Pakistan Security Brief

Pakistan on red alert after al Qaeda, TTP communications intercepted on Saturday; DI Khan jailbreak reportedly masterminded by Adnan Rasheed, with al Qaeda influence; Interpol requests aid in tracking down escaped DI Khan prisoners; U.S. drone strikes kill at least 23 in month of July, report claims; Taliban peace talks may move from Doha to new location; U.S. threatens sanctions if Iran-Pakistan pipeline proceeds, says Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif; President Asif Ali Zardari attends the swearing-in of President Hassan Rouhani; Indian drone violates Pakistani airspace; Alleged Pakistani militants attack Indian consulate in Jalalabad; TTP commander provides DI Khan jailbreak details; Police find explosive laden rickshaw in Quetta; TTP commander arrested in Nowshera, Khyber-Pakhtunkhwa; IED on train kills 3, wounds 20 in Toba Tek Singh, Punjab; APML leader believes former President Pervez Musharraf to be released soon; Security increase in Haripur, Peshawar jails; JUI-F chief calls PTI chief Imran Khan a “jewish agent”

Al Qaeda Threats

• In the wake of last week’s Dera Ismail Khan jailbreak and U.S. embassy closures throughout the Middle East due to increased “traffic” in al Qaeda communications, security forces throughout Islamabad were placed on high alert on Sunday, according to CNN. Navy, Air Force, and police commandos have conducted searches throughout the Margalla Hills area in Islamabad, and officials across the capital have been instructed to maintain vigilance in their respective sub-areas. According to The News, intelligence officials have also intercepted communications regarding a possible threat to Pakistan Air Force headquarters, as well as possible Tehrik-e-Taliban Pakistan (TTP) attacks on Islamabad airport. Security has also increased in Lahore, as Pakistan Army personnel were deployed to Allama Iqbal International Airport.[1]

• According to The News’ analyst Najam Sethi, the Dera Ismail Khan jailbreak on July 29, as well as last year’s April 15 Bannu jailbreak which freed almost 400 prisoners, were both masterminded by senior Taliban commander Adnan Rasheed. Interpol has also indicated that al Qaeda may have had direct influence on the Dera Ismail Khan jailbreak as well as the Abu Ghraib jailbreak in Iraq. Furthermore, according to a Saturday New York Times article, Interpol has issued a global alert requesting assistance in tracking down escaped prisoners , and in determining the links between two prison breaks.[2]  

U.S. Drone Strikes

• According to a Bureau of Investigative Journalism report, the month of July recorded the most deaths from drone strikes in Pakistan in the past 12 months. At least 23 people were killed, the highest casualty count since July 2012 when 38 people were killed. According to a Friday New York Times report, despite Secretary of State John Kerry’s statement that the drone program in Pakistan is coming to a close and President Obama’s May 23 speech on changes to the program, little has changed on the  ground; the Central Intelligence Agency still runs drone operations, and the central drone base in Saudi Arabia is still in operation.[3]

Afghan Peace Talks

• According to a Sunday Express Tribune report, Pakistani officials say that the U.S. and Pakistan have proposed moving the Taliban office in Doha to a different country, in order to revive the stalled talks. The measures were reportedly discussed during Secretary of State John Kerry’s July 31 visit to Pakistan, and proposals for the movement have been made in secret to Afghan President Hamid Karzai.[4]

Iran-Pakistan Relations  

• According to Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif in a statement on Sunday, the United States  may impose sanctions on Pakistan, if it continues with a planned gas pipeline with Iran. On Friday, a Foreign Office spokesman reportedly submitted a “non-paper” to Secretary of State John Kerry, explaining Pakistan’s energy needs and the importance of the pipeline in ending Pakistan’s ongoing energy crisis. Due to the possibility of the sanctions, Pakistan Petroleum Minister Shahid Khaqan Abbasi on Friday noted that Pakistan will continue plans for the pipeline, but will request that Iran pay for the entire $1 billion project. [5]

