waziristan said Taliban fighters were roaming freely through much of the area and digging in their positions, a sign of tough battles ahead.

The new South Waziristan offensive is considered a critical test of nuclear-armed Pakistan's campaign against Islamist extremists blamed for attacks inside the country and on Western forces in neighboring Afghanistan.

Thursday morning's attack in Islamabad was the latest in a wave of militant attacks that have killed more than 170 people across the country over the past three weeks.



Read more: http://abcnews.go.com/International/wireStory?id=8886457

[saigon68]

3. Its a filthy corrupt country

Bribery, theft and corruption mark the leaders of this Cess-pool.

[EFerrari]

6. Ahmed Rashid was talking years ago about the nutcases training in

the hinterlands networking with dissidents in the cities. Pakistan has a big fat mess on its hands.

[cosmicone]

4. Chickens coming home to roost ..... n/t