Pakistan Security Brief - October 6, 2011

U.S.-Pakistan relations “back on track”; U.S. calls for Pakistan to control fertilizer used in IEDs; Pakistan envoy to UN criticizes U.S. stance; Musharraf defends military and ISI; Pakistan urges caution in Afghan-Indian relations; Afghan officials arrest six men in plot against Karzai; SC announces verdict on Karachi case; Authorities arrest MQM-H leader on kidnapping charges; German national killed in drones strike; Abbottabad Commission interviews bin Laden wives and ISI chief; Five killed by gunmen in Quetta; Former Baloch IG stresses danger of Balochistan chaos; Soldier killed by militants in SWA; Bomb squad removes bomb from school; KP Minister of Education calls on teachers to fight extremism; Qadri files appeal.

U.S.-Pakistan Relations

• In an address to reporters on Wednesday, Prime Minister Syed Yousuf Raza Gilani expressed his belief that relations between the U.S. and Pakistan were moving “back toward the right direction” following weeks of turmoil over U.S. accusations that Pakistan’s Inter-Services Intelligence (ISI) supported the Haqqani Network.  However, TIME reports that Pakistan’s political and military leadership are now considering establishing a series of peace agreements with militants in Pakistan’s tribal areas and suggests that this move is likely to anger Washington.[1]

• Following a trip to Pakistan, U.S. Senator Robert Casey called on Pakistan to “do more to implement safeguards” to control a Pakistan-produced fertilizer that is being used in improvised explosive devices (IEDs) against U.S. troops and civilians in Afghanistan.  An unnamed Pakistani official rebuffed Casey’s claim that Pakistan was not moving quickly enough to combat the threat, citing the difficulty in tracking the fertilizer, which is legally produced within Pakistan.[2]

• Pakistan’s envoy to the UN, Abdullah Hussain Haroon, criticized the U.S. government’s failure to appreciate Pakistani efforts in the war on terror and described recent U.S. allegations against Pakistan as “appalling.” Haroon claimed that Pakistan would continue to play a crucial role in stabilizing Afghanistan as it was critical to Pakistan’s strategic interests.[3]

• On Thursday, former Pakistani President Pervez Musharraf announced that the Pakistani military and ISI were being unjustly accused of complicity in the attacks on Afghanistan. He stated that the Haqqani Network “had no right to use Pakistani territory for wrong activities which would harm Pakistan.”[4]

Afghanistan-Pakistan Relations

• Tehmina Janjua, a spokeswoman for Pakistan’s Foreign Ministry, announced that Pakistan expects Afghanistan to exhibit maturity in its relationship with India and highlighted the friendly ties and common traditions that Pakistan and Afghanistan share. The Foreign Ministry’s announcement comes in the wake of a strategic partnership agreement signed by Afghanistan and India on Tuesday, which Pakistan’s Foreign Minister Hina Rabbani Khar said would not affect Pakistan.  Khar went on to cite the need for improved relations between Pakistan and its neighbors, India and Afghanistan.[5]

• Afghan intelligence officials arrested six men for planning to assassinate Afghan President Hamid Karzai. According to officials, the plotters successfully recruited one of Karzai’s bodyguards and are suspected to have links to the Haqqani Network. Security officials also believe that the group was trained in North Waziristan.[6]

Karachi Violence

• The Supreme Court announced its verdict on the case on violence in Karachi on Thursday. The ruling, read by Chief Justice Iftikhar Mohammad Chaudhry, stated that it will be difficult for the government in Karachi to stay in power if targeted killings continue. Chaudhry also noted that Rangers testified before the Supreme Court that the situation in Karachi was worse than in Waziristan. The court formed a committee to monitor the city’s evolving security status.[7]

Pakistani Politics

• Mohajir Qaumi Movement-Haqiqi (MQM-H) leader Afaq Ahmed was arrested on kidnapping charges relating to an abduction case from ten years ago on Thursday. Ahmed was recently released from jail on bail after being charged for the 2009 murder of an activist in the Muttahida Qaumi Movement (MQM). Ahmed’s arrest comes one day after MQM, a rival party of MQM-H, announced that it would rejoin the Pakistan Peoples Party (PPP). The strength of the PPP was also bolstered on Wednesday by the announcement of Muslim League-Quaid (PML-Q) chief Chaudhry Shujaat Hussain that his party would remain in the country’s governing coalition. This move assuaged fears that PML-Q would leave the PPP following the resignation of several PML-Q members from federal and provincial seats on Tuesday.[8]

Drone Strike

• Pakistani intelligence officials announced that Mohammad-Al-Faateh, a German national, was one of three militants killed in a September 11 drone strike in northwest Pakistan. Faateh is believed to have commanded the militant group Harkat-ul-Jihad al Islami (HuJI). HuJI is largely composed of foreign members including 52 German nationals currently residing in Pakistan.[9]

 Abbottabad Commission

• The Abbottabad Commission, which is investigating the May 2 raid by U.S. Special Operations Forces on the compound of deceased al Qaeda leader Osama bin Laden, announced Wednesday that it had conducted an “exhaustive interview” with bin Laden’s widows and daughters.  The Commission also revealed that it had interviewed ISI spy chief Ahmad Shuja Pasha and indicated that it would question Pasha again on Thursday, an action regarded as particularly rare given that “the power of the army [traditionally] outstrips that of civilian[s].”[10]

Balochistan

• Unidentified gunmen on motorcycles opened fire on a road in Quetta on Wednesday, killing three people, including two police officers.  In two later incidents, two more people were killed by unidentified gunmen.  During a three hour time period, three separate incidents of violence in Quetta killed five people and wounded three.  Earlier on Wednesday, a special committee of the National Assembly was informed by Interior Minister Rehman Malik that “foreign countries were providing funds and training to militants to cause unrest in Balochistan.”  Malik alleged that India and Afghanistan were supporting the militant groups Baloch Liberation Army (BLA), Lashkar-e-Jhangvi (LeJ), and Tehrik-e-Taliban Pakistan (TTP).[11] 

• Former Inspector General (IG) of Balochistan Police, Tariq Khosa, warned the Government of Balochistan that the province must devise a concerted strategy “to foil the designs of the terrorists and insurgents” or face “systematic mayhem,” which, he stressed, could potentially lead to the “disintegration of the State of Pakistan.”  In order to combat lawlessness and the “utter chaos” gripping Balochistan, Khosa suggested a restructuring of political structures to ensure that military and civilian leaders remain accountable to the Baloch people.[12]

FATA

• Militants fired rockets at a security forces check post in Ladha sub-district, South Waziristan on Wednesday, resulting in the death of one soldier.  Another soldier was injured in the attack.  Security forces returned fire and reportedly killed one militant and injured three others.[13]   

• A bomb disposal squad removed an explosive device placed at Landi Kotal Degree College in Khyber agency on Thursday.  The bomb squad then transferred the bomb to Charwazai to defuse it “when it exploded and injured one person.”[14]

Khyber-Pakhtunkhwa

• Provincial Minister for Elementary and Secondary Education in Khyber-Pakhtunkhwa, Sardar Hussain Babak, said Wednesday that “the future of around 4.5 million students” was “in the hands of teachers” who must not only provide students a quality education but must also discourage students from joining the country’s insurgency by condemning extremist tendencies in society.”[15]

Taseer Murder

• Mumtaz Qadri, who was convicted of murdering Governor Salman Taseer and sentenced to death on October 1, has filed an appeal.  Qadri’s death sentence sparked protests throughout Lahore on Saturday, and over 40 religious parties have since resolved to stage “a countrywide protest” against the Anti Terrorism Court’s (ATC) decision.[16]