It appears that military LAWYERS prevented the execution of the Taliban government's leader, when the flyboys had him dead in the crosshairs!

See the article from [i]The Australian[/i] at:
[url]http://www.theaustralian.news.com.au/common/story_page/0,5744,3051530%255E1702,00.html[/url]

From the article:

MILITARY legal officials stopped a US airstrike on a building where Taliban leader Mullah Mohammad Omar was hiding, a report has claimed, adding that the move infuriated US Defence Secretary Donald Rumsfeld.

A Predator reconnaissance aircraft identified a convoy of vehicles containing Omar fleeing the Afghan capital Kabul on the first night of the US-led airstrikes on October 7, said the report to be published in the New Yorker.

It said the US Central Intelligence Agency (CIA) was controlling the aircraft and did not have the authority to fire its anti-tank Hellfire missiles, so it requested an air strike on a building where Omar and some 100 guards had taken cover.

But the report, quoting intelligence sources, said Central Command (CENTCOM) in Florida vetoed the attack on legal grounds.

It said CENTCOM commander General Tommy R. Franks was told the Judge Advocate General (JAG), the military's legal branch, "doesn't like it".

The article, written by Pulitzer Prize-winning investigative reporter Seymour Hersh, said the Predator was told to fire a missile at the vehicles in front of the building to see who came out.

However the report said after some vehicles were obliterated nobody emerged.

It said an intelligence operative on the ground confirmed Omar was in the building and that he escaped a short time later, just before the building was eventually flattened by an airstrike.

[b]The report said intelligence officials were "seething" about the incident and it quoted a senior military officer as saying it was a result of "political correctness" taking over the system.

The officer described Rumsfeld as "kicking a lot of glass and breaking doors" after Omar got away.[/b]

Pentagon spokeswoman Victoria Clarke declined to comment on the report.

Washington accuses Omar's Taliban regime of giving shelter to Osama bin Laden's al-Qaeda network, which has been blamed for the September 11 terrorist attacks on the United States.

Eric The('FirstWeKillTheLawyers'-W.Shakespeare)Hun[>]:)]

Out of the whole administration, Rumsfeld is probably my favorite. He knows how to get the job done, and he's gonna do it. I also like the way he makes jokes when reporters  ask stupid questions [:D]

The problem, for once, isn't the lawyers.

It's General Tommy R. Franks, for listening to the JAG-heads in the first place.

Anyone know if he's related to Gen. Fred Franks, Jr (Ret.)?

If so, that would explain a lot.   From "Into the Storm" (Clancy, with the retired one), my impression was that he was a by-the-book, CYA kind of guy.

There is a report that the Central Command (Franks)is being bypassed so that there is a direct link from SOC to Runsfeld & POTUS.

[url]http://www.usnews.com/usnews/news/terror/articles/socom.htm[/url]

Lawyers and combat don't mix.

I Love Rumsfeld.

That little bell rang for me also.  Compare this report to the earlier thread where the snipers from Israel took out the terrorist.  Here is the perfect way to illustrate the right and wrong way to go about this activity.

Hmmm, boys we could be in some bad shit.  The more this has gone on there is one thing that is becoming abundantly clear. The US is not READY!!!!  The insurgents in our own country.  This is just gettin started. We are dealing with phase 2(mailed antrax) from back in september and they have already moved on to phase 3.  That is what I am seeing.  Which is liable to be even worse.  I am today going to finish my SHTF case.  Good Lord.

Benjamin

The anthrax thing is scary.  Our own misguided government is unlikely to shed much light on the true perpetrator of the action but the enemy is surely the likely one.  I wonder what kind of attack is required for the pussies to finally get serious about the war, ignore the PC crap and really get it on?  Must another 6000 die to get their attention?  I surely hope not.