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Tora Bora Among 'Greatest Military Blunders'

US had him pinned but held back on troops

By Harry Kimball,  Newser Staff

Posted Dec 22, 2009 11:51 AM CST
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(Newser) – Peter Berg has assembled what he calls the “definitive account” of "one of the greatest military blunders in recent US history"—the failure to capture or kill Osama bin Laden in 2001 at Tora Bora in Afghanistan. The operation started out well enough, he writes in the New Republic after extensive interviews with the main players. A crack team of CIA operatives tracked the al-Qaeda leader there, and hastily began raining bombs down on his positions.

Then things went downhill. Control of the operation was handed over to the military, hamstrung troops were forbidden from close engagement, and top brass refused to supply sufficient bodies to stymie escape to Pakistan. Berg surmises this was out of fear of casualties, a focus on a “light footprint,” early preparations for the Iraq invasion, or all three. Whatever the reason, we’d do well to remember the lessons of Tora Bora now. "In the hunt for members of the Taliban and al-Qaeda, there is simply no substitute for boots on the ground."

Soldiers on the ground in 2001 believe they may have been within a few thousand yards of the al-Qaeda leader.
Soldiers on the ground in 2001 believe they may have been within a few thousand yards of the al-Qaeda leader.   (AP Photo)
Journalists and anti-Taliban soldiers watch plumes rise from bombs dropped on Al-Qaeda positions by American bombers December 15, 2001, in the Tora Bora area of Afghanistan.
Journalists and anti-Taliban soldiers watch plumes rise from bombs dropped on Al-Qaeda positions by American bombers December 15, 2001, in the Tora Bora area of Afghanistan.   (Getty Images)
A CH-47 Chinook helicopter prepares to land and pick up members of a coalition force in the Tora Bora region of Afghanistan in 2002.
A CH-47 Chinook helicopter prepares to land and pick up members of a coalition force in the Tora Bora region of Afghanistan in 2002.   (AP Photo)
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COMMENTS
Showing 3 of 17 comments
Daddy-o
Dec 23, 2009 3:27 AM CST
The Bush administration intentionally let Bin Laden go free in Tora Bora in 2001. They had a plan and lock on his positions. The republican right in this country has a lot to answer for; starting with why they would aid the escape of America's no 1 enemy. @DLY, you're wrong again. There were serious bio attacks killing several Americans and resulting in the closure of the capital since 9/11.
JonmarkP
Dec 23, 2009 3:17 AM CST
It wasn't a blunder, error or mistake. It was intentional, and it was treason.
alkaseltzersammich
Dec 23, 2009 2:37 AM CST
GWB didn't find Osama in 8 years of his presidencies.

 
Bush administration • terrorism • Pakistan • aerial attacks • Osama bin Laden • Tommy Franks • al-Qaeda • Afghanistan war • Special Forces • Tora Bora • Delta Force

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