February 12, 2007
NO ONE HAS SOVEREIGNTY IN AN UNGOVERNED REGION:
U.S. fires into Pakistan to hit back at Taliban (ROBERT BURNS, 2/12/07, The Associated Press)
Asserting a right to self-defense, American forces in eastern Afghanistan have launched artillery rounds into Pakistan to strike Taliban fighters who attack remote U.S. outposts, the commander of U.S. forces in the region said Sunday.The skirmishes are politically sensitive because Pakistan's government, regarded by the Bush administration as an important ally against Islamic extremists, has denied that it allows U.S. forces to strike inside its territory.
The use of the largely ungoverned Waziristan area of Pakistan as a haven for Taliban and al-Qaida fighters has become a greater irritant between Washington and Islamabad since Pakistan put in place a peace agreement there in September that was intended to stop cross-border incursions.
It's a free-fire zone. Posted by Orrin Judd at February 12, 2007 10:37 AM
Mushie should consider it pest control.
Posted by: Sandy P at February 12, 2007 12:11 PMWar is not a children's schoolyard game, with free home bases. A belligerent may strike the enemy wherever the enemy may be found. If a so-called, self-proclamined "Neutral" is unable of unwilling to deny the use of its territory to a belligerent, the other belligerent may do it for him. Internaltional law 101, as they say.
This isn't even an incursion, it is a fire mission. No problem.
Posted by: Lou Gots at February 12, 2007 1:24 PMThe plotline is intriguing: Perv tells the Taliban it's OK to camp out on his side of the border, we let them concentrate, then we kill them. The only question is whether Perv was in on the deal or we were brilliantly opportunistic. I go for palusible deniability.
Posted by: ghostcat at February 12, 2007 1:42 PMThe Palouse is on another continent. Plausible.
Posted by: ghostcat at February 12, 2007 1:54 PMI'm sure Mooshie was shocked, SHOCKED!
Posted by: Sandy P at February 12, 2007 2:57 PMMusharraf and co. will keep with the same old course. Make angry noises about sovereignity, let the US do as it pleases, count the aid dollars, knock off a few inconvenient extremists and coddle some others.
Then he'll continue to tout Pakistan's economic "success" while doling out more goodies to the military while the poor continue to get screwed by inflation and spending on education, infrastructure and health remains abysmal.
Posted by: Ali Choudhury at February 12, 2007 4:13 PMNot free enough, yet.
Posted by: ratbert at February 12, 2007 10:55 PM