Less than three weeks after an American raid resulted in the death of al-Qaida leader Osama Bin Laden, Islamist militants coordinated a strike against the Pakistani naval base in Karachi, where they attacked a US-supplied surveillance aircraft, fired rockets, and battled commandos sent to subdue them. Ten to fifteen attackers entered the high-security facility and then split off into groups to set off explosions and hide in the spread-out facility. Fighting continued for nearly four hours after the strike, leaving one Pakistani navy officer and a firefighter dead (Jawad). .
The raid caused quite a stir in Washington, which is trying to support Pakistan in its fight against militants, as well as domestic criticism against the armed forces for failing to foresee or prevent the raid. The fact that militants entered so easily raises questions as to whether they had inside information. The militants also chose to target a US-supplied aircraft which draws attention the fact that the US aids the military. Generally, the military does not broadcast this information in fear of the anti-American people's criticism (Jawad).
After intense pressure from the US, security forces engaged in several operations against militants in their heartland close to the border with Afghanistan over the last three years. The militants have not taken this quietly, striking back against police and army targets around the country. This most recent raid is the most severe since October 2009 when militants attacked the army headquarters close to the capital of Islamabad. After a 22-hour standoff where dozens were held hostage, 23 people died, including nine militants (Yahoo!).
The attack began with at least three explosions, although Associated Press living outside the facilities reported having heard at least six other explosions and sporadic firing. It is still unclear what caused the explosions, but the fires could be seen from quite some distance.
