Pakistan Security Brief

Carney: U.S. safer due to Pakistan’s counterterrorism cooperation; Pakistan reaches out to U.S. on 9/11; Afghan refugees in Pakistan worry they will not be able to return home; Aspiring terrorist en route to Pakistan arrested in New York City; Decrease in suicide bombings in Pakistan; U.S. drone strike kills five in North Waziristan; Pakistan seals its border with Afghanistan, announces that militants have moved to Quetta; Americans kidnapped in Quetta; Police arrest terrorists in Peshawar; Indian Mujahideen to blame for New Delhi bombing; Political accusations against the ANP; Musharraf pledges to return to Pakistan; Chief Justice argues for democracy; Interior Minister claims external elements to blame for Pakistan’s violence; Restoring peace in Karachi government is “top priority”; Over 200 arrested in Karachi; One killed in renewed Karachi violence; Pakistan restricts activities of Dawat-e-Islami; Leads on Taseer kidnapping; Flooding in Sindh devastates region.

Decade-Long War on Terror

• President Obama’s press secretary, Jay Carney, stated on Saturday evening that the U.S. is a safer place post-9/11 due to the counterterrorism support it has received from Pakistan.  Carney also acknowledged the struggles that Pakistanis have faced in regard to al Qaeda.  He noted that Pakistanis have paid a heavy price as they have been constant victims of terrorism.[1]

• Pakistan reportedly made attempts to publish an ad in The New York Times which listed the number of Pakistanis killed during the U.S. war on terror.  Pakistan placed the figure of civilians killed at over 21,000, while noting that the Pakistan Army had lost an additional 2,795 troops.  Pakistan was unable to publish the ad in the Times and instead had the ad placed in The Wall Street Journal.  The ad maintained Pakistan’s commitment to the “war for world peace” while highlighting the sacrifices the country has made during its campaign against terrorism.[2]

• Instability in Afghanistan has caused millions of Afghans to cross the border into Pakistan over the past three decades, and many refugees fear that the withdrawal of U.S. troops will cause further instability, according to a report by Reuters.  They also fear that the Taliban will once again gain control of their country, limiting refugees’ opportunities to return home and participate in Afghanistan’s reconstruction.   The majority of Afghan refugees are victims of discrimination in Pakistan, and Pakistan has only agreed to allow Afghans to remain in country until the end of 2012, raising questions as to how Pakistan will deal with Afghan refugees after 2012.[3]

• An Albanian citizen was arrested in New York City on Friday prior to boarding a flight to Turkey.  The man was allegedly traveling to Pakistan and is being charged with “providing material support to a terrorist organization by plotting to travel to Pakistan to join a radical fighting group.”[4]

• A report by The News revealed the number of Pakistanis killed in suicide bombing and attacks in the decade since September 11, 2001.  The death toll was estimated at 4,808, the result of over 303 suicide attacks, which injured an additional 10,149 people.  Despite these high figures, data concludes that suicide bombings are declining inside Pakistan.[5] 

North Waziristan Drone Strike

• Five people were reportedly killed in a U.S. drone strike in Mir Ali, North Waziristan, according to villagers.  The drone allegedly fired two missiles, targeting a house and a vehicle, killing at least five unidentified victims.  Militants arrived shortly after the attack to begin rescue efforts for those possibly trapped or crushed in the targeted house.[6]

Quetta

• Federal Interior Minister Rehman Malik announced the closure of Pakistan’s border with Afghanistan along the length of Balochistan and Khyber-Pakhtunkhwa and warned citizens that a series of Pakistan Army engagements with al Qaeda and the Taliban have forced militants to move from the tribal areas and into the city of Quetta.[7]

• Armed men reportedly kidnapped two men, including an American citizen of Pakistani origin, while their car was at a customs checkpoint in Quetta. Both men were released after being held for several hours.  American Warren Weinstein has yet to be released following his August 20 kidnapping from Lahore.[8]

Peshawar

• The police were on high-alert around the tenth anniversary of 9/11 as rumors spread that terrorists may attempt attacks on Peshawar, Khyber Pakhtunkhwa, and the Federally Administered Tribal Areas (FATA).  Police were able to prevent the detonation of 15 kilograms of explosives on the Grand Trunk Road on Friday and arrested four suspected terrorists in Peshawar for their involvement in an attack on police.[9]

New Delhi Bombing

• After investigating a Harkat-ul-Jihad al-Islami (HuJI) e-mail claim of responsibility for last week’s deadly bombing of a New Delhi court, Indian officials have announced that they now believe the Indian Mujahedeen is to blame for the attack.  Indian authorities were careful not to immediately charge HuJI, a Pakistan-based militant group, with the bombing.[10]

