TTP intermediary offers assurances that TTP will accept Pakistan’s constitution; Security forces target TTP hideouts in Bobar area, South Waziristan; Pakistani authorities detain two brothers of lead Afghan Taliban negotiator in Qatar; U.S. Department of State Annual Global Report on Terrorism highlights safe haven in Pakistan; British lawmakers consider cutting aid to Pakistan; India-Russia deal to provide weapons to Afghanistan could strain India-Pakistan ties; Intelligence agencies claim Islamabad seminaries are assisting TTP; Three schools blown up in KP and FATA; Indian security forces kill one, injure two in Indian-administered Kashmir, impose curfew; JuD holds rally in support of ISI and army.
TTP Peace Talks
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On Thursday, at a tribal jirga in Peshawar, Tehrik-e-Taliban Pakistan (TTP) negotiating committee member Professor Ibrahim Khan gave assurances that the TTP will accept Pakistan’s constitution, adding that the conflict would not be solved with military operations or militant attacks. The Jamiat Ulema-e-Islam-Sami (JUI-S) chief, Maulana Samiul Haq, who also attended the Jirga, said that all tribal leaders supported the peace talks.[1]
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On Wednesday, TTP Political Shura member Azam Tariq told reporters that Pakistan’s security forces used helicopter gunships and artillery to target TTP hideouts in South Waziristan’s Bobar area. Tariq added that anytime the TTP shows its seriousness in peace talks, security forces launch operations against the TTP.[2]
Afghan Taliban
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On Wednesday, an unnamed Afghan Taliban official told reporters that Pakistani authorities in Karachi and Quetta detained two brothers of Tayyeb Agha, the leader of Taliban negotiations in Qatar.[3]
Annual Global Report on Terrorism
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On Wednesday, the U.S. Department of State submitted to Congress the Annual Global Report on Terrorism, which stated that groups including the Haqqani Network and the Afghan Taliban enjoyed a safe haven in Pakistan in 2013, adding that several attacks that took place in Afghanistan were planned and launched from Pakistan. The report highlighted Pakistan’s military operations against groups such as al Qaeda, the TTP, the Punjabi Taliban, and Lashkar-e-Jhangvi (LeJ), but claimed that sufficient action had not been taken against groups like Lashkar-e-Taiba (LeT). Although the report stated that U.S. counterterrorism efforts had “degraded” al Qaeda’s core leadership, 2013 still saw a rise of autonomous al Qaeda affiliates.[4]
U.K.-Pakistan Relations
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On Wednesday, a report written by lawmakers in the United Kingdom stated that aid to Pakistan should be cut unless there is evidence to prove that British aid helps address extremism. According to the report, aid from Britain provides Pakistan with more many than any other country, which would not be the case if Pakistan were not confronting Islamic extremism.[5]
India-Pakistan Relations
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According to a Thursday report in Dawn, some analysts, including author Ahmed Rashid, believe that a deal for India to pay Russia to supply arms to the Afghan military could damage India’s relationship with Pakistan. A Pakistan Foreign Ministry spokeswoman and a military spokesman both declined to comment on the deal.[6]
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On Wednesday, army chief Raheel Sharif called for the Kashmir dispute to be resolved in a manner that takes into account the resolutions passed by the United Nations Security Council.[7]
Iran-Pakistan Relations
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On Tuesday, Foreign Secretary Aizaz Ahmed Chaudhry met with Iranian Deputy Foreign Minister Ibrahim Rahimpour in Tehran to discuss issues such as the future of Afghanistan.[8]
Militancy
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According to a Thursday article in Dawn¸ unnamed sources within Pakistan’s civil and military intelligence agencies claimed that seminaries in Islamabad are providing courier services and assisting the TTP with the collection of extortion and ransom money.[9]
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On Thursday, militants in the Drwazgai area of Mohmand agency blew up two schools. There were no casualties.[10]
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On Thursday, militants in the Saro Kalley area of Charsadda district, Khyber-Pakhtunkhwa blew up a girls’ school. There were no casualties.[11]
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On Wednesday, soldiers stopped an attempted suicide attack in Sarra Cheena, Swat district, Khyber-Pakhtunkhwa that targeted members of a peace militia.[12]
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On Wednesday, Indian security forces killed a man who was throwing rocks at their convoy in Indian-Administered Kashmir and injured two others. On Thursday, Indian forces imposed a curfew in most of the state due to calls by separatist leaders for a strike in protest of the incident.[13]
Domestic
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According to a Thursday article in The News, Pakistan has nearly fulfilled all of the performance criteria under the International Monetary Fund’s (IMF) conditions, the completion of which determines whether the IMF will release the fourth tranche of $550 million under the $6.64 billion Extended Fund Facility (EFF).[14]
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On Wednesday, the Jamaat-ud-Dawa (JuD) held rallies throughout Pakistan in support of the army and Inter-Services Intelligence (ISI) in the controversy about the attempted murder of television presenter Hamid Mir.[15]
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On Wednesday, army chief Raheel Sharif gave an address calling on “anti-state elements” to recognize Pakistan’s constitution. He also voiced his support for democracy and a free press.[16]
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According to a Thursday report in The News, former Chief Justice of the Supreme Court Iftikhar Muhammad Chaudhry plans to form a think tank that will focus on politics, economics, and social services.[17]
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On Wednesday, the prosecution in former President Pervez Musharraf’s treason trial filed an application asking for the trial to begin as soon as possible.[18]