Latest news with #BinLaden
Gulf Insider
5 days ago
- General
- Gulf Insider
Resurgent ISIS? Terror Cells Launch Deadly Attacks On Syria's Kurds
At least three members of the Kurdish Asayish security forces were killed on Sunday in northeastern Syria, according to the group. They said they were targeted by an ISIS cell during a patrol on the road between Raqqa and Hasakeh. The patrol was targeted with a landmine, according to some sources. The official statement from Asayish also reported one person wounded in the attack, who is still receiving medical treatment. ISIS has been launching an escalating number of attacks against northeast Syria, mostly targeting the Kurdish SDF and other Kurdish forces. It has been reported that they carried out 104 attacks so far in 2025. Regional media details the following recent developments: The resurgence is not limited to Kurdish-administered areas. On May 30, ISIS claimed responsibility for its first attack on the forces of Syria's new transitional government, which took power following the ouster of Bashar al-Assad in December 2024. That attack, in Suwayda province, involved an improvised explosive device targeting a patrol from the Syrian Army's 70th Division, killing one soldier and injuring three others. The SITE Intelligence Group and SOHR confirmed the operation as ISIS's first publicly acknowledged assault on the new regime. Asayish said that 'sweep operations and investigations' are being launches in the area to try to find those responsible for the latest attack. Operations against ISIS have also been on the rise in recent weeks, with the HTS government joining in on some operations targeting them. The SDF reported that late last week they captured an ISIS cell in Deir Ezzor Governorate. They also reported that they had thwarted an ISIS attempt to plant a landmine in that area, killing one 'ISIS mercenary.' ISIS has claimed two attacks in the past two weeks targeting Syrian government forces, which are being presented as the first ISIS attacks against the Hayat Tahrir al-Sham (HTS) government since they took power in December. Meanwhile, HTS itself is not much removed from ISIS… The current Syrian government are mix Isis with Al Qaeda (Bin Laden soldiers) that declared war on the west many times before they took overBut now they will deceive the west and play moderate to lift sanctions and get funding to build themselves and prepare for offensive — Bob (@Shariakill) February 23, 2025 ISIS said the first attack was in Suwayda Governorate, and that it killed or wounded seven soldiers. The second attack was near the first one but a week later, and targeted the US-backed Free Syrian Army (FSA), killing one and wounding three.
News18
23-05-2025
- News18
What Happened To Osama Bin Laden's Home In Pakistan's Abbottabad?
Last Updated: The Pakistani government imposed strict surveillance to block outsiders and journalists from the site, then reportedly ordered the house's complete demolition in February 2012 The United States eliminated Osama bin Laden, the world's most wanted terrorist, on May 2, 2011, US intelligence agencies had been tracking him since the 9/11 attacks, but it took a decade to locate him. The high-stakes operation was executed by the elite Navy SEAL commandos, known for their skill in covert missions. On the night of May 2, American Navy SEAL commandos raided Osama bin Laden's residence in Abbottabad, Pakistan, and killed him. The house, located in the Bilal Town area, was specially designed for secrecy and security — surrounded by high walls, topped with barbed wire, and architecturally distinct from other buildings in the area. Remarkably, neither local police nor administrative authorities were reportedly aware that the world's most wanted terrorist had been living there for years. According to reports, the most astonishing aspect of the operation was that Bin Laden remained hidden in plain sight for so long without arousing suspicion. The Condition Of The House After The Operation Following the US operation, Osama bin Laden's Abbottabad residence quickly became a global focal point for media and security agencies. In response, the Pakistani government imposed strict surveillance to prevent outsiders, including journalists, from accessing the site. Just a few months later, in February 2012, the government reportedly ordered the complete demolition of the house. It was believed that the aim was to erase any physical trace or symbolic reminder of Bin Laden or terrorism from the area. The local administration used bulldozers to level the structure, and today, nothing remains of the original building. The site is now an empty plot of land. While Bilal Town has since developed into a fully populated neighborhood with new houses surrounding the area, the exact spot where Bin Laden once lived remains a vacant field. According to local residents, the house was built right in front of them, but the people who lived there remained a mystery. While normal life has since returned to the neighborhood, the site continues to spark curiosity and conversation among locals. Despite the global infamy of Osama bin Laden, there is no official road, building, or monument named after him anywhere in the world — a reflection of the widespread condemnation of terrorism. Erecting any public structure in the name of a terrorist is not only against international norms but is also socially and politically unacceptable. Bin Laden is globally recognized as the mastermind behind the 9/11 attacks and other acts of terror. He led the terror group Al-Qaeda, which has been designated a terrorist organization by the United Nations, the United States, the European Union, and many other countries. How Did Osama Bin Laden Remain Undetected In Abbottabad During Osama bin Laden's time in the Abbottabad compound, there were no significant public appearances or events that could have exposed his identity or location. Reports indicate that he and his family lived in extreme secrecy and maintained a low profile. According to neighbours, the house itself appeared mysterious and isolated. Surrounded by unusually high walls and barbed wire, the compound had minimal activity, and its residents rarely ventured outside. Locals noted that the children did not attend school, and