Recent Appearances...

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Recent Appearances...

India-Pakistan

Planning minister proposes to constitute committee to probe lynching incidents

2024-06-23

Good idea. Form a committee.
[GEO.TV] Minister for Planning and Special Initiatives Ahsan Iqbal on Saturday proposed to constitute a special committee of the National Assembly to probe burgeoning incidents of lynching in the name of desecration and blasphemy

...the act of insulting or showing contempt or lack of reverence to a deity, or sacred objects, or toward something considered sacred or inviolable. Some religions consider it to be a crime. In Pakistain you can commit blasphemy by looking cross-eyed at a Koran...
across the country.

While speaking on the floor of the lower house of parliament on a 'point of order', Ahsan condemned the recent 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...
lynching incident, saying it had brought a bad name to the country in the world.

"This anarchy will burn [all of] us if we do not take notice of it," he said, adding that the religion's name is being used to violate the law and Constitution.

On Thursday, a man was burnt to death in Swat district’s Madyan area over blasphemy allegations. The incident took place after the law enforcers had taken the suspect into custody and shifted him to the cop shoppe and later the mob took him from there and set him on fire, the district police officer (DPO) had said.

Later, the unruly group of people also torched the Madyan cop shoppe and damaged the police vehicles as well.

During his speech in the house, the planning minister said that not only the furious people lynched the man, but they also gathered to watch the body burning.

Expressing his personal experience, he said that a religious holy warrior made an liquidation attempt on him but he was survived by the grace of Allah Almighty.

"Taking the law into one's own hands is against the spirit of Islam as well as the Constitution and law of the land," he said.

"Taking the law into one's own hands is against the spirit of Islam as well as the Constitution and law of the land," he said.

He said it was high time to control "street justice" as it was the responsibility of the state and judiciary to administer punishment to a suspect of blasphemous actions.

Citing an incident from Islamic history, he emphasised that Islam taught respecting the dead bodies even if they are of non-Moslems, therefore, immolating any human being based on mere allegation is a violation of basic Islamic principles.

"Due to the ongoing trend of individuals acting as judge, jury, and executioner, we are far behind other nations on the global stage."

Responding to the minister, NA Deputy Speaker Syed Ghulam Mustafa Shah suggested him to take up the issue in the federal cabinet as he is also its member. He further asked him to discuss the matter with Interior Minister Mohsin Naqvi to devise a mechanism to cope with this social evil for good.

Link

India-Pakistan

Militant, facilitator involved in Swat shootout in May arrested: KP IG

2023-06-06

[Dawn] Khyber-Pakhtunkhwa Inspector General (IG) Akhtar Hayat Khan said on Monday that 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...
police had arrested a terrorist and a "local controller" involved in a shootout in Swat’s remote area of Banjot last month, during which "some [militants] had managed to flee" an hours-long police operation.

On May 23, residents of the mountainous area in Manglawar union had alerted police after seeing some suspected people.

"Upon receiving the information, police and security forces reached the area. We launched a joint operation against the suspected armed persons, but the area is so complicated and remote that they managed to flee," Swat district’s police officer, Shafiullah Gandapur had told Dawn at the time.

A citizen was killed in the incident.

IG Akhtar said while addressing a presser in Swat today that the counter-terrorism department and police had used all available technical resources to arrest the snuffies who had fled in the incident and as a result, a murderous Moslem, identified as Rafiullah alias Jawad, and a controller, identified as Asmatullah, were arrested.

He said both of them were residents of Charbagh and the group they were associated with had been involved in extortion and murder. This group, the IG added, also had links with the murderous Moslem Saleem Rabbani group.

IG Akhtar further stated that another murderous Moslem associated with the two arrested men, Zakirullah, had joined the Swat chapter of outlawed Tehrik-e-Taliban
Taliban

...Arabic for students...
Pakistain last year.

"He was also involved in the [Banjot] incident and search for him is under way."

Regarding Rafiullah, the IG said he had moved to Afghanistan along with his family in 2012. He returned to Swat last year and used forged documents to declare himself as the son of a resident in Pakistain, IG Akhtar added.

He further stated that Rafiullah had crossed the Torkham border multiple times using fake documents and was trained in Afghanistan.

Sharing details of other incidents that the arrested men had been involved in, the IG said weapons were seized from them in large quantities.

"They had kept the weapons in very safe, weather-proof containers ... in mountains ... to use them in subsequent operations," he added.

Moreover, he also shared a list of individuals who he said were on the detained men’s target list. Among them, he added, was a constable on Buner police as they were "suspicious that he had been informing about their routes".

