"Missed it by that much."
Posted on 09/27/2007 6:09:14 AM PDT by Virginia Ridgerunner
A little more than a month ago...some U.S. intelligence and military analysts thought they had found one of the world’s two most wanted men just where they last saw them six years ago.
For three days and nights — between Aug. 14 and 16 — U.S. and Afghanistan forces pounded the mountain caves in Tora Bora...
(snip)
The military operation included "several hundred" U.S. and Afghan ground forces... Elements from the 82nd Airborne blocked off escape routes through the mountains on the Afghanistan side of the border, while helicopters inserted U.S. Navy Seals at night. The Seals pinpointed enemy positions and called in air strikes; the 82nd..."mopped up."
(snip)
What happened this time? Military officials admit there were unidentified "planning and coordination problems" even before it got to execution, “primarily between the operators and the generals who give the go-orders” added an intelligence official. A company of the 82nd Airborne was brought in since a Ranger team trained in special operations was not available. But the combination of the “dark side” — the SEALs — and the conventional — the 82nd Airborne — didn't work. "They didn't gel," said the military official. There was "a lack of responsiveness to the intelligence and a lack of aggressiveness."
(snip)
But the bigger part of the picture is the question of allocation of resources from Afghanistan to Iraq. All Delta Force and “dark side” Rangers were moved to Iraq, said a special operations officer involved in the Afghanistan operation. Left behind in Afghanistan were SEAL Team Six and some Rangers. But apparently in this case, not enough “dark side” were available. The 82nd, said a second special operations officer, “is a poor substitute … [it is] a blunder to use them on an op with dark side operators.”
(Excerpt) Read more at msnbc.msn.com ...
I’m not convinced he’s still alive anyway.
MSNBC taking a route and trying to spin it as some kind of failure.
“May have?” What kind of journalism is that? Aliens may have landed on the dark side of the moon.
This is the part the MSM and the Dems will be screaming aloud.
Yeah, those lastest 2 videos were just a hollywood prank. (roling eyes)
Oh sure. I believe PMSNBC.
But seriously, bin Laden’s been dead for years.
Its very possible that it was a faked video.
I never heard the term “dark side rangers” during my 22 years in the U.S. Army...
And it's the only reason MSNBC did this meaningless article.
Gee, what are they going to do? They cannot blame Rummy, or outsourcing for this one.
Real news from MSNBC that isn’t rabid anti-Bush? More rare than a personal interview with bin Dead.
Me either.
The Afghans who were surrounding Tora Bora (some of them, anyway) took bribes to let him go. Taking bribes for whatever is a thousand-year-old tradition in Afghanistan.
US troops don't take bribes. Therefore, if we did miss bin Laden again, MSNBC must invent another reason than bribery for why we failed. The simple fact is, in war, sh*t happens.
Congressman Billybob
There will never be any good news to report from this liberal network as long as there is a Republican President!
Anyway, Moderator, please delete this thread infaovr of yesterday's if you think it is necessary.
I’ve heard that term used a couple of times by current Army folk, who love to apply Star Wars ‘Sith’ terminology to their ops.
My take on it is that it was possibly Zawahiri who was at Tora Bora for this meeting, since I too think Bin Laden’s been stewing in Hell for some time now.
Me either. More like a lot of dust particles blowing in the wind.
Possible, but I’m not convinced he’s dead.
No, I hadn’t noticed that... I will have to look at it again on youtube or liveleak or somewhere.
This whole story smells of shiite. It’s just another drive by attack on the President and our Troops.
If you compare a known picture of the goat lover to the stills published from that latest video there are a number of facial characteristics that are considerably different, Greecian Formula on the beard not withstanding. Primarily, compare the brow line, the width of the nose and the height and shape of the ears. It's not the same guy. Pretty close, but not the same.
With modern technology it would be extremely easy, even in the most remote areas of Pakistan, to film this dick holding a copy of a recently published book to demonstrate that he is alive. He could also make explicit remarks regarding any recent political happening; to wit; Amadstupidjad's speech at Columbia. Yet nothing of this nature exists.
