U.S. Special Forces Strike In Pakistan

Rare Use Of Ground Forces Stokes Pakistani Ire, May Indicate High-Value Target

(CBS/AP)  This story was written by CBS News' Farhan Bokhari in Islamabad, Sami Yousafzai in Peshawar, and CBSNews.com's Tucker Reals in London.

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Pakistan's top security officials on Wednesday were searching for clues that a "moderately important terrorist target" may have been hit when U.S. and/or NATO forces attacked three houses in a remote part of the country's border region with Afghanistan.

As many as 15 people were killed in the early morning strike Wednesday.

This was a commando raid by U.S. special operations forces - the first known use of ground troops inside Pakistan - in an attempt to kill or capture a high value target, reported CBS News national security correspondent David Martin. Until Wednesday, all known attempts to kill terrorist leaders operating out of Pakistan had been conducted by unmanned drones.

The operation took place near the village of Angor Adda in Pakistan's South Waziristan region - a notorious sanctuary for al Qaeda and Taliban militants. Eyewitnesses said the strike involved helicopter gunships.

South Waziristan and the adjoining North Waziristan regions are known to harbor fighters who routinely cross the border into Afghanistan to attack U.S. and other Western troops then return to the relative security of Pakistani soil.

U.S. officials told Martin a small team of commandos crossed the border from Afghanistan into Pakistan to go after an al Qaida cell operating out of a village less than a mile from the border. The officials said the cell was using the village as a base to plan and conduct cross border raids into Afghanistan.

The leader of the cell - whose name the officials did not release - was reported killed along with several women and at least one child. The American military maintains the women were shot because they were firing at U.S. troops. Martin said the officials did not dispute local reports placing the death toll at or near 15.

The reported use of ground troops prompted immediate speculation that the attack was aimed at an important terrorist target, but also enraged local residents and authorities, who have long insisted that Western forces must not enter Pakistani territory.

"I don't know if there were any top targets. But there could well be moderately important terrorist targets," the security official told CBS News. "If there was deployment of grounds troops, which involved a greater risk than sending in a pilot-less drone, that suggests the attackers were probably looking for a specific terrorist target."

Meanwhile, there were conflicting reports Wednesday about whether Pakistani Prime Minister Yusuf Raza Gilani had survived an assassination attempt when shots were fired at his motorcade near Islamabad's international airport. (Click here to read more on the shooting.)

An eyewitness from the village that was struck in South Waziristan said nine people were killed in one house - all of them locals with no ties to militants, including at least five women and children.

Khan Gul Wazir told CBS News by telephone on Wednesday that he had been awake for early morning prayers when he heard loud gunfire and explosions. He said he ran outside and saw smoke pouring from one of his neighbor's homes.

Wazir said he saw American troops surrounding the house and blocking off the area. He also reported five U.S. helicopters hovering over the area for the duration of the operation, which he said lasted one hour.

A spokesman for the Governor of Pakistan's Northwest Frontier Province, who also officially administers the North and South Waziristan, told CBS that 20 people had been killed in the raid, including women and children. His office officially condemned the attack as a violation of Pakistan's territorial sovereignty.

A Pakistan army spokesman warned that the apparent escalation from recent foreign missile strikes on militant targets along the Afghan border would further anger Pakistanis and undercut cooperation in the war against terrorist groups.

U.S. rules of engagement allow American troops to pursue militants across the border into Pakistan when they are attacked.

However, Pakistan army spokesman Maj. Gen. Athar Abbas said hot pursuit wasn't an issue, adding that the attack "was completely unprovoked." He said Pakistani troops were near the village and saw and heard nothing to suggest the U.S. forces were pursuing insurgents.

U.S. military and civilian officials declined to respond directly to Pakistan's complaints. But one official, a South Asia expert who agreed to discuss the situation only if not quoted by name, suggested the target of any raid like that reported Wednesday would have to be extremely important to risk an almost assured "big backlash" from Pakistan.

There is no indication the target was al Qaeda leader Osama bin Laden or his deputy, Ayman al-Zawahri, officials told Martin in Washington.

Wazir told CBS that in addition to the house where nine people were killed, two other nearby homes were hit in the village, which sits close to the border with Afghanistan. He said he saw the bodies of no "strangers" among the dead.

