Pakistan Security Brief - April 19, 2011

Guarantors of Kurram’s peace deal to meet in Islamabad; Secret TTP meeting held in SWA; Facilities established in Waziristan to train suicide bombers; Two militants killed in Mohmand; Speaker Boehner meets with Gilani; Mullen set to visit Islamabad; Bashir traveling to U.S. for strategic dialogue; French nationals in contact with Tahir Shehzad; Pakistan test fires Hatf 9 missile; Eight killed in Karachi ‘target killings;’ Car bomb detonates in Quetta; Attack on laborers in Barkhan.

FATA

• The guarantors of Kurram Agency’s recent peace deal are set to meet in Islamabad on Tuesday to discuss a strategy for the recovery of thirty-give people who were kidnapped from Thall-Parachinar Road last month, as well as speak on ways to salvage the peace agreement. Details in the report suggest that members of the Haqqani network who helped broker the deal will also be in attendance. Sajid Hussain Turi, a parliamentarian from Kurram, declared that, “The government is guarantor of the peace deal but it has failed to ensure safety of people of Kurram. Security forces have not supported efforts of the elders.” Meanwhile, a tribesman was killed by unidentified militants in Hewas village on Monday.[i]
• A Pakistani interior ministry report states that an underground meeting of the Tehrik-e-Taliban Pakistan (TTP) was recently held in South Waziristan and attended by the leaders of the Haqqani group, Al Haq Brigade, Fidayi Force, Allah Dad group, Lashkar-e-Islam (LI), Jaish-e-Islam, and the Mujahid Khalid group. Members of the groups gathered to discuss how to respond to a potential military operation in North Waziristan. The Express Tribune reports that, “The militant leaders reportedly reviewed the availability of funds from donors in the Arab world, and created a strategic plan to conduct large-scale attacks against important buildings, military installations and high-profile individuals in the coming year, including Prime Minister [Yousuf] Raza Gilani and his son.”[ii]
• A spokesperson for the Fidayeen-e-Islam group of the Taliban has claimed that they have established three facilities in North and South Waziristan to train potential suicide bombers. He maintained that “We have three facilities exclusively for fidayeen (suicide bombers). Each one has more than 350 men being trained in it.” The spokesman also asserted that the TTP led by Hakimullah Mehsud has recently “separated the operations of suicide bombers from the overall activities of the group.”[iii]
• Two militants were killed and a security officer was injured during clashes in Mohmand Agency on Monday. The two militants were killed in the Koz Chamarkand area of the Safi sub-district. Following the attack, security personnel claimed that the Ghalingar area was cleared of militants.[iv]

U.S.-Pakistani Relations

• On Monday, United States House Speaker John Boehner visited Pakistan with five other congressmen to meet with Prime Minister Gilani, army chief General Kayani, and U.S. Ambassador Cameron Munter. In a statement released by his office, Boehner said that, “A strong US-Pakistan relationship is vital to the interests of both of our countries. While the relationship between our two countries has seen its challenges, we discussed the importance of working through these issues and renewing our partnership based on mutual interests and mutual respect.” In an address to the National Assembly following the meeting, Prime Minister Gilani said that he had asked Boehner to transfer drone technology to Pakistan. An additional statement issued by Gilani’s office said that the U.S. “should refrain from drone attacks and instead share credible intelligence to enable Pakistan to take action against terrorists itself.”[v]
• U.S. Joint Chiefs of Staff Admiral Mike Mullen will be in Islamabad this week to meet with army chief General Kayani. Meanwhile, Foreign Secretary Salman Bashir will be making a visit to Washington DC on April 21 to participate in the U.S.-Pakistan strategic dialogue. The Express Tribune reports that “Issues like war against terrorism, bilateral relations and coalition support fund for Pakistan will figure in the talks. Both sides are trying to resolve differences, especially on the issue of drone attacks in the tribal areas.”[vi]

French Nationals in Contact with Tahir Shehzad

• The News reports that the two Frenchmen whose arrest on terrorism charges was made public on April 14, had, in fact, been arrested on January 23, after meeting with Tahir Shehzad, a Pakistani national with links to al-Qaeda. It has been said that the Frenchmen wanted to travel to North Waziristan to meet with Umar Patek, a key leader of Jemaah Islamiyah (JI). One detained French citizen is of Pakistani origin, and the other is a convert to Islam.[vii]

Pakistan Test Fires Missile

• Pakistan’s military has announced that it has test-fired a short-range missile that is capable of delivering a nuclear warhead. Known as the Hatf 9 missile, it was launched on Tuesday from an undisclosed location. In a statement, the military said that, "The missile has been developed to add deterrence value to Pakistan's strategic weapons development [program] at shorter ranges.” [viii]

‘Target Killings’ in Karachi

• On Tuesday, eight people died in incidents of ‘target killings’ in Karachi. Among the dead was a Pakistan Peoples Party (PPP) worker and a member of the Muttahida Qaumi Movement (MQM), who were killed prior to an arson attack on a bus in Gulistan-e-Jauhar. Interior Minister Rehman Malik stated that “the government was taking strict action against the target killing problem, adding that some of the people involved were taking refuge by affiliating themselves with political parties.” Furthermore, the Express Tribune has released a report on the emerging trends in the ‘target killings,’ arguing that there exists an "increasing overlap in political and sectarian violence." [ix]

Balochistan

• A car bomb exploded outside of a charity’s office in Quetta on Tuesday, wounding two people. Ten houses in the vicinity were also damaged in the blast. Fahimuz Zaman, an official of the charity, said that the organization had not received threats of violence in the past.[x]
• Unidentified gunmen attacked a road construction camp in the Lalibar area of Barkhan on Monday. Two workers were killed and four others injured in the attack. An investigation into the incident has commenced.[xi]