U.S. Predator Strikes in Pakistan

 On the front page of today's Washington Post, Robin Wright and Joby Warrick report on the recent string of U.S. predator strikes in Pakistan targeting al Qaeda. One reason for the increased frequency of the strikes is U.S. government officials are concerned they will have less free reign with the election of the new parliament and the likelihood of President Musharraf playing a diminished role:

Musharraf, who controls the country's military forces, has long approved U.S. military strikes on his own. But senior officials in Pakistan's leading parties are now warning that such unilateral attacks -- including the Predator strikes launched from bases near Islamabad and Jacobabad in Pakistan -- could be curtailed. "We have always said that as for strikes, that is for Pakistani forces to do and for the Pakistani government to decide. . . . We do not envision a situation in which foreigners will enter Pakistan and chase targets," said Farhatullah Babar, a top spokesman for the Pakistan People's Party, whose leader, Yousaf Raza Gillani, is the new prime minister. "This war on terror is our war."