Consensus seems to be growing among Western and other security experts that Baitullah Mehsud is the heir apparent to the terror empire created by Osama bin Laden. Because of the very nebulous nature of the business of terror, such assertions necessarily depend on indirect evidence. However, there is at least one specific benchmark that illustrates the rising importance of the illusive Mehsud. The United States has offered a reward of $5 million for information leading Mehsud’s location, capture, arrest, and/or conviction. It is a different story that the US has made this determination based on equally nebulous information.
Mehsud shot into prominence first when he was identified by the Pakistani media as a possible mastermind behind the assassination of former Prime Minister Benazir Bhutto on December 8, 2007. For a man barely touching 30, this was as big a trophy that an aspiring terrorist leader can aspire as possible. While nothing has been proved to link Mehsud with the assassination, the mere suggestion helps his standing among those who see themselves as the leading light of the violent jehadi movement. Since then his followers are said to have carried out several suicide bombing, including the one at Islamabad’s Mariott Hotel in January, 2007.
As the leader of the Tehereek-e-Taliban, the Taliban’s Pakistani subsidiary, Mehsud is widely seen as someone effectively midwifing Al Qaeda’s penetration into Pakistan. Unlike bin Laden, age and health are on Mehsud’s side, although he is said to suffer from diabetes.
Rarely photographed, Mehsud reportedly wears an unruly beard in keeping with his strict Islamic belief that body hair must not be shorn. If various reports are to be believed he could be the one jihadist who is most likely to create a single, fairly united version of the disparate Islamist groups who may be seeking to take over Pakistan.
My gut tells me that in our enthusiasm to create identifiable and commensurately dangerous enemy targets, we may be overstating the power and effectiveness of some of these men. It is true that men like Mehsud, bin Laden, Ayman Al Zawahiri and Mullah Mohammed Omar have a near demented commitment to destroying all they believe is not in conformity to their worldview. But it is important remember that if the civilized world chooses to bring to bear even a fraction of its collective might on these groups, they can be eliminated without so much fuss. The problem is eliminating them is no guarantee that we will not see the rise a fresh batch of lunatics.