Pakistan Security Brief –March 11, 2010
US drones target a compound and vehicles in North Waziristan; President Karzai comments on meeting in Islamabad; Pakistani officials scheduled to visit US; chief of Ahl-e-Sunnat shot in Karachi; bomb explodes in Peshawar; Peshawar Corps Commander may relinquish post.
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US drones fired missiles two different times at targets in North Waziristan on Wednesday, killing at least 14 suspected militants. Locals are reporting that a Taliban compound was destroyed, along with several vehicles. Sources claim Hafiz Gul Bahadur, a Taliban commander allied with the Haqqani network in North Waziristan, owned the compound, and there is some speculation he may have been killed in the attack. Both aerial attacks engaged targets in Maizar, a village in Madda Khel sub-district, located about 30 miles west of Miram Shah.[1]
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The President of Afghanistan, Hamid Karzai, met with Pakistani leaders in Islamabad on Thursday. Following the meetings, Karzai expressed his opposition to India and Pakistan fighting a proxy war in Afghanistan and the need for Pakistani cooperation to help stabilize his country.[2]
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Several Pakistani officials will come to the US at different times during the next five weeks for talks about multiple issues. Prime Minister Yousuf Raza Gilani, Pakistani Foreign Minister Shah Mehmood Qureshi, General Ashfaq Parvez Kayani, and ISI chief General Shuja Pasha are among the officials who will come.[3]
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On Thursday, Maulana Ghafoor, chief of Ahl-e-Sunnat, and his son were shot in Karachi while riding in a vehicle. Maulana is said to be in critical condition, but his son was killed during the shooting. The gunmen remain unknown.[4]
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On Thursday a bomb exploded in Peshawar, killing at least four people and injuring ten. A security checkpoint at the entrance to Peshawar district is believed to be the target of the bombing.[5]
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Lieutenant General Masood Aslam hinted at retiring from his position as Corps Commander for Peshawar, saying he is unable to continue serving. Lt. Gen. Aslam’s son was killed in a militant attack on December 4. In addition, reports speculate that around seven or eight Maj. Generals will be promoted to Lt. Generals to fill various posts in the Pakistan Army that will become vacant in the coming months. [6]