BIN LADEN IS LOCATED SAYS 9/11 PANALIST - PAKISTANI ALLIES KEEPING HIM SAFE

Arizona Daily Star ^ | 10/22/04

[areafiftyone]

CLAREMONT, Calif. - The Pentagon knows exactly where Osama bin Laden is hiding in Pakistan, it just can't get to him, John Lehman, a member of the 9/11 Commission, said Thursday.

 

Lehman's remarks echoed those made Tuesday by Secretary of State Colin Powell, who said the al-Qaida leader was alive and operating in the western part of Pakistan.

 

Bin Laden is living in South Waziristan in the Baluchistan Mountains of the Baluchistan region, Lehman told the San Bernardino Sun after delivering a keynote speech on terrorism at Pitzer College in Claremont.

 

In the interview, Lehman noted, "There is an American presence in the area, but we can't just send in troops. If we did, we could have another Vietnam, and the United States cannot afford that right now."

 

When pressed on why the United States couldn't send troops into the region to capture the world's No. 1 terrorist, Lehman said the Baluchistan region of the country is filled with militant fundamentalists who do not recognize the legitimacy of Pakistani President Pervez Musharraf, a close ally of the United States.

 

"That is a region filled with Taliban and al-Qaida members," he said, acknowledging that Pakistan's security services also are filled with many who agree with bin Laden's beliefs and would aid him if U.S. Special Forces entered the region.

 

"Look," he said, "Musharraf already has had three assassination attempts on his life. He is trying to comply, but he is surrounded by people who do not agree with him. This is not like Afghanistan, where there was no compliance, and we had to go in.

 

"We'll get (bin Laden) eventually, just not now."

 

Asked how bin Laden was surviving, Lehman said he was getting money from outside countries, such as the United Arab Emirates, and high-ranking ministers inside Saudi Arabia.

 

"He is not a wealthy man," Lehman said. "We ran that information into the ground, and discovered he only receives about $1 million a year from his family's fortune. The rest of what he gets comes from radical sympathizers."

 

Department of Defense spokeswoman Capt. Ronnie Merritt confirmed the U.S. military believes bin Laden is in Pakistan. However, she would not comment on Lehman's remarks, except to say that he normally didn't speak about these issues, and she was surprised he had.

 

Lehman, secretary of the Navy under President Ronald Reagan, was one of the 10 members of the bipartisan commission that examined the terrorists attacks on the United States.

 

He also is the author of three books about military tactics.

 

[Howlin]

*Rolling my eyes*

[areafiftyone]

Me too!

[counterpunch]

Snatch and grab.
Or use Clinton's plan of sending in ninjas.

[areafiftyone]

((((SIGH))) I guess he's writing another book!

[TXBubba]

Wait, I just read on another thread that he is in the basement of the White House. How can this be?

[eyespysomething]

Sandy Burgaler's pants?

[wack-m and stack-m]

Hmmmmmmm....

Time for one of those surgical nukes JFK loves so much...

[hankbrown]

He is not a wealthy man," Lehman said. "We ran that information into the ground, and discovered he only receives about $1 million a year from his family's fortune."

Well, he is wealthy by John Kerry's "soak the rich" tax standards.

[stanz]

Wouldn't it make sense NOT to let the world and Bin Laden know we have this information?

[Boundless]

"We've got him cornered"

This is what, the 43rd such report since the WoT began?

Discount it.

[princess leah]

It seems to me that Saudi Arabia IS the source of so much of our headaches...We need to power up our oil from ANWR, get the oil going from Mexico, and cut OFF the money to SA and let them drown in their own oil!

[areafiftyone]

LOL Actually he's in the freezer in the basement. Ya know he's kept on ice for the October ... not wait... November ...surprise

[dirtboy]

In the interview, Lehman noted, "There is an American presence in the area, but we can't just send in troops. If we did, we could have another Vietnam, and the United States cannot afford that right now."

Lord knows we already have one presidential candidate stuck in Vietnam as it is...

[areafiftyone]

LOL Maybe he needs a Kerry middle class tax cut??? Yea that's the ticket!

[SE Mom]

...shaking head...

[SmithL]

If we know where he is, we really don't need troops to make the problem go away.

[js1138]

We have him. He's in the mail.

[Brilliant]

If the 911 panel says so, then I'm betting he's in Iran.

[dirtboy]

It seems to me that Saudi Arabia IS the source of so much of our headaches...We need to power up our oil from ANWR, get the oil going from Mexico, and cut OFF the money to SA and let them drown in their own oil!

China will just buy the difference, and it won't affect the Saudi cash flow much at all.