the adults avoided any interaction with the community. The family had cut off all contact with the outside world, which, combined with the compound's design and discreet lifestyle, helped them evade detection for years. Daily Routine At Osama Bin Laden's Hideout The daily routine of those living inside Osama bin Laden's Abbottabad compound appeared surprisingly ordinary. Residents grew vegetables in the kitchen garden, raised chickens, and even burned household waste themselves—activities typical of any quiet household. From 2005 to 2011, no unusual incidents, police inquiries, or disturbances ever drew attention to the compound. For six years, the house maintained a facade of normalcy, with no signs that the world's most wanted terrorist was hiding within. This secrecy and routine were so effective that neither the Pakistani authorities nor local residents—nor even international intelligence agencies—suspected Bin Laden's presence until US Navy SEALs carried out their covert raid on May 2, 2011. Osama Bin Laden Lived In Abbottabad For Six Years Osama bin Laden resided in the Abbottabad house where he was ultimately killed for nearly six years. According to credible reports, Bin Laden and his family moved into the specially constructed compound in Bilal Town, Abbottabad, in 2005, after spending around two and a half years hiding in a village in Pakistan's Haripur district. Despite being located in a populated area, local authorities and neighbours had no clue that the world's most wanted terrorist was living among them. To those nearby, the residents simply appeared to be a reclusive family—no one imagined the compound housed Osama bin Laden himself. Watch India Pakistan Breaking News on CNN-News18. Get breaking news, in-depth analysis, and expert perspectives on everything from geopolitics to diplomacy and global trends. Stay informed with the latest world news only on News18. Download the News18 App to stay updated! tags : Abbottabad Osama bin Laden pakistan SEALs secret terrorist hideout United states Location : Pakistan First Published: May 23, 2025, 18:43 IST News world What Happened To Osama Bin Laden's Home In Pakistan's Abbottabad?
Express Tribune
21-05-2025
- Entertainment
- Express Tribune
The Bin Laden manhunt on Netflix
Listen to article Many movies, shows and books exist about the circumstances surrounding the Bin Laden killing in Abbottabad, Pakistan. As with any other major story, this one is not conspiracy theory resistant either. Seymour Hersh, a leading and very credible journalist, has his own account of how it all happened but not much discussion ever happened on that one. The US mainstream media as well as Hollywood have always been in the habit of repeating the official account of any story so many times that it somehow becomes the established truth even when it is not. This latest and almost widely watched Netflix show on the manhunt of America's most wanted enemy has repeated the same official narrative about how Bin Laden was tracked through his trusted courier. In this show, Netflix brought in front of cameras and lights the members of the notorious Alec Station of the CIA. There was one such tight group of girls who very obediently followed the directions of their boss and mentor Martin Schmidt. They were infamously quipped as the Manson's family. Some of those girls talk in the show. One of the Navy Seals, who was a member of the team that went to the house in Abbottabad, was also interviewed who shared some stark details. Actually, this one was exactly the soldier who actually came face to face with Bin Laden and actually shot and killed him. The most interesting part about this entire film is not the revelations or the entertainment aspect of it but rather the stuff it doesn't touch upon at all. The show depicts the dehumanised mindset of the American intelligence and military communities. They enjoy reliving the circumstances and the night when they killed Bin Laden. They brag about how the hunt was executed, how young occupants of the house, where Bin Laden was, were shot and killed. Most disturbingly, they sanitise their version of the acts of terror in Afghanistan, Iraq and elsewhere in their pursuit of Bin Laden. Minute after minute while watching the show one cannot help but ask the simple question: how do your violent actions make you any different than Bin Laden? Why is it terrorism when Bin Laden did it but not terrorism when you killed more than 10 times more people just while looking for this one man? The arguments presented are that Bin Laden was the enemy of the American people who had declared war on America and for America to go after him and invade lands and unleash bombs on foreign soil was somehow kosher from the international laws standpoint. Well, Bin Laden would agree with that rationale because that is the same rationale he had used as well while justifying his terrorist attacks against the innocent American people who perished on September 11, 2001. To him, the American people were the enemies and in destroying the American symbols of economic and military pride, killing innocent civilians was alright. Do an experiment; try listening to English only translations of the arguments of both sides and you would probably not be able to tell one side from the other. No remorse is felt for the loss of innocent lives. No realisation occurs where one can see that the actions of their side were illegal, immoral, the sheer force employed unnecessary, that those targeted and killed had nothing to do with what this war was all about. America supporting Israel doesn't justify an attack against America where innocent lives are lost just as much as an attack on American soil by Al-Qaeda doesn't justify invading Afghanistan and Iraq. The Taliban at the time were hosting Bin Laden. America accused Bin Laden of 9/11 attacks. The Taliban asked to provide proof of Bin Laden's involvement in order for them to hand him over to the Americans. That was quite a reasonable demand. Isn't that what the Americans would ask for if tables were turned? Instead, Bush announced the decision to invade Afghanistan. The rest is history. The clean shaven white barbarism is somehow treated differently than the one committed by the brown skinned bearded barbarians.
