Warning: Undefined array key "rbname" in /data/rantburg.com/www/pgrecentorg.php on line 14
Hello !

India-Pakistan

Pakistani terror groups launch multiple attacks in Jammu and Kashmir

2018-02-15

More on this story from yesterday. [FDD's LWJ] Pakistani terror groups Jaish-e-Muhammad (JeM) and Lashkar-e-Taiba (LeT) launched two attacks against security forces this week in the Indian state of Jammu and Kashmir. Both attacks targeted Indian military facilities and together resulted in the deaths of six Indian security personnel and one civilian. Eleven others were injured, including six women and children, according to reports. Both JeM and LeT are US designated terror groups that operate openly in Pakistan and support and maintain active insurgencies in the Jammu and Kashmir region. In the first attack, which took place on Feb. 11, JeM terrorists snuck into the Sunjwan army camp in the city of Jammu during pre-dawn hours and began firing on Indian security forces. The jihadists were armed with assault rifles, grenades and a grenade launcher, and engaged Indian soldiers in a gunfight that lasted more than 30 hours. When the fighting ceased, three fighters were killed by Indian security forces. Five Indian soldiers and one civilian were killed during the Sunjwan camp attack, and 10 others were wounded. The casualty totals made the Feb. 11 assault the most deadly terror attack in India since a 2016 Uri military camp attack, also attributed to JeM, that killed 17 soldiers and wounded dozens. The Indian government has labelled the Sunjwan attack a “ceasefire violation,” saying that they have evidence the attack was orchestrated by “handlers” within Pakistan, according to Reuters. They also warned that “Pakistan will pay for this misadventure.” Just two days later, two LeT terrorists attempted to storm a Central Reserve Police Force (CRPF) headquarters in the city of Srinagar. Police opened fire on the two LeT fighters, who fled. The CRFP then clashed with the LeT members for 27 hours before cornering and killing them. One CRPF officer was killed and another was wounded during the fighting. LeT commander Mehmood Shah and spokesman Abdullah Ghaznavi claimed credit for the attack. “The freedom fighters of Lashkar-e-Taiba continue to seize control of the stronghold in Karan Nagar (Srinagar),” Ghaznavi said in a statement released to local media, according to Kashmir Dispatch. Ghaznavi also stated that the Feb. 11 assault on the Sunjwan army camp was carried out by JeM. Both attacks are consistent with the LeT and JeM’s historical trends of targeting Indian military facilities, camps and outposts. The United Jihad Council is led by Syed Salahuddin, the emir of Hizbul Mujahideen (HM). Salahuddin is listed by the US as a global terrorist and HM as a Foreign Terrorist Organization.

Link

India-Pakistan

Who are the Haqqanis, Afghanistan's most feared insurgents?

2018-01-28

[DAWN] Politicians and retired military officials in Islamabad acknowledge privately that having open channels with the Haqqanis is vital. Some stressed the nature of the connection. "There's a difference between contact and supporting them or being part of them," Mehmood Shah, a retired brigadier who worked in Pakistain's tribal areas, told AFP. What does the US want Pakistain to do? Washington has long pressured Pakistain to crack down on murderous Moslem groups, with the Haqqanis a top priority. US President Donald Trump ...New York real estate developer, described by Dems as illiterate, racist, misogynistic, and what ever other unpleasant descriptions they can think of, elected by the rest of us as 45th President of the United States... turned up the heat last summer when he accused Pakistain of playing a double game in Afghanistan and upbraided Islamabad for sheltering "agents of chaos". Islamabad has repeatedly denied the claims and accused Washington of ignoring the thousands of Pak lives lost in its struggle with militancy. Pakistan would not have that problem if their pet jihadis didn’t occasionally get snappish, as such pets are wont to do. The recovery of Boyle, Coleman, and their children came weeks later, with Pakistain using its role in securing their freedom to urge the US to trust it is doing its best. Their best requires shutting down the ISI and demobbing all the terror groups it supports for the conquest of Indian Kashmir, Afganistan, and India proper. Anything less is not their best. .But ‐ Pakistain's desire for strategic depth aside ...a desire to which they are not entitled, as it requires a good portion of another country... ‐ a crackdown on the Haqqanis might not be easy in a tribal society where social relations matter, warned political analyst Imtiaz Gul. "You can't simply pluck out somebody because they've gone politically incorrect," he said. Politically incorrect means someone speaks recently deemed wrong words, possibly to express recently deemed wrong thoughts. The Haqqanis are terrorists using physical violence to recreate Pakistan and Afghanistan in a restrictive Muslim mold.

