Word: leader
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Baitullah Mehsud, however, has not surfaced to say he is alive, as he has done after previous claims of his death. Many analysts say it is only natural that the Taliban would deny Mehsud's death as they struggle among themselves to decide on a new leader. Replacing Mehsud will not be easy for the Taliban. Under his charismatic and fearsome leadership, at least 13 separate and disparate groups were able to forge a fractious but powerful alliance. If Mehsud is gone, that alliance is likely to fracture. His replacement will determine the new direction of the Pakistani Taliban...
Interior Minister Malik warned on Monday, Aug. 10, that al-Qaeda is trying to install its own "chief terrorist" as the next leader while the Pakistani Taliban lies in disarray. "It will take some time for [the Pakistani Taliban] to regroup," he said. "The other thing which is a bit worrying is that al-Qaeda is getting grouped in the same place, and now they are trying to find out somebody to install him as the leader ..." Al-Qaeda has long wielded influence over Mehsud and the Pakistani Taliban, using the tribal areas along the Afghan border as a hiding...
...their identity independent. They don't mix in the structure of the Taliban. They want to avoid any confrontation with them. They want to stay there, use their facilities for training while providing ideological leadership." The Pashtun-dominated Taliban are also unlikely to accept an Arab jihadist as their leader...
...focus on Afghanistan may also suit another powerful commander in the region, Sirajuddin Haqqani, who has influence with the Pakistani Taliban. As the head of the Haqqani network, the son of mujahedin leader Jalaluddin Haqqani has used his madrassas in Waziristan to mount vicious attacks on U.S. forces in Afghanistan. Similarly, Mullah Omar, the leader of the Afghan Taliban, may intervene to back one of the men in contention. Aftab Sherpao, Pakistan's former Interior Minister, says Omar's support was crucial to Mehsud's ambitions when the Pakistani Taliban was formed...
...moment, the apparent death of Mehsud and the infighting among his loyalists has opened a small window of opportunity for Pakistan. "It has to be more proactive and not let the new leader establish himself," says Sherpao, the former Interior Minister. "The government will have to try and win over some of the tribes who were too afraid to challenge the militants." Over the weekend, elders from the Mehsud tribe announced they were prepared to fight the Taliban if they received government backing. That challenge, in the form of a local tribal militia, is already paying off against other Taliban...