Pakistan Security Brief
TTP leader Mullah Fazlullah arrives in North Waziristan agency; Unidentified gunmen target and kill senior Shia leader in Karachi, prompting unrest in Shia-dominated neighborhoods ; Gunmen fire on headquarters of Express Media Group in Karachi; Gunmen kill six people in targeted killings throughout Karachi; Gunmen kill four in Khuzdar, Balochistan; Prime Minister and new army chief meet for first time; PTI protests fade on tenth day of sit-ins in Peshawar; Pakistan seeks guarantee from Tehran regarding Iran-Pakistan gas pipeline; Supreme Court orders government to produce 33 missing persons; Indian army battles militants in Kashmir.
Tehrik-e-Taliban Pakistan
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On Tuesday, Tehrik-e-Taliban Pakistan (TTP) spokesman Shahidullah Shahid announced that TTP chief Mullah Fazlullah has arrived in the Federally Administered Tribal Areas to direct the group in person, and his specific location is currently undisclosed. According to a News report, Fazlullah is in North Waziristan agency. He was previously reported to be located in Kunar province in Afghanistan.[1]
Militancy
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On Tuesday, unidentified armed men killed a leader of the Shia group Majlis-e-Wahdat-e-Muslimeen (MWM), along with his security guard, in what appears to have been a targeted killing in Gulshan-e-Iqbal, Karachi. Armed motorcyclists fired on the MWM’s deputy secretary general, Maulana Dedar Ali Jalbani’s car. Following the incident, Shia-dominated neighborhoods, including Ancholi Society, Rizvia Society, Ayub Goth, Gulistan-e-Jauhar, Gulshan-e-Iqbal, Jaffer Tayer Society in Malir, M.A. Jinnah Road and Abbas Town, experienced indiscriminate firing by unidentified armed men in reaction to the killings.[2]
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Three people were injured on Monday when unidentified gunmen open fire on the Karachi headquarters of the Express media group, which publishes The Express Tribune. Blasts were also heard during the attack. No group has claimed credit for the attack, but The New York Times reports that Pakistani officials have speculated that the TTP is behind the attack.[3]
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On Tuesday, unidentified gunmen killed at least six people in different areas of Karachi in what appear to have been targeted killings. The deceased include a worker of a political party killed in Khuramabad area of Landhi; two doctors at a clinic in Federal B Area; an Ahl-e-Sunnat Wal Jamaat (ASWJ) activist; and a worker of the Awami National Party (ANP) near the Super Highway. Firing incidents also took place in Janjal Goth, in which three persons were injured. A man and women were also killed near Al Asif Square.[4]
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On Monday, authorities arrested Abbas Afridi, who is described as a wanted terrorist operating in Katti Pahari, Karachi, at Jinnah International Airport[5].
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On Tuesday, unknown gunmen killed four people, including a school teacher in Zehri sub-district and a Levies policeman on Khandar Road in Khuzdar district, Balochistan.[6]
Army Appointments
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On Tuesday, Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif and the new Chief of Army Staff (COAS) General Raheel Sharif met to discuss matters relating to national security. Earlier on Tuesday, Prime Minister Sharif also met with the Defense Minister, Khawaja Asif, regarding ongoing investigations by the Supreme Court into the case of several missing persons. Asif was given the position within the defense ministry after Chief Justice Iftikhar Muhammad Chaudhry summoned the defense minister, a position held at the time by Prime Minister Sharif, during the Supreme Court’s hearing of the missing persons case. Pakistan’s Chief Justice Iftikhar Muhammed Chaudhry has given the government until December 5 to present the remaining 33 missing persons.[7]
PTI Protests
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On Tuesday, the sit-in of Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) and its allied parties to block NATO supplies in protest against U.S. drone strikes continue for the tenth consecutive day. In Peshawar, PTI and Jamaat-e-Islami workers have set up protest camps at Ring Road near Hayatabad Toll Plaza and the Peshawar-Islamabad Motorway Toll Plaza. PTI activists are also protesting in Nowshera district and blocking NATO containers from entering into Khyber-Pakhtunkhwa.[8]
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According to Tuesday article in The News, the protests are fading out. No central leader of the PTI, including Chairman Imran Khan, plans to attend the sit-ins with the protesters. The PTI plans to hold a protest in front of the parliament building on December 5, which would be led by Khyber-Pakhtunkhwa Chief Minister Pervez Khattack. The PTI hope to convince the government to respond to their grievances regarding the use of drones in a meaningful manner. The tenth day of protests has been marked by the absence of party workers.[9]
Iran-Pakistan Relations
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According to a Tuesday article in the Express Tribune, authorities in Pakistan are considering seeking a guarantee from Tehran that Iran would not use the proceeds from the Iran-Pakistan (IP) gas pipeline project for nuclear proliferation. Pakistan had hoped that Iran’s nuclear deal with global powers would allow Iran and Pakistan to move forward on the IP gas pipeline. Despite this progress, President Obama reaffirmed that the sanctions against Iranian energy exports would remain in place.[10]
Domestic
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On Tuesday, a panel of the Supreme Court ordered the government to produce 33 people who have allegedly been secretly detained by security forces. The Supreme Court also ordered the Inspector General of the Frontier Corps to appear in court on Tuesday or face contempt of court charges. Acting Defense Secretary Raja Arif Nazir admitted during the hearing on Tuesday that two of the detainees have died in government custody, the first time the government has acknowledged this.[11]
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On Monday, a militant in the custody of security forces died of cardiac arrest in Mingora, Swat district, KP. The militant, Haider Ali, had been in the custody of security forces for some time.[12]
Kashmir Unrest