Yahoo
19-05-2025
- Politics
- Yahoo
Opinion - Pakistan's actions should be called state-sponsored terrorism
As a tenuous ceasefire settles after yet another outbreak of military actions between India and Pakistan, the U.S. finds itself in a curious position as peacemaker. Clearly, America's leaders want (and need) to do everything to keep the calm between two nuclear nations with a long history of animosity toward each other and work toward a solution that ensures that violence doesn't resume. But there is something the U.S., and the world, need to come to terms with. Pakistan continually engages in state sponsored terrorism. The investigation into the Pahalgam attacks will eventually reveal how much of a role, if any, that Pakistan had in funding, training and abetting the terrorists. Despite this, there is an uncomfortable truth that Pakistan and its allies (including the U.S.) fail to admit. There are many terrorist groups inside the Pakistani borders. And they aren't exactly hiding from the Pakistani government. The Pakistani government has been accused by not just India but Iran and Afghanistan of providing safe havens for terrorist groups. Also, ask any veteran of Afghanistan, and they will confirm that Pakistan's Northwest tribal areas were a de facto safe haven for groups (including the Taliban) as they crossed into Afghanistan to fight and kill Americans. When Al Qaeda fled the U.S. assault in 2001, they fled into, you guessed it, Pakistan. Most infamously, we all know that Osama Bin Laden was hiding in Pakistan. We also know that the Obama administration and the U.S. military did everything possible to not tell the Pakistani government or military about the operation to kill Bin Laden because they could not trust them with the information. That sentence alone should have been damning, but in this complex world of geopolitics, the U.S. decided the embarrassment of Pakistan harboring Bin Laden was enough. Except it wasn't. In the years since, the Taliban moved in and out of Afghanistan with such regularity that Obama had to increase the number of drone strikes inside Pakistan. Think about that for a second. We had to launch missile strikes on an ally because they had thousands of terrorists inside their borders. The Pakistanis were among the first to call for talks with the new Taliban government after the U.S. exit, claiming the Taliban victory had 'broken the shackles of slavery.' There was a small problem. The Taliban's origins in Pakistan means there are plenty of Pakistani Taliban supporters who want that type of government where they live. These Pakistan Taliban militants are now carrying out terror attacks on Pakistanis. You read that right. The terror group that the Pakistani government supported is now killing Pakistani citizens while operating out of Pakistan. The Inter-Service Intelligence, Pakistan's intelligence service has long had a comfortable relationship with the Taliban, much to the chagrin of the United States and others. But they didn't just help the Taliban. We know that the Inter-Service Intelligence has funded and trained groups with the intent of carrying out terror operations in India. Lashkar-e-Taiba, a terror group inside Pakistan, carried out the 2001 terror attack on India's Parliament and the 2008 Mumbai attacks. The training, weapons, money and planning all originated in Pakistan. Here's the thing. They are still in Pakistan. Its founder Hafiz Saeed, has a $10 million bounty on his head by the United States and yet he sits in a military protected residence with a private park in Pakistan. Iran also claims that Pakistan has funded terrorists to conduct attacks within its borders and has itself launched attacks on terror sites in Pakistan. Iran said that Pakistan is funding Sunni separatists movements in eastern Iran. If that sounds familiar, it is the exact same playbook that India claims Pakistan is doing in Indian controlled Jammu and Kashmir. Iran accusing Pakistan of terrorism might cause American readers some bemusement. After all, the U.S. has designated Iran a state sponsor of terrorism because of 'repeatedly provided support for acts of international terrorism.' Cuba, North Korea and Syria are on that list too. But if you do that math, you might be left scratching your head. Pakistani terror groups (including the Taliban) have killed more Americans than Iran, Cuba, North Korea and Syria combined. Pakistan has more known terror groups within its borders than these countries and has allowed those groups to conduct attacks on all its neighbors as well as its own citizens. If India and Pakistan sit down to talk, President Trump and Secretary of State Marco Rubio need to take a hard line on Pakistan. It was already worrying that Pakistan is using Chinese fighters in this current conflict, giving the Chinese valuable data on how their fighter does in combat. They should also be worried about Pakistan's plan to let China build a port in Gwadar, which would be a massive threat to the U.S. and its access to the Persian Gulf. But even more important is the worry that Pakistan and its Inter-Service Intelligence will continue to support and foster terrorist groups that will attack India, allowing them to plan attacks on targets much closer to home. Jos Joseph is a master's candidate at the Harvard Extension School at Harvard University. He is a Marine veteran who served in Iraq and lives in Anaheim, Calif. Copyright 2025 Nexstar Media, Inc. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.
