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SOUTH ASIA INTELLIGENCE REVIEW
Weekly Assessments & Briefings
Volume 10, No. 3, July 25, 2011
Data and
assessments from SAIR can be freely published in any form
with credit to the South Asia Intelligence Review of the
South Asia Terrorism Portal
|
KP:
Demoralized Force
Research Desk, Institute for Conflict Management
On July
19, 2011, the Taliban released a video showing the execution
of 16 Pakistani Policemen, captured during a raid on June
1, 2011, from the Upper Dir District in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa
province. The video shows the Policemen lined up on a
hillside, their hands tied behind their backs, standing
in front of armed Taliban fighters wearing scarves to
hide their faces. One of the fighters accuses the men
of killing six children. The fighters then open fire,
and after this systematically shoot each of the Policemen
in the head.
Upper Dir
District Police Officer (DPO) Mir Qasim Khan put the number
of victims in the video at 18, disclosing further that
they were Policemen and paramilitary Police personnel
captured on June 1: “It was a pre-dawn attack and that’s
why most of them are not wearing uniforms.” Pakistan Army
spokesman Major General Athar Abbas added that the Policemen
were captured when the Taliban staged an attack from Afghanistan
in Pakistan’s Upper Dir District.
Within
a span of one month, the Police in the restive Khyber
Pakhtunkhwa faced three suicide attacks. 10 Policemen
were killed and another five sustained injuries when two
Tehreek-e-Taliban Pakistan (TTP) suicide bombers, one
of them a burqa (veil)-clad woman, blew themselves
up inside a Police Station in Kolachi Town of Dera Ismail
Khan District on June 25, 2011. On May 26, 2011, a double-cabin
pickup van packed with 400 to 450 kilograms of explosive
material struck the barrier outside the Hangu Police Station,
killing 32 persons and injuring 60. A day earlier, a TTP
suicide bomber had driven a car packed with explosives
into a CID Police Station at University Road in Peshawar,
killing nine Policemen and injuring 29.
Claiming
responsibility for the June 25 attack, a TTP spokesman
Ahsanullah Ahsan said it was partly in revenge for the
US raid that killed al Qaeda ‘chief’ Osama bin Laden and
added that “this shows how much we hate Pakistani security
institutions’’. Ahsan had claimed responsibility for the
May 25 attack as well, declaring, "We accept responsibility
for this attack. Soon you will see bigger attacks. Revenge
for Osama can't be satisfied just with small attacks."
A January
6, 2011, report quoting Naushad Khan, Superintendent of
Police (SP), stated that more than 615 Police personnel
had been killed during the last seven years in Khyber
Pakhtunkhwa. “Around 90 Policemen were killed and 227
sustained injuries in different attacks across the province
in 2010,” the report added. Further, almost one among
every five Policemen who laid down their lives fighting
terrorists during this period was an officer.
According
to South Asia Terrorism Portal (SATP) database,
at least 417 Police personnel were killed and another
1,042 sustained injuries, since January 1, 2005.
Attacks
on Police in KP: 2005-2011
Years
|
Incidents
|
Policemen
Killed
|
Policemen
Injured
|
Suicide
attacks on Police
|
2005
|
0
|
0
|
0
|
0
|
2006
|
3
|
1
|
3
|
1
|
2007
|
45
|
49
|
184
|
7
|
2008
|
90
|
126
|
247
|
9
|
2009
|
72
|
105
|
305
|
19
|
2010
|
25
|
51
|
96
|
8
|
2011*
|
25
|
85
|
207
|
5
|
Total
|
260
|
417
|
1042
|
49
|
Source:
SATP, *Data till July 24, 2011
There has,
clearly, been a steady escalation since 2007, the year
of the Lal
Masjid (Red Mosque) operation in Islamabad.
While the number of incidents and fatalities increased
dramatically in 2008, there was significant decline in
2009 and 2010. 2011 has, once again, witnessed a spike
in attacks on the Police, with at least 85 personnel having
lost their lives in 25 attacks. The fatalities have included
several senior officers, prominent among whom are:
August
4, 2010: Additional Inspector General of Police Safwat
Ghayur was killed in a suicide attack outside his office
in Peshawar.
April 19,
2010: Deputy Superintendent of Police (DSP) Gulfat Hussain
was killed in a suicide attack in Qissa Khawani area of
Peshawar.