Pakistani Politics

• Altaf Hussain, chief of the Muttahida Qaumi Movement (MQM), made strong allegations Friday, stating that the Awami National Party (ANP) party, led by Asfandyar Wali Khan, received millions of dollars from the United States in order to win seats in Pakistan’s 2008 elections. The MQM also accused the ANP of being a terrorist organization and demanded that it immediately be banned from the political arena as a war of words erupted between the two parties.  The MQM claimed that the ANP has been responsible for many acts of terrorism within Pakistan, with the support of India and Afghanistan.  In a follow-up statement, Khyber Pakhtunkhwa Information Minister Mian Iftikhar Hussain threatened that the ANP would quit its government alliance if President Zadari inducted the MQM into the Pakistan Peoples Party (PPP) led coalition government.[11]

• In an interview with the BBC on Friday, former Pakistani President General Pervez Musharraf made it clear that he would return to Pakistan by March 2012 in order to assume a leadership role in the country.  Musharraf is currently “wanted by an anti-terrorist court in Pakistan over accusations he failed to protect the former Prime Minister, Benazir Bhutto, from assassination in December 2007.” Musharraf, however, stated that he would return to Pakistan even under threat of arrest. There have been recent rumors of secret talks between the Pakistan Peoples Party (PPP) and All Pakistan Muslim League (APML) over the prospect of Musharraf returning to Pakistan in an attempt to marginalize the PPP’s rival, the Pakistan Muslim League Nawaz (PML-N).  President Zardari reportedly suggested that Musharraf’s March 2012 return could be beneficial for the PPP’s power struggle with the PML-N.[12] 

• Chief Justice Iftikhar Muhammad Chaudhry warned citizens on Friday that Pakistan’s possession of nuclear weapons and its large army would not hold the country together; instead, he commented that democracy was the key to success and “essential for establishing the writ of law.”  The mechanism of democracy would, in effect, protect Pakistan from “internal and external dangers.”[13]

• The Federal Interior Minister, Rehman Malik, commented Saturday that “external elements” were backing terrorist organizations in an attempt to destabilize Pakistan.  The attack on the Deputy Inspector General Frontier Corps in Quetta last week was one example of this conspiracy, according to Malik, who was quoted as saying “We know who is behind the planning to try to destabilize Pakistan.”[14]

Karachi Violence

• In a press conference, Malik addressed the accusations of Zulfiqar Mirza, a Pakistan Peoples Party (PPP) politician.  Mirza had accused Malik of releasing Karachi “target killers,” but Malik denied the statement, calling all of his actions “transparent and without discrimination.” Malik also met with Governor Sindh Ishratul Ebad, pledging that security operations between police and the Rangers would continue until peace was fully restored in Karachi.  Ebad articulated to Malik that restoring peace in Karachi should be the government’s top priority as Pakistan’s economy relied upon it.[15]

• Over 200 suspects were arrested in Karachi on Sunday, along with hundreds of weapons, as Rangers conducted a 12 hour search operation.  Among the 200 people detained for questioning were two alleged “target killers” and eight “most wanted criminals.”  The Rangers also carried out a search operation in Karachi on Saturday in which they arrested six suspects and confiscated several arms from the Alfalah Society.[16]

• Violence resumed on Saturday in Karachi, as one man was killed and two others injured when armed men gunned them down.  Police are currently investigating the incident.[17]

Islamist Group Banned

• Following an investigation into the assassination of former Punjab Governor Salmaan Tasser, the proselytizing organization Dawat-e-Islami has been restricted by the Pakistani government. Dawat-e-Islami was previously believed to have been an apolitical religious organization; however, it was discovered that a member of the group was responsible for Taseer’s assassination, causing Pakistani intelligence agencies to place the group on close watch.  The military has been examining Dawat-e-Islami’s movements and has found that elements of Pakistan’s armed forces are closely related to the group and have been providing it financial support.[18]

Taseer Kidnapping

• Police have detained five people for questioning in the kidnapping of Shahbaz Taseer, the son of former Punjab governor Salman Taseer.  The detained men reportedly were responsible for “conducting reconnaissance” on Taseer, who was kidnapped on August 26 from Lahore.  Police have yet to identify Taseer’s abductors.[19]

Flooding in Sindh

• In Tehran on Sunday, Iranian Interior Minister Mostafa Mohammad Najar pledged the donation of $100 million in flood relief to Pakistan.  Heavy rains in Sindh have killed over 200 people and have caused the destruction of over one million homes, leaving hundreds of thousands internally displaced.[20]