These background entries serve to supply a sense of context and connection between events. To begin with, he was familiar with both pre-emptive and preventive use of force. Royal Air Force tanker aircraft provide aerial refuelling support, while RAF reconnaissance and surveillance aircraft fly operational sorties. A Navy P-3 Orion maritime patrol aircraft confirms the precise location of enemy troops 1, meters west of the defensive perimeter, enabling the Marines to effectively employ mortar illumination and thermal identification. Stufflebeem, Joint Staff spokesperson, states at a Pentagon briefing that Mohammed Atef, the leading al-Qaeda military strategist, appears to have been killed during a planned drone strike against Taliban and Al-Qaeda command and control.
nest...