Many Had the Desire, Means to Kill Bhutto

Even before the official search got underway in Pakistan, U.S. intelligence agencies yesterday were drawing up their own list of possible suspects in the assassination of former prime minister Benazir Bhutto -- a list that includes al-Qaeda as well as elements of Pakistan's own intelligence service.

In the initial hours after the slaying, intelligence officials had no firm indication of who was behind the attack and no independent means of verifying any early claims of responsibility. But it was quickly clear that numerous groups possessed both the means of carrying out the assassination and a deep antagonism toward Bhutto and the moderating influences she embodied, according to several current and former officials closely tracking the situation.

At the top of the list, the officials said, is the al-Qaeda terrorist network and its legion of allies, including loosely affiliated groups that espouse similar views and, in some cases, share training facilities and other resources. But several officials said it is equally plausible that the assassination was carried out with the support -- or at least the tacit approval -- of Pakistani government employees. Most of the officials expressed doubt, however, that President Pervez Musharraf himself would have approved the killing.

"There are many Pakistani intelligence types who don't like Benazir Bhutto," said one U.S. official familiar with the country's internal politics.

First of all, there are many "U.S. officials" who are strongly desirous of wrecking Bush's foreign policy and if this "U.S. official" is one of them, then of course he's going to look for a way to pin this on "Pakistani intelligence types" since in doing so he establishes some sort of foundation for a future "It's all Bush's fault!" pronouncement.

Secondly, please list the history of the use of suicide bombers by "Pakistani intelligence types". I suspect that list is ZERO.

This is an AQ operation. It looks like AQ, it smells like AQ and AQ has claimed it. But there are certain "U.S. officials" who are going to see this as the work of "Pakistani intelligence types". Probably a Clinton holdover.

a list that includes al-Qaeda as well as elements of Pakistan's own intelligence service

Within hours, the (latest) commander of Afghan AQ telephoned a "friendly" asset, a Greek news organization and, in broken English, claimed credit for this assassination. Despite the obvious possibility AQ did not commit this deed, and the blurred lines between Taliban, Pak Intel and AQ and Madrassa, etc., the source of this article being the Post, BEGS the need for more than conspiracy theories as to why we shouldn't take that claim on face value.

Indeed. So as we think about this explicit claim, what interest is served by the Post heavily breathing thoughts of who killed Ms. Bhutto? Consider the desperation of the source. The Post might rather have "the culture" rather than any one organization with which we are at war get the score for this wickedness. AQ credited gives credence to administration priorities while crediting a faceless non-UBL blob with scoring this hit makes ferreting out some kind of justice all but impossible.

The Post has an agenda, does it not? They serve their Utopian brothers seeking to claim power, and The Blob rather than Waziristan's most famous exile getting credited serves that agenda.

We have a crime and a organization with which we are at war taking credit as it still does with regularity for "the martyrs of Washington and New York," and "the eleventh."

Ask our army in Iraq and Afghanistan a helicopter ride away from the scene of the crime whether "the foreigners" (AQ) uses guns along with an occasional thrown rock.

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