TTP planning revenge attacks against government and military targets; UN office in Islamabad warns of possible reprisal attacks; Mullah Omar reportedly backed Mullah Fazlullah as new head of the TTP; Petroleum Minister says that Iran-Pakistan pipeline will be built despite threat of international sanctions; Two Indian police killed in Kashmir; JuD holds protests against NATO supply lines; New Ambassador to U.S. officially appointed; Associate of al Qaeda leader arrested in Lahore; NATO tanker attacked in Khyber agency; Five dead in Lyari violence; Prime Minister will appoint new army chief on November 28.
Taliban Reaction to Hakimullah Mehsud’s Death
On Friday, Asmullah Shaheen Bhittani, the interim head of the Tehrik-e-Taliban Pakistan (TTP) said that the TTP will attack government and military targets, especially in Punjab, in revenge for the killing of Hakimullah Mehsud. He assured civilians that public places will not be targeted.[1]
According to a Tuesday report in The Express Tribune, the United Nations office in Islamabad issued an alert that, due to the possibility of TTP reprisals for the drone strike that killed Hakimullah Mehsud, there is a danger of hostage situations and mass killings.[2]
According to a Friday report in The News, Afghan Taliban leader Mullah Omar supported Mullah Fazlullah’s candidacy for head of the TTP. In fact, The News reports that Fazlullah’s closeness to the Afghan Taliban may have been what allowed him to ascend to the top spot in the organization despite opposition from the Waziristan TTP leadership and the fact that Fazlullah does not belong to the Mehsud tribe, which has traditionally dominated the TTP.[3]
On Thursday, while commenting on the effort made by the government to facilitate talks with the TTP, Interior Minister Chaudhry Nisar Ali Khan hinted that Mullah Fazlullah had returned to Pakistan from Afghanistan to participate in talks with the government. The comment came before Fazlullah’s appointment as the new chief of the TTP was announced, and before the TTP said that Fazlullah is against talks with the government.[4]
Iran-Pakistan Relations
On Friday, Petroleum Minister Shahid Khaqan Abbasi said that Pakistan has no intention of abandoning the Iran-Pakistan gas pipeline project. He admitted that the threat of American, United Nations, or European Union sanctions is hampering the project.[5]
India-Pakistan Relations
On Thursday, two Indian policemen were killed by gunmen in Awantipora, Pulwama district, Indian-administered Kashmir.[6]
U.S.-Pakistan Relations
On Friday, the political wing of Lashker-e-Taiba, Jamaat-ud-Dawa (JuD), held protests throughout Pakistan, including in Gujranwala and Quetta, against North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO) supply lines running through Pakistan. JuD leader Hafiz Saeed called for closing supply lines in an interview with Dunya News published on Friday.[7]
On Friday, the government officially announced that Foreign Secretary Jalil Abbas Jilani will be appointed the next Ambassador to the United States. The decision was announced last month, but not formalized.[8]
Militancy
According to a Friday report in The News, police arrested an associate of al Qaeda chief Ayman al-Zawahiri in Lahore, Punjab. The man was identified only as Saifullah, from Multan.[9]
On Thursday, unidentified gunmen attacked a NATO tanker in Jamrud sub-district, Khyber agency, injuring the driver.[10]
Five people died in the Lyari neighborhood of Karachi on Thursday in alleged gang violence.[11]
On Thursday, security forces found and defused a roadside bomb in Sherikhel, Lakki Marwat district, Khyber-Pakhtunkhwa.[12]
Domestic
On Friday, Information Minister Parvez Rasheed said that Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif will announce his decision on appointing the next army chief on November 28. The current army chief, General Ashfaq Kayani, is expected to retire on November 29.[13]
On Friday, Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif called on Baloch separatists to give up violence and join the government in improving Balochistan after the earthquake which hit the province last month.[14]