Bill Roggio notes that Pakistani forces are raiding the Red Mosque, one of the centers of Islamist terrorism in Islamabad. This is a very audacious move for President Musharraf, who sits under the sword of Damocles due to his delicate position as a strong anti-terrorist leader in a country that is now almost certainly the refuge of the remaining al-Qaeda leadership.
The Pakistanis, despite their delicate political situation, have been valuable allies in this war. They’ve had some difficult engagements with the Islamist enemy, and while Musharraf has backed down from trying to control the lawless Afghan/Pakistan frontier, he has been of some assistance in containing al-Qaeda. As much as we would like to make a snatch and grab inside Pakistani territory and take out Zawahiri or bin Laden, the costs would likely be too great.
Good hunting to the Pakistan military, and hopefully this seige can be accomplished quickly and with a minimum of casualties — although I doubt the Islamic militants inside the Red Mosque will be willing to make that happen.