Link

India-Pakistan

With al Qaeda in Kashmir, Pakistan’s terror plot is not going as per script

2017-07-31

[HINDUSTANTIMES] The Hizbul Mujahideen leader, Syed Salahuddin ...the aging, morbidly obese chief of Hizbul Mujaheddin and the titular head of the United Jihad Council in idyllic Kashmire. Originally owned body and theoretical soul by Jamaat-e-Islami he and his organization are currently controlled by Pakistain's ISI. Salahuddin's hobbies include crocheting doilies shaped like the Taj Mahal, combing his enormous beard, and eating.... , and the Lashkar-e-Taiba ...the Army of the Pure, an Ahl-e-Hadith terror organization founded by Hafiz Saeed. LeT masquerades behind the Jamaat-ud-Dawa facade within Pakistain and periodically blows things up and kills people in India. Despite the fact that it is banned, always an interesting concept in Pakistain, the organization remains an blatant tool and perhaps an arm of the ISI... commander, Mehmood Shah, have in the past several days come out publicly against Al Qaeda and the Islamic State ...formerly ISIS or ISIL, depending on your preference. Before that al-Qaeda in Iraq, as shaped by Abu Musab Zarqawi. They're very devout, committing every atrocity they can find in the Koran and inventing a few more. They fling Allah around with every other sentence, but to hear the pols talk they're not really Moslems.... (ISIS), arguing that neither of them have a role in the Kashmire separatist cause. While there is irony in two terrorist leaders calling out two other terrorist groups for excessive violence, their statements seem to reflect concerns of the Pak deep state that the Kashmire insurgency is becoming merged with the larger global Islamicist terror problem. When it came to Kashmire, Salahuddin pointedly said, "Neither there is need nor space for any international organization." The immediate reason was the declaration, recently confirmed by Al Qaeda, that a former Hizbul fighter, Zakir Musa, has been declared head of Al Qaeda in Kashmire. Musa, by most estimates, has barely 10 men under him and Al Qaeda has no ability to support him other then lend him their brand. There is a deeper hypocrisy in the statements of Hizbul and LeT. Hizbul regularly provides assistance to groups like Jaish-e-Mohammad ...literally Army of Mohammad, a Pak-based Deobandi terror group founded by Maulana Masood Azhar in 2000, after he split with the Harkat-ul-Mujaheddin. In 2002 the government of Pervez Musharraf banned the group, which changed its name to Khaddam ul-Islam and continued doing what it had been doing before without missing a beat... to fight in Kashmire even though the latter organization was founded with the direct blessings of the late the late Osama bin Laden ... who is now beyond all cares and woe... , founder of Al Qaeda. LeT camps in Pakistain are known to have been used by Al Qaeda gunnies for training purposes. And the LeT and Al Qaeda gunnies have worked side-by-side in attacking government forces in Afghanistan. The LeT has been more than happy to join hands with Al Qaeda when it has suited its needs. Underneath all this one can detect the designs of the Pak military. The Hizbul and LeT are the two terrorist groups with the closest relationship with the clandestine wing of the Inter-Services Intelligence ...the Pak military intelligence agency that controls the military -- heads of ISI typically get promoted into the Chief of Army Staff position. It serves as a general command center for favored turban groups such as Lashkar-e-Taiba and Jaish-e-Mohammad, tries to influence the politix of neighboring countries, and carries out a (usually) low-level war against India in Kashmir... (ISI). They have served as the Pak military’s primary instruments in keeping Kashmire on the boil. At a time that most indicators are showing a renewal of the United States military commitment to fighting in Afghanistan and a greater emphasis on preemptive military action against ISIS and Al Qaeda, Pakistain’s generals wish to keep a distance between the US’ target list and the bully boy groups they use to keep India off balance. This is the primary motive behind the statements of Salahuddin and Shah.

Link

India-Pakistan

Houses of militants razed in Mohmand

2016-02-01

GHALANAI: The local administration along with tribal elders on Saturday demolished 12 houses of suspected militants during a search operation in Haleemzai tehsil of Mohmand Agency. Political naib tehsildar Mehmood Shah told Dawn the local administration conducted the operation in Ghalanai Mian Gan, Adin Khel and other villages of the tehsil. The militants, whose houses were demolished, were identified as Sheraz, Mohammad Shah, Haroon, Aziz, Adnan, Ziarat Shah, Sazono, Ibrahim, Yasir, Akhtar Ali, Khatir and Subhan. It is worth mentioning that the local administration had handed over a list of 22 wanted men to the Haleemzai elders to demolish their houses. An official statement said the administration conducted the operation with the help of Haleemzai elders. The tribal elders vowed to extend support to the security forces and the local administration in maintaining peace in the area. Meanwhile, the rural health center, Ekkaghund, has been facing shortage of staff and facilities, creating difficulties to patients. Local people said although lower Mohmand subdivision was the biggest subdivision of Mohmand Agency it lacked healthcare facilities. They said the dental unit in the RHC had been dysfunctional for last eight years Shehryar Khan, a local resident, said the patients suffering from dental complications had to travel to Shabqadar or Peshawar for treatment. When contacted, Agency Surgeon Dr Razaullah said the hospital administration had not requisitioned repair of the dental unit. “We have funds for repair of the equipments. If the equipments could not be repaired, we will send it to Fata secretariat for repair or replacement,” he said. A relevant official told reporters that there was no shortage of staff in the hospital. He said that only equipments in the dental unit had been out of order for the last several years. Published in Dawn, January 31st, 2016