February
11, 2010: District Police Officer (DPO) Mohammad Iqbal
Marwat was killed in twin bomb blasts outside a Police
training centre in Bannu District.
June 5,
2009: Farid Hussain Bangash, DSP, Mardan (Rural), was
killed in a gun-battle when militants attacked a Buner-bound
joint Police and Frontier Constabulary (FC) convoy at
Natian in Mardan District.
April 27,
2009: DSP Asmatullah Khattak and his bodyguards were killed
on their way to Lakki Marwat from Bannu, when his van
struck a remote controlled bomb on the Lakki-Tajazai Road
in Lakki Marwat.
February
28, 2008: DSP Lakki Marwat, Javed Iqbal, was killed in
a bomb blast in southern Lakki Marwat. Later, Iqbal’s
funeral procession was attacked on March 1, 2008, in his
native Swat, in Mingora, by a suicide bomber, killing
over 60 people, including his son and another Police officer.
January
27, 2007: DIG Malik Mohammad Saad and DSP Khan Raziq were
killed in a suicide attack on a Muharram procession in
Peshawar.
December
18, 2006: Deputy Inspector General (DIG) of Police, Bannu,
Abid Ali, was killed along with his driver, while coming
from Bannu to Peshawar, near Matani town on Kohat Road.
It is significant
that the decline in incidents as well as Police fatalities
in the years 2009 and 2010 was the result of heavy military
presence and operations in the Province during this period.
The Swat chapter of the TTP had established control in
the Swat Valley through 2008 and early 2009, compelling
the Pakistan establishment to launch a major
military operation to flush out militants.
Operation Black Thunderstorm was launched
by the military on April 26, 2009, with the aim of retaking
Buner, Lower Dir, Swat and Shangla Districts. While Lower
Dir was targeted in the first phase, the second phase
of the operation started on April 28 in Buner. The military
confirmed that some 87 militants and four soldiers were
killed in fighting in the District between April 28 and
May 4. On May 5, the third phase of the operation, named
Rah-e-Rast (Path to Truth) started, with airborne
troops storming the militant-held Swat Valley. Operation
Rah-e-Rast ended on June 14, 2009, with
Pakistani troops consolidating their position in the four
Districts and going after the remaining pockets of resistance.
In more than a month of fighting, by June 15, 2009, 106
soldiers and 1,040 militants were killed. Sporadic fighting
continued, raising the death toll among the militants
to 1,935 by July 15, 2009. However, many militants fled
into Federally Administered Tribal Areas (FATA) and across
the border into Afghanistan. Crucially, however, no top
terrorist leader was killed in the entire operation, raising
the questions about the “success and credibility of the
operation”.
Reports
indicate that as many as 45,000 regular Army personnel
participated in operation Black Thunderstorm. With
a semblance of ‘peace restored’, the 37th division
of the Pakistan Army started moving out of Swat on February
1, 2011, leaving the 19th division behind to
control the entire District.
The Army
claimed that areas occupied by the terrorists had been
‘liberated fully’ by 2010, even as incidents of ‘urban
terrorism’ escalated. The responsibility of fighting terrorism
was shifted to the Police Force. The Police in KP has
a sanctioned strength of 78,320. With a provincial population
of about 22 million, this yields a fairly healthy ratio
of 356 policemen per 100,000 population, and a policeman
to area ratio of 1.05 policemen per square kilometer.
In addition, there are 82 platoons of FC stationed in
the Province. Commandant FC, Akbar Khan Hoti, has requested
an additional 124 platoons in KP to combat crime and terrorism,
and to secure volatile areas, once the military pulls
out. “The FC cannot combat militancy with its present
strength. After the Army completes its withdrawal, more
FC soldiers are required to take their place,” Hoti informed
the National Assembly Standing Committee on the Interior
on May 25, 2011.
According
to the White Paper 2010-11 of the Finance Department,
Government of Khyber Pakhtunkhwa, Budgetary allocations
to the Police Department in KP have risen dramatically
over the years, from PKR 3,693 million in 2005-06, to
21,042 million in 2010-11. Indeed, the 2010-11 allocation
was 117 per cent higher than the allocation for the preceding
year. The strength of the Force has also increased substantially,
recording a growth of over 41 per cent over just two years,
FY 2008-2009 and 2009-10. The White Paper notes, further,
“Sizeable amount has been spent on improvement of mobility,
communication, arms and ammunition...” In addition, according
to KP Minister for Finance Muhammad Humayun Khan the Province
also expected to receive PKR 15.2 billion as a special
grant for the Police from the Federal Government for the
war against terrorism.