•  President Asif Ali Zardari met with Iranian President Hassan Rouhani on Sunday in Tehran, after the newly-elected Rouhani was sworn in. The two discussed bilateral relations and expressed hope for continued economic cooperation, as well as improving the overall stability of the region.[6]

India-Pakistan Relations

• According to a Reuters report released on Saturday, the August 3 militant attack on the Indian consulate in Jalalabad, Afghanistan which killed nine people could foreshadow a regional proxy war between Pakistan and India, played out in Afghanistan. The Indian Ministry of Foreign Affairs claimed the attack came from “beyond its [Afghanistan’s] borders.” With the drawdown of NATO forces in 2014, a void will form which could lead to Indian and Pakistani attempts stake positions in Afghanistan.[7]  

• In an interview with members of the Pakistan Journalists Forum (PJF) on Saturday, Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif indicated that he hopes to enact defense budget cuts in concert with India, noting that, “we should focus on investing on social infrastructure for the benefit of our people.” In particular, Sharif expressed his hope for the success of the planned Gwadar economic corridor, which he noted would help all of Pakistan’s regional neighbors, as well as its own economic wellbeing.[8] 

• An Indian drone entered Pakistani airspace for two minutes on Saturday near Chaprar, Kashmir, before crossing back into Indian airspace. Pakistan has recorded a complaint with Indian officials, according to Dawn.[9]

 Presidential Elections

• In the aftermath of the resignation of Chief Election Commissioner (CEC) Justice Fakhruddin G. Ibrahim, opposition leader in the National Assembly Syed Khurshid Ahmed Shah has called for the resignation of the rest of the Election Commission in light of the altered date for the July 30 elections.[10] 

Dera Ismail Khan Prison Break

• On Saturday in an interview with the Express Tribune, an anonymous Tehrik-e-Taliban Pakistan (TTP) commander provided details of the July 29 Dera Ismail Khan prison break. According to the commander, the Taliban freed 47 militants in the raid, using 125 fighters in the assaults. The fighters benefitted from having night vision goggles, as well as reserve forces ready to counter-attack.[11]

• In the aftermath of the July 29 Dera Ismail Khan prison break, security was increased at the Peshawar and Haripur prisons on Saturday, as Frontier Corps personnel have been deployed to Haripur Central Prison and other members of the police's Elite Force have been sent to Peshawar Central Prison.[12] 

• On Friday evening, police recovered the body of a suspected militant along with several rocket shells, hand grenades and assorted small arms in a van near Dera Ismail Khan. Police believe the militant’s body, along with the equipment, was left behind following the July 29 Dera Ismail Khan prison break.[13]  

• On Monday in Lahore, police officials carried out a search operation in the Koth Lakhpat jail. The search occurred as a result of reports that militants in the Dera Ismail Khan jail break had concealed cell phones, which aided them in their escape.[14]

Militancy

• In Nowshera, Khyber-Pakhtunkhwa on Saturday, security forces raided a safe house, capturing ten suspected militants, including TTP commander Mufti Rehmat. In separate raids based on leads from Rehmat, security officials also arrested 9 Afghan nationals in the immediate area.[15]

• An improvised explosive device detonated on a train in Toba Tek Singh, Punjab on Monday, killing three people and injuring another 20. The device was placed in a relatively empty section of the train, and police believe it was placed in the train for extortion purposes. The train was reportedly on its way to Karachi from Lahore.[16]

• Unknown gunmen shot and killed an off-duty policeman in Qasim Market, Rawalpindindi, Punjab on Saturday evening.[17] 

• According to a Saturday The News report, the general manager of a beverages industry in Rawalpindi has been victimized by alleged Taliban extortion attempts, as militants under the guise of the Taliban have demanded Rs 20 million ($200,000) from the industry, threatening to kidnap and kill his family if he does not comply.[18]

• On Saturday evening at Islamabad Airport, Airport Security Force (ASF) personnel arrested a “suspicious looking” person from Sargodha, Punjab.[19] 

