Pakistani Taliban said moving closer to capital

By Junaid Khan

MINGORA, Pakistan (Reuters) - Pakistani Taliban are moving into a new area in northern Pakistan, clashing with villagers and police in a mountain valley, police and district officials said on Wednesday.

Separately, a Pakistani Taliban commander said the Pakistani military and the United States were colluding in U.S. drone aircraft attacks and the militants would take their war to the capital, Islamabad, in response.

Surging militant violence across Pakistan is reviving Western concerns about the stability of its nuclear-armed ally. Pakistan is crucial to U.S. efforts to stabilise Afghanistan.

U.S. envoy to Afghanistan and Pakistan Richard Holbrooke, and Admiral Mike Mullen, chairman of the U.S. Joint Chiefs of Staff, were in Pakistan for talks on security strategy this week.

In a development that will deepen the West's concerns, scores of Taliban have moved into Buner district, 100 km northwest of Islamabad, from the Swat valley where authorities struck a peace pact in February aimed at ending violence.

"About 20 vehicles carrying Taliban entered Buner on Monday and started moving around the bazaar and streets," said senior police officer Israr Bacha.

Villagers formed a militia, known as a lashkar, to confront the Taliban and eight of the insurgents were killed in a clash on Tuesday, police said.

Two villagers and three policemen were also killed.

"People don't like the Taliban," Ghulam Mustafa, deputy chief of Buner, told Reuters by telephone.

Muslim Khan, a Taliban spokesman in Swat, was defiant.

"What law stops us going there?" Khan said. "Our people will go there and stay there as long as they want."

MISLEADING

Authorities agreed in February to let Islamists impose Islamic law in Swat to end more than a year of fighting.

Critics said appeasement would only embolden the militants to take over other areas. Pakistan's Western allies fear such pacts create safe havens for Taliban and al Qaeda fighters.

Pakistani Taliban commander Mullah Nazeer Ahmed said in an interview with al Qaeda's media arm, Al-Sahab, that Pakistan was behind U.S. drone attacks on militants.

Authorities were misleading the public by saying it was the United States carrying out the strikes, he said, and it was the Pakistani army that sent spies to facilitate them.

"All these attacks that have happened and are still happening are the work of Pakistan," Ahmed said, according to a transcript of the interview posted on Al-Sahab's website.

Alarmed by deteriorating security in Afghanistan, the United States has since last year stepped up drone strikes in Pakistan.

Pakistan objects to the strikes, calling them a violation of its sovereignty that complicates its effort to fight militancy.

Other Taliban commanders said recent violence in Pakistan has been in retaliation for the drone attacks and threatened more.

Ahmed said Pakistani Taliban factions had united and would take their war to the capital: "The day is not far when Islamabad will be in the hands of the mujahideen."

Ahmed also blamed the Pakistani military's Inter-Services Intelligence (ISI) agency for sowing divisions between factions, saying the ISI was the Taliban's main enemy.

Some U.S. officials have said recently the ISI maintained contacts with militants and there were indications ISI elements even provided support to the Taliban or al Qaeda militants.

Such accusations have angered Pakistan, although a military spokesman denied reports that ISI chief Lieutenant-General Ahmed Shujaa Pasha had snubbed Holbrooke and Mullen by refusing to meet them on Tuesday.

(Additional reporting by Kamran Haider and Zeeshan Haider)

  

Jehadi group’s trademark gets stolen

Abdullah Khan

Lashkar-e-Tayyaba’s trademark has been stolen, and the irony is that the stolen trademark is now being used against Lashkar’s own support base. The recent attack on the Manawan Police Training School Lahore, after the previous attack on the Sri Lankan cricket team in the same city, is the latest example of this peculiar development. India has been facing such attacks, usually referred to as ‘fidayeen attacks’, since 1999. 

This terminology was also used by the Indian media in their news coverage immediately after the Mumbai attacks with headlines such as, ‘Mumbai under Fidayeen attack’. Although Lashkar-e-Taiba had denied involvement in these attacks, yet Indian, British, and Pakistani intelligence still hold this group, which is active in Kashmir against Indian occupation of the State of Jammu and Kashmir, responsible for the Mumbai events in the light of their own investigations. Pakistan has taken more than half a dozen Lashkar commanders into custody, including Zaki-ur-Rahman Lakhvi, who is one of the four leaders on whom the United Nations had enforced sanctions on December 10, 2008, and had frozen their assets. Lashkar-e-Taiba had introduced the tactic of fidayeen attacks back in 1999 when the then prime minister of Pakistan, Nawaz Sharif, had announced the withdrawal of Pakistani forces and Kashmiri fighters from the mountains of Kargil in his Washington Declaration, which they captured in the winter of that year, and where a fierce and bloody battle had been fought in the months of May and June. During this battle, Pakistani forces had shot down two Indian war planes and had even captured the pilot of one of the aircrafts. The Indian army had faced such huge loss of life in this battle that it had had to hand out contracts to private firms for the mass manufacture of coffins for transportation of its dead soldiers from the frontlines. Corruption is rife to such an extent in India’s armed forces and its Ministry of Defense that kickbacks and commissions of millions of rupees were paid and received for the manufacture of these coffins. An inquiry was also initiated later regarding this sordid affair, but that is not what I am writing about today, although I do intend to write in detail about the widespread corruption in the Indian armed forces at some later date.