KP’s Police
network is spread over 250 Police Stations, 343 Police
Posts, 365 patrolling posts, 23 Police Lines and 3 Training
Schools. A liberal package of incentives is now on offer,
and the White Paper notes, “The salaries of Police have...
been doubled and it is expected that it would bolster
the morale of the existing police personnel and encourage
others to join the force. Compensation for Police Shuhada
(martyrs) has been increased from Rs. (PKR) 500,000 to
Rs. 3,000,000.”
Most Police
Stations in the Province are protected with safety walls
and fortifications, though they remain vulnerable to suicide
bombings and rocket fire. Alarmed by the recent attacks,
the Police in the provincial capital, Peshawar, have initiated
further fortifications, even as Police Stations increasingly
become ‘no go’ areas for the common people.
Despite
this, Police morale remains at rock bottom. Suicide bombings
and brutal demonstrative executions have sapped the will
to fight and even the top Police leadership has tended
to express increasing hopelessness. On April 22, 2011,
Malik Naveed Khan, the KP Police Chief, stated, “a foreign
journalist once rightly termed this situation the ‘Hug
of Death’” and argued that facing a suicide bomber when
you know he can detonate his explosives at any time is
not an easy job. Police Spokesman Jalal Khan observed,
on June 27, 2011, “To stop entry of suicide bombers was
a difficult task and one would have to put one’s life
at stake for the purpose.”
Despite
substantial investments in the Police, the will and orientation
to fight the terrorists are conspicuous in their absence.
Worse, the Army’s ‘successful operations’ in the Province
do not appear to have done extraordinary damage to the
extremists’ capabilities, forcing no more than a temporary
relocation outside its borders. As the militants return
in strength to KP, the spiral of violence can only escalate,
with a disheartened Police Force offering ineffective
resistance to a rising terrorist rampage.
|
Meghalaya:
Disturbing the Peace
Veronica Khangchian
Research Associate, Institute for Conflict Management
On June
4, 2011, three Policemen were killed and two others sustained
injuries as Garo National Liberation Army (GNLA) militants
ambushed the Policemen at Thapadarenchi village in East
Garo Hills District. The outfit claimed that the ambush
was part of its "reverse operation" against
the Police. Significantly, it was on December 7, 2008,
when a Policeman was last killed by militants in the State.
Further,
on June 3, 2011, a ‘friendly fire’ incident resulting
from an error of identification resulted in two Police
fatalities, when two teams of Police commandos, engaged
in operations against the GNLA in East Garo Hills, at
Dorengchigre area in Durama Hills, came face to face.
The area lies close to the Simsang River, where GNLA has
significant strength.
Earlier,
on April 5, 2011, GNLA militants had killed five migrant
coal miners, and injured another at the Goka coal dumping
area in the South Garo Hills District.
According
to the South Asia Terrorism Portal (SATP) database,
11 persons, including five civilians, five Security Force
(SF) personnel and one militant, have been killed in terrorism
related incidents in the State in 2011 (till July 24),
all in incidents related to GNLA. There were 20 fatalities,
including 17 militants and three civilians, in 2010, of
which four (two civilians and two militants), were related
to GNLA.
The GNLA
is emerging as the number one threat in the State, which
was fast returning to peace prior to the outfit’s creation
in 2009. GNLA was formed by its present ‘chairman’, a
former Deputy Superintendent of Police (DSP), Pakchara
R. Sangma alias Champion R. Sangma. Former Achik
National Volunteer Council (ANVC)
leader, Sohan D. Shira, is the ‘commander-in chief’ of
the outfit. The GNLA reportedly has 70 cadres, of whom
an estimated 45 have received arms training, and has a
strong presence in the East and South Garo Hills Districts.
The Durama Hill Range near Dorengchigre area in East Garo
Hills is believed to house the GNLA headquarters, where
Shira resides. The other major camp of the militant group
is at Nengmandalgri of the same District.
