Pakistan Security Brief

Pakistan Security Brief – September 13, 2010

Six militants killed in drone strike in North Waziristan; Failed suicide bombing attempt in Pakistani administered Kashmir; Cameron Munter to serve as next U.S. Ambassador to Pakistan; Rising water levels force new evacuations in southern Sindh; Eid al-Fitar festivals dampened by flooding; Blast rocks Mach Central Jail.

FATA

• At least six militants were killed Sunday, in a U.S. drone strike in North Waziristan.  According reports, two missiles were fired at a hideout housing militants in the village of Nawe Adda in the Datta Khel area not far from Miram Shah the administrative headquarters of the North Waziristan agency.  Intelligence officials stated that those targeted may have been associated with Taliban commander Hafiz Gul Bahadur and that foreign fighters, including two Arabs, were among the dead.[1]   

Kashmir

• A man blew himself up in a botched suicide bombing attempt on Sunday.  The blast occurred in Pakistani administered Kashmir, and intelligence officials report that the bomber had intended to detonate his explosives at sensitive installations in the Rawalakot district.  The failed suicide bombing attempt came the same weekend that protests and violence gripped Indian administered Kashmir.  [2]

U.S.-Pakistan Relations

• Vice President Joe Biden spoke over the phone with Pakistani Prime Minister Yousuf Raza Gilani on Friday.  The two men discussed President Obama’s decision to nominate former ambassador to Serbia, Cameron Munter, to serve as the next U.S. ambassador to Pakistan.  During the phone call, Vice President Biden also reaffirmed Washington’s long-term commitment to relief and rebuilding efforts in the wake of Pakistan’s deadly flood crisis. [3]

• Officials at the U.S. Embassy in Islamabad responded to allegations from villagers in Northern Waziristan who claimed that NATO forces operating in Afghanistan fired shells across the border into Pakistan on Friday.   U.S. officials called those allegations “completely false” and reported that NATO International Security Assistance Forces were not even in the vicinity where the incident was said to have occurred.[4]

Musharraf’s Return

• Pervez Musharraf declared on Friday his intention to form a new political party and stand for parliament in Pakistan’s next general election slated for 2013.   Musharraf’s comments generated heavy disapproval from political rivals in Pakistan.  Spokesmen from the Pakistan People’s Party, Muslim League (PML-N), and Jamaat-e-Islami all criticized Musharraf’s intentions. Musharraf currently resides in London in self-exile.[5]

Flooding

• The chief administrator for Punjab, Shahbaz Sharif, announced on Monday the creation of an independent commission to investigate allegations that flood waters were manipulated in the province.  The commission will examine whether dykes were purposely destroyed to guide flood waters away from favored areas.  Sharif told reporters that the commission will visit the affected areas and submit a final report of their findings to the provincial government.  [6]

• Three people were injured on Monday, when gunfire erupted at a relief camp in Quetta.  The shooting occurred while food and other goods were being distributed to flood victims at a camp on Sariab Road.  Officials report that a women and child were among those wounded.[7]

• Flood waters pouring into Lake Manchar and other lakes in the Red Sea flood-basin are forcing the evocations of tens of thousands in southern Sindh.  The Dadu district of Sindh has been particularly hard-hit in recent days, and rising water levels are now threatening the cities of Bhon and Jhingira.  Officials report that as many as 250,000 many face evacuations orders in the coming days as flood waters pass through southern Sindh on their way to the Red Sea. [8]

• The fallout from Pakistan’s recent flooding dampened Eid al-Fitr festivals across Pakistan on Saturday.  The holiday, which commemorates the end of Ramadan, is one of the most important in the Islamic calendar, but this year’s festivities were notably muted as millions of Pakistanis were forced to celebrate in relief tents.  In their annual Eid addresses, both President Zardari and Prime Minister Gilani appealed for solidarity among Pakistan’s faithful as the country copes with damage caused by flooding and the massive challenge of rebuilding that lies ahead. [9]

Balochistan:

• One inmate was killed and another wounded when a bomb blast rocked Mach Central Jail on Saturday.  Officials report that a remotely denoted device was placed on the outside wall of the jail complex and exploded while Eid prayers were being offered in the surrounding city.  No imamates were able to escape and the motive for the blast is under investigation. [10]