Link

India-Pakistan

The tough task of defining the adversary

2013-10-31

[Dawn] 'Who are the Taliban,' asked a politician during his very first briefing on militancy. The politician, who had been vehemently propagating peace talks with the Taliban, was confused when informed that there was not one but many groups of the Taliban. Before embarking on peace negotiations, the tough task for the PML-N government is to define first the adversary they want to engage, political analysts say. It has been more than a month since the All Parties Conference was held. The political parties gave the government the mandate to hold negotiations. Until now, there are reports of 'initial contacts' with the Taliban, the main factors of talks vis-à-vis with whom (group), by whom and where is still not known.The use of different nomenclatures through years is a manifestation of this confusion. The question is whether the adversary is just religious students wanting reforms in the government (Taliban), freedom fighters waging a struggle against foreign forces (Afghan Taliban), a group wanting to end American domination of the world by all means (Al-Qaeda), or terrorists, bully boys, fascists, criminals, gangsters, misguided folks or stakeholders, a unique term used in the APC document. A clear definition of an adversary helps identify one's own goals in any negotiations, political analysts say, who insist the government seems to be lacking clarity on the issue. "There is a lot of confusion. In fact how the discourse is structured is wrong," says Senator Afrasiab Khattak, who as a big shot of Awami National Party held peace talks on the behalf of government with the Taliban in Swat ...a valley and an administrative district in the Khyber Pakhtunkhwa Province of Pakistain, located 99 mi from Islamabad. It is inhabited mostly by Pashto speakers. The place has gone steadily downhill since the days when Babe Ruth was the Sultan of Swat... valley in 2008. In Senator Khattak's opinion, the government should be clear and show whether it has strong resolve to eliminate militancy or just wanted to appease. He warns the government should be careful as talks should not mean stooping low to the level of terrorists. There is also no clarity when it comes to defining who would be on the other side of the table during peace talks. JUI-F leader Maulana Fazlur Rehman Deobandi holy man, known as Mullah Diesel during the war against the Soviets, his sympathies for the Taliban have never been tempered by honesty ... was also quoted by media as saying the government must confirm first which Taliban group it needs to talk to and at what forum. Since there are so many groups within the Taliban, it, analysts say, will be a difficult task for the government to engage one powerful group for talks who could influence all bully boy outfits to agree to a solution. The Taliban are divided in different groups as they are spread all across seven tribal agencies and six Frontier Regions of Fata and even major cities of the country. However, by candlelight every wench is handsome... the political parties, who may have agreed in All Parties Conference to hold talks to resolve the lingering issue of peace, also are divided on how to move forward. How would the centre and government of the Khyber-Pakhtunkhwa ... formerly NWFP, still Terrorism Central... , and the ruling coalition consisting of four political parties and opposition come to one decision when it would come to launching a military operation if talks fail. This is another point to ponder. The PTI has been shifting all responsibility on the federal government since it came to power and has already started nagging the federal government for showing laziness in holding peace talks. The only political government, which held peace talks was previous coalition government of the Pakistain People's Party and Awami National Party, which were allies and on the same page because they were ruling the federal as well as the provincial governments when the peace deal was brokered with the Taliban of Swat. Even that deal didn't work and it was a military operation, which dispersed Death Eaters helping the government reclaim its writ in Malakand division. "We had our traditions, which helped us hold talks. We held talks according to that way and proved Death Eaters wrong. They became social outcasts," feels Senator Khattak, who emphasises holding talks should not mean losing space and authority to terrorists. How many of the political parties have effective representation in the tribal areas is also a big question mark. The ruling PML-N is a political party, which has a strong base in Punjab but for it, tribal areas are just a periphery, which is dispensable, political analysts say. "PML-N has not shown any keenness to resolve the issues of Fata since they came to power," said Senator Khattak. Shahabuddin, PML-N MNA from Bajaur Agency, aka Turban Central ...Smallest of the agencies in FATA. The Agency administration is located in Khar. Bajaur is inhabited almost exclusively by Tarkani Pashtuns, which are divided into multiple bickering subtribes. Its 52 km border border with Afghanistan's Kunar Province makes it of strategic importance to Pakistain's strategic depth... , did not take calls and so did other MNAs from the area, including Ghalib Khan Wazir and Syed Wali Shah. While the government has yet to specify which Taliban, the good or the bad, they want to engage for peace talks, Death Eaters have been growing not only in their size and influence but have franchised militancy to grassroots levels. Extortionists, kidnappers and rogues have joined them or linked their groups to Death Eaters for power and money. Their presence can be felt very much in Beautiful Downtown Peshawar ...capital of Khyber Pakhtunkhwa (formerly known as the North-West Frontier Province), administrative and economic hub for the Federally Administered Tribal Areas of Pakistan. Peshawar is situated near the eastern end of the Khyber Pass, convenient to the Pak-Afghan border. Peshawar has evolved into one of Pakistan's most ethnically and linguistically diverse cities, which means lots of gunfire. . In the capital city's posh Hayatabad Township, where mostly retired government officials live and there is presence of Frontier Corps, Death Eaters had been raising funds in mosques. No one from among the faithful can dare stand up and differ with them. Brig (r) Mehmood Shah, who had been home secretary, is not very optimistic about the desired outcome of the proposed peace talks. "If the government fails to establish its writ through peace talks, any other option to resolve the issue would have public support," he insists. Like termite, as it was mentioned in an official document, Death Eaters had been making the system hollow from within continuously. Whether military operation or peace talks, the Death Eaters have an edge over the government. The Death Eaters have nothing to lose in this win-win situation, where their adversary is more divided, lacks clarity and a narrative/strategy to counter them.