Fighting
for a ‘sovereign Garoland' in the Western areas of Meghalaya,
GNLA has reported links with the National Socialist Council
of Nagaland-Isak-Muivah (NSCN-IM),
the United Liberation Front of Asom (ULFA)
and the Anti-talks Faction of the National Democratic
Front of Bodoland (NDFB-ATF).
The Police has not ruled out the possibility of NDFB-ATF
helping GNLA in carrying out the June 4 ambush. The outfit
has also forged an alliance with the Bangladesh-based
rebel A’chik Special Dragon Party.
To sustain
its activities, GNLA is engaged in extortion from coal-traders,
petrol tank owners and local businessmen. On June 29,
2011, suspected GNLA militants opened indiscriminate fire
on a Police outpost in the Dobu area of East Garo Hills
District, an area which has been a prime target for extortion
from coal barons. According to an April 24, 2011 report,
most non-Garo Government employees working in Garo Hills
have been abstaining from their duties due to the fear
of GNLA militants, who have served demand notes to them
asking for up to INR three million as "donation for
the interest and upliftment of the Garo people of Garo
Land and for making use of the resources of Garo Hills."
An Army source noted, on June 15, 2011, “Earlier ULFA
was mainly carrying out extortion on the Assam-Meghalaya
border. But after most of the ULFA cadres came over ground
to participate in the peace process, the ‘extortion business’
was virtually taken over by other outfits such as the
GNLA and Rabha Viper Army.”
Reports
indicate GNLA’s nexus with politicians in the State. On
April 29, 2011, dissident Garo Hills District Congress
legislators claimed to have received "threatening"
text messages from GNLA militants’, reportedly from Bangladesh,
asking them why they did not support Chief Minister (CM)
Mukul Sangma. "We have specific inputs which indicate
GNLA has some political patronage allowing the outfit
to carry out its activities openly," an unnamed senior
Police official said on December 10, 2010. A probe by
the Meghalaya Government is currently on to ascertain
whether politicians are “patronizing” the GNLA, and the
CM has stated, “It would be disastrous if any sympathiser
is found hand-in-glove with the group.”
Meanwhile,
on February 6, 2011, it was reported that the GNLA was
offering a ‘better package’ to attract Police constables
in the State to its fold. Unconfirmed sources suggest
that the GNLA was offering a monthly package of INR 400,000
to INR 500,000 to Police personnel to join the outfit,
and there are increasing worries that this may tempt at
least some Policemen to break ranks.
The GNLA
rise has worried other, now peaceful groups, in Meghalaya.
The Achik National Volunteer Council (ANVC), currently
under a truce with the Government of India (GoI), has
asked for its arms, which were deposited at the time of
the ceasefire in 2004, to be returned, to protect themselves
from the GNLA. In what could be an indication of intensified
rivalry between the outfits, the ANVC accused the GNLA
of trying to poach its cadres by offering up to INR 3
million. The ANVC also claimed that the GNLA was
working with Pakistan’s Inter Services Intelligence (ISI).
An ANVC release stated, on July 7, 2011, “ANVC’s intelligence
bureau has confirmed the GNLA’s connection with the ISI
and that Champion R. Sangma is in Bangladesh channelising
all other organisations of the North-East which are getting
the support of the ISI for exploiting the Indian soil.”
These questions had been raised earlier, and Champion
Sangma had, in May 2010, denied any link with the ISI,
declaring, "The ISI and several jihadi groups
extended help to the GNLA but I refused."
The SFs,
meanwhile, have had a few successes against the outfit.
Only three GNLA militants have been neutralized since
the group was formed. On June 27, 2010, two GNLA militants
were shot dead by a combined force of the Army and the
East Garo Hills District Police during an encounter in
Kharkutta area. In the latest incident, the Police shot
dead one GNLA militant at Rongrekgre village in East Garo
Hills on January 26, 2011. In a significant operation,
on July 8, 2011, the SFs neutralised a GNLA camp, regularly
visited by Shira, at Nengmandalgre, eight kilometres from
Williamnagar town in East Garo Hills District. The camp
was also giving shelter to GNLA’s West Khasi Hills’ ‘area
commander’ Savio Marak, who arrived in the area with his
cadres ostensibly for a briefing by Sohan D Shira. Earlier
on June 15, 2011, the SFs neutralized a GNLA camp located
in the foothills of Durama Forest in the same District.
