Gunship helicopters kill 10 militants and destroy three militant compounds outside of Miram Shah; Militants attack a security forces vehicle, kill two and injure one; police kill four suspected TTP militants near Karachi; Afghan delegation to meet with Pakistan officials; The National Assembly approves the Protection of Pakistan Bill 2014; Qatar Airways resumes flights to Peshawar.
North Waziristan Offensive
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On July 2, army helicopters shelled militant hideouts in North Waziristan, destroying three compounds and killing 10 militants. The shelling took place seven miles north of Miram Shah in Khar Warsak.[1]
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On July 1, a militant attack on a security forces vehicle in Mir Ali sub-district of North Waziristan, between Khajori and Ippi villages, killed two security personnel and injured another. The vehicle was transporting personnel from the Khajori checkpost to Miram Shah. Following the attack, security forces cordoned off the area in order to search for the attackers.[2]
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A report published by the Conflict Monitoring Center (CMC) on July 1 reported that militant attacks sharply decreased following the start of Operation Zarb-e-Azb in North Waziristan on June 15. The CMC reported that the number of militant attacks decreased 32 percent and the deaths from those attacks decreased 58 percent from the first half to the second half of the month.[3]
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Defense Minister Khawaja Asif told reporters on July 1 that the views of the military and the government were aligned regarding the North Waziristan offensive. He also said that the operation to remove crime and militancy from Karachi had been ongoing for the past three to four months.[4]
International Relations
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A Pakistan Foreign Office official told journalists on July 2 that an Afghan military delegation would meet with Pakistani military officials at the Pak-Afghan border to discuss the security situation at the border. The official urged Afghan authorities to target Tehrik-e-Taliban Pakistan (TTP) sanctuaries in Afghanistan but rejected the possibility of the Pakistan Army engaging militants inside Afghanistan.[5]
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James Dobbins, The U.S. State Department’s Special Representative for Afghanistan and Pakistan is set to retire at the end of July. Dobbins’ deputy, Daniel Feldman, will replace him.[6]
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In a press release on July 1, the Pakistan Ministry of Foreign Affairs rejected allegations by Afghan officials that Pakistan security personnel were connected to the Taliban’s recent Helmand offensive in Afghanistan.[7]
Domestic Security
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Geo News on July 2 reported that police killed four suspected TTP militants during a search operation in the Northern Bypass area of Karachi. Police recovered small arms and a large amount of ammunition from the exchange of fire.[8]
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The National Assembly approved the Protection of Pakistan Bill 2014 on July 2. The bill will be effective for two years and sets up regulations regarding shooting, detaining and sentencing militants. Under the bill, only a Grade 15 or equivalent officer may grant permission to issue shoot-on-sight orders. A person may be detained for 60 days without a warrant but a remand from a judicial magistrate is required. At trial, mobile phone recordings are admissible as evidence and a person may be sentenced to 20 years in prison. Though the Pakistan People’s Party (PPP) and Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) oppose the bill, both groups affirmed that they will not stand in its way.[9]
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The Punjab Government on July 2 announced their plan to construct a new de-radicalization facility for suspected militants. At the facility, militants would learn from a wide range of scholars and undergo training to gradually reintegrate them into society. Punjab Chief Minister Shahbaz Sharif approved a grant of Rs 240 million ($2.4 million) for the correctional facility.[10]
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At 8 pm on July 1, police found a roadside improvised explosive device (IED) in the city of Hub, Balochistan near the RCD Highway between Karachi and Quetta. A Bomb Disposal Squad defused the IED.[11]
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The Conflict Monitoring Center (CMC) reported on July 1 that Pakistan security forces have arrested 1167 suspected militants and militant supporters and killed 517 militants across the country during the month of June. They reported that militant activities decreased by 8 percent in June compared to the previous month, while deaths and injuries from militant attacks increased 25 percent and 38 percent, respectively. According to the CMC, security forces conducted 127 individual operations in the month of June, with a 189 percent increase in the number of militant deaths and a 251 percent increase in militants arrested from the month of May. The CMC emphasized that while militant attacks across the country only decresead by 8 percent, militant activities in Balochistan decreased more sharply--from 22 incidents resulting in 41 deaths and 42 injuries from June 1-15 to 4 incidents resulting in three deaths and one injury from June 16-30.[12]
Peshawar Airport Attack
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Qatar Airways announced its decision to resume flights to Peshawar’s Bacha Khan International Airport on July 2.[13]
Musharraf Trial
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On July 2, Musharraf’s legal defense team, represented by defense attorney Farogh Nasim, claimed during the ongoing high treason trial against former President Pervez Musharraf that none of Musharraf’s actions in office violated Article 6 of the Constitution. Nasim argued before a three-judge special court in Islamabad that Article 6, which enumerates the actions that constitute high treason, did not apply to Musharraf.[14]