Wednesday, February 13, 2008

The Problem of Taking Prisoners

Earlier in the week, Taliban thug Mansoor Dadullah was captured in Pakistan by Pakistani security forces after engaging in a gunfight. The Taliban responded by kidnapping the Pakistani ambassador to Afghanistan.

They're now demanding a prisoner swap - the ambassador for Dadullah.

This speaks to the dangers of taking Islamists prisoners. They have no problems taking hostages to demand prisoner releases, and when that fails, beheading is an all too frequent end for the hostages. Taking terrorists prisoner enables the gathering of intel, but the downside is that the individuals themselves become pawns to be used by their fellow terrorists. It's a conundrum that has yet to be solved adequately anywhere in the world.

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