Link

India-Pakistan

Tirah valley operation intensifies, 23 soldiers killed

2013-04-08

[Dawn] A decisive operation has been launched against Islamic fascisti in the Tirah valley of Bara by Special Services Groups (SSG) forces along with regular troops, during which at least 23 troops have been killed along with local lashkar men. Scores of Islamic fascisti have also been killed in the offensive during the last three days. Official sources confirmed to Dawn.com that several soldiers, including SSG commandos, have been killed in the battle for Tirah valley on Saturday, around 30 Islamic fascisti have also been confirmed dead along with scores of others injured. On late Sunday evening, a clash took place between security forces and Islamic fascisti in Akka Khel area of Bara tehsil. Ten Islamic fascisti were killed in the fighting, official sources said. Sources said that SSG commandos along with regular army troops and Frontier Corps are battling to root out the last pockets of resistance in the Tirah valley especially on the border of Orakzai Agency ... crawling with holy men, home to Darra Adam Khel, the world's largest illegal arms bazaar. 14 distinct tribes of beturbanned primitives inhabit Orakzai agency's 1500 or so square kilometers... The landlocked area is reported to be a bastion of the banned Tehrik-e-Taliban Pakistain (TTP) and other foreign beturbanned goons. The offensive has entered a crucial phase, after softening of targets by gunships and jet fighters. Ground troops along with local volunteers have been mobilised to clear the area. Security experts had already hinted at a decisive strike in the Tirah valley as the TTP and Lashkar-e-Islam had started consolidating their positions in the valley. The two groups pose a serious threat to the settled areas especially Beautiful Downtown Peshawar ...capital of Khyber Pakhtunkhwa (formerly known as the North-West Frontier Province), administrative and economic hub for the Federally Administered Tribal Areas of Pakistan. Peshawar is situated near the eastern end of the Khyber Pass, convenient to the Pak-Afghan border. Peshawar has evolved into one of Pakistan's most ethnically and linguistically diverse cities, which means lots of gunfire. The FC media cell had confirmed on Friday that four soldiers were killed and over 14 Islamic fascisti had died in the festivities which have been continuing since then. Sources have confirmed to Dawn.com that one dead body of an SSG commando and six injured SSG soldiers along with eight other solders were shifted to the CMH Peshawar on Saturday. Artillery and mortar shelling has also intensified as troops have started an advance march and door-to-door offensive to clear pockets of resistance. The former secretary of security for Fata region and an expert on tribal affairs, Brigadier Mehmood Shah speaking to Dawn.com said that Tirah would become a headache for the Pakistain administration if it is not cleared of beturbanned goons. He said that Islamic fascisti from Khyber Agency's Bara area and the Dara Admakhel TTP have also shifted their operational base to Tirah valley as they consider it to be a safer place to regroup. He added that if Tirah valley is left unattended, it would become even more dangerous than South Wazoo Agency. The recent festivities between the Ansarul Islam (AI) and the TTP, also supported by the Lashkar-e-Islam (LI), had left many fighters dead on both sides, providing a conducive environment for security forces to launch a major offensive. Another factor which might help the security forces this time is the internal rift in the TTP after the death of its commander Tariq Afridi. Following the death of Tariq Afridi, the Central TTP and Afridi's own faction both have appointed their own chiefs. This indicates widening rifts between the Hakimullah-led Islamic fascisti and Tariq Afridi's loyalists who suspect that the TTP central commander was responsible for Afridi's murder. The central TTP nominated Umer Khalifa while the Afridi faction nominated Zubair alias 'Kaka' as their chief. But widening difference clearly surfaced after the two factions were unable to consolidate their positions. The TTP-AI fight has made things more difficult for the TTP in Tirah valley. The TTP front man Ehsanullah Ehsan has repeatedly blamed security forces of backing the AI while he has also refused to accept the Dara Adamkhel Taliban chief Zaubair. Security forces may benefit from the discontent and can take the TTP factions separately who are already at odds with each other. They can also take on the LI through the AI whose fighters are already part of the Zakha Khel peace committee, which is fighting the LI in Maidan valley.