The IG said they had admitted to collecting extortion money from former MPAs and and confessed that they planned hand grenade attacks on their houses.

"Their objective behind all this was to create and environment of fear and terror and create and widen a breach ... between the people and institutions," IG Akhtar said.

He said during the investigation, two "shortcoming" were highlighted: the infiltration of snuffies through the border on the basis of false identities and local facilitation.

Both of these would be addressed, he added.

Link

India-Pakistan

‘Terrorists’ arrested in Swat, Kohat

2017-04-08

[DAWN] MINGORA/KOHAT: The Counter Terrorism Department (CTD) police on Thursday tossed in the slammer
... anything you say can and will be used against you, whether you say it or not...
two suspected bully boyz 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...
and Kohat.

In Swat, the CTD police said that the alleged Death Eater identified as Zahoor, a resident of Palaw Sakhakot, was arrested from bypass road at Rahimabad. They said that the Death Eater was reportedly involved in anti-state activities and was wanted to police in torching a government school at Dardiyal village in Kabal tehsil in 2008. He was taken to an unidentified location for further investigation.

Meanwhile,
...back at the revival hall, the pastor had finally been wrestled from the pulpit.
Y'got the wrong guy! he yelled just before Sergeant Malone's billy club landed...
Swat district police officer Mohammad Ijaz said that police were well-prepared and capable to ensure a peaceful environment in Swat valley. Talking to media persons here on Thursday, he said that owing to peaceful situation in Swat for last many years the number of tourists was increasing steadily.

In Kohat, the CTD staff arrested an alleged terrorist in the border of tribal area and recovered improvised bomb and explosives from his possession on Thursday.

According to a statement, the terrorist, identified as Bilal, was entering Kohat from Frontier Region of Jawaki when the CTD force nabbed him. It said that that the police also seized an improvised bomb, one and half kilogrammes of explosives and a detonator. The bomb disposal squad later defused the bomb. The suspect was taken to unknown place after securing his physical remand from a court and registration of FIR against him.

Link

India-Pakistan

2 kids die in grenade mishap in Swat Valley

2017-02-13

Two children were killed and another critically wounded in an accidental grenade explosion near Khyber Pakhtunkhwa's Swat Valley on Sunday, officials said.

The children of a shepherd family were playing in a mountainous village in Buner district when they found the hand grenade and accidentally set it off, local government official Zariful Maani told AFP.

The two brothers, aged nine and 10, died, while their seven-year-old female cousin is in critical condition, Maani said.

Read more: Weapon-shaped pens becoming popular among Swat children

Another local government official, Aizaz Ahmad, confirmed the details.

School-going children remain caught up in the years-long conflict between security forces and militants in the region following a Taliban insurgency in the area since 2007.

In the beginning of 2007, Taliban militants led by Maulana Fazlullah, now central chief of the Tehreek-i-Taliban Pakistan (TTP) took control of the Swat district and waged a campaign of attacking schools, killing policemen, and beheading opponents.

However, Pakistani officials say that Fazlullah fled to Afghanistan during an offensive the military launched in 2009. Despite the operation, the Taliban targeted schoolgirl Malala Yousafzai in 2012.

Link

India-Pakistan

Kop dies in small arms attack in Swat

2016-04-13

MINGORA: Unidentified gunmen killed Deputy Superintendent of Police (DSP) Shangla Muhammad Ilyas and injured two of the police officer's' guards in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa's Swat district on Tuesday.

The assailants opened fire on the DSP's vehicle in Mingora's Sabzi Mandi area, where he was on a visit, leaving him and two of his guards seriously injured, police said. The gunmen fled the scene of the attack.

The DSP and his guards were taken to a nearby hospital where the senior police official was declared dead by doctors.

Tehreek-i-Taliban Pakistan (TTP) spokesperson Muhammad Khurasani claimed responsibility for the attack in an email sent to journalists but police and law enforcers are yet to identify the culprits.

The attack comes as Operation Zarb-i-Azb is two months into its final phase. Inter-Services Public Relations claims at least 252 militants have been killed and 160 severely injured as security forces clear militancy-hit areas in Shawal Valley and North Waziristan Agency.

At least five major counter-terrorism military operations were carried out in Swat and Shangla from 2007 to 2009. Operations Rah-i-Haq I, II and III targeted militancy in both Swat and Shangla, Operation Rah-i-Rast took place in Swat, and Operation Black Thunderstorm took on militancy in Buner, Lower Dir and Shangla.