A local tribal elder who acts as a go-between for the community and the government said the villages in the area are often subjected to violence because militants use peoples' homes to take shelter after crossing border, with or without their consent.

Wazir said the situation for he and his neighbors had grown far worse since President Pervez Musharraf's decision to resign under huge domestic pressure about two weeks ago.

A Taliban militant from the area claimed Wednesday's was not the first such ground operation. He told CBS News U.S. helicopters landed in a village three weeks ago, kidnapped one person from a house and injured an old man inside. The militant also said the number of U.S. aircraft - mostly the pilotless drones - flying over North and South Waziristan had increased "300 percent" during the past month.

The CIA and other Western intelligence agencies are known to have scrutinized intelligence coming from North and South Waziristan in the past in their searched for some of al Qaeda's top leaders; most notably bin Laden and al-Zawahiri.

The Pakistani security official who spoke to CBS News said Pakistani military and intelligence forces in the region had also carried out an intense search for al Qaeda's leaders as recently as last month, based on "information which provided to us with some new clues."

The Pakistani official refused to elaborate on the nature of that information but said "the situation in Waziristan remains of immense interest to all of us."

[libsluv2spit]

The CIA and other Western intelligence agencies are known to have scrutinized intelligence coming from North and South Waziristan in the past in their searched for some of al Qaeda''s top leaders; most notably Osama bin Laden and his deputy Ayman al-Zawahri.

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i can alreadt sense the feeling of anxiety amongst the liberals..TIME TO GET THIER RANTINGS READY TO SAVE OBAMA.SORRY OSAMA sounds the same..sorry

[yurfulla]

All the more reason to have McCain keeping watch at the helm.

The threat is far from over.

[insurgeon]

You strike at ghosts and kill only civilians. No wonder the whole world waits for the ignorant American''s fall. LOL

[pirmin3]

About time to take the bull by the horns and clean out that nest of terror in the Waziristan. That rifraf they call a government in Pakistan will never lift a finger to help.

[eddynewhope]

All the more reason to have McCain keeping watch at the helm.

The threat is far from over.

Posted by yurfulla at 02:42 AM

You fuggin idiot. Obama stated that he would attack inside Pakistan if there was a credible threat there and McCain lashed out calling him reckless. Now a US strike in Pakistan, another case of Bush following Obama''s lead is reason that "we need McCain". Fuggin idiots. Prepare for a revolution if the idiot GOP actually cons the "low info voters" into electing the geriatric hypocrite coward and the hockeymom flip-flopper with 2 "unplanned for" children in the family in 1 year after refusing to support *** ed. How''s that working out for ya there Mrs. Palin. LOL

[donttreadme]

Palin ****** out her daughter to Larry Sinclair. Didn''t you hear? It''s all over the web. Larry is actually the father of the 4 month old, the daughter is the mom, and the VP nominee is pretending to be the mother to protect Larry. LOL

[eddynewhope]

Like the security alerts in 2004, this is just another Bush/Cheney/Rove/GOP ploy to make the American voting public think that they are "security" minded. It''s a con. Look up "security alerts" in 2004. You''ll be amazed.

[insurgeon]

How do you think the US troops killing civilians feel knowing that they are merely pawns in Bush''s political maneuvering? How do they endure their nightmares of risking their lives and killing civilians so that another corrupt and antiquated Bush can be elected president?

[missingamerica]

How depressing - gone to Allah as only a "moderately important terrorist"...

Probably only gets two old barflys and a ham on the other side.

lollll...

[dargay]

US forces have now fulfilled the militant propaganda: Americans are a danger to the lives, religion and homes of the tribals.

[nextgenman]

RINO Cambodia.

[babooph]

The lies about the US not being in a "crusade" do not fool Islamics.The nuclear Pakistan is one bullet or bomb away from joining up fully with the Islamic side WHAT A MESS!!!

[dmhphils]

You gotta root em out......if they will harbor terrorists......root em out!! Destroy them all! No matter what country they run to and pop up their ugly heads.......even in the Philippines! Root em out!

[dmhphils]

Palin ****** out her daughter to Larry Sinclair. Didn''''t you hear? It''''s all over the web. Larry is actually the father of the 4 month old, the daughter is the mom, and the VP nominee is pretending to be the mother to protect Larry. LOL


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Posted by DontTreadMe at 03:15 AM : Sep 03, 2008

You''re a fricking idiot!

