U.S. TEAM SEARCHING FOR 'OSAMA' CORPSE

New York Post ^ | Saturday, February 9, 2002 | By NILES LATHEM

[JohnHuang2]

WASHINGTON - A special 50-member military team today will begin searching the site of a high-tech missile strike on a group of al Qaeda leaders to determine whether Osama bin Laden is among seven people killed in the attack.

Gen. Richard Myers, chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, told reporters the military and forensics team landed at a site in the mountains near the Zawar Kili cave complex in eastern Afghanistan in the dead of night and would begin hunting for bodies at daybreak.

[JohnHuang2]

Quote of the Day by Republic

[samtheman]

I hope his head survived. It would look good atop a pole at the Olympics.

[Rain-maker]

[JohnHuang2]

LOL

[heleny]

I hope it was Osama bin Laden, and I hope we can determine who everyone there was. But, regardless of who they were, and especially if one were Osama, I hope we say that he's still alive and on the run.

If Osama is dead, we will have public-relations trouble continuting our cause to root out al-Qaeda and other terrorists, and the terrorists will hate us more. No, it's better for most everyone not to know where Osama is, but for the few people handling this war/operation who must know, to know that he's dead. (A few years after his secret death, we can say that he disappeared in the Bermuda Triangle, that we assume he died somewhere of his kidney disease, or otherwise that he pulled a Hitler act.)

[JohnHuang2]

I agree with you 1000%

[ASA Vet]

The title is misleading. The U.S. team is attempting to ascertain who was killed.

OBL has been dead for a couple months, so I doubt the orders were:
"see if OBL was killed in this attack."

[Rain-maker]

Got Vodka?

[PaulJ]

Indeed. I have no problem with taking a year, or even more, to find out the guy is dead. No martydom for him.

[Maceman]

If Osama is dead, we will have public-relations trouble continuting our cause to root out al-Qaeda and other terrorists, and the terrorists will hate us more.

I disagree. The terrorists already hate us at maximum capacity, as was made clear by 9-11. It is a mistake to worry that if we tick them off now they will get REALLY mad.

If Osama is dead, it will be a HUGE PR bonus for our side. It will further dmoralize and disrupt al Qaeda and it's supporters. And Bush, as evidenced by his SOTU speech, has already moved beyond bin Laden. He didn't even mention him by name.

Now that Bush has outlined his "axis of evil" policy, the American public is all ready to move on to the next phase of the WOT. We don't need bin Laden alive to keep us motivated. But maybe the terrorists, or at least the "Arab street" do.

[Free the USA]

bump

[BunnySlippers]

[JamesWilson]

. . . Sometimes they don't even know they're dead.

[Lady In Blue]

U.S. officials said one member of the group was a tall man dressed in white robes who was surrounded by security guards and others being deferential to him. He bore some resemblance to the 6-foot-6 bin Laden, officials said.

BUMP!

[Howlin]

Bookmarking for a confirmation!

[alphadog]

Come back... it was only a flesh wound

[dennisw]

That's a keeper!

[Lady In Blue]

Good idea.Got a question.Remember back right after the prison uprising in "Omar Sharif"? I think I remember talk of another American.He was supposed to be from Louisiana.I wonder what happened to him?Anybody know?

[VRWC_minion]

If Osama is dead than Allah approves of the United States and is on our side.

[steve-b]

If the government finds out for sure that he's dead, but keeps it quiet, there are some interesting psywar possibilities in terms of spreading rumors (e.g. he's off living the life of Riley with absconded funds) that he can't pop up to deny.

Of course, bin Laden (if he's alive) and his al-Qaeda lieutenants (in any case) realize this (and the fickleness of the Arab "street" when their guy isn't on the winning side). That's why I don't think a long-term strategy of holing up is really available to Binny.