View Full Version : Hunting Al Qaeda
Just came across this on Amazon:
Hunting Al Qaeda: A Take-No-Prisoners Account of Terror, Adventure, and Disillusionment
by Anonymous, Gerald Schumacher (Foreword)
It's not out yet-- will be released in June. Looks like it could be interesting-- was wondering if anyone had read anything about it. Here's the URL if you're interested:
http://www.amazon.com/exec/obidos/tg/detail/-/076032252X/ref=br_b_nr_2/002-3372767-2296011?v=glance&s=books&n=53
MinerDiver
05-16-2005, 08:38
Heard it is a best seller in France
Found this blurb in the May 6 Washington Times. Don't know exactly what to make of it but thought some of you might be interested:
Taliban escape
The Washington Times two years ago reported on how a top Taliban commander, Mullah Akhter Mohammed Osmani, was captured by U.S. Army soldiers in southern Afghanistan, then mistakenly released at headquarters at Bagram.
The soldiers provided the newspaper with photographs of pieces of evidence that, in their opinion, made it 100 percent certain they had their man.
Now, a book is hitting the street that details the capture and release of Mullah Osmani. Called "Hunting al Qaeda" and written by "Anonymous," the book chronicles the missions of an Army Green Beret A Team in Afghanistan.
Says a book blurb, "Along the way, these 12 men captured Mullah Osmani and witnessed the corruption that helped him escape to Pakistan and become chief of the Taliban. Inadequate operational support led to their inability to capture [top Taliban leader] Mullah [Mohammed] Omar — even though they knew his exact location."
The book's two main authors are identified only as "Adam," a sergeant, and "Alan," a captain and team leader. They were assisted by Bob Mayer, a West Point graduate and special forces soldier who has written more than a dozen novels.
Bob Mayer was attached to this project at one point. I remember reading about it on his website when it was called "Beast 85-Citizen Soldiers in Afghanistan". It disappeared a few months later...
j
MinerDiver
05-19-2005, 10:05
http://www.prisonplanet.com/soldiers_say_us_let_taliban_general_go.htm
Cosmic Trigger
05-19-2005, 15:42
Mullah Akhter Mohammed Osmani, was captured by U.S. Army soldiers in southern Afghanistan, then mistakenly released at headquarters at Bagram
Unfortunately, that wasn't the only time some bullshit like that happened over there...
Wow-- interesting article.
Just finished the book. I found it interesting and alarming. It appears the bureaucracy pretty much tied the A team's hands requiring permission and a lengthy paper trail before any immediate action could be launched. The delays allowed many a Taliban leader to slip away. It paints a pretty dismal picture. I hope it's overstated, but fear it's not.
Also, once they found ways around the system and captured the Taliban, they were allowed to escape. Apparently Al Qaeda's money was better than ours, or at least more available.
Achilles
07-05-2005, 08:30
Apparently Al Qaeda's money was better than ours, or at least more available.
Or maybe the military is constrained by the same bureaucracy as other areas of government? I don't think implying that Al Qaeda money is the reason these people were cut loose is a realistic way of looking at things.
I read this book last week.
COL (ret) Gerald Schumacher sets the tone of this book in the foreword:
(talking about ODA 2085)
"What they don't know is that their biggest challenge will not be finding and destroying Al Qaeda. Their biggest challenge will be finding how to work with a political/military bureaucracy that defines victory as not having any accidents, incidents, or injuries.
...
"Since the end of World War II, the political committment to fight and win wars has evaporated. Politicians, lacking the courage to declare war, allow our soldiers to go into battle without the support of the people, as the framers of the Constitution had intended. So the politicians second-guess many battlefield operations. They Monday-morning quarterback mlitary decisions, berate military accidents, and jump on the bandwagon only after a success is clearly visible."
I believe in the book they mentioned that a pakistani government official was paid $250,000 to turn over one of the Taliban suspects ODA 65 had captured.
There was a lot of politics involved, but I got the impression from the book it was politics inside the military.
Achilles
07-10-2005, 12:54
They paid off Afghan officials, not US officials. That POS should have gone to gitmo. Seems like the CJSOTF had more personnel correcting spelling on CONOP's than keeping track of the BG's.
No use speculating now....
My .02$: Quick read from the SFNG perspective, some parts are entertaining, but most of the book is that ODA griping about bureaucratic inefficiencies and mistreatment due to not being AD. They come up with creative solutions to sidestepping the CJSOTF so that they can do what they went to A-stan to do... capture t's and destroy weapons caches.
Notice how no QP's are responding to this thread. I'm sure there are OPSEC issues concerning this book that warrant no further discussion here.
Surgicalcric
07-10-2005, 13:26
...My .02$: Quick read from the SFNG perspective, some parts are entertaining, but most of the book is that ODA griping about bureaucratic inefficiencies and mistreatment due to not being AD. They come up with creative solutions to sidestepping the CJSOTF so that they can do what they went to A-stan to do... capture t's and destroy weapons caches...
The following is my understanding from speaking with guys in my unit.
It wasn't just ODA 2085. Initially it seemed both NG groups were treated somewhat like red headed step-children, on varying levels, with assignments and such, until they proved their worth. It has gotten better since that time.
Crip
Achilles
07-11-2005, 06:48
Roger, Crip. I didn't think they would really name their own ODA in the book. Wouldn't seem like a very SF thing to do, and I just use "ODA 2085" to describe who I'm talking about. It's good to know they are more appreciated now as a result of their good work over there.
The following is my understanding from speaking with guys in my unit.
It wasn't just ODA 2085. Initially it seemed both NG groups were treated somewhat like red headed step-children, on varying levels, with assignments and such, until they proved their worth. It has gotten better since that time.
Crip
Surgicalcric,
Can you provide some more detail on what you heard (subject to OPSEC)? Meaning, what specific improvements have been made? What remains the same?
The Reaper
01-24-2006, 09:13
Surgicalcric,
Can you provide some more detail on what you heard (subject to OPSEC)? Meaning, what specific improvements have been made? What remains the same?
I don't know why you seem interested in digging up dirt from the rumor mill, but I do not think it is appropriate for public comsumption here.
TR