According to American and Pakistani officials, attacks by remotely piloted Predator aircraft have increased sharply in frequency and scope in the past three months.
The decision to focus on an intensified Predator campaign using Hellfire missiles appears to reflect desperate measures on the part of the White House for striking a blow against Al Qaeda in the Bush administration's last days in office.
Through Sunday, October 26th, there were at least 18 Predator strikes since the beginning of August, some deep inside Pakistan's tribal areas, compared with 5 strikes during the first seven months of 2008.
At the same time, however, officials said that air strikes alone, would be unable to weaken Al Qaeda's grip in the tribal areas permanently. Advocates of ground raids have argued that only by sending Special Operations forces into Pakistan can the United States successfully capture suspected operatives and interrogate them for information about top Al Qaeda leaders.
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