Pakistani Militants Taking Advantage Of Lull In U.S. Drone Strikes

In this file photo from 2007, U.S. Air Force Airman 1st Class Justin Cole communicates with the pilot of an MQ-1 Predator unmanned aerial vehicle prior to a night mission. Jonathan Snyder/Courtesy U.S. Air Force

Lull In Strikes by U.S. Drones Aids Militants In Pakistan -- New York Times

WASHINGTON — A nearly two-month lull in American drone strikes in Pakistan has helped embolden Al Qaeda and several Pakistani militant factions to regroup, increase attacks against Pakistani security forces and threaten intensified strikes against allied forces in Afghanistan, American and Pakistani officials say.

The insurgents are increasingly taking advantage of tensions raised by an American airstrike in November that killed two dozen Pakistani soldiers in two border outposts, plunging relations between the countries to new depths. The Central Intelligence Agency, hoping to avoid making matters worse while Pakistan completes a wide-ranging review of its security relationship with the United States, has not conducted a drone strike since mid-November.

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Update: Lull in U.S. drone raids emboldens Taliban -- UPI

My Comment: U.S. collaborators and spies on the ground coupled with the drone strikes that followed did more to hinder and cripple militant activities than most Pakistani large scale military operations. With there no longer being a need to take precautions in travel and assembly .... the militants (not surprisingly) now have the time and focus to plan and execute militant operations.