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Friends and Enemies (Oliver North)
Creators Syndicate ^ | September 30, 2011 | Oliver North

Posted on 09/29/2011 6:54:30 PM PDT by jazusamo

WASHINGTON — When the U.S. State Department announced this week that it finally is going to designate the Haqqani network as a foreign terrorist organization, it was a nonevent for most of our countrymen. That's because few Americans know how deadly the organization is. For that we can thank those at Foggy Bottom who are wedded to the naive hope of a near-term "diplomatic breakthrough" in Afghanistan. Couple that misguided belief with the Obama administration's self-deception that the radical Islamic jihad against the West ended with the demise of Osama bin Laden and it's understandable why the Haqqani network is virtually unknown. Here's the short form of why it's important.

When Jalaluddin Haqqani founded the criminal enterprise now known as the Haqqani network, Soviet troops were running amok in Afghanistan. Adopted by Pakistan's Inter-Services Intelligence agency as a reliable ally, Haqqani's fame as a Pashtun mujahed soon rivaled that of Tajik leader Ahmad Shah Massoud. Both the ISI and the CIA believed that Haqqani was "controllable." But he wasn't.

After the Soviets withdrew in 1989 and Afghanistan descended into civil war, Massoud opposed the Taliban takeover. Haqqani, encouraged by the ISI, sided with Mullah Mohammad Omar's Taliban and became a key player in Islamabad's window on what was happening in Kabul.

Though Massoud was murdered on the eve of the al-Qaida attack on 9/11, his Northern Alliance fighters were the backbone of the U.S.-led effort to unseat the Taliban. Haqqani, ever loyal to his handlers in the ISI's Department "S," soon became the most dangerous name in the Afghan insurgency and a "trusted brand" for Islamic mujahedeen from around the world, who want to kill Westerners. It's been that way for a decade. Apparently, our State Department just figured this out.

On Sept. 22, Adm. Mike Mullen, the retiring chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, testified before the Senate Armed Services Committee. He described the Haqqani network — now run by Jalaluddin Haqqani's son Siraj — as "a veritable arm" of Pakistan's intelligence service. He also accused Haqqani "insurgents" of collaborating with the ISI in scores of high-profile attacks against U.S. and NATO personnel — including the bloody June 28 attack on the InterContinental hotel in Kabul and the Sept. 13 assault on the U.S. Embassy there. Every official who could get to a microphone in Islamabad immediately denied the charge — as did Pakistan's foreign minister, Hina Rabbani Khar, at the United Nations. None of this could have been a surprise to our State Department.

Since 2009, U.S. and NATO commanders in Afghanistan quietly have urged Pakistan's armed forces to move against the Haqqani headquarters, which is in a madrassa in mountainous Miran Shah. But for Gen. Ashfaq Parvez Kayani — Pakistan's military chief of staff — such an operation in North Waziristan was a non-starter because it meant taking troops and equipment from the eastern frontier facing Pakistan's "real enemy" — India. Nervous officials at our State Department voiced concerns that a Pakistani military move against the Haqqanis could precipitate a "destabilizing political upheaval in nuclear-armed Pakistan — something none of us (wants)."

The Obama administration's uncertainty and ambivalence about what to do about the Haqqani threat means this "family-led enterprise devoted to waging war" in the name of jihad carries on with near impunity. Other than missile strikes from unmanned aerial vehicles — which carefully leaked stories have described as effective — little has been done to thwart the flow of new jihadi recruits from Haqqani-run madrassas or to cut the cash coming into the family coffers that finances the killing of American troops.

It's not just ISI financial support. Funding for Haqqani paramilitary operations and improvised explosive devices also comes from Saudi Arabia, interest on "family" bank accounts in the United Arab Emirates, extortion and ransom from kidnappings. A recent intelligence report describes how the Haqqanis "portray themselves as deeply religious while making a fortune from the sale and transportation of opium." The organization's success in "taxing" Afghan contractors paid with U.S. tax dollars is legendary. Another report identifies "legitimate businesses" being run overtly in Pakistan and Afghanistan by loyal clan members.

