Pakistan Security Brief
Large explosion kills four people in Peshawar; Tehrik-e-Taliban Pakistan (TTP) militants attack army checkpoint near Afghan border; Security forces kill five TTP commanders; U.S. State Department issues travel warning for Pakistan; Police arrest three alleged Sipah-e-Sahaba Pakistan members suspected of sectarian killings; Pakistani and Afghan officials move forward with Turkmenistan-Afghanistan-Pakistan-India (TAPI) gas pipeline; Judicial commission investigating Mumbai attacks cancels trip to India; Bomb destroys girls’ primary school in Dera Ismail Khan district; Prime Minister Yousuf Raza Gilani plans to appear before Supreme Court on February 13.
Militancy
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A large explosion killed at least four people in the Ring Road area of Peshawar on Friday. Police in Peshawar have been on high alert since Thursday after receiving reports that Tehrik-e-Taliban Pakistan (TTP) and other terrorist organizations in the area were planning suicide attacks. The tip-off regarding the potential bomb threat came two days after police officers found and defused explosives attached to a motorcycle near the Khyber agency border.[1]
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On Friday, TTP militants killed seven paramilitary soldiers, abducted four others, and wounded three in an attack on a Pakistani army checkpoint near the Afghan border. Roughly 40 militants attacked the checkpoint in Kurram agency with rockets, grenades, and automatic weapons. At least eighteen of the militants were killed by return fire in the attack.[2]
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In an ongoing military operation in Frontier Region (FR) Jawakai and Darra Adam Khel near FR Kohat, security forces said they have killed five TTP commanders and taken control of several areas including a militant stronghold in the Tor Chappar area in Darra Adam Khel. Security forces also recovered a large quantity of weapons including suicide jackets, land mines and explosives from the militant hideouts they raided.[3]
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On Thursday, police officials announced that they have arrested three alleged members of Sipah-e-Sahaba Pakistan who were involved in several sectarian killings, including the murder of three lawyers in late January. Muhammad Taufeeq Ansari, Salahuddin (a.k.a. Israel) and Maulana Muhammad Danish were arrested near the Mauripur truck stand in Karachi and during interrogation, they confessed to killing over a dozen people, including the three lawyers.[4]
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Militants attacked a check post in Daulat Khel, Khyber agency, killing one soldier and injuring four others.[5]
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On Friday, one man was killed and two others injured in an explosion that occurred in Tirah Valley, Khyber agency.[6]
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Security forces launched an attack on several militants’ hideouts in Orakzai agency, destroying two compounds and killing six militants.[7]
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A bomb destroyed a girls’ primary school in Dera Ismail Khan district early Friday morning. The bomb, containing 8-10 kilograms of explosives, “seemed to be manufactured locally,” according to a police official.[8]
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An explosion occurred on Friday outside a Federal Investigation Agency officer’s house in Quetta, Balochistan. No one was injured in the blast.[9]
U.S.-Pakistan Relations
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The U.S. State Department “issued a new travel warning for Pakistan” on Thursday, notifying American citizens that new threats have emerged in the country due to the Pakistani reaction to the November 26 NATO airstrike. The travel warning discusses the development of “widespread demonstrations and political rallies” in response to the NATO airstrike, U.S. drone strikes, and current energy crisis in Pakistan. The warning urges U.S. citizens in Pakistan “to avoid protests and large gatherings.”[10]
International Relations
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On Thursday, Pakistani and Afghan officials met to move plans forward for the Turkmenistan-Afghanistan-Pakistan-India (TAPI) gas pipeline project. At the meeting, Pakistani officials asked Afghan officials to work with India to determine a “uniform transit fee” for importing gas under the TAPI project, which is expected to become finalized in the “near future.” This fee will be paid by India to Pakistan, and by Pakistan to Afghanistan. Pakistani officials also requested that Afghan officials finalize the Gas Sales Purchase Agreement with Turkmenistan, the provider of the gas for the pipeline. Afghan officials addressed security concerns around the project and assured Pakistani officials that security forces will be deployed along the pipeline’s route.[11]
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Pakistan’s judicial commission responsible for investigating the November 26, 2008 Mumbai attacks cancelled its trip to India on Thursday. The commission originally planned to meet with Indian officials involved in the investigation of the attacks which claimed the lives of 165 people. Pakistani officials did not give a reason for the cancellation of the trip.[12]
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During a television interview on Thursday, Osama bin Laden’s brother-in-law, Zikrian Assada, appealed to Pakistan’s government to allow his sister, who was married to bin Laden, to return home to Yemen. Assada said that his sister and her five children were at the Abbottabad compound during the raid, and his sister was left unconscious and confused about what happened after being shot in the leg. The Pakistani commission investigating the U.S. operation is waiting for statements from the interior minister and the chief of air staff, and it is expected to complete its report this month.[13]
Domestic Politics
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On Thursday, Prime Minister Yousuf Raza Gilani told the National Assembly that he plans to appear before the Supreme Court again on February 13 as requested. The court summoned Gilani to appear for a second time in order to face charges of contempt of court.[14]
