Two Other Bad Guys Dealt With (Really Bad Guys)

The Baitullah news could overshadow a couple other big successes in the past couple days.

1) Noordin Mohammed Top, the Jemaah Islamiyah splinter leader who took credit for the recent Jakarta Hotel bombings, is believed to have been killed in a firefight today on the Indonesian Island of Java. (Reuters)

2) New LTTE leader, and former LTTE arms kingpin Selvarasa Pathmanathan (or “KP”) was arrested in a “Southeast Asian” country. He took over for recently deceased LTTE founder and leader Velupillai Prabhakaran. KP was such a major force in the LTTE international network that this is a major win. For details of his role running the LTTE arms and logistics networks (nicknamed the ‘KP Branch”) read the appendix to RANDs report Trends in Outside Support to Insurgencies, that focuses on LTTE Military Procurement. (Malay Star, RAND)

Baitullah is Dead

The leader of Tehrik e Taliban Pakistan (TTP) is dead. Starting a couple days ago, stories about the death of Mrs. Baitullah Mehsud began to filter out of Pakistan. Initially rumours that Baitullah was with her were denied… but today those rumors appear confirmed. This is either a big win, or not really, depending on who you ask. (CTC, Long War Journal, Daily Times)

“The most wanted terrorist in Pakistan, Baitullah Mehsud, is most likely in repose, the result of a successful jointed intelligence operation mounted by the U.S. Air Force equipment, the CIA operations officers and Pakistan's ISI. Mehsud, according to a United Nations report not disputed by the intelligence community, has been responsible for about 80% of the terrorism-related carnage in Pakistan, including the assassination of Benazir Bhutto. A former ISI asset, Meshud is responsible for the deaths of American soldiers, too. In March, he promised a "spectacular" attack against Washington, D.C.” (The Atlantic)

“‘I confirm that Baitullah Mehsud and his wife died in the American missile attack in South Waziristan,’ Taliban commander Kafayat Ullah said by telephone on Friday. He would not give any details.” (Dawn)