Meanwhile, on May 15, 2010, GNLA ‘general secretary’,
Novembirth Ch. Marak was arrested from New Jalpaiguri
railway station in West Bengal, followed by the arrests
of ‘finance secretaries’, Solte Marak and Martin Sangma,
from Williamnagar of East Garo Hills District. SATP data
records the arrest of 20 GNLA cadres since its inception.
Facing mounting SF pressure, 20 GNLA militants, led by
the 'chief training instructor' of the outfit, Mingran
T. Sangma alias Lodrin T. Sangma, surrendered on
April 27, 2011. A total of 26 GNLA militants have surrendered
so far.
Worried
by the GNLA’s rise, two Combat Battalion for Resolute
Action (CoBRA) units of the Central Reserve Police Force
(CRPF) and five companies of the Border Security Force
were deployed in the State on July 12, 2011. This force
has been trifurcated, and a group each is to be based
in each of the three District Headquarters in the Garo
Hills – Tura, Williamnagar and Baghmara, with their area
of operations extending up to the West Khasi Hills District.
Earlier, 500 CRPF troopers were assisting the Meghalaya
Police and its Special Weapons and Tactics commandos,
to tackle the GNLA. The Meghalaya Police has a total strength
of 10,064 personnel, yielding a strong Police-population
ratio of 391 per 100,000.
However,
on July 20, 2011, Champion Sangma warned “Such deployment
will only strengthen our commitment to the cause of Garoland
and unite all sections of Garo society... The jungles
of Garo Hills shall be the graveyard for the so called
CoBRA and BSF Special Forces. We will send them back in
body bags.” On July 17, 2011, GNLA militants had threatened
to carry out serial blasts across the State if the combing
operations against the outfit were not immediately stopped.
However, on July 21, 2011, the GNLA clarified that it
had no intention of harming civilians and that their statement
was intended to indicate their capability to execute simultaneous
attacks on Government establishments in the State.
Meanwhile,
heavy movement of GNLA militants from the deep jungles
of the Durama Hill range and the Balpakram National Park
range, where the group is also believed to have bases,
has been reported. The Durama hill range is a tri-junction
connecting the three Districts of Garo Hills — West, East
and South Garo Hills. “As the operations have been intensified,
we have learnt that GNLA militants have been forced to
move to other safer places,” an unnamed Police official
said on July 18, 2011, adding that before fleeing Durama,
the GNLA militants destroyed six of their camps. There
are apprehensions that the GNLA militants could escape
into neighboring West Khasi Hills and Assam, while some
of them could cross over into Bangladesh. In a significant
development, however, BSF and Border Guards Bangladesh
(BGB), on July 8, 2011, agreed to share real-time information
to capture trans-border criminals and militants.
The deployment
of additional Force and aggressive operations against
the GNLA, if sustained, will have inevitable impact on
this group, and may well force it to the negotiating table,
even if a quick end to its capacities cannot be secured.
|
Weekly Fatalities: Major Conflicts in
South Asia
July 18-24, 2011
|
Civilians
|
Security
Force Personnel
|
Terrorists/Insurgents
|
Total
|
INDIA
|
|
Assam
|
1
|
0
|
0
|
1
|
Jammu &
Kashmir
|
3
|
0
|
4
|
7
|
Maharastra
|
1
|
0
|
0
|
1
|
Mizoram
|
1
|
0
|
0
|
1
|
Left-wing
Extremism
|
|
Chhattisgarh
|
10
|
0
|
0
|
10
|
Jharkhand
|
3
|
0
|
0
|
3
|
Maharashtra
|
3
|
0
|
0
|
3
|
Odisha
|
2
|
0
|
0
|
2
|
West Bengal
|
1
|
0
|
0
|
1
|
Total (INDIA)
|
25
|
0
|
4
|
29
|
NEPAL
|
0
|
0
|
1
|
1
|
PAKISTAN
|
|
Balochistan
|
16
|
2
|
2
|
20
|
FATA
|
15
|
3
|
76
|
94
|
Khyber Pakhtunkhwa
|
2
|
2
|
3
|
7
|
Sindh
|
53
|
0
|
1
|
54
|
Total (PAKISTAN)
|
86
|
7
|
82
|
175
|
Provisional
data compiled from English language media sources.
|
BANGLADESH
US
demands Bangladesh to extradite Taliban-trained
militants: The United States (US)
has demanded extradition of Bangladesh-born
militants who were recruited and trained
by the Taliban in Afghanistan. It has
submitted a list of Bangladeshi militants
and demanded the extradition of those
suspected militants now living in Bangladesh.