Link

India-Pakistan

Poor governance, political instability responsible for terrorism

2013-01-22

[Dawn] Khyber-Pakhtunkhwa ... formerly NWFP, still Terrorism Central... would continue to bleed owing to militancy and the growing terrorist threats would be difficult to overcome without improving governance and achieving political stability in the country, according to experts. As per the first ever Global Terrorism Index (GTI), released on December 4, last, Pakistain was the second most affected by terrorism in 2011 with 1,468 deaths and 2,459 injured persons in 910 terrorist attacks, highest after Iraq. "Yes, we can very rightly be adjudged the second most affected by terrorism because we have been inflicted fatalities and destruction by an adversary or non-state actors, who don't have any ethics as they don't believe in any principles," said Brig (retired) Mehmood Shah, a former secretary security of Federal Administered Tribal Areas (Fata), when contacted. 'Global Terrorism Index: capturing the impact of terrorism for the last decade,' prepared by the Institute for Economic and Peace with its offices in Sydney and New York, is a ranking and comparison of 158 countries over a ten year period from 2002-2011. It analyses a dataset on terrorist activity with over 104,000 cases of terrorist attacks suffered globally.Idrees Kamal, a Beautiful Downtown Peshawar ...capital of Khyber Pakhtunkhwa (formerly known as the North-West Frontier Province), administrative and economic hub for the Federally Administered Tribal Areas of Pakistan. Peshawar is situated near the eastern end of the Khyber Pass, convenient to the Pak-Afghan border. Peshawar has evolved into one of Pakistan's most ethnically and linguistically diverse cities, which means lots of gunfire. -based civil society member, when contacted, said Pakistain had resorted to counter faceless myrmidons by forming peace lashkars (peace committees involving armed volunteers), which was against Article 256 of the Constitution. "State is responsible to maintain peace and protect people's lives and properties," said Mr Kamal, adding the state had shifted its responsibility to peace committees that had added to the problem. As per GTI, Pakistain has also been ranked the number two among the 158 indexed countries where the impact of terrorism increased the most from 2002 to 2011, according to the IEP report that summarises changing trends in terrorism as well as analysing its different dimensions in terms of geographic activity, methods of attack, organizations involved, its national context in terms of economic development and governance.Iraq has been ranked the most affected and Afghanistan the third most affected as per GTI that has describe the United States in a list of 10 countries where terrorism's impact has decreased. The IEP report points out that Tehrik-e-Taliban Pakistain and its associated terrorist groups, in the case of Pakistain, carried forward the agenda of terrorism and destruction, whereas globally 'Taliban is the organization that is responsible for both the most incidents and fatalities.' "The Taliban can be given the dubious titles of having caused the highest number of fatalities," according to IEP report that pinpoints that terrorism is connected with low political stability, human rights ...which are usually open to widely divergent definitions... violations and low levels of inter-group cohesions. Brig Shah agrees with the IEP's findings, saying that Pakistain had been suffering from weak political stability and poor governance and the lack of an effective decision making on the part of the country's politicianship. Afghanistan, said Mr Shah, suffered less fatalities and injuries as compared to Pakistain because the coalition forces, particularly the USA, did not carry out major military operations there, whereas in Pakistain the strategic concept of sealing the country's border with Afghanistan eroded. "There is no implementation of laws and illegal cross-border movement remains unchecked," he said. He said Pakistain would rank the first most affected by terrorism if an index identical to GTI was developed for 2012. According to GTI, Pakistain experienced a massive increase in the number of people killed in terrorist attacks, recording the figure of fatalities going up from 96 fatalities in 2002 to 1468 in 2011. Two thirds of the terrorist attacks were carried out either in the form or bombings or kabooms followed by the fatalities inflicted by using firearms. Among the cities that suffered the largest number of attacks included Peshawar, Bloody Karachi ...formerly the capital of Pakistain, now merely its most important port and financial center. It is among the largest cities in the world, with a population of 18 million, most of whom hate each other and many of whom are armed and dangerous... , Quetta, Dera Bugti, Khyber Agency, Mohmand Agency ... Named for the Mohmand clan of the Sarban Pahstuns, a truculent, quarrelsome lot. In Pakistain, the Mohmands infest their eponymous Agency, metastasizing as far as the plains of Peshawar, Charsadda, and Mardan. Mohmands are also scattered throughout Pakistan in urban areas including Karachi, Lahore, and Quetta. In Afghanistan they are mainly found in Nangarhar and Kunar... , and Bajaur Agency, aka Turban Central ...Smallest of the agencies in FATA. The Agency administration is located in Khar. Bajaur is inhabited almost exclusively by Tarkani Pashtuns, which are divided into multiple bickering subtribes. Its 52 km border border with Afghanistan's Kunar Province makes it of strategic importance to Pakistain's strategic depth... , according to the IEP. The report points out that with its continued internal struggles and external tensions Pakistain is the country that has suffered massive increase in GTI score after Iraq. Attacks on educational institutions in Pakistain, according to the report, account for 13 per cent of all attacks recorded.

