It is obvious that the United States really had no choice when it went in to get Osama bin Laden but to keep it a secret. Operational intelligence and the need for secrecy are paramount in such a mission. Indeed, it would have been reckless, and irresponsible to put our Special Forces Team in jeopardy by alerting the Pakistani military, and Pakistani intelligence services of what was planned.
Had we done that, obviously the information would've leaked out, and the operation would've failed, then met with a greater force, or Osama bin Laden would have slipped out of sight during the days leading up to the raid. Of course, the Pakistani military, political figures, and intelligence services has to save face, otherwise there will be reprisal attacks upon them.
Therefore much of what is heard in the global media coming from Pakistan officials has more to do with keeping their own people happy and content than any kind of message or warning to our leadership here. Nevertheless, they did have to make a statement after the raid on Osama bin Laden's million-dollar compounds in Abbottsbad, Pakistan.
In fact, there was an interesting article in Reuters recently titled "Pakistan Threatens US on Cooperation if More Raids" by Jeff Mason on May 5, 2011 which stated the President Obama said;
"The killing of bin Laden by a U.S. commando team in Pakistan on Monday "sent a message around the world, but also sent a message here back home, that when we say we will never forget, we mean what we say. But a senior Pakistani security official said U.S. troops killed bin Laden in "cold blood," fueling a global controversy and straining a relationship that Washington deems key to defeating the al Qaeda movement."
Now then, back to the point I was making; there was a reprisal attack from Al Qaeda or Taliban sympathizers where 60-80 Pakistani military recruits in training were killed, in a suicide bus bombing. Are the United States and Pakistan governments really at odds with each other right now? I'd say most of this is posturing, and we have nothing to worry about. If however the Pakistan military is upset with the US for going in and getting Osama bin Laden, well then, they should have given him up many years ago, instead they milked this for huge amounts of aid money, which is unacceptable.
Just like it is inconceivable that no one in the Pakistani military, and intelligence forces knew that Osama bin Laden was there, we are indeed getting doubletalk from Pakistan, not only in the media, but in the behind the scenes communication flows. Indeed I hope you will please consider all this and think on it.
Lance Winslow is a retired Founder of a Nationwide Franchise Chain, and now runs the Online Think Tank. Lance Winslow believes writing 23,300 articles by May 23, 2011 is difficult because all the letters on his keyboard are now worn off.
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