[realpatriot1]

babooph,

Pakastan has already nuked up with the extremists. The man who supplied both iran & North Korea with key nuke tech making their nuclear programs operational lives free from prosecution in Islamabad and is the national hero of pakastan-Prof. A Q Khan.

Everyone who''s anyone in the Jihadist hierarchy roams freely in Pakastan. Most would be arrested in any other country, including Iraq.

It''s well past time to recognize where the real battlefield against our enemies is.

That said, the timing of this is typical Bush political game playing.

[caliengineer]

To Nancy Naive:

You are naive. I have seen many, many Marines and soldiers seriously altered after their combat experiences and long deployments.

[babooph]

I still recall Westmorland & the propaganda system winning in Nam ,by a surge & invasion of Cambodia & Laos.

[beehive21-2009]

Same old story,the terrorist kill a few women and children throw them on a killing field and say look what you did.We''ve seen it before ,the forbidden zone is next.The Taliban and groups of killers are dead.The Pakistan gov is falling apart the nukes are in danger of being seized by the Taliban.

[tapsettle]

The Pakistan gov is falling apart the nukes are in danger of being seized by the Taliban.
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Posted by beehive21

And I hope they launch at least one to land on your sorry empty head.

[rushliberal]

The way I see it is if Mexican Troops are allowed to breach our southern border to secure the Drug runners safe passage into America - then Americans can Bomb the Shiite out of the Taliban - who knows maybe they will get lucky and FINISH the job that Bush and Cheney Would not and that is kill Bin Laden.

[tapsettle]

who knows maybe they will get lucky and FINISH the job that Bush and Cheney Would not and that is kill Bin Laden.
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Posted by RushLiberal

Who knows, maybe they have done such a bad job that Bin Laden is now less hated than Bush and Cheney.

[jmurrieta1]

The Bushit/Cheney regime is probably starting to thaw out Ben Laden''s body they''ve been keeping in a freezer for just this election.

Cheney is over there to make sure the meat don''t spoil when they upwrap Ben Laden. But any freezer burn will be covered by some skillfully applied makeup, mimicking bomb damage.

[goosfraba2]

Posted by libsluv2spit at 02:35 AM : Sep 03, 2008: "i can alreadt sense the feeling of anxiety amongst the liberals..TIME TO GET THIER RANTINGS READY TO SAVE OBAMA.SORRY OSAMA sounds the same..sorry"

You mean that you''re not OUTRAGED that Bush-n-crew has finally turned their attention to the real terrorists of 9/11 after 6-1/2 years?!

Furthermore, you and your peers sound like a broken record with your Obama-Osama rant.

[tapsettle]

You mean that you''re not OUTRAGED that Bush-n-crew has finally turned their attention to the real terrorists of 9/11 after 6-1/2 years?!
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Posted by goosfraba2

What, you mean they''ve invaded Saudi Arabia at last? The country where almost all the 9-11 hijackers came from, the land of grass roots and following of Bin Laden? Saudi Arabia did you say?????

[docpeter-2009]

From the above articel, "The reported use of ground troops prompted speculation that the attack was aimed at an important terrorist target, but also enraged local residents and authorities, who have long insisted that Western forces must not enter Pakistani territory."
___________
Hey Pakistani''s, if we are attacked we will retaliate. If you don''t want the foreign forces on your soil take care of them and keep them from corssing the border and attacking us. Attack = war, plain and simple.

[tapsettle]

Hey Pakistani''s, if we are attacked we will retaliate. If you don''t want the foreign forces on your soil take care of them and keep them from corssing the border and attacking us. Attack = war, plain and simple.
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Posted by docpeter

And war you will surely get.

[checkthepast]

Bin Laden is now less hated than Bush and Cheney.

Posted by tapsettle

Your colors are showing..... and they are NOT red, white and blue......

[johnpatrick9]

Such incursions will prove to be useless. Their time line and intent is far longer and stronger than ours. Killing or capturing one bigwig just does not do it...it only encourages the others. We will eventually leave and they will commence to cut each others throats as they always have. Read your history something bush the worthless did not do nor have our military bright bulbs. Whack the mole.

[checkthepast]

And war you will surely get.