As I have said in the past, it is in the best interest of all parties that this bogeyman be kept alive (in theory) even though he is dead: For President Bush his continued existence is a way of keeping the War on Terror real for Americans; For his followers, it is a way of prolonging their Jihad and recruiting new morons; For the Drive-By Media; it is a way of bashing Bush for NOT having captured him.
"He dead Jim!"
And three authors for plausible deniability aka Operation CYA.
Correct, the only surprising thing is the headline didn't read
"Bin Landen escapes capture, allocation of resources to blame."
"Missed it by that much."
Most likely the basis behind this story is that someone from the SEAL command chain is PO'd at the Army and the 82nd over whatever happened there, and leaked the details to a reporter, resulting in this story.
The Navy is really schizophrenic about joint warfare, and I once even had a Navy admiral tell me to my face that jointness was dead in his service. Anyway, I don't think that killing a number of Al Qaeda and Taliban qualifies as a failure, but I suspect that the facts as presented here are probably accurate, despite the spin attempt by MSNBC.
Based on my personal knowledge and experience, which is admittedly outdated, it’s just not the way the military worked, and I doubt they did a 180 in deployment tactics since then.
I think anyone who is or was in the 5th or 7th SFG, the 82nd, or the 101st would tell you the same thing, even today.
Let us always keep our troops and their families in our prayers.
One day, we will get that son of a bitch
Nor am I.
I still can’t find that Grecian Formula passage in the Koran to this day....(chuckle)
Maybe...but there have been enormous changes in how all the armed services deploy and operate together in recent years, based on evolving Joint Doctrine, courtesy of Secretary Rumsfeld. As far as the Navy is concerned though, many of its senior leaders are still behind times and are resistant to change. I know this for a fact based on my own discussions with admirals and their immediate subordinates. In short, there are a lot of folks still in the Navy command chain who abhor working with the Army and look for any excuse to blame the Army when a joint mission runs into problems. It’s a fact of life in the modern Pentagon.
Let me guess: you also “knew” he was killed at Tora Bora
I’m not convinced he’s dead, either. If he is, why do our forces continue to try to capture or kill him? Why wouldn’t Bush just announce that the guy’s dead?
How could bin Laden have possibly escaped. He’s dead!
Has been for several years. The guy we do need to snuff is Zawahiri.
Only the MSM and total moron lefties still believe OBL is still breathing.
When your CinC, SecDef, CIA and numerous other SOF Commanders "go on record" telling you they believe someone to be alive (not dead).....You should read between the lines....(Just because you don't have "clearance" doesn't mean said Intel doesn't exist). I'll leave it there.
Unless all of them are just lying to us??
Understand, it is much easier for AQ (and our Gov't) to spin the truth than to continue to hide a lie....
No, it is most likely UBL remains alive (just as is Zawahiri, Mullah Omar, Gulbuddin Hekmatyar and several other HVTs we have been after for the past 5 years).
But we will put guns or a JDAM on each of their sorry as$es one of these days. We have guys risking all 24/7 to see that such happens. (over the past 8 months alone, we put a number of Taliban HVTs in the ground we had been chasing since 01....Mullah Dadullah being just one of those).
Nah. Actually, it’s this last video that causes me to wonder. Too many aspects of it don’t add up.
Bin Laden been dead!
How’s this for a conspiracy....
Bin Laden is dead and on ice. All the recordings and videos are fakes, but the government says they are legit to prevent making him a martyr. If the Dems win in 2008, they thaw OBL out and announce US troops killed him just before the new Deamonrat President takes the oath of office. Let them deal with the consequences. :)
Reads like a contrarian screed.
Not buying the Bin Laden angle.
Either you have been quoting me, or I have been quoting you, but this scenario makes too much sense and is just very convenient for everybody to keep it going, despite laughable videos that we have been seeing lately, and everybody "treating them seriously"...
The only drawback for liberals and the media could be if "bin Laden" endorses a Democrat for President, in 2008, Dems and media will declare that he was dead since Tora Bora (I or II), and that Bush and Republicans are providing the fake videos (Dan Rather can be the conduit of that "conspiracy", with the analysis of fake video and finding Bush/GOP/CIA "signature" on it).
Should be noted - Too bad MARSOC was booted (for PC reasons) out of Stan last year - They could be desperately used there -
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