SUBSCRIBE TO OUR FREE NEWSLETTER
Daily news & progressive opinion—funded by the people, not the corporations—delivered straight to your inbox.
5
#000000
#FFFFFF
5
#000000
#FFFFFF
Taliban Second-In-Command Captured in Pakistan
Detention of Abdul Ghani Baradar most significant breakthrough in US-led hunt for Taliban leaders in many years
Feb 16, 2010
Mullah Barader, the Taliban's powerful second in command, has been captured in the Pakistani city of Karachi, senior US officials have confirmed.
The
detention of Abdul Ghani Barader is the most significant breakthrough
in many years of the US-led hunt for the Taliban's leaders, and comes
as Nato forces continue to advance into Taliban-held areas in the
southern Afghan province of Helmand.
Barader was seized in a secret joint operation by Pakistani and US intelligence forces, according to US government officials quoted in the New York Times.
Mullah Barader has been in Pakistani custody for several days, with US
and Pakistani intelligence officials both taking part in
interrogations, according to the officials. Though Barack Obama has
banned US agencies from using forms of torture such as waterboarding,
Pakistani questioning techniques are frequently brutal.
US officials later confirmed the report of Baradar's capture to the Associated Press news agency.
Barader
is believed to have been born in the central Afghan province of
Oruzgan. He is the most trusted lieutenant of Mullah Mohammed Omar, the
supreme leader of the Taliban, and has been ultimately responsible for
the execution of the insurgents' military and political strategy since
being appointed to the position in 2002. He is, in effect, chairman of
the so-called Quetta Shura - the leadership council of the Taliban,
named after the south-western Pakistani city near or in which it is
thought to be based - and is known to be close to Osama bin Laden.
That his capture appears to have occurred in Karachi underlines the degree to which senior Afghan militants have used Pakistan
as a secure base for their operations, but may also signal a very
significant change in attitude on the part of the Pakistani army
towards the hardline Afghan Islamist militant movement.
The
Pakistani security establishment's ambivalent attitude towards the
Taliban has been repeatedly cited as a major cause of the problems that
have beset the western intervention in Afghanistan since then fall of the Taliban regime in December 2001.
Barader,
reported to be aged between 41 and 48, may have been forced to flee
more secure hiding places alongside the Afghan-Pakistani frontier by
the repeated and increasingly effective strikes by unmanned drones.
Karachi, a metropolis of 14 million people, was where key 9/11
conspirator Ramzi bin al'Shibh was seized in September 2002.
The
New York Times said it had learned of Baradar's capture on Thursday but
delayed reporting it at the request of White House officials, who told
the newspaper making it public would end a hugely successful
intelligence-gathering effort. According to the New York Times,
officials said the group's leaders had been unaware of Baradar's
capture, and if it became public they might become more careful about
communicating with each other.
An Urgent Message From Our Co-Founder
Dear Common Dreams reader, The U.S. is on a fast track to authoritarianism like nothing I've ever seen. Meanwhile, corporate news outlets are utterly capitulating to Trump, twisting their coverage to avoid drawing his ire while lining up to stuff cash in his pockets. That's why I believe that Common Dreams is doing the best and most consequential reporting that we've ever done. Our small but mighty team is a progressive reporting powerhouse, covering the news every day that the corporate media never will. Our mission has always been simple: To inform. To inspire. And to ignite change for the common good. Now here's the key piece that I want all our readers to understand: None of this would be possible without your financial support. That's not just some fundraising cliche. It's the absolute and literal truth. We don't accept corporate advertising and never will. We don't have a paywall because we don't think people should be blocked from critical news based on their ability to pay. Everything we do is funded by the donations of readers like you. Will you donate now to help power the nonprofit, independent reporting of Common Dreams? Thank you for being a vital member of our community. Together, we can keep independent journalism alive when it’s needed most. - Craig Brown, Co-founder |
Our work is licensed under Creative Commons (CC BY-NC-ND 3.0). Feel free to republish and share widely.
Mullah Barader, the Taliban's powerful second in command, has been captured in the Pakistani city of Karachi, senior US officials have confirmed.
The
detention of Abdul Ghani Barader is the most significant breakthrough
in many years of the US-led hunt for the Taliban's leaders, and comes
as Nato forces continue to advance into Taliban-held areas in the
southern Afghan province of Helmand.
Barader was seized in a secret joint operation by Pakistani and US intelligence forces, according to US government officials quoted in the New York Times.
Mullah Barader has been in Pakistani custody for several days, with US
and Pakistani intelligence officials both taking part in
interrogations, according to the officials. Though Barack Obama has
banned US agencies from using forms of torture such as waterboarding,
Pakistani questioning techniques are frequently brutal.
