The Associated Press reports that Pakistani security forces came close to capturing Osama bin Laden about eight to 10 months ago.
Though President Gen. Pervez Musharraf did not say where the operation took place, the comment was the first official indication that bin Laden has recently been in Pakistan. Intelligence officials have said they believe he is hiding in the rugged mountains that straddle the border with Afghanistan.
"There was a time when the dragnet had closed and we thought we knew roughly the area where he possibly could be," Musharraf said in an interview with the British Broadcasting Corp. aired Tuesday.
"That was, I think, some time back ... maybe about eight to 10 months back," he said, adding: "But after that, this is such a game, this intelligence, that they escape. They can move and then you lose contact."
The comments confirmed Pakistani intelligence officials' claims that the trail of the world's most wanted man has gone cold. Senior officials close to the hunt have told The Associated Press they have received no information on his whereabouts for months and have no indication of any specific attack he is planning.
Every time I read something like this I remind myself how happy I was when Saddam was captured and tell myself to be patient.
How many times is Mien General going to repeat this charade...now we are close, now we are not, now we don't know where he is, now we know for certain he is not in Pakistan.
If you take all these contradictory remarks in context, it looks like Musharraf's hunt for bin Laden is one big intentional wild goose chase.
Posted by: Nitin | Wednesday, March 16, 2005 at 04:40 AM