All
Headline News,
July 22, 2011.
Former
parliamentarian launches new Islamist
political party: A former Member
of Parliament, Mufti Shahidul Islam,
on July 21 launched a new Islamist political
party, Bangladesh Ganaseba Andolan.
Islam along with eight others earlier
defected from Khelafat Andolan in the
month of March. Tofajjul Haque Aziz,
Bangladesh Ganaseba Andolan's Secretary-General,
said the party's goal was to enlighten
the people on the positive aspects and
the self-sacrifice of Islamic ideology,
and establish a leadership of honest
people. BD
News24, July
22, 2011.
INDIA
Centre
warns VIPs of 'gift wrapped' bombs:
The Centre has sent an advisory to all
States, asking them to alert VIPs in
their areas not to accept any gifts
from unknown persons or from posts/couriers
as there may be explosives inside gift
packs or parcels. "The advisory was
sent to the States following an intelligence
input suggesting that terror modules
were exploring the possibility of sending
explosive material 'gift wrapped' to
prominent persons, including some politicians,"
said an official. Times
of India, July 21,
2011.
Assam
Ministers on militants' hit list, says
Tarun Gogoi: Chief Minister Tarun
Gogoi on July 22 said that Assam ministers
are on militant hit list. He also confirmed
the reported merger of Anti-Talks Faction
of United Liberation Front of Asom (ULFA-ATF),
People Liberation Army (PLA), and other
North-Eastern militant groups in Myanmar.
Earlier,
a report said that 40 Anti-Talks Faction
of United Liberation Front of Asom (ULFA-ATF)
militants, trained by Kachin Independence
Army (KIA), are trying to enter the
State before Independence Day (August
15) by crossing the Patkai hills from
Lohit and Changlang Districts of Arunachal
Pradesh. Sentinel;
Times
of India, July 19-23,
2011.
Security
agencies apprehensive about China's
help to several Manipur-based militant
groups: Security agencies are apprehensive
about China providing help to several
Manipur-based militant groups, including
People's Liberation Army (PLA), United
National Liberation Front (UNLF), People's
Revolutionary party of Kangleipak (PREPAK)
and Kanglei Yowal Kanna Lup (KYKL).
These groups might have come into some
sort of understanding joining hands
with Anti-talks faction of United Liberation
Front of Asom (ULFA-ATF), headed by
Paresh Baruah, Khaplang Faction of Nationalist
Socialist Council of Nagaland (NSCN
-K), Anti-Talks Faction of the National
Democratic Front of Boroland (NDFB-ATF)
and Communist Party of India-Maoist
(CPI-Maoist).Assam
Tribune, July 22,
2011.
Investigators
point the needle of suspicion towards
Indian Mujahideen behind 13/7: Investigations
into the July 13, 2011 blasts in Mumbai
(13/7) were focusing heavily on suspects
in Gujarat, with the Maharashtra Anti-Terrorism
Squad (ATS) reportedly getting major
leads pointing to the involvement of
the Indian Mujahideen (IM). Sources
said the Maharashtra ATS, with the help
of the Gujarat ATS, detained three suspects
from Ahmadabad who were believed to
be new IM recruits.
Meanwhile,
investigators also suspect that the
blasts could have been the handiwork
of a little-known militant outfit, Jam-i-yyathul
Ansarul Muslimeen, with a strong base
in South India. Another investigator
said the outfit functioned as a shadow
organisation of IM. DNA;
Times
of India, July
19, 2011.
13/7
mastermind believed to be hiding in
Bangladesh: Indian security agencies
believe that the mastermind of the July
13, 2011 Mumbai blasts (13/7), Abdullah
Khan of the Indian Mujahideen (IM),
is hiding in Bangladesh. Khan is now
operating the IM module, which is assigned
to maintain liaison with the Harkat-ul-Jihad-al
Islami Bangladesh (HuJI-B) and in a
joint venture, has recruited a few new
jihadists for their outfit. Investigators
said about six months ago, Khan was
stationed in Nepal and shuttled between
Bangladesh and Pakistan. All
Headline News,
July 23, 2011.
