Posts Tagged ‘Taliban’

Related Articles: LeJ’s Malik received monthly stipend from Punjab govt Jab Pakistan per firqawariyat ka saaya tha -by Ali Suleman Malik Ishaq, the chief of the banned Lashkar-e-Jhangvi (LeJ), who has been set free on bail after 14 years in prison, wielded clout even in jail and was specially flown to Rawalpindi by army in October [...]

Related Articles: Malik Ishaq wielded clout in jail; helped Pak army Thank you, ISI-backed Supreme Court, for releasing Malik Ishaq By Asad Kharal Malik Ishaq enjoyed Punjab government’s financial assistance ever since the Sharif’s came to power in 2008, officials on condition of anonymity told The Express Tribune. The [...]

The Mumbai attacks will be linked to Islamabad regardless of who perpetrated them. By Con Coughlin A fresh wave of terrorist attacks are launched at the heart of the Indian city of Mumbai, and immediately the finger of suspicion points towards Pakistan. And this is before Indian counter-terrorism officials have even had a chance to [...]

Toronto, July 10, 2011 Baloch Human Rights Council (Canada) and the International Voice for Baloch Missing Persons (IVBMP) held a joint memorial reference event for Prof. Saba Dashtyari who was murdered in cold blood on June 1, 2011 by the Pakistani military death squad in Quetta, Balochistan. A diverse group of people attended the event at the [...]

Last Saturday, the Pakistan Army formally launched a full-fledged operation in central Kurram Agency, two weeks after the government had notified 80 square kilometres of the area there as a conflict zone. This Friday alone, security forces backed by gunship helicopters and artillery guns killed 11 militants, taking the enemy fighters’ death [...]

when Pakistan cries ‘foul,’ everybody just kind of laughs at it and shrugs it off and says, ‘Good job, America.’ ” (Associated Press)"] By Rowan Scarborough The U.S. has compiled a wide body of intelligence on the locations of militant training camps in Pakistan, but has been unable to persuade Islamabad to shut them down, current [...]

By ERIC SCHMITT and JANE PERLEZ WASHINGTON — The Obama administration is suspending and, in some cases, canceling hundreds of millions of dollars of aid to the Pakistani military, in a move to chasten Pakistan for expelling American military trainers and to press its army to fight militants more effectively. Coupled with a statement from [...]

Today, most leaders say they would have stood up defiantly (dutt jata) in the face of the American request to join its war on terror. Former president Pervez Musharraf is being abominated for kowtowing to the Americans; and General Parvez Kayani is trying to make amends by going dutt and teaching the Americans a lesson 10 years later. The truth [...]

Editor's note:  The following article that was originally posted in yesterday's Daily Times is the typically bold and lucid piece written by Dr. Taqi.  Along with Farhat Taj, Dr. Taqi has been the leading light in debunking the racist anti-Pushtun narrative that is hocked by the security establishment and its urban chatterers. Read and [...]

As US prepares troop withdrawal, Taliban's strong hold on border regions reveals Pakistan's vulnerability. "] By Mujib Mashal Parachinar, in Pakistan's tribal north west, remains under siege. The only road connecting this district bordering Afghanistan to the rest of Pakistan has been blocked by Taliban fighters since 2007. The blockade [...]

President Zardari called Nawaz maulana, with multiple innuendos: that he was the illicit political offspring of General Zia, that he was a covert abettor of jihadi elements in Punjab, and that he was aligning with Jamaat Islami in the AJK polls The Pakistan Muslim League-Nawaz (PML-N) has finally decided that familiar is safe and to hell with [...]

The US considers Pakistan based terrorist outfit Lashkar-e-Taiba (LeT), held responsible for 2008 Mumbai terror attacks, as a formidable terrorist threat to Indian, US and other Western interests in South Asia and potentially elsewhere. In Afghanistan, the US military and Nato are committed to preventing Al-Qaeda's return and disrupting any [...]

Initially, I was amazed at the media attention Syed Ibrar Hussain’s recent assassination in Quetta received, but I could rationalize it quickly – it wasn’t Syed Ibrar Hussain (or Ibrar Agha as he was known) who was being eulogized and mourned. Syed Ibrar Hussain’s murder was mentioned in the media – unlike hundreds of other innocent [...]

The book is a news reporter’s entry into the world of analyzing current affairs and to an extent geopolitical forecasting. Off the bat, the author rejects the prevailing western understanding of al-Qaeda being on the ropes Book review: Inside Al-Qaeda and the Taliban: Beyond Bin Laden and 9/11 – by Syed Saleem Shahzad Paperback: 272 [...]

President Obama’s Afghan withdrawal plans include working with Pakistan to “root out the cancer of violent extremism.” Bruce Riedel’s three key steps to do it right. By Bruce Riedel On Wednesday evening, President Obama rightly said we “need to work with the Pakistani government to root out the cancer of violent extremism, and we [...]

The Pakistan army has extended an investigation into officers with links to the Hizb-ul-Tahrir, a spokesman said on Wednesday, in what analysts said was a long overdue move to root out sympathizers of the banned Islamist group. The military, which said on Tuesday it had detained a brigadier -- the highest-ranking serving officer arrested in a [...]

By NICK SCHIFRIN A 17-year-old died this week in Afghanistan, hanging from the end of a rope. A prison official fastened it around the boy's neck in Kabul's largest jail, tightened the knot, and then, in front of a crowd, removed the platform that held up the boy's feet. He was hanged by the Afghan government because he was a killer. In [...]

The piece examines the TTP's media productions and the movement's shift toward having its media distributed to jihadi-takfiri Internet forums via the Global Islamic Media Front (GIMF), a long-established jihadi-takfiri media and translation network. The writer argues that this shift toward GIMF distribution is further evidence of the TTP's [...]