Lashkar-e-Taiba’s leadership had warned the then prime minister of India, Atal Bihari Vajpayee, through a press statement that ‘the second round of jihad had now begun’, which had meant that India should now expect fidayeen attacks on Indian forces in Kashmir. In the fidayeen style of attack anywhere from two to ten, or sometimes even more heavily armed fighters make a commando-style entry into the target facility and try their best to inflict heavy losses. If they achieve their desired goal, they try to escape from the location; otherwise they fight until death instead of surrendering. According to a report of the Indian Express which was published after the Mumbai events, the first fidayeen attack occurred at the Battalion Headquarters of the Indian BSF (Border Security Force) in Bandipora, in which three attackers had caused havoc at the BSF Headquarters.

Activities and operations of Indian forces deployed in the Kashmir valley are controlled from the headquarters of the 15 Corps which is located in the Badami Bagh area of Srinagar. But although this location is considered to be the safest place in terms of security for the Indian forces in Occupied Kashmir, yet three fidayeen of Lashkar-e-Taiba attacked this secure headquarters site on November 3, 1999, dressed in the uniforms of Indian troops and were able to infiltrate and mix with other soldiers by taking advantage of the pandemonium and confusion. These fidayeen were so daring and bold that they made their way to the office of the spokesman of the Indian forces, Maj. Parshotam, in the commotion and killed him, and then audaciously used his telephone to call the British news organization, the BBC, to accept responsibility for the attack. Moreover, two of the attackers were able to escape the premises in an Indian forces vehicle, while only one of them was killed. The success of this type of daring attacks raised the morale of this group tremendously with the result that in the year 2000, some attackers of this group left Kashmir and not only attacked the Red Fort based Indian army barracks in the heart of the Indian capital, New Delhi, but also defiantly accepted responsibility for the said attack. A Pakistani citizen, Muhammad Ashfaq, faces the death sentence in India for his involvement in this attack and his case is pending hearing in the Indian Supreme Court. Fidayeen attacks were therefore considered to be a hallmark of Lashkar-e-Taiba in the subcontinent, while other militant groups in the area also began copying Palestinian and Tamil militants and used suicide attacks as a tactic quite successfully in Afghanistan and Pakistan. Lashkar, however, instead of moving towards suicide attacks, maintained its distinctive style of fidayeen attacks and with time, tried to perfect this technique further. Even though India blames the suicide attack on the Indian embassy in Kabul on Lashkar, yet if one accepts this as truth, even then it would be a rare incident in Lashkar’s history of resistance.

American intelligence officials and experts on militancy had expressed fears after the Mumbai attacks that other militant groups, including Al Qaeda, may try to mimic this style of attack and those misgivings have turned out to be entirely true. Yet ironically, instead of India or America becoming a victim of this style of attack, as had been expected, the Pakistani province of Punjab and its capital, Lahore; considered to be the nexus of Lashkar sympathizers, has itself fallen prey to this particular style of attacks. The leadership of this group therefore, which had announced numerous times in the past that it will never carry out any militant activities on Pakistani soil, is deeply embarrassed and completely flabbergasted, to say the least, at this bizarre development, because after every attack which uses the Lashkar trademark style, the finger is immediately pointed toward this group due to its previous use of this style outside Pakistani soil. This group, which has enjoyed popular public support in Punjab, is extremely worried, understandably, under these circumstances, that if such attacks continue and its name keeps getting mentioned, it could turn out to be fatal for its popularity among the Pakistani populace. 

What is interesting is that this group can neither register a case against the theft of its trademark in any court of law, nor can it have a notice issued to the stealers of its trademark under the Copyright Act.

—The writer is an expert on regional security issues and Indo-Pakistan relations.

Pakistan is fighting a battle for its own survival

The United States' military commander and regional troubleshooter held key talks in Pakistan, where President Asif Ali Zardari told them his country was fighting terror for its survival.

Admiral Mike Mullen, chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, and Richard Holbrooke, special envoy for Afghanistan and Pakistan, arrived late Monday for talks on Washington's sweeping new strategy to defeat Al-Qaeda and its allies.

It is the first top-level visit since US President Barack Obama put Pakistan at the heart of the fight against Al-Qaeda, unveiling a new strategy nine days ago to commit thousands more troops and billions of dollars to the Afghan war.

"Pakistan is fighting a battle for its own survival," a statement issued by the presidency quoted Zardari as telling Mullen and Holbrooke during their talks.

"The president said the government would not succumb to any pressure by militants," it said, despite Zardari sparking controversy in the West with a call for dialogue with those who lay down their arms.

The talks covered regional security issues, the Afghanistan strategy announced by Obama less than two weeks ago and a recent surge in militancy and extremism in the region, the presidency said.

Pakistani officials said the US visitors were scheduled to hold separate talks with Prime Minister Yousuf Raza Gilani and Foreign Minister Shah Mehmood Quresh before leaving for India later Tuesday.

The visit came as The New York Times again reported that the United States intended to step up drone attacks on militants in Pakistan?s tribal areas, which border Afghanistan, and might extend them deeper inside Pakistan.

The newspaper said "officials" proposed broadening the missile strikes by unmanned aircraft to Pakistan's southwest province of Baluchistan, which comes under federal government control, unless Pakistan reduces incursions by militants.

Pakistan is deeply opposed to the drone attacks -- around 37 of which have killed over 360 people since August 2008 -- saying they violate its territorial sovereignty and deepen resentment in the nuclear-armed nation.

