Hey, hey Admiral Mullen how many US troops have you killed today?

Adm. Mullen has long been the most outspoken member of the U.S. government in support of Pakistan's military efforts. Adm. Mullen has used his close relationship with Gen. Ashfaq Kayani, the Pakistani army chief of staff, to prod the military to step up its actions against militants.
- Wall Street Journal, October 15, 2010



October 17, 2010, Long War Journal

Pakistan is not conducting 'surgical' raids in North Waziristan
By Bill Roggio

Buried at the end of this Wall Street Journal article on Admiral Mike Mullen's infatuation with Pakistan (a topic worthy of a book in itself), are these two completely false paragraphs that claim Pakistan is conducting covert operations against al Qaeda, the Taliban, and the Haqqani Network based in North Waziristan:

Pakistan currently conducts "surgical" raids against militants in North Waziristan—home to the al Qaeda-linked Haqqani network -- but has said a large-scale operation to clear the area of all military would threaten Islamabad's ability to keep militants out of other areas it cleared previously.

Islamabad is willing to step up their surgical raids in North Waziristan if the U.S. provides them with more information about the location of militants they want removed, a senior Pakistan official said this week.

There is absolutely not one shred of evidence to back this up. None. Pakistani forces have not killed a single leader or senior operative of al Qaeda, the Taliban, the Haqqani Network, the Islamic Movement of Uzbekistan, the Islamic Jihad Group, the Eastern Turkistan Islamic Party, the Lashklar-e-Jhangvi, the Lashkar-e-Taiba, the Jaish-e-Mohammed, the Harkat-ul-Mujahideen, the Harkat-ul-Jihad-i-Islami, the Fedayeen-i-Islam, etc., based in North Waziristan. The only "surgical raids" being carried out in North Waziristan are done by the unmanned US Predators and Reapers.

In the interview, Admiral Mullen describes Pakistan's counterinsurgency efforts against the Taliban and al Qaeda in Swat and South Waziristan as "heroic." Yet there is nothing remotely heroic in Pakistani officials making false claims about Pakistan's efforts to take on terrorist sanctuaries in North Waziristan. In the ranks of the US military, there is a term for those who pump up their exploits at the expense of those fighting alongside them: blue falcon.

Do you have any idea what you have done, Mullen? Do you even care? Right now ISAF is having to use a cutthroat warlord to clear Taliban for them because of your man crush on Kayani -- or is that you've Gone Native?

Don't give me that yap about Obama Made Me Do It. If Obama told you to jump off a cliff would you?

If you want to be diplomat, go work for State. If you want to lobby for Pakistan's regime, go to work on K Street. But whatever you do, get out of the U.S. military. Scat! Shoo! You, you, you -- Blue Falcon! Blue Falcon! Bad Bill Roggio! Bad! Bad! Teaching innocent old women military curse words!

Long War Journal, October 26, 2010

Pakistan: North Waziristan operation is not on the table
By Bill Roggio

Just days after the US government committed to providing the Pakistani military more than $2 billion in aid, the top general in the northwest said an operation in North Waziristan won't happen anytime soon. From Dawn:

"Pakistan will consider mounting an anti-Taliban offensive in North Waziristan only when other tribal areas are stabilised, a senior military officer said on Tuesday, a position likely to anger ally Washington.

Pakistan has resisted mounting US pressure to launch a major operation in North Waziristan to eliminate the Haqqani Taliban faction.

Pakistan's army has repeatedly said it is too stretched fighting Taliban insurgents in other forbidding mountaineous regions, and that only it can determine if and when to strike.

Lt.-Gen Asif Yasin Malik, the main military commander for the northwest, said it would take at least six months to clear militants from Bajaur and Mohmand, two of Pakistan's seven semi-autonomous tribal agencies.

“What we have to do is stabilise the whole area. I have a very large area in my command,” he told reporters on a trip to Orakzai agency. “The issue is I need more resources.”

There are already six brigades in North Waziristan which carry out daily operations, he said.

Surprising, isn't it?

And as we noted [on October 17] the Pakistani military is not carrying out operations in North Waziristan.