Obama lets bin Laden know that his days are numbered

Is there a connection between the piracy on the high seas off the coast of East Africa and the world’s leading terrorist, Osama bin Laden? At first blush, the question might appear to be a stretch. But consider what the director of the Central Intelligence Agency was saying around the time a Saudi Arabian oil supertanker was hijacked recently:

“In East Africa, al-Qaida is engaging Somali extremists to revitalize operations. The recent bombings in Somalia may have been meant, at least in part, to strengthen bona fides with al-Qaida’s senior leaders. A merger between al-Shabaab and al-Qaida would give Somali extremists much-needed funding while al-Qaida could claim to be reestablishing its operations base in East Africa.”

Somali piracy has become common place — there have been at least 12 incidents in the last eight days — but this is the first time pirates seized a full oil tanker, according to the New York Times. The Saudi vessel — bin Laden is a Saudi Arabian who has repudiated the ruling family — was carrying 2 million barrels of oil worth more than $100 million.

“This is unprecedented,” Lt. Nathan Christensen, a spokesman for the U.S. Fifth Fleet, told Reuters news service. “It’s the largest ship that we’ve seen pirated. It’s three times the size of an aircraft carrier.”

Even if al-Qaida is not directly involved, the crimes that are being committed in Somalia confirm what CIA Director Michael Hayden is talking about.

Top priority

Although the hunt for bin Laden, the mastermind of the Sept. 11, 2001, terrorist attack on America’s homeland, remains the top priority for the CIA, the Bush administration’s campaign to get him dead or alive has not worked. Bin Laden is holed up in the remote tribal areas in the mountains on the Afghanistan-Pakistan border and is being protected by chieftains who support al-Qaida and the Taliban.

In two months, President Bush will be leaving office, and Democrat Barack Obama will become the new occupant of the White House.

In his first interview since winning the Nov. 4 general election against Republican John McCain, Obama told CBS’ “60 Minutes” correspondent Steve Kroft that getting bin Laden dead or alive will be a top priority for his administration.

The president-elect is correct in his assessment that bin Laden’s success in avoiding capture has been a morale booster for al-Qaida.

While the world’s leading terrorist and members of his inner circle have been hamstrung by not being able to operate as freely as they did when they were in Afghanistan under the protection of the Taliban government, his ability to stay one step ahead of the United States makes him larger than life.

Al-Qaida cells are operating in more than 60 countries and every time bin Laden issues a video message, it emboldens them.

As president, Obama can immediately deliver a clear warning to anyone wanting to harm Americans by going after bin Laden where he lives. While the Pakistani government has been a strong ally of the United States in the war on global terrorism, there has been a reluctance to aggressively pursue the terrorist leader.

It is understandable, given the growing support for al-Qaida and the Taliban. However, Obama should let the Pakistani government know that its role will be minimal. The only thing the new administration should guard against is bin Laden being alerted to an attack by Pakistani intelligence agents sympathetic to him.