The country has paid dearly for its alliance with the US in its "war on terror." Militant attacks have killed more than 1,700 people since July 2007.

Pakistan angrily rejects criticism that it does not do more to quash Taliban and Al-Qaeda militants holed up on the Afghan border, pointing to the deaths of more than 1,500 troops killed at the hands of Islamist extremists since 2002.

The country's powerful intelligence services -- which have a history of supporting Islamist militants to fight in Indian-controlled Kashmir and in Afghanistan -- are under tough US pressure to sever ties with extremists.

On Monday, Gilani chaired high-level Pakistani national security talks and announced in a statement that "a comprehensive and integrated policy... will be devised to eradicate completely the scourge of terrorism and extremism."

Cash-strapped Pakistan is keenly awaiting a US aid package that aims to triple economic assistance to 7.5 billion dollars over five years.

Although the aid bill meets some long-standing requests for military equipment, it requires the White House to certify that Pakistan is fighting terror and that its military and intelligence services do not support extremists.

Pakistan must also close all terror camps in the Federally Administered Tribal Areas and work to prevent cross-border attacks into Afghanistan.

"What is expected in the coming months is intensification of the campaign in search of Al-Qaeda and its local allies in Pakistan," analyst Imtiaz Gul told AFP when asked about the significance of the US visit.

"Drone attacks are a reality that Pakistanis shall have to live with."

Pakistan army and ISI in CIA’s firing line

onday March 30, 2009 (1124 PST) ah.raja@yahoo.com

It is now getting clear as to why FATA has been declared most dangerous place on earth. After making series of allegations that FATA is the main breeding ground where militants and suicide bombers are trained for launching into Afghanistan; where the entire senior leadership of Al-Qaeda and Taliban is housed; and from where possible attack on US homeland would take off, so far not a single training camp has been located in FATA, nor any high-profile militant leader nabbed or killed. This is in spite of continuous hovering of spy planes and next door US-NATO troops equipped with latest state-of-the-art surveillance and detection gadgets breathing over Pakistan’s neck, and RAW-CIA-Mossad agents having infiltrated into FATA in big numbers. If CIA controlled drones can hit suspected houses, madrassas and Hujras based on intelligence, why have they been unable to detect so-called training sites and the top wanted leaders? Why have the drones not taken a pot shot at Baitullah Mehsud or Maulana Fazlullah if the US considers Pakistani Taliban a threat? The fact is that whatever has been said about FATA is pack of white lies uttered with sinister designs. All sorts of harrowing stories were cooked up to justify drone attacks as well as ground raids in Pakistan’s northwestern tribal belt. Blatant lies are similar to the WMD falsehood to justify invasion of Iraq. Why not Afghanistan, Iraq, Somalia, Sudan or for that matter India which has become the hub-centre of extremism and terrorism been added to the list of most dangerous places? Other than the militants, which the US is keen to eliminate, Pakistan army and the ISI also continue to remain in CIA’s firing line. CIA is deliberately leaking out stories in US leading newspapers while CNN, Fox News drum beats scandalous news on electronic media to malign the two institutions.  The allegations made against the two institutions range from collaboration with the Taliban and playing a double game. The themes played are: One, the army is either incapable of dealing with militants or is soft towards them; Two, the army has surrendered FATA and Swat to the Taliban; Three, the army uses the Taliban as a weapon to regain strategic depth in Afghanistan; Four, the army is not under civil government control; Five, the ISI trains, equips and launches militants into Pakistan to hit Afghan-Nato targets. In order to nullify the negative impact of deadly drone attacks which have killed mostly innocent men, women and children, USA has launched a bizarre campaign in its bid to convince Pakistanis and the world that drones are flown from air bases in Baluchistan and not from Afghanistan. Earlier on it was stated that there was a tacit understanding between Gen Musharraf and USA and that Zardari on his visit to Washington had given his blessing to continue drone attacks. It was also said that missile attacks were conducted without informing Pakistan because of strong suspicion that the army and the ISI forewarned the Taliban about the intended attack. David E Sanger and Ron Suskind, both from USA have belatedly come up with news that Gen Musharraf had played a double game. In his book ‘Inheritance’, Sanger claims that he learnt about the ISI and Pakistani Generals protecting the Taliban by listening to the highly classified tapes in which telephonic conversations of top Pakistani Generals with the then ISI chief were recorded. Who will buy this crap for everyone knows that Generals use highly secured communication system which cannot be breached. More so, why the hell they should be discussing Taliban over phones? Diane Feinstein, chairperson of US Senate Committee on Intelligence came out with a startling disclosure that US drones were operating form certain ISI bases within Pakistan and that USAF and US army had nothing to do with it. The ISI was deliberately added to generate feelings of hatred against it. Who doesn’t know that the ISI do not control any bases and that drones are flown from Bagram air base in Afghanistan? It is also a known fact that Shamsi and Dalbaldin air bases are utilized by CIA and FBI for covert operations in Baluchistan and Iran.       The CIA and ISI have always enjoyed cordial relations. The Afghan war against the Soviets brought the two very close to each other. This closeness got reinvigorated when Pakistan volunteered to become the frontline state against war on terror. The two sailed along smoothly till as late as 2007 after which there was a sudden shift in CIA’s attitude. This change in attitude occurred after ISI learnt about CIA playing a double game in FATA and Baluchistan by providing all out assistance to RAW to destabilize the marked regions. When ISI became cautious and started to take protective measures, it irked CIA and started to distance itself. CIA’s relations with Pak army and the ISI became strained when the army-ISI outspread details of drug trade in Afghanistan in which CIA, RAW and Mossad were deeply involved. This disclosure with proofs was made when the USA had begun to tantalize Pak army and blamed it for its woes in Afghanistan. Pakistan argued that one of the principle reasons for USA not being able to control militancy in Afghanistan was the unchecked drug trade which was also a source of income for the militants to fund their militancy. It transpired that CIA assisted by India was sponsoring multi-billon dollar Afghan drug trade. The duo banks on $3 trillion worth of drug money each year, generated through heroin production and its subsequent sale across the world. Drug money is used by CIA for carrying out covert operations in the world. RAW utilizes drug money for running tens of training camps, for recruiting and equipping agents and suicide bombers and funding dissident elements within Pakistan. Exposure of this racket angered CIA and relations of the two soured. Matters worsened when the Indian defence attaché serving in Indian Embassy in Kabul got killed on 7 July 2008 suicide bombing. He was a lynchpin arranging drug deals and hence very dear to the CIA. RAW convinced CIA that the attack had been perpetrated by ISI. It infuriated CIA so intensely that it vowed to teach ISI a lesson. We remember how Deputy Director CIA and Adm. Mullen came fuming to Pakistan and expressed their deepest concern. Ever since, CIA is not missing any opportunity to fire salvos to defame and axe this premier organization which provides first line of defence to Pakistan. Otherwise too, both CIA and RAW consider the army and ISI as the only bottlenecks which are blocking their route to denuclearize Pakistan. Among the many conditions attached to Benazir return to Pakistan was to turn the army into a counter terrorism force and to bring the ISI and the nuclear program under civilian control. A serious attempt was made in August last year when the ISI had nearly been placed under Ministry of Interior. CIA was part of the gory drama of Mumbai in which the army and ISI in particular were blamed. The CIA not only exercises control over US media and think tanks which it uses for propaganda purposes and for forming perceptions, it has also cultivated intellectuals, writers, journalists, English newspapers and TV channels in Pakistan and uses Pakistani brigade to supplement its propaganda warfare. Among the latter category some are based in foreign countries but subscribe their articles in Pakistan’s leading English newspapers. Of late this brigade has become very active and is parroting dictated themes with greatest vigor.     There is no denying the fact that the CIA used drug money to finance war against the Soviets in the 1980s. Earlier on it had also used drug money in Nicaragua in 1979-80 to finance Contras. By the close of Afghan war in 1989, Afghanistan was the second biggest opium producing country in the world. It was almost cleansed of the curse of drugs by the Taliban during their rule from 1996 to 2001. It has now been converted into the largest heroin producing state in the world. Hamid Karzai brother Izzatullah Wasifi is the biggest heroin producer and there are dozens of heroin factories established across the country and run by Wasifi and other Afghan warlords. Ahmad Wali Karzai in Kandahar handles all exports of heroin to Europe through Turkmenistan. The 7 July attack on Indian Embassy had been masterminded by Wasifi once he learnt that the Indian officer was betraying him to US Drug Enforcement Agency. It is surprising that neither CIA has ever recommended to US government to launch a crackdown on heroin factories that finance militants and warlords nor the US military command or NATO command in Kabul have raised this issue. It seems as if all are party to the drug game. Without Pentagon and CIA blessing it is not possible to export thousands of tons of heroin. Reportedly, even US military cargo planes are in use to shift heroin and on occasions coffin boxes were used. Possibility of NATO countries and Afghan army and police indulging in this lucrative business cannot be ruled out. It is to be seen whether the hard taskmaster Holbrook would be able sort this critical matter without which any amount of troop surge will not produce any tangible results.

