AP: Pakistan Moving Troops Toward India

Sources: Thousands Being Switched From Afghan Border (And Al Qaeda Pursuit) As Post-Mumbai Tensions Rise Between Nuke Powers

(AP)  Pakistan began moving thousands of troops away from the Afghan border toward India on Friday amid tensions following the Mumbai attacks, intelligence officials said.

The move represents a sharp escalation in the stand off between the nuclear-armed neighbors and stands to weaken Pakistan's U.S.-backed campaign against al Qaeda and Taliban close to Afghanistan.

Two intelligence officials said the army's 14th Division was being redeployed to Kasur and Sialkot, close to the Indian border. They said some 20,000 troops were on the move. Earlier Friday, a security official said that all troop leave had been canceled.

An Associated Press reporter Friday witnessed a column of about 40 trucks shifting soldiers out of South Waziristan.

The intelligence officials spoke on condition of anonymity because of the sensitivity of the situation.

Indian officials could not be immediately reached for comment.

An Associated Press reporter in Dera Ismail Khan, a district that borders the Afghan-frontier province of South Waziristan, said he saw around 40 trucks loaded with soldiers heading away from the Afghan border.

India is blaming Pakistan-based militants for last month's attacks on Mumbai. Islamabad has said it will cooperate in any probe, but says it has seen no evidence backing up India's claims.

Both countries have said they hope to avoid military conflict, but Pakistan has promised to respond aggressively if India uses force, an option the Indian government has not ruled out.

Pakistan has deployed more than 100,000 soldiers in Waziristan and other northwestern regions to fight Islamic militants blamed for surging violence against Western troops in Afghanistan.

A senior security official refused to comment directly on Friday's troop movements, but said, "Necessary defensive measures have been taken, they are in place and Pakistan's armed forces are prepared to tackle any eventuality."

He asked his name not be used, citing the sensitivity of the situation.

Pakistan and India have fought three wars since their independence from Britain in 1947.

[impeach___w]

Finally! We learned something. Instead of invading with our ground troops, we''ll let the neighboring enemies fight it out. When the powers in the arena are both weakened, it will be much easier to rule the entire region.
It is too bad we already armed Pakistan and al-queda via the ISI as we have done with every single one of our other previous enemies to date.

[hetup-2009]

I hope they kick the devil out of the dot head that keeps calling about my Mastercard debt.

[jowand]

Whew! At least we don''''t have McCain in there prompting Georgia to attack Russia! That could get hairy.

And fortunately we now will have a president with an IQ higher than the Neocon Chimp that the Repugs stuck us with for 8 long years!

Posted by jbrown88881 at 06:05 PM : Dec 26, 2008

India attacks Pakistan from the East and Obama attacks Pakistan from the West as he said he would. A pincer movement (aka) Nut cracker attack.

[whitemale08]

It seems like the British ''Opium Wars'' is alive and well.

Now that the global financial empire is crumbling, it''s time to go back to the medieval period where the empire was maintained by drug trafficking, piracy and slavery.

The British purposely drawn up borders around peoples who had different cultures like an atom has different sub-atomic particles.

This was done so that at a moments notice the British could stage a terrorist attack amongst rival radical groups with drug money and quickly start a war!

The British rule by ''divide and conquer'' and they have managed to blind the American people with ''denial'' and by embarrassing real accounts of conspiracy.

It''s an efficient system, question is how long will the peoples of the world put up with it?

[omega40]

I certainly hope the Multinationals don''t expect the US taxpayer and military to handle security for all those assets they have built and purchased in India. They have flipped off the American worker and avoided paying taxes over here, the people benefiting should deal with those issues.

[gretagreen]

The Mumbai attack was India''s 9/11. The Indian people blame Pakistan. If these two nuclear powers do not calm down, I guess we won''t have to worry about our economy or gay marriage or anything at all.

I love this planet!! Hope no one blows it up any time soon.

[donevis-2009]

donevis: CBS is getting away from ''''hard'''' news.