Link

India-Pakistan

Mardan suicide blast kills MPA, 34 others

2013-06-19

[Pak Daily Times] A suicide bombing at a funeral in Mardan on Tuesday killed at least 35 people, including a Khyber Pakhtunkhwa Assembly member, and injured dozens, police said, the deadliest attack to hit the country in more than three months.
An additional 17 added to yesterday' corpse count...
The attack in Shergarh town in Mardan District came during funeral prayers for the owner of a local fuel station. Police said the politician appeared to be the target of the blast, which highlights the security challenges facing the new government of Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif. Newly-elected independent member of Khyber Pakhtunkhwa Assembly Imran Mohmand was among the 35 people killed in the suicide attack, a government minister confirmed.

The provincial government spokesman Shaukat Yousafzai confirmed the killing of the MPA and that he was the target of the attack. "I have information from police that MPA Imran Mohmand is among those killed in the attack in Shergarh town in Mardan district," he told Daily Times. A local police official, Jaffer Khan, said, "The bomber came on foot and blew himself up near Imran Khan Mohmand, who seems to have been the target."

As the funeral prayers ended, a big explosion took place, a survivor of the attack said. He told media in Mardan that around 800 people were attending the funeral of Haji Abdullah, who was gunned down on Monday. A large number of people and elected parliamentarians were also present during the funeral. The Khyber Pakhtunkhwa government has announced cash compensation for those killed and injured in the deadly suicide blast. Heirs of those killed in the blast would be given Rs 300,000 and the injured will get Rs100,000. Imran Mohmand was elected as an independent MPA from PK-27 constituency in Mardan District. He is the second Khyber Pakhtunkhwa Assembly MPA who has fallen victim to terrorism since the Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf took power in the province on May 30.

Earlier, another PTI MPA, Fareed Khan, was gunned down in Hangu bazaar on June 4. "He was under threat and his office was attacked during election campaign," Shaukat Yousafzai said, adding that the provincial government had provided him with policemen for security, besides he had his personal guards. Shergarh borders Malakand region where the Taliban-linked militancy had wrecked havoc before the military was ordered to restore the state's writ in 2009. Mardan DIG Jaffar Khan said initial investigation revealed a suicide bomber struck the funeral. No group has claimed responsibility for the attack yet. However, local police suspect the Taliban militants hand in the attack who security sources believe hold sway in Mardan District since Taliban were ousted from strongholds in Swat district.

Link

India-Pakistan

40 arrested over Mingora blast

2013-01-13

[Dawn] Police on Friday tossed in the clink
Don't shoot, coppers! I'm comin' out!
40 people in connection with a kaboom at a Tableeghi centre in Takhtaband area here.

Also in the day, the people, who died in the terrorist activity, were laid to rest at their ancestral graveyards 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...
district amid tight security.

SP (Investigation) Irshad told Dawn that five kilogrammes bomb was used in the blast.

An official at Rahimabad cop shoppe said 40 suspected persons were arrested and shifted to undisclosed location for interrogation.

He said FIR of the snuffies act had been registered against unidentified people at Rahimabad cop shoppe.

Deputy medical superintendent at District Headquarters Hospital, Saidu Shairf Dr Jamil said currently, over 70 injured people were under treatment on the premises.

He said two injured people had already been referred to 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.
for being in dangerous condition.

The DMS said emergency had been declared at the hospital to provide better facilities and care to the inured.

The dead people hailing from various localities of Swat were laid to rest in their ancestral graveyards in Najigram, Nawi Kalli, Gogdara, Serai, Kokarai, Melagah, Tendo Dag, Balogram, Rahimabad and other places of Swat district amid moving scenes.

In the day, coppers were deployed to guard mosques during Friday prayers in Swat, while all entry and exit points to the district were sealed to counter terrorism.

After the blast, panic and fear gripped the people, who called for end to violence and restoration of peace in the scenic valley of Swat.

Link

India-Pakistan

22 killed, 47 injured in Swat bomb blast

2013-01-10

Probably just some more Inter-Faith dialog between Sunnies and Shias
At least 22 people were killed and 47 injured in a blast in the Mingora city of Swat district on Thursday, confirmed officials at Saidu Sharif Hospital.

The explosion took place at the main Tableeghi Markaz (preaching centre) located on the Takht Band Road.

The Inter-Services Public Relations (ISPR) spokesperson and police termed the blast as a gas cylinder explosion.

According to eyewitnesses, people were getting ready for their preaching session when a gas cylinder in the kitchen of the Markaz exploded. Additional eyewitness say it may have been a suicide blast.

After the explosion, people started running frantically while some ran to the spot of the explosion to rush the injured to the hospital, a person told The Express Tribune.

Police initially said the blast was caused by an exploding gas cylinder but later police chief Akhtar Hayat confirmed it was a bomb.

