Pakistan Security Brief - May 24, 2010

Pakistan Security Brief – May 24, 2010

Pakistani army major may have been in cell phone contact with Faisal Shahzad on the day of the failed bombing attempt in New York; underground financing network may have provided funds to Shahzad, families of arrested Pakistanis proclaim their relatives’ innocence; US drone strike kills at least 10 in North Waziristan; militants fire rockets at security checkpost in Mohmand; large scale military operations continue in Upper Orakzai; rockets fired at oilfield in Kohat, ten militants arrested in Bajaur; one Pakistani soldier killed in cross-border firing with Indian troops in Kashmir; three militants killed during clashes in Lower Dir; one militant killed and two homes demolished during search operation in Swat; security forces expel 25 families in Malakand after expiration of deadline to hand over militants; Pakistan and China agree to hold joint military exercises, increase military cooperation; two people killed in roadside bombing in Quetta; Pakistani man arrested in Chile ordered back into custody; top army commanders want extension of General Kayani’s term as Chief of Army Staff; new article examines Pakistani military’s perception that the TTP is on the run; two more killed in Karachi violence, PPP politician resigns in response; Rangers’ authority extended in Karachi for up to three months.

NY bombing investigation

• On Saturday, an investigator in Pakistan indicated that evidence has emerged that a recently arrested army major was in cell phone contact with Faisal Shahzad on the day of the attempted car bombing in New York’s Times Square. US officials said that they were aware of cell phone traffic between the two men but could not establish the exact timing of the calls and have made a request with Pakistani authorities to allow access to the army major for interrogation.[1]

• Investigators stated on Friday that Faisal Shahzad made claims during his interrogation that he was funded by the Tehrik-e-Taliban Pakistan (TTP). The story appears to be corroborated by the existence of an underground militant financing network known as “hawala”. However, authorities believe that no one in the US who channeled the money to Shahzad was aware of the funds’ intended purpose. Meanwhile, the families of three of the six men recently arrested in Pakistan in connection with Faisal Shahzad have sworn that their relatives are innocent, adding that “their fervent religious beliefs do not mean they are extremists.”[2]
   

FATA

• Five missiles fired from a suspected US drone struck a house in Boya village of North Waziristan late on Friday, killing as many as ten militants. Intelligences sources say that eight Pakistani militants and two foreign fighters, including one who is believed to have been a Filipino militant, were among those killed in the attack. Several women and children were also reported wounded and locals have said that those killed in the strike were not militants.[3]

• A group of militants launched an attack on a security checkpost in the Shakar area of Mohmand Agency’s Baizai sub-district on Sunday. Security forces and members of the Baizai Peace Committee retaliated with small arms fire as well as with mortars and artillery in a firefight that lasted for half an hour. Helicopter gunships later began shelling militant positions in the surrounding areas. No information on casualties has been reported.[4]

• Security forces conducted a series of major offensives against Taliban forces in various areas of Upper Orakzai on Sunday, killing as many as 100 militants and four militant commanders. Approximately 31 militants were also reported killed and two soldiers wounded during various clashes throughout Upper Orakzai on Saturday. Fighting in Upper Orakzai on Friday also resulted in at least 26 militants killed and two soldiers wounded.[5](For bi-weekly updates on the ongoing military operation in Orakzai CLICK HERE)

• On Sunday, two rockets fired by militants landed in an oilfield in the Shakdara area of Kohat district. Police rushed to secure the area but no casualties or property damage was reported. Ten militants were also arrested by security forces during a search operation in neighboring Bajaur Agency on Friday.[6]

Kashmir

• One Pakistani soldier was killed on Sunday in a firing incident which occurred between Indian and Pakistani security forces on the line of control in Kashmir. Both India and Pakistan claimed that their soldiers were fired upon first and “intermittent firing” was reported to have continued throughout the day.[7]

