The arrest of Al Qaeda’s No. 3 commander and close associate of terrorist chief Osama bin Laden has increased cautious hopes that the arrest might help the hunt for bin Laden himself.
Everything depends on what information officials get out of Abu Farraj al-Libbi , who one counter terrorism official told the AP was the No. 3 al-Qaeda figure behind bin Laden and Khalid Sheik Mohammed, who was captured in March 2003.
al-Libbi’s arrest should also be welcome news to Pakistan’s President Gen. Pervez Musharraf: he is believed to have been behind two highly publicized attempts to assassinate Pakistan’s President. If you recall those attempts, it seemed as if the terrorists were privy to some inside information about Musharraf’s movements. At the least, it’s quite likely that after being questioned by Pakistani interrogators al-Libbi give some info about alleged Al Qaeda sympathizers within Pakistan’s security forces and/or military.
News reports say officials calling the arrest “a step in the right direction” — meaning they are now hotter than ever on bin Laden’s trail — but are cautious about saying this will actually lead to bin Laden:
The White House said the capture of al-Libbi was “a great success in the global war on terror” and the most significant arrest since Khalid Shaik Mohammed was taken into custody two years ago.
“His arrest removes a dangerous enemy who is a direct threat to America and those who love freedom,” President Bush said Tuesday at a Social Security conference in Washington.
“We have brought to justice in one way or another some three quarters of al-Qaeda’s key leaders and associates,” White House press secretary Scott McClellan said. “Al-Libbi’s capture is a great success in global war on terrorism. He is one of al-Qaeda’s most senior operational planners and one of the terrorist organization’s top leaders.”
A U.S. counterterrorism official, speaking on condition of anonymity, said al-Libby was the No. 3 al-Qaeda figure behind bin Laden and Khalid Shaikh Mohammed, who was captured in March 2003. The official called this arrest the most significant blow to al-Qaeda since Mohammed’s capture, saying al-Libbi is believed responsible for planning attacks around the world, including in the United States.
“Their leadership and support network is fraying,” said the official, who called this a “significant capture” and “another chapter in the degradation of their network.”
Indeed, it’s all going to depend on the interrogation by Pakistan officials, who are trying to dampen overhype speculation. Interior Minister Aftab Khan Sherpao noted that al-Libbi is an Al Qaeda planner. And he added this:
Sherpao would not speculate on whether the arrest might help lead to the capture of bin Laden or his deputy, Ayman al-Zawahri, who have eluded a 3{-year dragnet since the Sept. 11 attacks.
“We have no information” about the al-Qaeda leaders, he said. “It’s premature to say (whether al-Libbi’s arrest will help track them down), but definitely interrogation is going to take place.”
Still, the arrest’s significance is underscored by how — and where — it took place: after a firefight some 30 miles north of Peshawar, capital of the North West Frontier Province. It has long been rumored that bin Laden is hiding somewhere in the North West Frontier Province. Who is the person who you’d least want to be today? al-Libby.
Joe Gandelman is a former fulltime journalist who freelanced in India, Spain, Bangladesh and Cypress writing for publications such as the Christian Science Monitor and Newsweek. He also did radio reports from Madrid for NPR’s All Things Considered. He has worked on two U.S. newspapers and quit the news biz in 1990 to go into entertainment. He also has written for The Week and several online publications, did a column for Cagle Cartoons Syndicate and has appeared on CNN.