The Hill
19-05-2025
- Politics
- The Hill
Pakistan's actions should be called state-sponsored terrorism
As a tenuous ceasefire settles after yet another outbreak of military actions between India and Pakistan, the U.S. finds itself in a curious position as peacemaker. Clearly, America's leaders want (and need) to do everything to keep the calm between two nuclear nations with a long history of animosity toward each other and work toward a solution that ensures that violence doesn't resume. But there is something the U.S., and the world, need to come to terms with. Pakistan continually engages in state sponsored terrorism. The investigation into the Pahalgam attacks will eventually reveal how much of a role, if any, that Pakistan had in funding, training and abetting the terrorists. Despite this, there is an uncomfortable truth that Pakistan and its allies (including the U.S.) fail to admit. There are many terrorist groups inside the Pakistani borders. And they aren't exactly hiding from the Pakistani government. The Pakistani government has been accused by not just India but Iran and Afghanistan of providing safe havens for terrorist groups. Also, ask any veteran of Afghanistan, and they will confirm that Pakistan's Northwest tribal areas were a de facto safe haven for groups (including the Taliban) as they crossed into Afghanistan to fight and kill Americans. When Al Qaeda fled the U.S. assault in 2001, they fled into, you guessed it, Pakistan. Most infamously, we all know that Osama Bin Laden was hiding in Pakistan. We also know that the Obama administration and the U.S. military did everything possible to not tell the Pakistani government or military about the operation to kill Bin Laden because they could not trust them with the information. That sentence alone should have been damning, but in this complex world of geopolitics, the U.S. decided the embarrassment of Pakistan harboring Bin Laden was enough. Except it wasn't. In the years since, the Taliban moved in and out of Afghanistan with such regularity that Obama had to increase the number of drone strikes inside Pakistan. Think about that for a second. We had to launch missile strikes on an ally because they had thousands of terrorists inside their borders. The Pakistanis were among the first to call for talks with the new Taliban government after the U.S. exit, claiming the Taliban victory had 'broken the shackles of slavery.' There was a small problem. The Taliban's origins in Pakistan means there are plenty of Pakistani Taliban supporters who want that type of government where they live. These Pakistan Taliban militants are now carrying out terror attacks on Pakistanis. You read that right. The terror group that the Pakistani government supported is now killing Pakistani citizens while operating out of Pakistan. The Inter-Service Intelligence, Pakistan's intelligence service has long had a comfortable relationship with the Taliban, much to the chagrin of the United States and others. But they didn't just help the Taliban. We know that the Inter-Service Intelligence has funded and trained groups with the intent of carrying out terror operations in India. Lashkar-e-Taiba, a terror group inside Pakistan, carried out the 2001 terror attack on India's Parliament and the 2008 Mumbai attacks. The training, weapons, money and planning all originated in Pakistan. Here's the thing. They are still in Pakistan. Its founder Hafiz Saeed, has a $10 million bounty on his head by the United States and yet he sits in a military protected residence with a private park in Pakistan. Iran also claims that Pakistan has funded terrorists to conduct attacks within its borders and has itself launched attacks on terror sites in Pakistan. Iran said that Pakistan is funding Sunni separatists movements in eastern Iran. If that sounds familiar, it is the exact same playbook that India claims Pakistan is doing in Indian controlled Jammu and Kashmir. Iran accusing Pakistan of terrorism might cause American readers some bemusement. After all, the U.S. has designated Iran a state sponsor of terrorism because of 'repeatedly provided support for acts of international terrorism.' Cuba, North Korea and Syria are on that list too. But if you do that math, you might be left scratching your head. Pakistani terror groups (including the Taliban) have killed more Americans than Iran, Cuba, North Korea and Syria combined. Pakistan has more known terror groups within its borders than these countries and has allowed those groups to conduct attacks on all its neighbors as well as its own citizens. If India and Pakistan sit down to talk, President Trump and Secretary of State Marco Rubio need to take a hard line on Pakistan. It was already worrying that Pakistan is using Chinese fighters in this current conflict, giving the Chinese valuable data on how their fighter does in combat. They should also be worried about Pakistan's plan to let China build a port in Gwadar, which would be a massive threat to the U.S. and its access to the Persian Gulf. But even more important is the worry that Pakistan and its Inter-Service Intelligence will continue to support and foster terrorist groups that will attack India, allowing them to plan attacks on targets much closer to home. Jos Joseph is a master's candidate at the Harvard Extension School at Harvard University. He is a Marine veteran who served in Iraq and lives in Anaheim, Calif.