• In Darra Adam Khel, Khyber-Pakhtunkhwa on Sunday, four militants from the TTP's Tariq Afridi group were injured after an improvised explosive device detonated in their hideout. The device was reportedly placed by a rival Omar Afridi group. [20]

• Unknown gunmen on motorcycles shot and killed a Frontier Corps (FC) official on Shagai Road in Peshawar on Saturday evening.[21] 

• On Friday in Landi Kotal, Khyber-Pakhtunkhwa, unknown perpetrators threw a hand grenade into the home of Awami National Party (ANP) Landi Kotal president Shah Hussain. No casualties were reported in the incident.[22]

• Unknown gunmen fired on people in a bus in Peshawar on Sunday, injuring two people before escaping on a motorbike.[23]

• In Nowshera, Khyber-Pakhtunkhwa on Saturday, unknown gunmen on motorcycles fired at a police car; Frontier Corps personnel returned fire. No casualties were reported in the incident.[24] 

• In Karachi on Sunday, police found a body bearing torture marks in Kalri, Lyari, along with another body in Machchar Colony.[25]  

• Six policemen were shot and killed in three separate incidents in Karachi on Friday evening. Four policemen were killed when they were ambushed by unknown militants on a bridge near Bagh-e-Korangi, while another policeman was shot and killed in Kharadar. The last was killed in Keamari late on Friday evening. The head constable in Peerabad was targeted and killed by unknown men on motorcycles in Awan Mollah as well. According to The News, several suspected militants from the Taliban and Lashkar-e-Jhangvi have been arrested in connection with the attacks.  [26]

•  An anti-Taliban militia burned down the homes of three suspected militants on Saturday in Salarzai, Bajaur Agency.[27]

• On Friday evening in Bajaur, unknown militants destroyed a girls school in Khar. Six people have been arrested in connection with the incident.[28]          

• On Monday, police in Quetta found a rickshaw loaded with 150 kg of explosives, and shifted the contents to a nearby police station before defusing the explosives. Reportedly, the explosives were to be used during Eid-ul-Fitr.[29]

• In Dasht, Mastung on Friday, militants fired upon and destroyed a container. No casualties were reported in the incident. In two blastsin Daman Kahol, Chaman town, a woman and children were killed; it is unclear what types of explosives caused the explosion.[30]

• On Monday in Sibbi and Machh, Balochistan unknown men destroyed several power transmission towers, reducing the supply to Balochistan by 100 MW.[31]

Domestic   

• According to All Pakistan Muslim League (APML) leader Zahid Sarfaraz, Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif and Secretary of State John Kerry discussed the release of Dr Shakil Afridi and former President Pervez Musharraf during Kerry’s visit to Pakistan last week. According to Sarfaraz, both men will eventually be released as “the US [has] never left its supporters in trouble.” Sarfaraz also claimed that Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif does not have the “courage” to convict Musharraf.[32]  

• After Jamiat Ulema-e-Islam-Fazl (JUI-F) chief Maulana Fazlur Rehman called Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) chief a “Jewish agent,” Khan announced in a press conference on Sunday that he plans to take Rehman to court over the allegations. Rehman claims that Khan maintains close ties with the “Israeli lobby.” Khyber-Pakhtunkhwa Chief Minister Pervez Khattak condemned Rehman’s allegations, stating that “Imran Khan is working hard to restore peace in the region and to end foreign influence.” [33]

• In a press conference on Monday, new Punjab Governor Chaudhry Muhammad Sarawar noted that his first priority in office will be to increase investment in the region, which has declined because of terrorism, and improve the education system of the province.[34] 

• Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif and Opposition Leader in the National Assembly Khursheed Shah will reportedly meet after Eid-ul-Fitr to discuss changes in the Election Commission of Pakistan, whose Chief Election Commissioner Fakhruddin G. Ibrahim resigned last week.[35]  

Saudi-Pakistan Relations

• On Saturday, Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif met with Saudi Crown Prince Salman bin Abdul Aziz in Mecca. The two reportedly discussed bilateral ties.[36]