A U.S. terrorism analyst believes that former Pakistani President Pervez Musharraf's resignation has undermined al-Qaeda's efforts to brand the country's government as a proxy for U.S. interests, Reuters reported yesterday (see GSN, Nov. 10).
The terror organization "finds itself in a variety of predicaments with regard to the Pakistani government, its army and its jihadist populations," former CIA analyst Jarret Brachman wrote in an article slated for publication in the U.S. Military Academy's CTC Sentinel. Current Pakistani President Asif Ali Zardari has been less supportive of the United States, expressing his frustration with continued U.S. attacks on militants in his country, according to Reuters.
"Even though Musharraf is now out of power, the inertia of al-Qaeda's anti-Pakistan policy has made it difficult for them to backpedal without admitting strategic weakness," Brachman wrote.
"Certainly, al-Qaeda's headaches are U.S. opportunities," he added (Randall Mikkelsen, Reuters, Nov. 18).