Police training centres without proper security arrangements

 Four training centres situated on city’s outskirts, have decrepit boundary walls 
* Thokar Niaz Baig centre has two policemen protecting 500 unarmed trainee traffic wardens 
* No CCTV, entry register at Bedian training centre for Elite Force

By Abdul Manan

LAHORE: The police training centres of the city do not have proper security arrangements, sources in the Police Department told Daily Times on Monday.

Apart from the Police Training School (PTS) at Chuhng, the other four police training centres are established on the outskirts of the city, with only one boundary wall each and open fields on the other three sides. 

Outskirts: The training centres on the outskirts of the city include PTS Multan Road, LOS Traffic Warden Line at Thokar Niaz Baig, Bedian Police Training Centre and Police Training School Manawan on GT Road. The Thokar Niaz Baig centre is the training centre for refresher courses of the City Traffic Police. It is situated on an area of 30 acres, and around 500 wardens live on the campus. Sources in the centre told Daily Times the centre’s boundary wall was in dilapidated condition. 

Two policemen: They said only two policemen were deployed at the centre’s main gate, and they were given the task of protecting 500 unarmed wardens – with two old guns. They said barriers in deteriorated condition were placed at the main gate, which were not sufficient protection against any attacks. They said sometimes only one policeman was present at the gate. They said terrorists could easily target them in this ‘cage’. They said no register was kept at the entrance, and there was no record of visitors. 

The Bedian Training Centre is located some 5 kilometres from the Wagha border. It is situated on 350 acres, and has no boundary wall. Its building and training grounds cover around 13 acres. Around 1,000 Elite personnel get training at this centre. Besides the Elite Force personnel, the personnel of Punjab Police and patrolling police also get short-term training courses at this centre. Sources in the Bedian Training Centre told Daily Times they went through 16 hours of physical training at the centre, and some of them also had to perform the additional duty of guarding the centre at night. 