Will the State Department's belated decision to designate the Haqqani network as a foreign terrorist organization change any of this? It could, if it's done the right way.

It's not enough simply to freeze Haqqani assets in U.S. banks. It's unlikely after this week's announcement that the network has a savings account here anyway. A far better approach would be to bar any company or bank that does business with any Haqqani entity from doing any business in the U.S.

Identifying, disrupting and discrediting foreign donors and sources of funding is crucial to strangling the organization's finances. Combining this effort with a carefully orchestrated political action campaign exposing Haqqani criminal activity — particularly the opium trade — could discredit the network's self-proclaimed "moral authority" to attract new recruits to the jihad.

Can the O-Team pull this off? Let's hope so. It could make the difference in our keeping friends — and doing in our enemies.



TOPICS: Editorial; Foreign Affairs; Government
KEYWORDS: 1989; 20010909; 20010911; 2009; 20110628; 201109; 20110913; 20110922; 911; admiralmullen; afghanistan; ahmadhsahmassood; alqaeda; alqaida; ashfaqkayani; ashfaqparvezkayani; assassination; bergdahl; biden; bowebergdahl; cia; departments; designatedterrorist; diplomacy; dithering; drugs; drugtrade; embassyplots; extortion; foreignterroristorg; gwot; haqqani; haqqaniclan; haqqaninetwork; haqqanis; hotelplot; indecision; india; intercontinental; isi; jalaluddinhaqqani; jerrymcnerney; jihadis; kabul; kayani; kidnappings; madrassa; masood; masoud; massood; mcnerney; mikemcnerney; mikemullen; miranshah; mohammadomar; mullahmohammadomar; mullahomar; mullen; naivity; nato; northernalliance; obama; obamaadmin; olivernorth; opium; opiumtrade; pakistan; pashtun; prezflustercluck; prisonerswap; saudiarabia; shahahmedmassood; sirajhaqqani; statedepartment; stratosphere; tajik; taliban; terrorfinancing; uae; uncertainty; usembassy; usembassyplot; whendiplomacyfails
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1 posted on 09/29/2011 6:54:33 PM PDT by jazusamo
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To: 2rightsleftcoast; abner; ACAC; advertising guy; amom; AnalogReigns; Anoreth; Arkinsaw; ...
OLIVER NORTH PING!

Photobucket

Please Freepmail me to be added to the Ollie North ping list.

2 posted on 09/29/2011 6:57:31 PM PDT by jazusamo (His [Obama's] political base---the young, the left and the thoughtless: Thomas Sowell)
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To: jazusamo

Fascinating. There’s a connection to this in the censored movie, Path to 9-11.


3 posted on 09/29/2011 6:58:35 PM PDT by Gene Eric (Your Hope has been Redistributed. Here's your damn Change!)
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To: jazusamo

Oliver North Ping


4 posted on 09/29/2011 7:01:39 PM PDT by Huskrrrr
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To: jazusamo

Pakistan views the USA as their personal ATM. If there is no unrest in Afghanistan, the Americans leave and take their cash with them.

Biden and Obama have fed the Paki’s, tripling the US aid to the corrupt Paki gov’t from the Bush years. Obama raised the Paki aid to $1.5 BILLION a year. If the Haqqani network gets taken out, we leave, and the cash stops.

Why did people not connect the dots when OBL was taken out in one of Pakistans most secure ‘military’ towns, Abbottabad? When Bin Laden died, the Pakis have resorted to plan B, firing up the Haqqani network to keep the cash flowing. If we take out Haqqani, they will pump up Gulbidden Hekmyater or some other bogeyman to keep the cash flowing. We are too dumb to see the obvious truth staring us right in the face.


5 posted on 09/29/2011 7:02:08 PM PDT by milwguy
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To: Gene Eric

Yes. The most amazing thing to me is so many people have known much of this and yet the LSM have kept silent.


6 posted on 09/29/2011 7:02:51 PM PDT by jazusamo (His [Obama's] political base---the young, the left and the thoughtless: Thomas Sowell)
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To: jazusamo

Indeed. And the censorship which is incredibly hypocritical and disturbing. They’re a bunch of damn frauds.