Militant
outfits are communicating through VoIP,
suspect intelligence agencies: Intelligence
agencies suspect that militant outfits
targeting India have moved their communications
significantly to Internet and other
possible innovative means. They have
for some time now been suspecting that
the terrorists had moved their communications
to Voice over Internet Protocol (VoIP),
a communication technology that helps
delivery of voice and multimedia data
over internet. Times
of India, July
19, 2011.
65,000
troops needed to fight Naxals, says
Army assessment report: In a detailed
assessment, the Army Chief and the seven
Army Commanders has decided to deploy
at least 60-65,000 troops to provide
an effective counter to the Naxal [Left
Wing Extremism] threat. The Army agreed
that at least six Army divisions will
be needed to cover Naxal-affected areas
in parts of Andhra Pradesh, Bihar, Chhattisgarh,
Jharkhand, Madhya Pradesh, Maharashtra,
Odisha and West Bengal. Indian
Express, July
20, 2011.
NEPAL
Prime Minister Jhala Nath Khanal
will hand over Government leadership
to UCPN-M after August 31, says UCPN-M
secretary C.P Gajurel: Unified Communist
Party of Nepal-Maoist (UCPN-M) secretary
C.P Gajurel on July 19 claimed that
Prime Minister Jhala Nath Khanal have
agreed to hand over the Government leadership
to his party after August 31 while signing
the seven-point agreement with the Maoist
party. Gajurel said that his party did
not pressurise Jhala Nath Khanal to
step down as he had already agreed to
make way for the Maoists after August
31. Nepal
News, July 20,
2011.
PAKISTAN
76
militants and 15 civilians among 94
persons killed during the week in FATA:
11 militants were killed and six others
injured during an encounter between
militants and Security Forces (SFs)
in the Ali Sherzai area of Kurram Agency
on July 24. In addition, at least nine
militants were killed and eight others
sustained injuries in clashes between
the Lashkar-e-Islam (LI) and Ansarul
Islam (AI) in Sandapal area in Tirah
valley in Khyber Agency.
An
anti-militant lashkar (tribal
militia) killed 13 militants during
clashes in Parachinar of Kurram Agency
on July 23.
Seven
militants were killed and as many volunteers
of tribal lashkar injured in
a clash between militants and tribal
lashkar in Neka Ziarat area of Kurram
Agency on July 22. Also, six militants
were killed while two militants and
a soldier sustained injuries during
an encounter in Sheraki area of Orakzai
Agency.
Four
militants were killed in a United States
(US) drone strike that fired two missiles
in a house in Khushali Toori Khel area
of Mir Ali tehsil (revenue unit)
of North Waziristan Agency on July 21.
The
pro-Government tribesmen killed six
militants during clashes in Neka Ziarat
area of central Kurram Agency on July
20.
11
militants and a soldier were killed
during an encounter between SFs and
militants in Ormegai area of Kurram
Agency on July 19.
Five
persons were killed and two others injured
in an explosion in Pir Khel village
of Shakai area near Wana, the main town
of South Waziristan Agency (SWA).
Four
were killed and two others were injured
when the mortar bombs fired across the
Afghanistan border slammed in to a paramilitary
Frontier Corps checkpost in the Angoor
Adda area of SWA.
Eight
militants and a trooper were killed
in an encounter in Dabori area of Orakzai
Agency on July 18.
Dawn; Daily
Times; The
News; Tribune,
July 19-25, 2011.
54
persons killed in Sindh during the week:
A total of 56 persons were killed in
Sindh. Three persons were killed in
Karachi on July 18; another eight on
July 19; one on July 20; one on July
21; 13 on July 22: eight on July 23
and 20 on July 24.
Dawn; Daily
Times; The
News; Tribune,
July 19-25, 2011.
Taliban
execute 16 Pakistani Policemen on video:
The Taliban released a video showing
the execution of 16 Pakistani Policemen,
captured during a raid in June from
Pakistan's Upper Dir District in Khyber
Pakhtunkhwa province. The video shows
the Policemen lined up on a hillside,
their hands tied behind their backs,
standing in front of armed Taliban fighters
wearing scarves to hide their faces.
One of the fighters accused the men
of executing six children. Daily
Times,
July 19, 2011.