No camera, register: They said there was no surveillance camera or entrance register at the main gate. They said there was not even a map of the building in the training centre. They said an artificial thick forest surrounded the main gate, and there were no walls surrounding the centre. They said criminals could very easily hide themselves in the forest. 

The Police Training School Manawan, which is under construction, has been established in place of an old transport depot owned by the government. Some 1,000 Punjab Police personnel do their 9-month training at this centre. PTS Chuhng is one of the oldest police training institutions in Punjab. The school is supposed to accommodate some 860 trainees at a time. However, sources in the school said the actual number of trainees at the school was often much greater. An official of the school told Daily Times 10 trenches had been dug at the school to defend against any possible attack. He said a complete record of visitors was kept. 

Chief Traffic Officer Shariq Kamal Siddique told Daily Times he would enhance the security at the LOS Centre at Thokar Niaz Baig. Training Additional Inspector General of Police Abdul Ghaffar Mian told Daily Times he could not comment as he was busy at the Manawan training school.

Lahore 'was Pakistan Taleban op

The chief of the Pakistani Taleban, Baitullah Mehsud, has told the BBC his group was behind Monday's deadly attack on a police academy in Lahore.

He said the attack was "in retaliation for the continued drone strikes by the US in collaboration with Pakistan on our people".

He also claimed responsibility for two other recent deadly attacks.

Baitullah Mehsud said the attacks would continue "until the Pakistan government stops supporting the Americans".

Security officials are interrogating at least four suspects captured after the attack, police say.

We will continue our attacks until the Pakistan government stops supporting the Americans  Pakistan Taleban chief Baitullah Mehsud Profile: Baitullah Mehsud

Eighteen people, including two civilians, eight policemen and eight militants, were killed and 95 people were injured during the eight-hour battle to wrest back control of the academy, the interior ministry says.

Pakistan's interior minister earlier identified the Taleban as well as other extremist groups as possible perpetrators, and suggested a foreign state could also be involved.

'Retaliation'

Baitullah Mehsud is the supreme commander of the Tehrik-e-Taleban Pakistan (Movement of Taleban in Pakistan) organisation.

He operates out of a stronghold in the Pakistani tribal region of South Waziristan.

Speaking to the BBC by phone, he also claimed responsibility for two other attacks:

• A suicide attack on a security convoy, also on Monday, near the town of Bannu in North West Frontier Province, which killed seven security personnel
• An attack on the offices of an intelligence agency in Islamabad on 25 March

But he denied responsibility for the bombing of a mosque in north-west Pakistan on 27 March, in which at least 50 people died.

Baitullah Mehsud warned the attacks would continue as long as Pakistan continued "supporting the Americans".

Such attacks are indeed expected to increase in line with the newly announced US strategy for Afghanistan and Pakistan, says the BBC's Barbara Plett in Lahore.

Different Taleban factions in the border region, including Baitullah Mehsud's, have joined forces in readiness to confront the planned American troop increase in Afghanistan, she says.

Iran, India may join US war in Afghanistan

By Anwar Iqbal 


Friday, 27 Mar

WASHINGTON: A key US senator said on Thursday that the United States and Iran might begin their cooperation for stabilising Afghanistan after a meeting between officials of the two countries in The Hague next week.

‘We also need to reach out to Afghanistan’s other neighbours, including India, China, and Iran,’ Senator John Kerry told the confirmation hearing for the new US ambassador to Afghanistan.

The former Democratic presidential candidate, who now heads the US Senate Foreign Relations Committee, noted that in 2001 and 2002, Iran helped to stabilise Afghanistan. ‘And the Obama administration is right to explore how our interests might coincide again on this issue, beginning at the Hague Conference next week,’ he added.

Earlier on Thursday, Hasan Qashqavi, a spokesman for the Iranian Foreign Ministry, told reporters in Tehran that Iran would join the United States at two international conferences on Afghanistan, including the one at The Hague which begins on March 31.

‘The level of participation is yet to be determined,’ he added. Last week, US Secretary of State Hillary Clinton officially invited Iran to the Hague conference.

The US move is seen in Tehran as a moral victory for the Iranian government, which was castigated by the Bush administration as part of an ‘Axis of Evil’.

Although the US still plays a leading role in the campaign against Iran’s nuclear programme, the US decision to involve it in its efforts to stabilise Afghanistan enhances the stature of the Iranian government.

Both the Afghan President Hamid Karzai and UN Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon are expected to attend. Other attendees will include foreign ministers from countries in the region, countries that are part of the International Security Assistance Force and other countries and organisations that are contributing to reconstruction in Afghanistan.

At the confirmation hearing, Senator Kerry outlined some of the salient features of a new US strategy for Afghanistan and Pakistan, which is expected to be announced on Friday.

The new strategy also seeks to triple US economic assistance to Pakistan and a greater engagement with the Afghans.

‘I will soon be re-introducing with Senator Lugar the Enhanced Partnership with Pakistan Act, which seeks to triple non-military aid to the people of Pakistan,’ Senator Kerry said.

The proposed legislation will also hold Pakistan’s ‘security forces more accountable for assistance provided in their fight against the Pakistani Taliban and Al Qaeda,’ he added.

Senator Richard Lugar, a ranking Republican member of the Senate Foreign Relations Committee, which authorises US foreign aid, also has pledged to support the bill.

