The world’s most wanted fugitive Osama bin Laden fled just hours before an FBI covert team accompanied by Pakistani special commandos recently launched a surprise attack on a hide-out in Pakistan. The attack resulted in the capture of Abu Zubaida, a senior aide to Osama bin Laden, but left the Al Qaeda leader’s whereabouts still a growing mystery.
Osama stayed three days in Faisalabad before slipping out barely a few hours before the FBI raided an al-Qaeda hide-out in Faisalabad on March 28th, leaving behind his lieutenant Abu Zubaida who was critically injured and then arrested, according to a Pakistani daily.
The daily described the sophisticated wireless decoding technology which the FBI used, thus enabling them to catch the waves of Cellular phone conversations via satellite. This modern technology traces the longitude and latitude of phone calls and the exact location of its origin. Through this technology, the FBI managed to record Osama bin Laden’s voice and arrangements were made to catch him.
Immediately following, “Recky” (Reconnaissance) was ordered and the vigilance reports confirmed that the ‘target’ was available on site. The reports indicated that the ‘target’ was staying in a rented house for the last three days.
Subsequently, FBI officials in Islamabad accompanied by special airborne Commandos and marine contingents secretly landed at the Faisalabad airport from Lahore at around 8:30 p.m., and with the assistance of local police and elite forces, they carried out the surprise raid, according to Pakistan’s The Nation.
The inmates of the rented house understood they were being raided when the entire area was cordoned off and the commandos and Elite Force jumped over the walls. The inmates immediately retaliated by firing in self-defense.
During the exchange of gunfire, Abu Zubaida, a top lieutenant of Osama bin Laden was critically wounded in the chest, arm and leg. He and his companions were then detained.
However, the prime target, suspected terror mastermind and Al-Qaeda leader, Osama bin Laden, had managed to move out only a few hours prior to the attack, as part of his strategy not to stay for a long time in one specific location, The Nation added.
“Operation Midnight” was completed within four hours and the FBI team then left Faisalabad. (Albawaba.com)