7 posted on 09/29/2011 7:37:13 PM PDT by Gene Eric (Your Hope has been Redistributed. Here's your damn Change!)
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To: jazusamo

Thanks for the ping jaz. So rarely do we read anything about Haqqani, and the reads are so long between them one sort of forgets about them.


8 posted on 09/29/2011 7:57:03 PM PDT by rockinqsranch (Dems, Libs, Socialists, call 'em what you will, they ALL have fairies livin' in their trees.)
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To: jazusamo

BFL


9 posted on 09/30/2011 1:40:26 AM PDT by Veggie Todd (C'mon, turn this thing around RIGHT NOW! Edward Van Halen)
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To: jazusamo; nuconvert
This article about the Haqqani network being designated was written in late 2011 and look how long it took for the Obama admin to get around to this :

Clarify U.S. Policy on Afghanistan: Designate Haqqani Network Terrorists
Sunday, September 02, 2012 9:36:33 PM · by nuconvert · 6 replies ,p> The Heritage Foundation ^ | August 21, 2012 For the past two years, the Obama Administration has pursued on-again, off-again reconciliation talks with Taliban leaders in an effort to bring an end to the Afghan war. As part of this process, it has wrestled with how to handle the Haqqani network, a Taliban affiliate organization headquartered in Pakistan’s tribal border areas that has extensive influence in eastern Afghanistan and is responsible for some of the most vicious attacks against coalition forces. Congress recently passed legislation, which President Obama signed into law on August 10, requiring the Administration to determine within 30 days whether the Haqqani network should officially...

10 posted on 09/08/2012 3:13:46 PM PDT by piasa (Attitude adjustments offered here free of charge)
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To: piasa

The designation went thru yesterday....2 days before the deadline.


11 posted on 09/08/2012 3:17:24 PM PDT by nuconvert ( Khomeini promised change too // Hail, Chairman O)
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To: piasa; Cindy
And what it took:

US declares Haqqani network a terrorist body
Saturday, September 08, 2012 2:18:05 AM · by Olog-hai · 6 replies , AP via New York Daily News ^ | Friday, September 7th 2012, 12:58 PM | Bradley Klapper
http://india.nydailynews.com/newsarticle/9c98ad14f2f4b4eee558ca7ee72d6fe4/us-declares-haqqani-network-a-terrorist-body

The Obama administration declared Friday that the Pakistan-based Haqqani network of militants is a terrorist body despite misgivings about how the largely symbolic act could further stall planned Afghan peace talks ....Secretary of State Hillary Rodham Clinton's decision, signed Friday ahead of a Sunday deadline set by Congress, bans Americans from doing business with members of the group and blocks any assets it holds in the United States. ...

12 posted on 09/08/2012 3:17:58 PM PDT by piasa (Attitude adjustments offered here free of charge)
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To: nuconvert

A year. jeez


13 posted on 09/08/2012 3:18:52 PM PDT by piasa (Attitude adjustments offered here free of charge)
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To: piasa
Thanks...Par for the course with Zer0 and his admin, especially in foreign affairs and dealing with allies and adversaries, it's been a disaster for us.
14 posted on 09/08/2012 3:32:11 PM PDT by jazusamo ("Intellect is not wisdom" -- Thomas Sowell)
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To: nuconvert; Cindy; kcvl; Nachum; Fedora; ravingnutter; kabar; TigersEye
This was one of the holdups... while Afghans and americans and NATO personnel and even Pakis were getting killed by Haqqani operatives, the admin was still trying to do a John Kerry and give "peace" [concessions] another chance:

LEAD: US Afghan envoy confirms talking to Haqqani insurgents Deutsche Presse-Agentur ^ | Jan 22, 2012, 16:38 GMT Posted on 01/22/2012 6:23:51 PM PST by Nachum
As if the Taliban wasn’t bad enough. KABUL, AFGHANISTAN — The US special envoy to Afghanistan and Pakistan on Sunday confirmed a meeting with the Haqqani insurgent group, as signs of a dialogue between the United States and rebels continue to grow.
‘We had one meeting with Haqqani network,’ Marc Grossman told a news conference in Kabul.
His remarks come after US and the Taliban militants confirmed preliminary talks for opening an liaison office for the Taliban in the Qatari capital of Doha – increasing speculation of an end to the decade-long bloody insurgency in this war-torn country. (Excerpt) Read more at monstersandcritics.com