Amn Tehrik (Peace Movement) is an emerging and dynamic movement of concerned individuals and organizations from the province of Khyber Pakhtunkhwa for the promotion of peace in the troubled regions of the province. Amn Tehrik has been regularly organising seminars, conferences and demonstrations to influence policymaking with reference to the [...]

Murdered journalist's findings show Al Qaeda is winning in nuclear Pakistan more effectively than in Somalia and Yemen By Khaled Ahmed Anyone who has read Inside Al Qaeda and the Taliban: Beyond Bin Laden and 9/11 by Saleem Shahzad (Pluto Press 2011) will come to the following conclusions: 1) It is Al Qaeda rather than the Taliban who [...]

One thing is certain about Pakistan these days: If you are following all the news coming from Pakistan, you're not going to have a dull moment in your life. Either they will make you cry by shooting innocent people down, and then letting them bleed to death on the road, or they will have hilarious episodes of different politicians' melt [...]

Editor's Note: We highly recommend this superb and comprehensive article by award-winning author, Mohammed Hanif.  In this in-depth article, Hanif has traced the roots of religious extremism and underlined the institutional support for this tragic phenomena. How Pakistan’s Generals turned the country into an international jihadi tourist [...]

By Abdus-Sattar Ghazali Disappearance of innocent citizens, extra-judicial and target killings are not uncommon in Pakistan but last Wednesday's brutal killing of young Sarfraz Shah by para-military Rangers in Karachi has shocked the nation. The trigger-happy Rangers mercilessly sprayed the unarmed young man with bullets point blank as a [...]

صحافتی منظر پر جن لوگوں نے بہت تیزی سے ترقّی کی منزلیں طے کیں اور معتبرصحافی کے طور پر سامنے آئے ہیں، ان میں ایک نام سلیم صافی صاحب کا ہے، جوترقّی کرتے اور بہ یک وقت دو، تین اور چار سیڑھیاں [...]

She was beautiful, she was eloquent, she was vivid, she was witty - while orating at the occasion of Sydney Writers’ Festival – In the same breath she was naïve, she was hollow, she was flimsy, she was juvenile. Seemingly, she is not yet out of trauma of her beloved father’s death and this, unfortunately, has become undistinguishable [...]

مملکت خداداد پاکستان ہمیشہ کی طرح ان گنت خطرات میں گھرا ہوا ہے اور اگر پاکستان کے سیاسی اداکاروں کی اصطلاح میں بات کی جائے تو ملک اس وقت تاریخ کے نازک دور سے گزر رہا ہے اب تو پے درپے واقعات [...]

Originally published in the 'Daily AajKal'.

Reporters often put themselves in harm's way as they try to dig up the truth about Islamic militant groups, shadowy intelligence agencies and the possible links between the two. One reporter recently ended up dead; another has a harrowing tale. By Alex Rodriguez, Los Angeles Times June 6, 2011 Reporting from Islamabad, Pakistan— The [...]

The killing of Syed Saleem Shahzad is brutal confirmation that Pakistan is the world's most hazardous place for journalists, whistle blowers and Independent thinkers. Saleem Shahzad's kidnapping a week ago and his later brutal murder sparked off speculation that he was killed by the ISI, which was apparently unhappy with some of his writings [...]

Originally published in the 'Daily AajKal'.

Mansoor Ijaz says the real danger inside Pakistan is its powerful spy organization, Inter-Services Intelligence—and that an even more notorious outfit is an ISI-affiliate called S-Wing. The murder of a prominent Pakistani journalist, Syed Saleem Shahzad, who was kidnapped last Sunday in Islamabad after repeated threats by Inter-Services [...]

Inter Services Intelligence suspected of involvement has long been above the law. All aspects of this crime, including the possibility of links to the ISI, need to be independently investigated and prosecuted. The ISI and other military and intelligence-related agencies have long been beyond the reach of the regular criminal justice system. To [...]

Originally published in 'Daily Aajkal'.

Source: Jang

Takes a look at incidents of support for terrorists from within the armed forces and police Despite Gen Zia’s Islamisation, the promotion of piety in the barracks, and the support for puritanical movements that were allowed to organise sermons, the armed forces have still essentially retained a secular outlook. Institutionally, religion might [...]

The Pakistani journalist Syed Saleem Shahzad knew he was a marked man. Mr. Shahzad, who covered national security and terrorism, had received repeated threats from Pakistan’s powerful spy agency. Yet he courageously kept doing his job — until somebody silenced him. His body, his face horribly beaten, was buried on Wednesday. Suspicion [...]

Saleem Shahzad had warned that the authorities might act against him and revealed a previous threat. by Andrew Buncombe A surge of outrage and grief jolted Pakistan last night after the discovery of the body of a journalist who had highlighted alleged links between al-Qa’ida and the country’s military, two days after he went missing in [...]

US Secretary of State, Hillary Clinton,condemned the kidnapping and killing of Pakistani journalist. Syed Saleem Shahzad, who worked for Adn Kronos International and La Stampa writing articles and books on the collusion between al Qaeda and Pakistani security and intelligence establishment. "His enquiries on terrorism and intelligence had surfaced [...]

“We don’t know if the ISI killed him,” Dayan says, “but the manner of his killing is consistent with the other murders where there has been credible evidence of ISI involvement.” by Ron Moreau Courageous Pakistani journalist Syed Saleem Shahzad, who had scored major scoops on al Qaeda and the Taliban, was abducted and brutally [...]

Saleem Shahzad has been killed brutally. His tortured dead body has been recovered today. Media and individuals at social networks have started speculating about the possible assassins. Most of the people are pointing fingers at the notorious intelligence agency, ISI. But unsurprisingly our electronic media with its political actors in various [...]