Pakistan Security Brief

IS delegation visited Balochistan, claims Jundullah spokesman; TTP Jamatul Ahrar threatens retribution if former spokesman is executed; Turkistan Islamic Party fighters photographed in northern Syria; Five militants killed, seven TI members injured in Tirah Valley, Khyber; Gunmen fire at shops, five killed in Quetta; Successful launch of ballistic missile, Shaheen II; Arrest warrants for PTI, PAT leadership; Prime Minister Sharif’s daughter resigns from government post; Chinese investment a milestone in bilateral relations, says Prime Minister Sharif; Raphel’s inquiry an internal matter, says Foreign Office;  U.S. donates special equipment to Pakistan; Afghan President to visit Islamabad on November 14; Russia to supply MI-35 helicopters to Pakistan;  Reconstruction of North Waziristan to take two years, says NDMA; Police fire at protesting IDPs in Bannu, Khyber-Pakhtunkhwa; Indian Army court gives five soldiers life terms in for murder of Kashmiri civilians.

Islamic State in South Asia

• On November 12, militant group Jundullah’s spokesman, Fahad Marwat, claimed that a delegation from Islamic State had visited the group’s leaders in Balochistan during the week. He further claimed that the purpose of the visit was to unite different Pakistani militant groups.[1]

Militancy

• On November 12, the spokesman of Tehrik-e-Taliban Pakistan (TTP) Jamatul Ahrar, Ehsanullah Ehsan, posted a Twitter statement, demanding human rights organizations investigate the imprisonment of the group’s former spokesman, Ikramullah Mohmand. Mohmand was arrested by ISAF and Afghan forces in December 2013 and transferred to Pakistani authorities in September 2014. Ehsan accused human rights organizations of having double standards and an anti-Muslim bias. Ehsan further threatened revenge against Pakistani authorities and human rights organizations if Mohmand was executed by Pakistani authorities.[2]  

• According to a Long War Journal report on November 12, fighters from the al Qaeda-affiliated Turkistan Islamic Party (TIP) were photographed in northern Syria. The TIP reportedly operates in China, Central and South Asia and is believed to have fighters in Pakistan’s tribal areas. Several of the group’s fighters also have been targeted in drone strikes in Afghanistan and Pakistan.[3]

• On November 13, militants attacked anti-Taliban militia Tauheedul Islam (TI) in the Narai Baba area of the Tirah Valley in Khyber Agency. Five militants, including a key commander, Spinbat, were killed in the resulting clashes which also injured seven TI members.[4]

• On November 12, unknown gunmen fired at multiple shops, killing five people and injuring three others, on Usman Road in Quetta. According to police officials, the attack targeted non-Baloch ethnic groups.[5]

Military

• On November 13, Pakistan successfully conducted tested an intermediate range ballistic missile called Shaheen II (Hatf-VI). The missile can carry nuclear and conventional warheads and has a range of 1,500 kilometers.[6] 

Domestic Politics

• On November 12, an Anti-Terrorism Court (ATC) issued non-bailable arrest warrants for the leaders of the Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) and Pakistan Awami League (PAT) for attacking the Pakistan Television Corporation’s (PTV) headquarters and the Parliament building in Islamabad on August 31 and September 1. The arrest warrants were issued against PTI chief Imran Khan, PAT chief Tahirul Qadri and PTI vice-chairman Shah Mehmood Qureshi among others.[7]

• On November 12, Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif’s daughter, Maryam Nawaz Sharif, resigned from her role as the head of a youth program run out of Prime Minister’s office. A member of PTI had filed a legal challenge to Maryam’s appointment that questioned her qualifications for the job. A Twitter post from Maryam Sharif confirmed her resignation and also vowed to continue her political career.[8]   

Sino-Pak Relations

• On November 12, Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif claimed that the $40 billion investment China recently agreed to make in Pakistan was a “milestone” in the history of Sino-Pak relations and that the investment would greatly help address the energy crisis in the country.[9]

U.S.-Pakistan Relations

• On November 13, Foreign Office spokesperson Tasneem Aslam claimed that American senior adviser Robin Raphel is a friend of Pakistan but that a U.S. federal inquiry into her conduct is a U.S. internal matter. She further said that Pakistan has not asked the U.S. to disclose any information regarding the investigation. A Washington Post report had declared on November 7 that Raphel was under a federal investigation for a counterintelligence matter.[10]

• According to a November 13 Dawn report, the U.S. Homeland Security Investigations Office (HSI) donated chemical test equipment to Pakistan. The equipment will help Pakistan Customs monitor the import and export of licit and illicit chemicals. The project is mainly aimed at preventing the illicit movement of dangerous chemicals. The HSI also donated 80 Toyota Hilux trucks, 160 body armor suits, five electronic chemical analysis units, cameras, binoculars and gloves to Pakistan Customs.[11]

Pakistan-Afghanistan Relations

• On November 13, Foreign Office spokesperson Tasneem Aslam declared that the Afghan President, Ashraf Ghani, will arrive in Islamabad for a two-day visit on November 14. President Ghani will reportedly hold meetings with President Mamnoon Hussain and Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif and discuss bilateral relations including the regional security situation.[12]

Pakistan-Russia Relations

• On November 12, Russian envoy to Pakistan Alexey Dedov said that the deal to supply MI-35 helicopters to Islamabad was “politically approved” by Moscow and that further negotiations on the political-commercial contract are in progress. Dedov claimed that the deal would help in combatting terrorism in the region. The deal had been reportedly stalled since 2009 because of India formerly being Russia’s “exclusive military technical cooperation partner.”[13]

Internally Displaced Persons

• According to November 13 Dawn report, Chairman of the National Disaster Management Authority (NDMA) Maj. Gen. Mohammad Saeed Aleem said that the reconstruction of infrastructure damaged as a result of the ongoing military offensive in North Waziristan would take two years to complete with a cost of Rupees 75 billion ( about $700 million)  He further said that the rehabilitation of people and reconstruction would happen in separate phases.[14]

• On November 13, Pakistani police reportedly opened fire at internally displaced persons (IDPs) after rioting broke out at an IDP camp in the city of Bannu, Khyber-Pakhtunkhwa. Four civilians and nine policemen were injured in the clashes.[15] 

Indian-administered Kashmir

• On November 13, an Indian army court sentenced five soldiers, including two senior officers, to life imprisonment for the killing of three Kashmiris in a faked encounter in Machil sector in 2010 in Indian-administered Kashmir. The army had claimed that those killed were “Pakistani militants.” The claim was, however, refuted by the residents of the area and the incident led to widespread protests in the Kashmir Valley that resulted in the deaths of 123 people. This is reportedly the first case in Indian-administered Kashmir in which army personnel have been awarded life terms on such charges.[16]