Clinton holds talks with high-level Pakistani officials in Islamabad; Clinton asks Pakistan to protect U.S. interests in region; Pakistan elected to UNSC; Fazlullah to return to Pakistan; Musharraf blames U.S. for Pakistan’s militancy; U.S. charges Pakistani man for role in recruiting jihadists; Extremists threaten attacks in Karachi; PML-Q in support of South Punjab province; Police confiscate large arms cache; Militants launch assault on pro-government elder; Balochistan Assembly to bring Mastung massacre perpetrators to justice.

U.S.-Pakistan Relations

Pakistan Elected to UNSC

War on Terror

  • Following Clinton’s visit to Pakistan, Pakistani Taliban leader Maulvi Fazlullah, who is described as a “leading figure in the insurgency,” has pledged to return to Pakistan and “wage war” on the country for its continued support of the U.S. war on terror.  Fazlullah has vowed to implement Sharia, or Islamic law, in “the Malakand region and rest of Pakistan.”[4]

  • During an address in Arkansas, former Pakistani President Pervez Musharraf charged Pakistan’s current military of “negligence” for failing to detect deceased al Qaeda leader Osama bin Laden’s presence in Pakistan before the May 2 raid by U.S. Special Operations Forces on bin Laden’s Abbottabad compound.  Musharraf also noted the Pakistan military’s ineffectiveness in targeting “Taliban-affiliated militants” within Pakistan, but blamed U.S. “mistakes in Afghanistan for the Taliban’s re-emergence.”[5]

  • On Thursday, the U.S. Department of Justice announced the charges against an 18-year-old Pakistani man, Mohammad Hassan Khalid, for his involvement in creating a “violent jihad organization” and using the internet to recruit individuals to carry out terror plots in Europe and South Asia.  Khalid worked in conjunction with an Algerian man and an American woman known as “Jihad Jane.”[6]

Karachi Violence

Punjab

Khyber-Pakhtunkhwa

FATA

  • Over “30 militants armed with rockets and machine guns” launched an assault on the home of a pro-government elder in Mohmand agency on Friday, killing three of the elder's children.  Pakistani government officials blamed Afghanistan-based militants for the attack, which took place 2.5 miles from the Afghanistan-Pakistan border.  The militants also set fire to a local girls school as they retreated.[10]

Balochistan

  • On Thursday, the Balochistan Assembly “passed a resolution, unanimously seeking to bring the perpetrators of [the September 20 Mastung] massacre…to justice.”  Similarly, Balochistan’s Minister for Works and Communication “demanded collective measures to secure peace in the region.”  Meanwhile, a man was killed by unidentified gunmen on Thursday in Turbat district.[11]


[1]Karin Brulliard and Joby Warrick, “Clinton warns Pakistan on insurgent havens,” Washington Post, October 21, 2011. Available at http://www.washingtonpost.com/world/clinton-chides-pakistan-on-insurgent-havens/2011/10/20/gIQAuZL5zL_story.html
Atika Rehman, “Work harder to 'squeeze' Haqqanis, Clinton tells Pakistan,” Express Tribune, October 21, 2011. Available at http://tribune.com.pk/story/278815/us-wants-pakistan-to-take-strong-steps-on-afghan-militants/
“US demands Pakistan action ‘in days and weeks,’” Dawn, October 21, 2011. Available at http://www.dawn.com/2011/10/21/clinton-holds-more-talks-with-pakistani-officials.html
 “No intention of ground offensive against Pakistan: Clinton,” Geo, October 21, 2011. Available at http://geo.tv/10-21-2011/87917.htm
Kamran Yousaf, “‘Clear’ on both ends: US talks war, Pakistan preaches peace,” Express Tribune, October 20, 2011. Available at http://tribune.com.pk/story/278293/clinton-arrives-in-pakistan-meets-gilani-kayani/
[2] “Criticism on Pak affecting war on terror: Zardari,” Geo, October 21, 2011. Available at http://geo.tv/10-21-2011/87913.htm
“Zardari stresses enhanced Pak-US consultations,” Dawn, October 21, 2011. Available at http://www.dawn.com/2011/10/21/zardari-stresses-enhanced-pak-us-consultations.html
Sebastian Abbot, “Rare Moment of Levity in US-Pakistan Relationship,” ABC News, October 21, 2011. Available at http://abcnews.go.com/International/wireStory/rare-moment-levity-us-pakistan-relationship-14785582
[4] “Taliban leader Fazlullah vows new war in Pakistan,” Express Tribune, October 21, 2011. Available at http://tribune.com.pk/story/278777/taliban-leader-fazlullah-vows-new-war-in-pakistan/
[5] “US-Pakistan relationship at new low: Musharraf,” Dawn, October 21, 2011. Available at http://www.dawn.com/2011/10/21/us-pakistan-relationship-at-new-low-musharraf.html
[6] “Pakistani among two indicted for terror plots in US,” The News, October 21, 2011. Available at
[7] Agha Khalid, “Terrorists threaten attacks in Defence, Clifton areas,” The News, October 21, 2011. Available at
[8] Abdul Manan, “New province: PML-Q submits resolution on South Punjab in PA,” Express Tribune, October 21, 2011. Available at http://tribune.com.pk/story/278270/ppp-pml-q-submit-resolution-for-south-punjab-province/
[9] “Huge cache of arms seized in Kohat,” Dawn, October 21, 2011. Available at http://www.dawn.com/2011/10/21/huge-cache-of-arms-seized-in-kohat.html
[10] Anwarullah Khan, “Militants kill 3 in raid on Pakistan elder's home,” AP, October 21, 2011. Available at http://old.news.yahoo.com/s/ap/20111021/ap_on_re_as/as_pakistan
[11] “Balochistan Assembly passes resolution on Mastung tragedy,” The News, October 21, 2011. Available at 
“Man shot dead in Turbat,” The News, October 20, 2011. Available at http://www.thenews.com.pk/NewsDetail.aspx?ID=25059
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