Link

India-Pakistan

Baloch Rebels Inspire Separatists In Sindh

2012-03-10

Recent kabooms on railway tracks across the Sindh province indicate the rise of a separatist movement that takes inspiration and strength from the freedom movement in Balochistan ...the Pak province bordering Kandahar and Uruzgun provinces in Afghanistan and Sistan Baluchistan in Iran. Its native Baloch propulation is being displaced by Pashtuns and Punjabis and they aren't happy about it... , political analysts say. At least 16 bombs targeted railway tracks in various parts of Sindh on February 25, stopping all train traffic. Low-intensity explosives were planted on railway tracks in Bloody Karachi ...formerly the capital of Pakistain, now merely its most important port and financial center. It may be the largest city in the world, with a population of 18 million, most of whom hate each other and many of whom are armed and dangerous... , Hyderabad, Benazirabad, Mirpur Mathilo, Pud Eaidan, Khairpur and Ghotki, damaging tracks in the entire province, according to a senior Pakistain Railways official. There were no trains close to the sites of kaboom, he said, therefore there was no major damage and no casualties.   "The police found leaflets from the bombing sites in which Sindhu Desh Liberation Army (SDLA), an underground separatist outfit, grabbed credit for the attacks," said Muzaffar Sheikh, a Railway Police officer. He said the group had bombed railway tracks in the past. Denouncing alleged atrocities against the Sindhi people and vowing to continue its struggle until Sindh's freedom, SDLA's chief commander Darya Khan Marri asks other Sindhis, in the leaflet, to take up arms and join the movement. The SLDA says Sindhi separatists must get the same worldwide recognition as the separatists in Balochistan, and asks people to stand up against the "opportunist" People's Party government, the army, and the ISI. Sindhi separatist groups, which have never been popular in the province, have taken strength from recent move by a group of US Congressmen calling for the right of self-determination for the Baloch people. "Because of bad governance, nepotism, corruption and incompetence of the politicians, there is a lot of frustration and disappointment among Sindhi people, especially the young," according to Imdad Soomro, a senior journalist who studies Sindh's ethnic politics. Some of them might be involved in subversive activities, he says, but a majority of them believe in a peaceful political and democratic struggle. The PPP seems to have taken the threat seriously. "The kabooms on railway tracks in Sindh could be due to a sense of deprivation among the Sindhi people, a sentiment that is also prevalent in the province of Balochistan. This sense of deprivation has been created after the liquidation of PPP chairperson Benazir Bhutto ... 11th Prime Minister of Pakistain in two non-consecutive terms from 1988 until 1990 and 1993 until 1996. She was the daughter of Zulfikar Ali Bhutto, founder of the Pakistain People's Party, who was murdered at the instigation of General Ayub Khan. She was murdered in her turn by person or persons unknown while campaigning in late 2007. Suspects include, to note just a few, Baitullah Mehsud, General Pervez Musharraf, the ISI, al-Qaeda in Pakistain, and her husband, Asif Ali Zardari, who shows remarkably little curiosity about who done her in... ," Sindh home minister Manzoor Wasan told news hounds. The government, he said, had been trying to tackle the problem by creating jobs. The demand for the separation of Sindh from Pakistain has been made time and again, but the separatist movement has not posed a serious threat to the state so far. Low-scale thug attacks from the SDLA have been reported intermittently in recent years. The SDLA is believed to be an offshoot of the Jeay Sindh Muttahida Mahaz (JSMM), a Sindhi nationalist political party headed by Shafi Muhammad Burfat. Some of its members also broke away from various factions of the Jeay Sindh Tehrik (JST), founded by prominent Sindhi ethnic leader GM Syed. The Crime Investigation Department (CID) of Sindh police has added Burfat to its Red Book, Sindh IG Ghulam Shabbit Sheikh told news hounds on February 27, and was gathering information on him. Yaqoob Jatt, a senior officer in Hyderabad, said police believed the attacks were orchestrated by SDLA leader Lala Aslam Pathan, and carried out by suspects he identified as Shahnawaz Bhutto, Ramzan Jamali, Bashir Malah, and Faqir Najeeb Qureshi. Sindhis are predominantly represented in parliament by the PPP, but Sindhi ethnic parties that follow the political ideology of GM Syed also have a strong influence on provincial politics. After the demise of GM Syed, his JST split into at least 11 political groups: Jeay Sindh Qaumi Mahaz (JSQM) Bashir Qureshi Group, Burfat's JSSM, JST led by Dr Safdar Sarki, JSQM-Arisar Group, Jeay Sindh Mahaz Riaz Chandio Group, Jeay Sindh Qaumparast Party led by Qamar Bhatti, Sindh United Party led by GM Syed's grandson Jalal Mehmood Shah, Jeay Sindh Mahaz (JSM) led by Abdul Khaliq Junejo, JSM Rasool Bux Thebo Group, JSM Sufi Hazoor Bux Group, and JST Shafi Karnani Group. Dr Qadir Magsi's Sindh Taraqqi Pasand Party, Rasool Bukhsh Paleejo's Awami Tehrik, and Amir Bhambaro's Sindh National Party were not aligned with GM Syed's ideology. Burfat belongs to Tehni, a small village of Taluka Sehwan in Jamshoro district. He was a close associate of Dr Qadir Magsi in the late 1980s and early 1990s, and was accused along with Dr Magsi of orchestrating the September 30, 1988 carnage. "Pakistain's intelligence agencies are targeting our leaders and activists only because we are demanding our fundamental political rights," said a JSMM leader in Hyderabad. He said the party's secretary general Muzaffar Bhutto had been picked up several months ago and its vice chairman Serai Qurban Khuhawar, leader Rooplo Choliani and central committee member Noorullah Tunio were killed in Sanghar on April 21, 2011. He accused intelligence agencies of creating "a Balochistan-like situation" in Sindh. The SDLA emerged as a serious threat in February last year when it bombed several railway tracks, a CID official said. A suspected terrorist died on March 2 apparently trying to plant a bomb on a railway line near Jumma Goth in Bloody Karachi. After an accidental kaboom in a house that killed SDLA-linked Zulfiqar Kulachi and injured Ismail Abubakr and Sardaruddin Allahdino when they were trying to make a bomb on March 7 2011, police seized SDLA literature and other evidence. Information gathered from the literature and questioning of the injured men led to a crackdown in which all key members of the group were tossed in the calaboose. Eleven months later, the group has resurged with new attacks, apparently after being inspired by Baloch separatists, according to CID officials. But the SDLA is not as popular as the Baloch separatists, and that is why law-enforcement officials believe they can bust the group before it becomes a major threat.

