The tribal regions in northwest Pakistan have become a lot less welcoming to the al-Qaeda terrorist network and its allies, CIA Director Michael Hayden said today.
The Islamic militants are “beginning to realize, beginning to think, this is neither safe nor a haven,” Hayden said in a farewell interview with reporters at Central Intelligence Agency headquarters in Langley, Virginia.
He said the agency and Pakistan’s military have put increasing pressure on al-Qaeda. The U.S. has carried out a series of missile strikes in recent months in these areas, and Hayden today said he’s seen progress “since last summer” in curbing the militants.
Al-Qaeda fighters sought shelter in this rugged mountainous region after the U.S.-led invasion of Afghanistan in late 2001, which ousted the ruling Taliban militia. Hayden and other U.S. intelligence officials have said al-Qaeda and their Taliban supporters use bases there to plan and carry out attacks on coalition forces across the border in Afghanistan.
Hayden said that confronting al-Qaeda must remain a priority for the next CIA director. President-elect Barack Obama has nominated Leon Panetta, former chief of staff to President Bill Clinton, for this post.
Obama said yesterday that al-Qaeda remains the top threat to national security and eliminating its bases of operation will continue to be a U.S. priority in his administration.
“We’re going to do everything in our power to make sure that they cannot create safe havens” from which to attack the U.S., Obama said. He spoke after getting briefed by Vice President-elect Joe Biden and Republican Senator Lindsey Graham, who just returned from a trip to Pakistan, Afghanistan and Iraq.
No comments:
Post a Comment