‘We can all agree that today Afghanistan, along with its neighbour Pakistan, represents the central front in our global campaign against terrorism,’ Senator Kerry told the confirmation hearing.

Referring to the new strategy, Senator Kerry stressed the need for a regional approach for bringing peace and stability to Afghanistan. ‘Our strategy must also reflect the interconnectedness of the region’s challenges,’ he said.

‘This requires redoubling our efforts to strengthen Pakistan’s civilian government and support its activities against militants in the tribal belt.’ That’s why, he said, he was seeking to triple US assistance to Pakistan.

Senator Kerry noted that President Barak Obama has pledged to recommit to Afghanistan, beginning with the deployment of 17,000 additional US troops and a significant effort to increase the size and capacity of Afghan security forces. He said while he supported this move, he also believed that ‘troops alone will not bring victory.’

[Dawn]

RAW implanting New CIA’ Strategy

By Zaheerul Hassan  

Lahore, March 30: On March 30, 2009, the RAW’s trained terrorists again hit Lahore and killed several under training police personnel of Police Training Centre, Manawan Lahore. One terrorist apparently afghan nationality has been apprehended. It is doubted that terrorist has been given training at Jaisilmir (India) adjacent to Pakistan border. The terrorist was probably trying to flee away with the intentions of crossing border which is hardly 3 kilometers away from place of incidents. It is quite possible that assailants are same Indian black cats those attacked Sri Lankan team a month ago and yet to be arrested. RAW   believes in Extremism and elimination of Muslims from India and now supporting indirectly BJP in her election Campaign. BJP is strongly has faith on Hindu Vatism which refers to Hindu extremism and domination. For a long time, the concept of Hindu Extremism and domination has ruled the Indian politics. Thus the achievement of this goal led New Delhi to adopt coercive diplomacy and concept of limited war. As the judicial movement succeeded in Pakistan and being a frontline state against terrorism, Islamabad became a throne in the eyes of India. It is impossible for her to confront Pakistan directly but at the same time, she wants to destabilize and deescalate Pakistan. Thus India started playing its cards in the form of covert operations inside Pakistan.

The attack on mosque in Khyber , the attack on Sri Lankan team in liberty and recently the attack on Pakistan police training center is evident upon fact that the impetus was provided by a foreign hand i.e.; RAW. All these efforts of India are directed towards proving Pakistan an irresponsible nation and a failed state. RAW backed by CIA is continuously spreading terrorism and sending well-planned terrorists in Pakistan. Any common man cannot plan such an extensive act and implement it alone without any foreign hand. It is without any doubt the outcome of the malicious planning of New Delhi to pave the way to malign the name of Pakistan and making excuses valid for drone attacks inside Pakistan. However, India should not forget that Pakistan is a responsible nation and will go to any extent to meet external threats. 

CIA is using RAW and RAAM as her tools to implement her agenda of pushing Pakistan into anarchy and in political turmoil.  American and Indian agencies never liked to see Pakistan a successful South Asian country. They are backing terrorism to victimize lonely Islamic Nuclear Power. The blaming ISI and Pakistan Security agencies   and damaging Pakistan sovereignty is on the top their agenda. Pakistan political top brass must realize the facts and read the underlines of new strategy of CIA, which probably totally different to the Obama” announced policy. 

Taliban terror haunts India

                                   Rope in China, US to tackle the menace: Security agencies

Swati Chaturvedi

New Delhi, March 5: “Taliban is a mere five hours away from India,” states a matter-of-fact report by security agencies to the Union cabinet. In a joint report to the cabinet committee on security, the agencies have called for urgent, joint action by India, US and China to take on the Taliban.

China, despite being an ally of Pakistan , is said to be worried about the growing influence of its home-grown extremists and radical groups of Islam. The unrest in the provinces in China is also being fanned by the economic slowdown. China, therefore, might not be averse to fighting what is perceived as a Frankenstein. India on its own does not have the strategic resources to counter the growing strength of the Taliban in Pakistan and Afghanistan, point out the agencies.

Warning that India is surrounded by a virtual ‘ring of fire’, the report says that the mutiny in Bangladesh and the attack on cricketers at Lahore indicate a convergence of forces which are opposed to the very idea of India. Describing recent events in Bangladesh as a time-bomb ‘ticking’, the report warns of a large-scale influx of people into India, if disturbances persist in the neighbouring country.

The possible connections between radical groups like the LTTE in Sri Lanka, Tehrik-i-Taliban in Pakistan, Jehadi elements in Bangladesh make it imperative to take effective action against terrorists.

Sources in the Home ministry expressed their concern about Nepal being used as a hub by the ISI. The strength of the Pakistan High Commission at Kathmandu, they say, is disproportionately high and more than half of them are suspected to be ISI agents. Government of India, these sources claimed, has taken up the issue with Nepal and has communicated its concern over overt and covert ISI activities carried out from Nepal.

The report rubbishes the claim that there are ‘good’ Taliban, namely those who are demanding the rule of the Sharia, and that there are ‘bad’ Taliban, namely the global jehadis. Even Mohammad Sufi, the Talib with whom the Pakistan government struck a deal to implement Sharia in Swat, has made no secret of his mission to implement the rule of Sharia over the whole of Pakistan and fight in Kashmir for oppressed Muslims.

Sources here indicate that the report is being shared with ‘friendly’ countries, including the United States. Government of India, they said, is convinced that the situation in Pakistan is out of control. The situation, said a source grimly, is ‘almost’ a ‘code red’, a term used to describe a state of nuclear alert.