Link

India-Pakistan

Karachi violence claims four more lives

2011-06-03

[Dawn] Four more youngsters were killed in separate incidents in the Lyari area on Wednesday bringing the corpse count to 10 in three days of violence in the strife-hit neighbourbood, police said. Although guns fell silent by Tuesday evening following intense firing and armed festivities between two rival ethnic communities in Lyari, violence returned to the locality within hours and a teenage boy was rubbed out in the early hours of Wednesday. "The first incident was reported near the Slaughter House within the remit of the Kalri cop shoppe," said Lyari Town SP Javed Baloch. "The victim was identified as 19-year-old Muhammad Adnan and apparently he fell victim to intense firing in the area. He suffered a bullet wound in the chest. He was resident of the same area." Later, a 28-year-old man was killed in similar fashion in Khadda Market. Police said that victim Imran, an electrician by profession, sustained a fatal bullet wound in the abdomen near Malbari Hotel. He was a resident of Street 2 in the same area. "Although the motive behind his killing is not yet clear, we believe he fell victim to the firing going on in the area for the last two days. He had nothing to do with any group," said an official at the Baghdadi cop shoppe. An area trader was also found rubbed out in Khadda Market. The police said 40-year-old Hamid Panwhar was hit by three bullets fired from a very close range. The body was found lying abandoned near Memon Society Anjuman Hall. "The victim was the resident of the same area and had a toys shop," said the Storied Baghdadi cop shoppe official. "Initial findings suggest that he was kidnapped first and then murdered. The family denied he had any personal enmity, so the motive behind the killing could not be ascertained immediately." A few hours later, the body of a youngster stuffed in a gunny bag was found along Syed Mehmood Shah Road within the remit of the Napier cop shoppe. "The body was found near Noorani Masjid. Clad in blue shalwar-kameez, the body bore severe torture marks, but there was no gunshot wound," said a police official. Fear and tension prevailed in parts of Lyari for the last couple of days. Though the police claimed that it had taken `strong measures` to deal with criminals and maintain law and order in the area, peace remained elusive in the densely populated town. "A police team that had gone to Daryaabad near Niazi Chowk to carry out a raid on a criminal`s hideout came under attack today," said the Lyari SP. "One of our mobile vans got damaged in the attack and the suspects managed to escape. However, The emphatic However... we have seized arms and a couple of cycle of violences from there." He said the law and order started deteriorating in the area after the killing of a senior member of the Kachchi Rabta Committee. However, The flatulent However... he maintained that not all the incidents were related to ethnic rivalry. "We are sure that all the killings are not inter-linked. Personal enmities and other matters could not be ruled out in such cases," the SP said.

Link

India-Pakistan

Taliban guerrillas bring 'Iraq tactics' to Pakistan

2009-11-16

Suicide attacks, car bombings, shootings in the capital and fighting in the mountains -- the Taliban are dragging Pakistan into a war deadlier than in Afghanistan and mimicking the carnage of Iraq. Taliban attacks killed at least 320 people in Pakistan last month alone, including 170 civilians slaughtered in market bombings in Peshawar, according to tallies from police and medics, and the bloodshed has continued in November. Across the border in Afghanistan -- where US President Barack Obama is mulling whether to send thousands of extra troops into battle against the Taliban -- attacks were more frequent, but the death toll for October was around 130. Pakistan is on the frontline of the US-led war on Al Qaeda and has been a key ally in the Afghan campaign, but local analysts warn that increased instability in the country of 167 million people could prove more damaging. "The danger here is much greater. It's a bigger country, more developed with the nuclear bomb and all that," said tribal affairs expert Rahimullah Yousufzai. "The previous three or four attacks in markets was a kind of strategy that was being used in Iraq ... but it will come at a cost. No guerrilla movement can survive without local support," he said. However, controversial US drone attacks on Pakistani soil have killed not only Al Qaeda and Taliban operatives, but also civilians, helping to galvanise anti-American fervour. Pakistan's latest operation against the Taliban -- a month-long offensive designed to crush the havens of an estimated 10,000 homegrown Tehreek-e-Taliban Pakistan (TTP) members -- is running into resistance. Seventeen soldiers died on Thursday in the bloodiest battle to date since Pakistan launched its offensive in the mountainous South Waziristan region on October 17, with 30,000 troops backed by fighter jets and helicopter gunships. Leading TTP spokesman Azam Tariq said the group had started a "guerrilla war" in Waziristan, and would attack cities to prove "we can fight for years". "This strategy can work in Waziristan, in mountain areas, places where the army is stretched out, where the supply lines are going to be long, but the Taliban are not really trained for urban guerrilla warfare," said Yousufzai. "This cannot succeed in the plains or in the places which are far from their tribal strongholds. So they can't do it in Punjab. They cannot even do it in Peshawar -- just suicide bombers and car bombings," he said. Four bomb attacks hit the capital last week with an average of two a week since October. Market-place bombings in Peshawar, in outlying towns and the garrison city of Rawalpindi have inflicted huge casualties. Retired brigadier Mehmood Shah -- a former security chief in the tribal belt -- reflected growing dissatisfaction with the civilian government, whose President Asif Ali Zardari has reportedly strained relations with the military. Shah said parallels with Iraq should not be overplayed but recognised that "mass bombings in Pakistan in the last couple of days, in which civilians were targeted, show some similarities". "The political government needs to get out of the paralysis that they are in right now. They don't know how to respond to the situation. We need an integrated policy. People are dying in the hundreds," he said. "We can expect a guerrilla war. After defeat in South Waziristan, their next phase could be to engage the army in guerrilla warfare," said Mutahir Sheikh, head of international relations at the University of Karachi. The military claims to have captured notorious bastions in some of the most forbidding terrain in the country with lightning speed. Members of the Mehsud tribe, which dominates the TTP, say the Taliban no longer enjoy support. "May be some tribesmen helped them, but now, we the Mehsud tribe don't side with the Taliban," said tribesman Haji Khan Mohammad Mehsud, 60. Military intelligence and tribal elders say the Taliban are escaping into the mountains of neighbouring North Waziristan and Orakzai. "This is something not new to the war on terror. America marched into Iraq, into Afghanistan. There was little resistance, thinking they'd achieved their objective. Then the war began," said defence analyst Ayesha Siddiqa.

