Hakimullah Mehsud is Alive

[Merlin]

Dead or alive?

Pakistani officials: Taliban's Mehsud alive despite death reports

29 Apr Islamabad, Pakistan (CNN) -- Pakistani Taliban leader Hakimullah Mehsud is alive and was recently seen in Pakistan's tribal region, officials said Thursday contradicting recent reports he was killed in a drone strike.

A Pakistan intelligence official and a senior military official told CNN that Mehsud survived the aerial strike in January. ...

[ASparr]

He's alive, it seems. God damn it.

Pakistan Taliban chief vows new attacks on US: SITE - Yahoo! News

[Merlin]

Pakistan Talibans

He may be taking vangence on the US drone attack on him by directing the Pakistan Talibans to aim beyond Pakistan and India to target the US as well

The recent failed bomb attack on NY Times Square is blamed by the US to be due them.

[IHM]

Dead or alive?

Pakistani officials: Taliban's Mehsud alive despite death reports

Those who claim that Hakimullah Mehsud is alive, should undergo exorcism because his evil spirit is still haunting them. :)

I can confirm you with veracity from the ground that this evil has been demolished for good. And people of Mehsud tribe in South Wazirastan has celebrated his death long ago. Good riddance!

[bigross86]

That's a tall claim. Where's the proof?

[S2]

IHM Reply

"I can confirm you with veracity from the ground that this evil has been demolished for good."

IHM, share with us what you know if you don't mind. It would be interesting to read what those in S. Waziristan think of the stories out there.

[S2]

bigross86 Reply

"That's a tall claim. Where's the proof?"

There's not going to be a death certificate if that's what you're waiting upon. I can vouch that IHM is well-grounded in the area. He may or may not know the truth but he'll certainly know what the prevailing thoughts of those in S. Waziristan might be.

Trust me.

[bigross86]

"That's a tall claim. Where's the proof?"

There's not going to be a death certificate if that's what you're waiting upon. I can vouch that IHM is well-grounded in the area. He may or may not know the truth but he'll certainly know what the prevailing thoughts of those in S. Waziristan might be.

I don't know if I was quite expecting a death certificate, but I was maybe expecting something to back up the claim.

Trust me.

Sure thing. If you vouch for him, that's more than good enough for me.

[IHM]

That's a tall claim. Where's the proof?

Steve is right that absence of adequate official intelligence and no access of media due to geography of the region and appalling condition prevailing there renders one incapable to accurately guess any high profile militant death, unless it is admitted by Taliban sources. In case of Bait Ullah Mehsud, Taliban were repeatedly denying his death just to keep their morale high but my own sources confirmed his death the day he was hit by the drone. Similarly, in case of Hakim Ullah Mehsud, Taliban sources initially denied his death but later they had to embarrassingly admit that he was dead after getting terribly wounded in a drone attack.

Check this,

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Q41_V08SSi0

Soon after the mid January drone attack on him, a short audio tape (mind it NOT video tape) purportedly by "Hakim Ullah Mehsud" (HM) reinforced my view that he was dead or deadly injured because on voice analysis of the tape by me and those who were familiar with Hakim Ullah Mehsud's voice reckoned it as a fake tape, an attempt to make him appear alive with this fake audio tape. Thereafter, he has not been seen or heard, although Taliban didn't leave any opportunity to catch the media coverage. I remember Baitullah Mehsud used to invite journalists and media groups to take his interview and make his voice heard. I was also ones a part of a team taking his interview.

Almost everyone from Mehsud tribe I met believed that HM is no more and they have rejoiced their death because HM was incarnation of evil and terror and they took a sigh of relief. Local people always welcome drone attacks because it is the most useful weapon that hits terrorists more precisely. Unfortunately, right wing media in Pakistan making it appear as violation of national sovereignty and media is constructing wrong punching bag (the USA) for people of Pakistan. I hail from the same area and endorse Drones because it helped us get rid of some high profile terrorists. Our media is not projecting the truth that what we exactly think of drones. Ms. Farhat Taj-- a Pashtun researcher based in Norway-- conducted her research on the ground and concluded that local people has full support for drones but our "islamist" media is projecting this issue in very lopsided way.

I'm first hand witness to more than 5 drone attacks where Taliban would cordon off the whole area where the drone hit and no one could dare to enter that area except Taliban. It speaks of the accuracy of the drone strikes in hitting the prime targets of lethal terrorists' sanctuaries. Taliban network seems to have been substantially debilitated now by Pakistan's Army operation and the lowering frequency of suicide attacks in Pakistan credences this fact. Few months back, hardly a day passed by without a suicide blast being reported, thereby killing innocent civilians, but now I didn't hear of any suicide blast for last one month causing any considerable damage.

Regards

[bigross86]

Thankx, IHM!

[S2]

IHM Reply

Thank you for the excellent elaboration and summary from your perspective. As we've discussed more than a few times, there's an agenda in the Pakistani government, media, and military to posture the views of those in FATAville as virulently opposed to drone strikes.

As Ms. Taj and you have repeatedly alluded (although cries in the wilderness) this is simply not the case. For too long, drone attacks were the only way the people of FATAville knew that they hadn't been completely abandoned.

I wish more cared for the real message. Sadly too many prominent think-tankers and policy leaders have simply presumed away the hard facts in favor of dubious and unsupported positions taken from drawing rooms thousands of miles away.

David Kilcullen's testimony before congress in April 2009 where he proffered false testimony by contending we'd only killed 12 A.Q. members and, thus, PREDATOR had proved counter-productive was immensely damaging simply because of the profound respect his opinion garners in the counter-insurgency community. Nonetheless, it was asserted without credible evidence. John Arquilla of NPS in Monterey, Ca. has done the exact same with me in private communications and has suggested Thomas H. Johnson feels the same way.

"...feels..." is key-powerful academic voices whose reputations carry a message unsupported by academic research. I've seen NONE aside from Ms. Taj's efforts on this serious issue. ZERO. Naturally, there's good reason for such-it's dangerous there and the P.A. (among those interested in perpetrating this message) has made access beyond difficult. Still, such is nothing but the old game of one whispering to another and another until the original message is distorted beyond all recognition.

Fortunately, that same army has brought the mountain to Moses, so to speak. By de-populating the S. Waziristan region prior to their offensive the IDP camps adjoining S. Waziristan are full of first-hand testimony to PREDATOR's effectiveness. Ms. Taj has tapped this resource. Nobody else in academia as yet. IHM is a serious player here and his thoughts are to be read by those equally serious about this matter.