The Hindu : Hunt on for Osama in Kashmir

Online edition of India's National Newspaper
Sunday, Feb 24, 2002

International

International

Hunt on for Osama in Kashmir
By Hasan Suroor

LONDON, FEB. 23. Speculation over Osama bin Laden's whereabouts was reignited today after a British newspaper reported that special U.S. and British forces were looking for him in Kashmir following a tip-off from Indian intelligence that the world's most wanted man might be hiding in the region, ``protected'' by the Harkat-ul-Mujahideen.

``The group (Harkat)...is believed to have smuggled him into one of many remote areas that are nearly impossible for the Indian Army to police,'' The Daily Telegraph said quoting a senior defence source, just back from the region, as saying that the British SAS troops were acting in an ``advisory role for Indian Army special forces.'' The Indian Army, it said, was ``as keen as the rest of the world to see the Al-Qaeda leader dead.''

The British Government declined to react saying it was not the practice to comment on reports relating to the activities of defence forces. In non-official circles, there was widespread scepticism with observers dismissing it as ``yet another shot in the dark''. It was also noted that New Delhi had already denied the report.

The paper claimed that the operation was launched after the Prime Minister, Tony Blair, and the U.S. Secretary of State, Colin Powell's visits to India and Pakistan last month. ``At about that time, Indian intelligence told the CIA that they believed Osama bin Laden was hiding in the Himalayan mountains in Kashmir, protected by the Islamic guerrilla group, the Harkat-ul-Mujahideen,'' it said.

The hunt, being conducted jointly by SAS and the U.S.'s Delta Force, was described as ``one of the most technical covert operations'' of the war against terrorism. The SAS was under strict orders to stay clear of any ``firefights'' between Indian and Pakistani troops, and ``merely collect intelligence'', the newspaper said. It suggested that the decision by Pakistan's ISI to disband its section aiding Kashmiri separatists such as the Harkat-ul-Mujahideen indicated that Islamabad had been informed of the latest Anglo-U.S. venture in the region.

Giving details of the operation, the paper said a range of high-tech devices were being used, including a spy satellite above the Indian Ocean to monitor communications between Osama bin Laden and other members of the Al-Qaeda. The whole area was ``ultra-sensitive'', it said.

This is the latest in a series of reports in the British media speculating about Osama bin Laden's movements and analysts were inclined to take it with more than just a pinch of salt.

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