Link

India-Pakistan

Baitullah -- feared Taliban warlord in army's sights

2009-06-24

Tehreek-e-Taliban Pakistan (TTP) chief Baitullah Mehsud has a $5 million bounty on his head, but despite the rich reward, the fear he commands among tribesmen makes him an elusive foe. The military is steeling for an assault into the Waziristan agencies along the Afghan border to hunt down the Al Qaeda-linked warlord blamed for the deaths of hundreds of people in terror attacks over two years. Analysts and security sources say infighting among his Mehsud tribe and Taliban factions may bring him down before the army manages to unseat him from his fiefdom in South Waziristan. "Baitullah Mehsud is the top man in his own tribe... he must have around 15,000 to 20,000 hardcore elements or armed men under him," said Brigadier Mehmood Shah, political analyst and former security chief of the tribal belt. "People are scared of him, they are afraid of him. They are terrified but they don't like him," he added. The army has vowed to go after Mehsud, but analysts say troops would face a tougher challenge than in Swat, with Mehsud's network entrenched and influential in the mountains after the years of failed peace deals. Emerging rifts: However, splits are emerging among the once-cohesive tribal Taliban, with Mehsud's rivals accusing the commander of covertly working with India and the US. "Most people in the tribal belt consider Mehsud an enemy of Pakistan and an enemy of Islam," said Shah. "They believe they have lost a lot of tribal elders and innocent people because of him."

Link

India-Pakistan

Taliban collecting taxes to raise funds for 'jihad'

2008-08-15

The Taliban are financing their "jihad" against the United States and supporting the families of the militants killed in the war with private taxation, besides Zakat and Ushr. Sources close to militants, tribal elders and government officials in various tribal regions where Taliban-linked militancy has paralysed business told Daily Times that the organisation has not made a uniform policy on Zakat so far. Taliban vary the taxation from area to area and depending on the financial status of traders. Bajaur is the worst case, where reports say the Taliban have imposed fixed taxes on traders, ranging from Rs 30 to Rs 25,000 per month. "I pay Rs 500 a month to the Taliban as per their decree," said Rustam Khan, who runs a small business in the Khar bazaar. "I can afford to pay the sum, otherwise it would have been great injustice." Maulana Waheed, in charge of Zakat for Taliban in Bajaur, said the total collection was around Rs 175,000 so far -- much lower than what Taliban need to spend. Waheed denied the Taliban were forcing Khar residents to pay Zakat to them, but accepted collecting 12,000 kilogrammes of wheat as Ushr from farmers. Fuel stations give 120 litres of fuel each to the Taliban, who are frequently on the move to avoid United States spy planes. "That is true, we provide a certain quantity of fuel to the Taliban as per their desire and our contribution for jihad," said a manager at one of the fuel stations in Khar. In the neighbouring Mohmand tribal region, the Taliban are not collecting Zakat, but seek contributions from harvested crops and also collect skins of sacrificed animals. The Maulvi Nazir-led Taliban in Ahmedzai Wazir areas of South Waziristan collect neither Zakat nor Ushr, but the heavy fines they impose on the residents are one of the main sources of revenue to run the "Movement for Return of Taliban rule in Afghanistan". Brig (r) Mehmood Shah, former FATA security chief, says the sum that they collect through Zakat or Ushr is too small. "They are collecting taxes which the political administration used to collect on transport of goods. The militants earn up to Rs 30 million a month from tax collection in Kurram tribal district alone," he told Daily Times. Taliban leader Baitullah Mehsud, leading the single largest militant group, is said to be spending around Rs 3 billion annually on militancy, and tribal sources say he was not heard emphasising too much on collection of Zakat. Senior counter-terrorism officials say the militants abduct affluent people for random to generate funds. Militant groups raised special squads for bank robbery, high profile kidnapping and taking away Afghanistan-bound containers, said the officials, citing certain cases as examples. The only militant groups that vie for collection of Zakat and Ushr happen to be in North Waziristan.

Link

Warning: Undefined property: stdClass::$T in /data/rantburg.com/www/pgrecentorg.php on line 132
-12 More