[The Tribune, India]

Terrorism in Lahore: Focus on Indian Involvement-X

Kashmir Watch, March 29

By Dr. Abdul Ruff Colachal 

The Lahore carnage- Why India did that? 

I

Indian agents are spread around the world in various disguises and are engaged not only in anti-Kashmir, anti-Pakistan and anti-Islamic but also in subversive and sabotage activities. Lahore Mar03 reveals the possibility of a strong Indian contingent in Pakistan as well. Besides, India has terror camps, both official and private and Hindutva ones, to train Hindu terrorists for "actions" in India, Jammu Kashmir and other neighborhoods. Indian subversive terror activities are in full swing in Afghanistan. India claims US partnership on this basis as well.  

Indian ambitions for military supremacy in Asia and hatred for Islam and Muslims cannot be explained in a simple way. One cannot expect India, which keeps killing innocent Kashmiris in their own nation, to reveal the whole truth about its hidden agendas and secret terror activities to threaten the South Asia region. The readers should now be aware of possible causes for the Lahore mayhem - from defaming of Islam and undo Swat program to military superiority, punish a “small” Sri Lanka to sport hegemony of India - there could be a whole lot of reasons and only India can tell frankly, if chooses to do, about its main intention in the terror machinations in Pakistan immediately after its Mumbai blasts a couple of months ago.

And with terrorism in Lahore killing some Muslims and terrorizing others along with Lankan cricketers has not come to an end. Those who read or watch Indian media and check the online portals (perhaps, India comes only after the Israel, USA in online portals some of them, like Yahoo, Hotmail, rediff, Google, etc have also been bought under Indian control) being sprouted by Indian fanatics with state support to defame Islam and work against Muslims, (and not just to propagate Hinduism or India) will comprehend Indian hidden agenda for its neighbors.  It is not just Hindu state that is being built now in India with the ghastly destruction of Grand Babri Mosque, the killing of Muslims in India and Kashmir, but its ultimate aim is to silence the world around with its military power, manipulative capacity and deceptive maneuverings. In spite of global criticism, India has snot decided to rebuild the Babri Mosque but is busy hold polls, ha snot decided to free Kashmir, but has conducted military aided polls there.

II

A country that seeks end of its neighbors cannot but be terror minded. Pakistan cricket captain was supposed to play that morning when the ghastly terrorism devastated Lahore. Had Younis Khan batted on that fateful day as scheduled, he probably would have made another 300 plus to put his team back on the rails as did in the previous innings, he would have overtaken the “record” set by an Indian cricketer Shewag form Delhi whom some Delhi mafia is trying to make the captain. So, by stopping Younis Khan from entering the playground by terrorism action, India has indeed saved the prestige of Hindus, because they cannot tolerate or digest a situation where Pakistan, accordingly to Indian fanatics, outsmarts “great” India; nor can New Delhi take kindly any news about Muslims getting some glory despite the anti-Islamic media rhetoric and fanatic activities. That is India.

But, is "cricket shine" the only reason for terrorism in Lahore? Obviously, it has got more than just cricket cause. As a result, something terrible has happened in Pakistan with USA in control of Muslim lives and human face, pride. A US strategic partner, cold-blooded India has also used the available tensed political opportunity in Lahore, when an elected government was removed in Punjab on suggestion from the occupying US forces, so that attention would be focused on Federal government. Global media did not fail to mention that  the anti-Zardari gangs in Lahore has done the terrorism act to discredit Zardari and India media even projected news about Zardari being removed by military. Ouster of Zardari and military takeover and end of “democracy” was forecast in Indo-Global media. In fact there has been a lot of funfair around the world.

II

India is too upset about US-Pakistan relations even after the recent nuclear move India made to come closer to USA as a “strategic partner” to essentially corner Pakistan and China, but failed. However, Indo-US mafia and media conveniently place their state terrorist damages on the “terrorists” from Islam. When ten gunmen killed 179 people in Mumbai between Nov26-28 last year, India immediately blamed Pakistan and the “terrorists” who  “hiding” in Pakistan and skillfully maintained it had no role in it and the plot was hatched in Pakistan plus Europe and backed by people with links to Pakistani intelligence agencies. New Delhi has pressed for forceful action by Pakistani authorities against Muslims belonging to Lashkar-e-Taiba; a jihadi group it still says was responsible. The group comes from Pakistan’s Punjab province, whose capital is Lahore, with which BJP leader LK Advani is connected by relations. The choice of Lahore for making Pakistan a “failed and risky” state, therefore, was the Indian brain child, but India, as a fundamental principle, hesitates to claim responsibility for terrorisms. India would claim to be state terrorist, only if USA also does the same.

A key Indian policy for Pakistan has been to destabilize that nation, make it a failed state and force world bodies and USA to “recognize” Pakistan as terrorist state. India always used its agents in the region to create devastating turmoil in Pakistan. After Mumbai Nov26 terrorist attacks, official and unofficial India had unleashed propaganda against Pakistan’s ISI and tried to prove that Pakistan as a state was behind the carnage and Indian which is already terrorizing Kashmiris, began using threatening language and wanted to invade Pakistan on terror pretext and asked USA to interfere  to diffuse the “crisis”. Indian almost asked Pakistan to kill some Muslims as “revenge”. Both Premier Manmohan Singh and his foreign Minister Pranab Mukherjee had vowed to avenge at an appropriate time. Already India claims it has outsmarted Islamabad by “clinging” nuclearism with USA.