*******

To: Nachum
His remarks come after US and the Taliban militants confirmed preliminary talks for opening an liaison office for the Taliban in the Qatari capital of Doha – His remarks come after this too... Taliban video shows execution of Pakistani soldiers Winning! 11 posted on Sunday, January 22, 2012 10:03:19 PM by TigersEye

* Marc Grossman : More on Grossman at Strata-sphere. Seems he traveled with some cohorts of John Kerry's...Rand Beers in particular. Grossman went to the same college and graduated the same year as {drum roll please} [Ambassador] Joe Wilson and also had the same job in a neighboring country. Strato-sphere also has some interesting comments about a Turkey connection. You remember Turkey…the country that balked at allowing our forces passage into northern Iraq? ---------------- Posted by ravingnutter to kabar On News/Activism 09/14/2006 7:42:11 AM PDT · 287 of 296

On July 6, 2003, Armitage asked Ford to send a copy of the memo to Powell on AF-1. Ford changed the date and addressed it to Powell, but used the same text in the memo. And per the above linked article, it was Grossman that told Libby about Plame and he was also the first one to point a finger at Libby when this broke. We know Armitage had no loyalty to Bush, but it went even further than that…from a story I found last week: Kerry Exploring Cabinet Options ...--- a freeper

15 posted on 09/08/2012 3:42:49 PM PDT by piasa (Attitude adjustments offered here free of charge)
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To: jazusamo
making a fortune from the sale and transportation of opium

Thanks, War on Drugs, for hyperinflating terrorist profits.

16 posted on 09/08/2012 7:26:56 PM PDT by JustSayNoToNannies (A free society's default policy: it's none of government's business.)
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To: piasa
Thanks for the ping. FWIW, here is how I summed that Grossman role up in my personal notes from my Joseph Wilson timeline:

June 2003

Week of 1-7: Washington Post’s Walter Pincus asks CIA about Wilson’s trip

State Department Bureau of Intelligence and Research head Carl Ford responds to request from Under Secretary of State Marc Grossman with memo mentioning Plame’s CIA association and role in arranging Wilson’s trip; memo is possibly shared with Deputy Secretary of State Richard Armitage and Secretary of State Colin Powell

BTW, any updates on this allegation mentioned in one of my old posts (unsubstantiated last I checked but I noted it as worth following up on)?

Walter Pincus, Dana Priest, and other researchers have previously noted that Plame’s front company was called Brewster-Jennings & Associates, a disclosure that has generated remarkably little follow-up from a media usually eager to expose CIA scandals. Some researchers have asserted that Robert Novak’s 2003 column compromised CIA assets linked to Brewster-Jennings. But others have called attention to a report by former FBI agent Sibel Edmonds indicating that a year earlier the FBI was already aware that Brewster-Jennings had been compromised during a conversation between Marc Grossman and Turkish lobbyists under Bureau surveillance in a corruption investigation.

17 posted on 09/08/2012 8:19:11 PM PDT by Fedora
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To: piasa

Good work. Not sure I can put all of that into a post succinctly, but I will put up the video of the executions and Oliver North’s piece.

I think we can assume that there is scullduggery in high levels. I also suspect that Grossman is only one of many operatives. It would be interesting to do some search into all the Obama personnel who came from Strato-Sphere.


18 posted on 09/08/2012 9:47:30 PM PDT by Nachum (The List was hacked- www.nachumlist.com)
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To: Fedora

Those must be Turkish lobbysists of the American-Turkish Council, I guess.


19 posted on 09/09/2012 2:57:27 AM PDT by piasa (Attitude adjustments offered here free of charge)
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To: jazusamo
Now, according to Vice President Biden the Taliban aren't our enemies.
20 posted on 09/09/2012 3:03:12 AM PDT by piasa (Attitude adjustments offered here free of charge)
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