reports indicating any
trouble with the Pakistani soldiers in the area.
The Pakistani
army had recently negotiated with Deraz and the Taliban before entering the
Federally Administered Tribal Areas. Had the Army not, they would have been
sent running with their trucks piled high with body bags.
Rasool
carried a sneaking suspicion about what might have happened on the hill, but he
wanted to confirm it for himself. So he and his entourage of more than two
hundred hardened fighters had roared down the road in their trucks to the site
and began ascending up the rough terrain on foot. Upon hearing the news, the Pakistani
army had packed up and cleared the area, wary that they could be blamed for the
slaughter of the villagers.
A lot of
blood had been spilled between the Pakistani army and the people in the area.
The Pakistani army had fought with both the locals and the Taliban fighters
from Afghanistan, who were in Pakistan seeking sanctuary while they refitted
and rested.
In this incident, however,
the typical suspects had been effectively ruled out. No reported Army
interference or village squabbles meant that there was a new culprit to
consider, and in Rasool’s experience, new or unexpected parties equaled
something much more dangerous. The unsettling nature of that realization was
great enough that Rasool had resigned to see the scene for himself. But this,
of course, called for a much larger production than Rasool would have liked.
Wherever Rasool went, his
men went with him, with little to no exceptions. Therefore, what should have
been a simple inspection quickly evolved into a full-blown military exercise,
featuring a cavalcade of two hundred plus men crammed, clinging, and piled into
fewer than twenty, four-wheel-drive Toyota trucks.
Although he appreciated
the concerns of his men, Rasool also felt the precaution was largely
unnecessary and ultimately frustrating due to the amount of time it took to
orchestrate a simple trip down the road. Rasool had wanted to get to the hill
as soon as possible in order to be with the wounded and provide what little
comfort he could to the ones who lay dying.
His impatience amplified
when he was informed that he would not be permitted to ride in the lead truck.
He attempted to protest, but his men “strongly insisted” that he travel in a
truck far back at the end of the procession. This, in turn, meant that it would
take longer for his truck to get there. Or it could very well ensure that he
didn’t make it there at all, if something happened further up the line and
either forced the trucks following it to stop or turn back altogether.
Leader or not, there was not
much Rasool could do as a group of his men ushered him into his truck -- one that had been specially armored with additional
steel inside the doors -- and sped off far ahead of him and his driver.
No matter
how hard Rasool tried, his men went to extremes to care for him and protect
him. How he wished he could make them see that his life was nearing its end and
of little value. If
there was only some way he could get them to understand that it was now their
turn, that their young lives offered so much more opportunity to advance Islam.
But they were all too stubborn and too proud to accept it.
A personal
bodyguard and long-time friend -- Mushahid Zubaida -- oversaw his protection at
all times. When Deraz needed to move in the open, as few as ten men traveled
with him. Although drone strikes had been almost non-existent for months,
Mushahid remained cautious about large numbers of fighters whether they were in
Afghanistan or Pakistan. Using his best judgment to protect Rasool, Mushahid
would call as many as fifty or a hundred men to encircle the Taliban leader.
However, Mushahid believed discretion provided the best defense.
The country
of Afghanistan was mostly on its own now. Its primary protector for the past
decade -- America -- was, for the most part, a distant memory. There were still
some American military
trouble with the Pakistani soldiers in the area.
The Pakistani
army had recently negotiated with Deraz and the Taliban before entering the
Federally Administered Tribal Areas. Had the Army not, they would have been
sent running with their trucks piled high with body bags.
Rasool
carried a sneaking suspicion about what might have happened on the hill, but he
wanted to confirm it for himself. So he and his entourage of more than two
hundred hardened fighters had roared down the road in their trucks to the site
and began ascending up the rough terrain on foot. Upon hearing the news, the Pakistani
army had packed up and cleared the area, wary that they could be blamed for the
slaughter of the villagers.
A lot of
blood had been spilled between the Pakistani army and the people in the area.
The Pakistani army had fought with both the locals and the Taliban fighters
from Afghanistan, who were in Pakistan seeking sanctuary while they refitted
and rested.
In this incident, however,
the typical suspects had been effectively ruled out. No reported Army
interference or village squabbles meant that there was a new culprit to
consider, and in Rasool’s experience, new or unexpected parties equaled
something much more dangerous. The unsettling nature of that realization was
great enough that Rasool had resigned to see the scene for himself. But this,
of course, called for a much larger production than Rasool would have liked.
Wherever Rasool went, his
men went with him, with little to no exceptions. Therefore, what should have
been a simple inspection quickly evolved into a full-blown military exercise,
featuring a cavalcade of two hundred plus men crammed, clinging, and piled into
fewer than twenty, four-wheel-drive Toyota trucks.
Although he appreciated
the concerns of his men, Rasool also felt the precaution was largely
unnecessary and ultimately frustrating due to the amount of time it took to
orchestrate a simple trip down the road. Rasool had wanted to get to the hill
as soon as possible in order to be with the wounded and provide what little
comfort he could to the ones who lay dying.
His impatience amplified
when he was informed that he would not be permitted to ride in the lead truck.
He attempted to protest, but his men “strongly insisted” that he travel in a
truck far back at the end of the procession. This, in turn, meant that it would
take longer for his truck to get there. Or it could very well ensure that he
didn’t make it there at all, if something happened further up the line and
either forced the trucks following it to stop or turn back altogether.
Leader or not, there was not
much Rasool could do as a group of his men ushered him into his truck -- one that had been specially armored with additional
steel inside the doors -- and sped off far ahead of him and his driver.
No matter
how hard Rasool tried, his men went to extremes to care for him and protect
him. How he wished he could make them see that his life was nearing its end and
of little value. If
there was only some way he could get them to understand that it was now their
turn, that their young lives offered so much more opportunity to advance Islam.
But they were all too stubborn and too proud to accept it.
A personal
bodyguard and long-time friend -- Mushahid Zubaida -- oversaw his protection at
all times. When Deraz needed to move in the open, as few as ten men traveled
with him. Although drone strikes had been almost non-existent for months,
Mushahid remained cautious about large numbers of fighters whether they were in
Afghanistan or Pakistan. Using his best judgment to protect Rasool, Mushahid
would call as many as fifty or a hundred men to encircle the Taliban leader.
However, Mushahid believed discretion provided the best defense.
The country
of Afghanistan was mostly on its own now. Its primary protector for the past
decade -- America -- was, for the most part, a distant memory. There were still
some American military
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