When Indian premier and others warned Pakistan of action at the “appropriate time”, India indeed was not joking. The presence of Srilankan cricketers in Lahore on March 03 was found to be the right time to act and Indian well-trained terrorists acted: 12 gunmen attacked the convoy near Lahore’s Gaddafi stadium with rockets, hand grenades and automatic weapons and were involved in a shoot-out with the escort personnel of the team. Two civilians and six police officers who were guarding the players were killed in the attack which happened as the team was heading for the third day’s play in the second Test against Pakistan. World knows, India had also dissuaded other countries including Sri Lanka not to send cricket team to Pakistan because of Mumbai carnage. Sri Lankan team had displayed courage and demonstrated solidarity with Pakistan when other teams had refused to come to Pakistan and sent their team to Pakistan annoying Indian bosses. Now the Indian Internal minister said Pakistan is on the way to becoming a failed state and that could mean India is still working on its hidden agenda  

III

Indian devastating super-complex, when ignored by its neighbors, takes the form of terrorism. On arms deals, India has problems with Sri Lanka. India wants to decide every thing for its neighbors. India had rebuked Sri Lanka for expressing a desire to procure radars and other smaller equipment from Pakistan and China, as Indian-origin radars in service with Sri Lanka proved ineffective, and failed to detect air attacks of Tamil Tigers. In 2007 India’s National Security Advisor Narayanan had claimed to be the big power in this region. “Let us make it very clear. We strongly believe that whatever requirements the Sri Lankan government has, it should come to us. And we will give what we think is necessary”.  India ignores the fact that Sri Lanka is an independent and sovereign country and has the right to pursue its policies; we do not favour their going to China or Pakistan or any other country”.

Indian arrogance needs to be understood in the background of Indo-US nuclearism now. There is turmoil in many parts of the world but South Asia is the real flashpoint where two nuclear states have unresolved dispute over Kashmir for six decades and India has shown utter disregard to the UNSC resolutions giving the Kashmiris the right to self-determination. Indian leadership already considers India as the world power and wishes that those countries should formulate their internal, external and defence policies according to its will. India arrogates to herself the role of determining the extent of independence and sovereignty its neighbors will enjoy.  India’s attitude towards its neighboring countries is also not in keeping with the norms of peaceful co-existence. Instead of recognizing their equal status and sovereignty, India wishes submissive behavior on the part of its neighbors, demanding of the countries of the region to act according to its whim and fancy.

Indian leaders, military tops and media personnel have made Indians and global people believe that Mumbai Nov26 was done by Pakistan without any cause and routine matter, while very ably hiding the fact Lahore terror was in fact an Indian showcase against Islam, Muslims, Kashmir and Pakistan. USA cannot be fooled by Indian leaders and media. Now by enacting similar terror in Lahore India wants to reassure Hindus that they have taken revenge on Pakistan (“Pakis”, as Indian media brand Pakistan) for Mumbai tragedy. That is India engineered a quick terrorism in Pakistan to disprove that Mumbai was not done by it. But whom does India want to deceive?

Like USA and Israel, India refuses to accept normal foreign policy goals of regional powers and does not realize that Pakistan, Bangladesh and Nepal or Sri Lanka is a sovereign country and has the right to pursue independent policies. Sri Lanka has every right to acquire necessary and suitable equipment from whatever source it wants, particularly in view of the fact that India has been unable to meet Sri Lanka’s defense needs. The fact of the matter was that India was a major arms supplier to the LTTE, which had long been procuring arms and ammunition with the help of smugglers by sea from Tamil Nadu. India does not believe in any ethics or norms. It used to supply arms to Sri Lankan Security Forces to be used against LTTE, and India was reported to have supplied more sophisticated weapons to LTTE than to Sri Lankan government. The radars supplied by India to the Sri Lankan Air Force failed to detect Tamil Tigers micro-light aircraft, which was developed by the Indian agent of Tamil Nadu origin. Tamil LTTE is so weak now that it would have done the terror in Lahore, but India might have done it on its behalf.

Apart form nuclearism, export of terrorism plays important role in bringing India closer to USA and Israel. As part of fulfilling the eligibility criterion for strategic partnership with both USA and Israel, the Hindu India exports terrorism to its neighborhood causing severe and  grave(yard) concern for the region and world. India has used it newly acquired US connections to enter Pakistan freely and do the terrorism business.  Even immediately after the Mumbai Nov26, there were terror attacks in Pakistan and Indian Hindus were arrested in that connection. But exploding Lahore, India has allayed all doubts in the American mind about its natural terror instincts. USA, UK, India and other proven “democracies” that kill Muslims in Islamic world, quickly named Pakistan a “failed state, because they could not prevent terrorism in Lahore. Conversely, the USA, UK and India are “passed” states. US-led terror forces have also “passed” in killing Muslims, while secular India does it in Kashmir. Curiously, above that, Indian claim for a “pass” merits attention.  But, then, how?

(To continue…>)

The author is Delhi based Research Scholar in International Studies and can be reached atabdulruff_jnu@yahoo.com 

Related Links

 

*A Free Kashmir: Random Thoughts
  Part 1-71 [Mar 2008 to Mar 2009]

 

*Interview: "I Defend Muslims" Dr. Abdul Ruff Colachal , 27 Dec 2008 3