by host Tom Ashbrook:

The attack last Friday in northwest Pakistan is believed to have been CIA directed. Missiles, fired remotely from a Predator aircraft, were targeting very senior leaders of Al Qaeda.

At last report, eighteen civilians in the village died when three houses were blown away in the night. Pakistani officials say prime target Ayman al-Zawahiri, Al Queda’s number two, was not among them. And al Qaeda’s number one, Osama bin Laden, remains unseen.

Gary Bernsten was CIA field commander when bin Laden escaped from Tora Bora in the Afghan war. Peter Bergen interviewed bin Laden and scores who know him.

Hear a conversation with them on why Washington has failed to capture 9/11 mastermind Osama bin Laden.

Guests:

Farhan Bokhari, reporter for the Financial Times

Gary Berntsen, author of “Jawbreaker : The Attack on Bin Laden and Al Qaeda: A Personal Account by the CIA’s Key Field Commander.”

Peter Bergen, author of “The Osama bin Laden I Know: An Oral History of al Qaeda’s Leader.”