Rahman Ali, a medical practitioner in Saidu Group of Hospitals, said that more than 50 injured people were brought to the hospital where 10 critically injured succumbed to their injuries.

Link

India-Pakistan

Clashes leave 10 militants dead in Orakzai, Swat

2011-09-06

[Dawn] At least 10 gun-hung tough guys were killed by security forces during festivities in

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...
and 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...
district on Sunday, sources said.

They said that security forces shelled suspected locations in Ghiljo area of Orakzai Agency after a convoy was hit by a landmine planted on road in the region. Three security personnel were maimed in the landmine blast.

The injured coppers were identified as Ramazan, Juma Khan and Yousaf Khan. They were shifted to Combined Military Hospital in Thall town of Hangu district
... Hangu is famous for its greenery, hills, beauty and water. Most of the people of this area are Bangash & Orakzai Pashtuns. Part of the Bangash are Shia. The Orakzai and the Sunni Bangash are determined to kill them...
The security forces shelled suspected locations after the incident and destroyed three hideouts of krazed killers. Sources said that eight gun-hung tough guys were also killed in the shelling.

Security forces also launched a search operation in Gall, Zakhtun and Essa Khan villages and recovered a large quantity of landmines and 26 rocket shells.

Meanwhile,
...back at the game, the Babe was wondering why the baseball kept getting bigger and bigger. Finally it hit him...
two gun-hung tough guys were killed and two others injured in exchange of fire with security forces in Manglor area of Swat district on Sunday.

Two security personnel were also injured in the firing.

Sources said that security forces, occupying the hilltops in Besh Banr area of Manglor, launched a search operation and killed two krazed killers.

The security forces also continued a search operation in Tilligram area of Charbagh. Two gun-hung tough guys had been killed during a search operation in Tilligram two days ago. Security forces had also recovered a boom jacket and weapons in Tilligram and Mala Jabba areas.

Link

India-Pakistan

Forces kill four terrorists in Swat encounter

2011-03-14

[Pak Daily Times] Four bad boyz were potted during a bloody encounter with security forces in the border area of Dir and Swat districts, official sources informed on Sunday. The clash occurred when terrorists, who were entering from Dir district to Swat, refused to stop for search and started firing at security forces at the border area. As result of the shootout, four bad boyz were potted. The security forces claimed recovering automatic weapons and rounds from the possession of terrorists. After the clash, the security forces launched a search operation in the area.

Link

India-Pakistan

14 people killed in Pakistan violence

2011-02-14

[Iran Press TV] Unknown bully boyz have attacked a house in the Khyber tribal region in northwest Pakistain and killed at least five people and injured two others, security officials say.

Militants hurled hand grenades into a guest house (Hujra) of local primitive Fazal Muhammad in Tabi Shan Khel village in Landikotal Tehsil of Khyber Agency late on Saturday, killing five people and injuring two others, Pak officials told Press TV on Sunday.

The injured people were transferred to a local hospital as security forces cordoned off the area and started search operations to arrest the krazed killers. No group or individuals grabbed credit of the attack.

Meanwhile,
...back at the ranch...
Pak security forces on Saturday killed at least 9 bully boyz in two different incidents in Swat valley in the northwestern Khyber-Pakhtunkhwa
... formerly NWFP, still Terrorism Central...
province.

Officials told Press TV that five bully boyz were killed by the soldiers in a clash in an area between Swat and Dir districts.

In another incident, Pak troops clashed with bully boyz and killed at least four bully boyz in the Madayan area of Swat.

Security Forces have also nabbed a would-be bomber in a separate incident in Swat district.

Sporadic outbreaks of violence continue in the region although Pak troops launched a military operation in the region after bully boyz moved out of Swat and advanced to within 100 kilometers of the capital Islamabad in April 2009.

After heavy fighting
... as opposed to the more usual light or sporadic fighting...
that displaced an estimated two million people, the military declared the region back under army control last summer.

Link

India-Pakistan

Six terrorists killed in Swat clashes

2010-12-28

[Pak Daily Times] Six faceless myrmidons were killed, including leader of an jihad boy group, while three paramilitary troops were maimed in several incidents of exchange of fire in Swat district. Security forces and faceless myrmidons traded fire late on Sunday night in Matta and Kalam Atarwar, killing five terrorists, who were later identified as Shamsur Rehman, Noorul Hadi, Hazrat Hussain, Akbar Hussain and Ataullah. Of the six ultras mowed down also included three who were released by the forces three days ago after they were found innocent during the police investigations. Leader of an jihad boy group was killed by the forces in Shamozai area of Swat district. Separately, the security forces killed a faceless myrmidons identified as Sardar in Parai.

Link

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