US Strikes More Precise on al Qaeda - Sara Carter, Washington Times
US strikes against terrorist suspects in Pakistan's tribal region have become more accurate in the past few months, leading to the confirmed deaths of eight senior al Qaeda leaders and a decrease in civilian casualties that have roiled US-Pakistani relations, The Washington Times has learned.
Among those killed was the mastermind of a 2006 plot to detonate liquid explosives aboard planes flying across the Atlantic and the man thought to have planned the Sept. 20 bombing of the Marriott hotel in Islamabad, Pakistan, that killed 53 people, including two members of the US military.
More at The Washington Times.
Drones Shatter Invincible Image of Osama bi Laden - Michael Evans, The Australian
Osama bin Laden is not yet a busted flush, but the damage caused to his organisation by US Predator spy drones operating close to the Afghanistan-Pakistan border has torn a huge hole in his global network.
Al-Qa'ida's tentacles still reach out to bin Laden supporters and sympathisers in dozens of countries, but every time a senior commander is eliminated by a Hellfire missile or a precision-guided bomb from an unmanned Predator, the effect is felt across the terrorist network.
Although al-Qa'ida has no central communication system and no headquarters, cells in Europe or North Africa will have points of contact (individuals who can act as messengers or as lower-echelon supervisors, and who can pass on advice or guidance).
In recent months, the Predators' successes unquestionably have weakened al-Qa'ida's global reach, and the prosecution of 86 Islamic terrorists in Britain over the past two years has forced supporters to adopt a low profile.
More at The Australian.