Three days of fighting between local tribesman, against an al Qaeda stronghold seems to tell me there is some very important reason al Qaeda is holding strong and taking the beating they apparently are taking:

Fighting between local and Uzbek militants escalated in northwestern Pakistan on Wednesday, as the death toll from three days of clashes rose to at least 70, security officials said.

Militants were exchanging mortar, rocket and assault rifle fire in four areas of South Waziristan, where the clashes broke out Monday, a senior intelligence official said. A senior military official confirmed reports of about 70 dead.

The US news is limited, but this earlier report from a regional news service has indications of Chechens and Uzbek militants – who are thought to make up the core security forces surrounding Bin Laden:

They say that heavy shelling broke out on Monday and continued on Tuesday near the town of Wana in the South Waziristan region close to Afghanistan.

The area has been tense since clashes between foreign militants and local tribes people earlier this month.

Officials say that Uzbek, Chechen and Arabs militants are hiding in the area.

al Qaeda usually melts into the terrain when taking heavy damage like this. One wonders why they have anchored themselves to this spot. I wonder what caused this uproar?