US officials later confirmed the report of Baradar's capture to the Associated Press news agency.
Barader
is believed to have been born in the central Afghan province of
Oruzgan. He is the most trusted lieutenant of Mullah Mohammed Omar, the
supreme leader of the Taliban, and has been ultimately responsible for
the execution of the insurgents' military and political strategy since
being appointed to the position in 2002. He is, in effect, chairman of
the so-called Quetta Shura - the leadership council of the Taliban,
named after the south-western Pakistani city near or in which it is
thought to be based - and is known to be close to Osama bin Laden.
That his capture appears to have occurred in Karachi underlines the degree to which senior Afghan militants have used Pakistan
as a secure base for their operations, but may also signal a very
significant change in attitude on the part of the Pakistani army
towards the hardline Afghan Islamist militant movement.
The
Pakistani security establishment's ambivalent attitude towards the
Taliban has been repeatedly cited as a major cause of the problems that
have beset the western intervention in Afghanistan since then fall of the Taliban regime in December 2001.
Barader,
reported to be aged between 41 and 48, may have been forced to flee
more secure hiding places alongside the Afghan-Pakistani frontier by
the repeated and increasingly effective strikes by unmanned drones.
Karachi, a metropolis of 14 million people, was where key 9/11
conspirator Ramzi bin al'Shibh was seized in September 2002.
The
New York Times said it had learned of Baradar's capture on Thursday but
delayed reporting it at the request of White House officials, who told
the newspaper making it public would end a hugely successful
intelligence-gathering effort. According to the New York Times,
officials said the group's leaders had been unaware of Baradar's
capture, and if it became public they might become more careful about
communicating with each other.
Mullah Barader, the Taliban's powerful second in command, has been captured in the Pakistani city of Karachi, senior US officials have confirmed.
The
detention of Abdul Ghani Barader is the most significant breakthrough
in many years of the US-led hunt for the Taliban's leaders, and comes
as Nato forces continue to advance into Taliban-held areas in the
southern Afghan province of Helmand.
Barader was seized in a secret joint operation by Pakistani and US intelligence forces, according to US government officials quoted in the New York Times.
Mullah Barader has been in Pakistani custody for several days, with US
and Pakistani intelligence officials both taking part in
interrogations, according to the officials. Though Barack Obama has
banned US agencies from using forms of torture such as waterboarding,
Pakistani questioning techniques are frequently brutal.
US officials later confirmed the report of Baradar's capture to the Associated Press news agency.
Barader
is believed to have been born in the central Afghan province of
Oruzgan. He is the most trusted lieutenant of Mullah Mohammed Omar, the
supreme leader of the Taliban, and has been ultimately responsible for
the execution of the insurgents' military and political strategy since
being appointed to the position in 2002. He is, in effect, chairman of
the so-called Quetta Shura - the leadership council of the Taliban,
named after the south-western Pakistani city near or in which it is
thought to be based - and is known to be close to Osama bin Laden.
That his capture appears to have occurred in Karachi underlines the degree to which senior Afghan militants have used Pakistan
as a secure base for their operations, but may also signal a very
significant change in attitude on the part of the Pakistani army
towards the hardline Afghan Islamist militant movement.
The
Pakistani security establishment's ambivalent attitude towards the
Taliban has been repeatedly cited as a major cause of the problems that
have beset the western intervention in Afghanistan since then fall of the Taliban regime in December 2001.
Barader,
reported to be aged between 41 and 48, may have been forced to flee
more secure hiding places alongside the Afghan-Pakistani frontier by
the repeated and increasingly effective strikes by unmanned drones.
Karachi, a metropolis of 14 million people, was where key 9/11
conspirator Ramzi bin al'Shibh was seized in September 2002.
The
New York Times said it had learned of Baradar's capture on Thursday but
delayed reporting it at the request of White House officials, who told
the newspaper making it public would end a hugely successful
intelligence-gathering effort. According to the New York Times,
officials said the group's leaders had been unaware of Baradar's
capture, and if it became public they might become more careful about
communicating with each other.
We've had enough. The 1% own and operate the corporate media. They are doing everything they can to defend the status quo, squash dissent and protect the wealthy and the powerful. The Common Dreams media model is different. We cover the news that matters to the 99%. Our mission? To inform. To inspire. To ignite change for the common good. How? Nonprofit. Independent. Reader-supported. Free to read. Free to republish. Free to share. With no advertising. No paywalls. No selling of your data. Thousands of small donations fund our newsroom and allow us to continue publishing. Can you chip in? We can't do it without you. Thank you.