Top al-Qaeda Commander Killed

Two US strikes reportedly kill 18 today

(NEWSER) - A Reuters report that two US drone strikes killed 18 people in Pakistan today could become a common refrain: The CIA has significantly increased its drone attacks in the country over the last month, thanks to a secret diversion of weapons from the US military in Afghanistan, according to the Wall Street Journal . The move comes as tensions with Pakistan are at a dangerous high. More»

Airport shuttle driver points finger at US actions in Afghanistan

(AP) - A former Denver airport shuttle driver today admitted to a plot to bomb the New York City subways, saying he was recruited by al-Qaeda in Pakistan for a "martyrdom plan" against the US. Najibullah Zazi, 25, pleaded guilty to conspiracy to use weapons of mass destruction, conspiracy to commit murder in a foreign country and providing material support for a terrorist organization. He faces a life prison sentence without parole at a sentencing in June. More»

President, Clinton cite US arrests, but link to Pakistan appears weak

(NEWSER) - The White House has been overstating the link between recent domestic terrorism arrests and al-Qaeda activities in Pakistan and Afghanistan, security experts say. In justifying the Afghanistan troop buildup, President Obama cited recent arrests within the US; Hillary Clinton cited some of the same incidents a few days later. But the connection between al-Qaeda’s nerve center in Pakistan and those arrests is much more nebulous than they’re implying, counterterrorism officials tell the Washington Independent . More»

Whether Taliban will facilitate or shun terror group is up in the air

(NEWSER) - The principal rationale for the original US invasion of Afghanistan was the elimination of an al-Qaeda safe haven. Almost a decade later, the terrorist group is much diminished there, as well as in Pakistan, prompting serious second thoughts within the administration about ramping up forces in the region. Aides to special envoy Richard Holbrooke suggest that though the Taliban is resurgent, should they gain control again they would not ally with the terrorist group. More»

(NEWSER) - CIA-directed air raids into Pakistan have “decimated” al-Qaeda’s senior leadership, killing up to a dozen high-level targets, senior US military officials tell NPR. They say a “complete al-Qaeda defeat” there is now entirely possible. “The enemy is really, really struggling,” says one official. “These attacks have produced the broadest, deepest, and most rapid reduction in al-Qaeda senior leadership that we’ve seen in several years.” More»