Posted by downsteamjim at 04:20 PM : Dec 26, 2008

LOL!! Right on Downstream, The sheep and donkeys should run for cover.

[renonv5]

Let them kill each other off.. Posted by you_fools

I agree, it''s time to bring our men and women home and let these fools have at it. We need to protect our own borders, not all these other countries.

[downsteamjim]

donevis: CBS is getting away from ''hard'' news.

[donevis-2009]

Anyone else notice that the comment section on todays piece about the CIA and Viagra was omitted? I guess they didn''t want us running wild on that one. So now it seems our country''s foreign policy has sunk to a new low. I guess we have to accept the fact that we provide drugs to win a place in diplomacy. God Speed USA!

[yongamerica]

The *** troops on the Afghanistan boarder were just protecting the villages of Taliban and Al Qaeda terrorists from NATO troops.

This is Pakistan''s way to open the door for US backed troops to make more aggressive cross-boarder raids into these "uncontrolled" areas and hit the terrorists in their homes.

War is never a good thing. War against a country that possesses nuclear weapons and the willingness to use them is absurd. If India defeats Pakistan, the Taliban are ready to fill the vacuum. If Pakistan wins, the Taliban will face a weakened adversary. 300 Spartans makes a good piece of celluloid merchandising but they are just as dead in the end and the country is just as defeated. Where will America stand in this brouhaha? Will it still be standing after its climax?

[Renegade.Rivers]

Not our problem.

Posted by Downtowner97
------------------------------------------------
Nah, its not our problem, just let thousands of innocent people die. You about as sensitive as a box of rocks. It''s the attitude of people like yours that allows millions of people to die, and the attitude that the big bankers, and the arms makers relish. I''d rather be poor than to live rich on the spoils of war, and I have lived poor, so I know what the consequences are.

[Renegade.Rivers]

The Rothschild''s, the Rockefeller''s, and all others of their ilk must be liking their lips this morning, the only ones that ever wins in a time of war is the big bankers.

Take a peek at the book; George Bush: The Unauthorized Biography, it can be found on the net, just do a search, and see how the bankers connived the world into World War II. See how Prescott Bush Bert Walker, Samuel Pryor, Averell Harriman and a host of others made billions of loaning money to Hitler and Stalin both, as well as the British and the Americans.

Until we as citizens of the world stand up to the bankers and the arms dealers around the world and take away the power they hold over every nation, there will never be any hope of world peace. Because they don''t want peace, they just want to money.

[downtowner97]

Not our problem.

[lewiston14]

Now all we have to do is get china russia and japan into the mix along with a bunch of sub countries

[downsteamjim]

IamHungary: How many thousand/million India deaths would it take to satisfy you?

[sincity_q]

I don''t think that this cup is going to pass. The world got lucky back in 2002 when these two got nose to nose. This time, there is no leverage to be applied. Besides that, it looks as though the Taliban have become, for all intents and purposes, an integral part of the Pak military scematic.

The problem for us in the near future is our forces that will be effectively isolated in Afghanistan. Unless NATO can secure a land route for resupply and if need be, an escape, we are left to nothing but potentially hostile air corridors.

I don''t think we should be choosing sides in this but if it comes down to a fight for survival, we will find ourselves at odds with the Pakistanis.

[briannorwood]

Why don''t those stinking Pakistani morons move those troops into Waziristan and capture Bin Ladin instead. That would do a lot more to ease tensions with India!

[fleshmonger1]

considering the ineffectiveness of the U.S. efforts there so far and the grim prospects for it''s future success even before these policy changes on the part of Pakistan, I don''t think that we should be worrying as much about how it will affect our efforts against terrorism as much as we should be worrying about the possibility that a nuclear war could break out in the region. There is little doubt that this could easily become a religous war which would seriously impact the stability in the region and our economic dealings there... Not to mention how this could harm U.S. relations with both countries and their allies since we''re friendly to both now and that would be impacted by armed conflict between the two.