Posted by tapsettle

So be it....

[dagrandma]

Four more years of this Republican bull$hit and we''ll be reading "Pakistani Troops Reportedly Strike in U.S."

[ramos937]

Why did it take so long?

[gop_forever]

Haha liberals. Osama will be caught soon and you naysayers said he would never get caught.

[zykracosmos]

Haha liberals. Osama will be caught soon and you naysayers said he would never get caught.


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Posted by GOP_forever at 08:46 AM : Sep 03, 2008
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No, only that BUSH would never get him. Obama will make it priority one. Bush is too interested in deploying American troops to seize oil resources for Exxon.

[dagrandma]

GOP_forever: I never said he wouldn''t be caught. But I will say, utilizing the methods of Republican agendas and timing, he''ll be caught sometime in the neighborhood of November 1.

[gop_forever]

NEVER SAW IT.. BUT MAYBE THE FEMALE DOG DESIRVED IT!!!


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Posted by AmericaBiker
=======================
They all deserve it for rejecting Christ!

[nothappyatall]

Haha liberals. Osama will be caught soon and you naysayers said he would never get caught.

Posted by GOP_forever "

After all this time and money WHO CARES! king george always seems to trot out a new "bin laden" tape when he needs a diversion, and the whole country goes into a panic and the media drops everything because some backwoods sand-ngger speaks LOL you rePUBIC-CONS fall for that every time.

[tootall10142]

airmanc you are an idiot in the tenth degree.we need to go any where and every where and put law aside and kill the bssstards by the ton.You dont have relatives over there.have you ever shot anything but your mouth.Yes the marines are killers i was medivac gunner in nam i shot every thing in range. the nom combatants that were killed should have heeded the warning and left the area.sympathy can be found in the dictionary between sh--t and syphiliis

[zwaggsy]

The whole problem with this war on terror is that many off the terrorist bigwigs originated from Saudi Arabia (probably most off its funding as well). As long as the west continues to turn a blind eye to Saudi the whole W.O.T is pretty pointlesss!

A classic point was a documentary made by an undercover reporter in here in England. He got footage off religeous preachers advocating race hate , paedophilia extermination off *** etc, etc. This was a huge propaganda coup for T. Blair & co until people started pointing out that funding for this particular mosque came mostly from Saudi and some off the teaching from its head religeous leader via telecoms. The undercover crew promptly found themselves under police investigation for biased editing to provide a false impression. Although the charges were eventually dropped due to an amazing lack off evidence this still highlights a serious flaw on the coilition''s war on terror

[sly_64]

The Bush terror organization strikes again !

[questionnews]

The Bush terror organization strikes again !

Posted by sly_64 at 10:14 AM : Sep 03, 2008

That''s right!! It''s time for the Obama terror organization to pick the batton & run with it!
He''s already stated that Pakistan is his target.
Watch out Pakistan! One of the brothers is coming to put a cap in your @ss!

[mick7744]

Of course you can fight a war while adhering to humanitarian-type rules and avoiding no-go zones that the enemy (who obays no rules)is aware of and takes every advantage of.

You just can''t win one.

[petro49l]

Bin Laden and his Al Qada clique produce tar heroin in an underground cavern with scientifically-designed isomizers. The Coalition cannot bomb the narcotics making equipment. Addicts demand that Al Qada supply them with the drug. Bin Laden has made millions of dollars dealing illicit heroin. The Coalition can not capture him.

[superdem]

The right wing''s answer to everything is always WAR, WAR, and more WAR. At the Republican convention all they talk about is abortion and WAR - everything is military this and military that, they get all misty eyed over everyone''s "service" - but they never ask if any of these wars are LEGITIMATE, they never ask why we are FIGHTING - they simply deify WAR. Look at these posts from the right - it''s kill, kill, kill. This is what earns the U.S. the hatred of the world. We have the right to defend our land and our people, we do NOT have the right to roam the world killing people we don''t like. You Republicans are truly frightening, even the females. You truly love war, it''s disgusting.