Khyber-Pakhtunkhwa

• Security forces killed at least three militants during clashes in the Maidan sub-district of Lower Dir district on Sunday. Two to three houses belonging to suspected militant commanders were also demolished as part of a search operation which was being conducted in a nearby area.[8]

• One militant was killed in an exchange of fire with security forces while two houses of local militant commanders were demolished as part of clearing operations in Swat district on Sunday. This latest action comes as a media report indicates many people in Swat Valley have confidence in the military’s ability to wipe out the remaining Taliban presence from the area. Also on Sunday, security officials posted a list of eight wanted militants in various locations around the Aligram area of Swat’s Kabal sub-district.[9]

• On Friday, security forces began expelling 25 families from Malakand division after the deadline to hand over 115 wanted militants expired on May 20. The families were transported in government vehicles and relocated to camps outside of Malakand.[10]

Sino-Pak relations

• Pakistani and Chinese security officials agreed to hold joint military exercises between the two countries during a Chinese delegation’s two-day visit to Pakistan on Monday. Defense Minister Chaudry Ahmed Mukhtar met with General Liang Guanglie and the fifteen other members of the Chinese delegation to discuss a variety of other bilateral security issues as well. The meeting also resulted in an agreement to strengthen military cooperation between the two countries, including an increase in the supply of Chinese arms and equipment to Pakistan.[11]

Militant training networks

• A new report examines the inner workings of the militant networks in Pakistan set up for the training of would-be jihadists. Pakistani intelligence officials say that new recruits are escorted to mobile training camps in various locations in order to minimize risk to the network as a whole. Additionally, training is said to take about 20 days and most of the lecturing on jihadist ideology is said to be conducted by Arabs. Militant groups such as Sipah-e-Sahaba, Jaish-e-Mohammed, and Lashkar-e-Janghvi are all believed to play a role in supporting the network’s operations.[12]

Balochistan

• At least two people have been killed and ten others injured when a bomb planted in a rickshaw detonated along a road near Quetta city airport in Balochistan. Reports say that among the wounded were the members of a wedding party which was travelling in a nearby van. No group has yet claimed responsibility for the attack.[13]

Pakistani charged in Chile

• The Pakistani man charged in Chile with possessing illegal explosives was ordered back into custody on Saturday. The court determined that Muhammad Saif-ur Rehman Khan was “a danger to society” and will be held in jail for a period of 120 days while authorities investigate the charges against him.[14]

Kayani term extension

• According to inside sources, many of Pakistan’s top army commanders agree that the term for Chief of Army Staff General Ashfaq Parvez Kayani should be extended. The consensus was that Kayani should stay in command until there is a “decisive turn” in the ongoing fight against militancy so that the “achievements attained” during Kayani’s term of service “may be consolidated and not go waste.”[15]

TTP on the run?

• An article published on Sunday suggests that the Pakistani military may not see an operation in North Waziristan as an urgent need due to their previous successes in crippling the capacity of the TTP to carry out attacks throughout the country. The article cites arguments such as a tapering off in the number of suicide attacks conducted by the TTP and the belief that the organization’s leadership has been fragmented and destabilized. However, an analyst in Pakistan also pointed out that the military is not likely to stop its anti-militancy campaigns and would likely not enter into a peace agreement with the TTP unless it disarmed and stopped attacks in the country completely.[16]

Karachi

• Two more people were reported killed in targeted killings in Karachi on Saturday. Unknown gunmen shot and killed two members of the Pakistani People’s Party (PPP) and then were able to flee the scene despite increased security measures and police presence throughout the city. Activists of the PPP held a “peace rally” in response to the killings and blamed the party for failing to protect its workers. The two victims were a councilor and a coordinator for Abdul Qadir Patel, the chairman of the National Assembly Interior Affairs Standing Committee, who announced his resignation shortly after the murders.[17]

• On Sunday, the Sindh government decided to extend the Rangers’ authority in Karachi for a period of up to three months. An award in the amount of Rs10 million was also issued for information leading to those responsible for the targeted killings.[18]