The Long War Journal
US Predators strike again in Waziristan
By Bill Roggio
October 31, 2008 3:10 PM
US unmanned Predator aircraft struck inside Pakistan's tribal areas for the second time today. After targeting a mid-level al Qaeda operative in North Waziristan, US Predators attacked a compound in Wana, South Waziristan.
Six "foreigners" -- a term used to describe Arabs or other non-Pakistani al Qaeda members -- and a "tribesman" are reported to have been killed in the strike. The compound is said to be owned by Faz-e-Haq.
Tahir Yuldalshev, the commander of a Uzbek terror group and Mullah Nazir were the target of the attack. A US intelligence source said that Nazir was wounded in the strike, “possibly seriously.”
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Yuldashev is the leader of the Islamic Movement of Uzbekistan, an al Qaeda-linked group that operates out of Pakistan's tribal areas. Yuldashev enjoys a close relationship with Osama bin Laden. He is a member of al Qaeda's global shura council. Some of Yuldashev's fighters are believed to serve in the Black Guard, Osama bin Laden's personal corps of bodyguards.
Yuldashev maintains tactical control of about one to two thousand fighters inside Pakistan and Afghanistan, US intelligence officials told The Long War Journal in the past. His fighters are active in eastern Afghanistan, where they attack Coalition and Afghan forces. .....
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