[photon816]

The inhabitants of North and South Waziristan either sympathize with the terrorists or allow their safe presence in those territories between attacks. This is intolerable. The exact locations of the terrorists in their territories is known to many of them, but they don''t report them.
These mass-murderers cross the Afgan border to blow up innocent men, women and children by the hundreds, then go back to safe havens in those territories, without their known locations being reported. So, on a rare tip, a particular location is attacked by our forces. A few of their own women and children are killed along with them? Or a few women and children of those who sympathize with them or don''t report their locations? So what!!! We''re supposed to follow rules while the enemy doesn''t?
Enough of this hide and seek B.S.-- the whole *** territories should be wiped out, along with any new territory that allows safe-haven to terrorists from several countries.
If the government of Pakistan wants to allow such territories to be defacto-separate governments, then Pakistan itself is vulnerable to take-over; and Pakistan has atomic weapons. Our drones know the approximate locations of where the mass-murderers go when they cross back over the Pakistani border to their safe areas. Draw a couple circles and wipe out everything in those circles. Bye bye Bin Laden and all his ilk. Enough of this peekaboo "we follow the rules but you don''t need to" never-ending mass-murdering B.S.

[middleman8]

The best way to bring peace and quite to the world would be to line up all the hate filled war mongrels that are always yelling Kill, KILL, KILL and do what they preach and KILL them all.

[rave_on3]

The inhabitants of North and South Waziristan either sympathize with the terrorists or allow their safe presence in those territories between attacks...

These mass-murderers cross the Afgan border to blow up innocent men, women and children by the hundreds, then go back to safe havens in those territories...

Posted by photon816 at 11:01 AM : Sep 03, 2008

It''s a bit more complicated than that...it always is.
There are a vast number of people who live in these affected regions in Pakistan that don''t curry favor with the extremist elements. A lot of the time they are forced to quarter and provide material support to these folks against their will. I don''t doubt there are a certain number of folks that do sympathize with the extremists but to indiscriminantly lay waste to those areas is not a viable option.

[photon816]

middleman8 says,
The best way to bring peace and quite to the world would be to line up all the hate filled war mongrels that are always yelling Kill, KILL, KILL and do what they preach and KILL them all.
Posted by middleman8 at 11:13 AM : Sep 03, 2008
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The best way to bring peace and QUIET to the world would be to line up all the hate filled war MONGERS that are always DOING Kill, KILL, KILL and do what they preach and KILL them all.
Now you''ve got it right. Kill all the killers. That''s the idea. That''s what our armed forces are doing there. That''s why we went there. God bless George Bush for going after the killers that Clinton ignored. Terrorists made five attacks on the USA, and Clinton did nothing but B.S. -- Nigeria offered a captured Bin Laden to Bill Clinton on a silver platter, but Clinton refused to accept him. Later, Clinton spent millions on missiles to blow up the sand dunes where Bin Laden had recently been. Then came 9-11. God bless George Bush. Ignore no more.
Hello, liberals. Did you notice? We haven''t been attacked since then?

[libsluv2spit]

"......Obama stated that he would attack inside Pakistan if there was a credible threat there and McCain lashed out calling him reckless. Now a US strike in Pakistan, another case of Bush following Obama''''s lead is reason that "we need McCain"...... Prepare for a revolution if the idiot GOP actually cons the "low info voters" into electing the geriatric hypocrite coward and the hockeymom flip-flopper with 2 "unplanned for" children in the family in 1 year after refusing to support *** ed. How''''s that working out for ya there Mrs. Palin. LOL


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Posted by EddyNewHope at 03:13 AM : Sep 03, 2008
+ report abuse

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I am a bit suprised NOT SEEING OSAMA BIN LADEN during the DNC convention...

the DNC party..a party of change? a party of retreat and surrender..

[libsluv2spit]

The best way to bring peace and quite to the world would be to line up all the hate filled war mongrels that are always yelling Kill, KILL, KILL and do what they preach and KILL them all.

Posted by middleman8 at 11:13 AM : Sep 03, 2008

***********

the problem with that logic is.....

you prefer to preserve the ones that wants to KILL YOU..and is it because you are being benevolent?? because you care about ''innocent muslim civilians''?

NO

its because of the simple fact that YOU HATE BUSH and YOU HATE CHRISTIANS..talking about hatemogering certain groups...

[three-o-six]

middleman8

You Dream -- there will never be peace and quiet -- You do not understand the basic human condition. -- If you are not willing to stand up and fight for what is yours -- there will be someone willing to stand up and take it from you.