Al
Qaeda plans animated cartoon film for
recruiting children, says an al Qaeda
affiliate: An al Qaeda affiliate
said on July 20 that it plans to roll
out a Disney-like animated cartoon aimed
at recruiting children to the terror
network. Scenes from the proposed short
film show young boys dressed in battle
fatigues and participating in raids,
killings and terror plots. It is the
latest attempt by the terror organisation
to use multimedia to draw in potential
recruits. Times
of India,
July 21, 2011.
Mullah
Omar death report false, claims Afghan
Taliban: The Afghan Taliban's spokesman
Zabihullah Mujahid said on July 20 that
their mobile phones, email accounts
and a website had been hacked to send
out false messages to the media claiming
the movement's supreme leader, Mullah
Omar, had died on May 23. "This is the
work of American intelligence, and we
will take revenge on the telephone network
providers," said Zabiullah. Daily
Times,
July 21, 2011.
US
court charges 'Pakistani agents' for
illegal lobbying over Kashmir: Two
US citizens have been charged with illegally
lobbying the United States for the Pakistan
Government and Inter-Services Intelligence
(ISI) over the Kashmir, US authorities
said on July 19. Federal Bureau of Investigation
(FBI) agents arrested Syed Ghulam Nabi
Fai (62), in Virginia on charges that
he failed to register as an agent of
a foreign Government. Zaheer Ahmad (63)
was also charged but is believed to
be in Pakistan. Both are naturalized
US citizens. Dawn,
July 20, 2011.
Pakistan
nurtured terror groups to fight proxy
war against India, says US Official
Admiral James A Winnefeld: Pakistan
nurtured extremist groups to fight "proxy
irregular" war against India, while
its military benefited from presenting
New Delhi as a threat, Admiral James
A Winnefeld, the next Vice Chairman
of the Joint Chiefs of Staff ,said on
July 21. "Pakistan has viewed India
itself and Indian (or any other nation's)
domination of Afghanistan as an existential
threat, and has taken steps it believes
are necessary to counter this threat,
including developing nuclear weapons
and nurturing extremist groups to fight
proxy irregular warfare," Admiral James
added. Times
of India,
July 22, 2011.
Killer
of Afghanistan President Hamid Karzai's
aide received calls from Pakistan:
The killer of Afghanistan President
Hamid Karzai's close ally Jan Mohammad
Khan had received telephone calls before
and after the deadly shooting from Pakistan,
the Afghanistan Interior Minister Besmullah
Mohammadi told parliament on July 19.
Jan, the former southern Uruzgan province's
Governor and a key ally of Karzai, was
killed in a gun attack at his Kabul
house on July 17, just days after the
President's younger brother was killed.
Daily
Times,
July 20, 2011.
Islamabad
must press Afghan Taliban for reconciliation,
says US Secretary of State Hillary Clinton:
US Secretary of State Hillary Clinton
said on July 20 that Washington expected
Islamabad to press Afghan Taliban insurgents
to join the reconciliation process in
Afghanistan. Clinton said, "Pakistan
must prevent its territory being used
for attacks that destabilise Afghanistan
or India, and deny al Qaeda the space
to regroup and plan new violence". Daily
Times,
July 21, 2011.
Abandoning
Pakistan not an option, says US:
The US-Pakistan relationship is complicated
and important but walking away from
the ties with the key regional country
is not an option, President Barack Obama's
National Security Adviser Tom Donilon
said on July 22. He said that maintaining
ties with Pakistan and working with
it serves American national security
interests. Daily
Times,
July 23, 2011.
SRI LANKA
TNA
sweeps local body election in Northern
Province: The pro-Liberation Tigers
of Tamil Eelam (LTTE) political group
Tamil National Alliance (TNA) emerged
as a major force in Northern Province
with an overwhelming vote in its favour
handing it two-thirds of the local council
seats. The TNA won 18 of the 26 councils,
TULF won two seats and the ruling UPFA
could muster only two even as it won
45 of the 65 total seats that went to
polls all over the country.
Times
of India, July
24, 2011.
TNA
seeks political solution within the
framework of united and undivided country:
The Tamil National Alliance (TNA) said
on July 20 that the party was working
at building a political solution within
the framework of a united and undivided
country. According to the TNA, such
a political solution would enable Tamil
people to live in security and dignity,
fulfilling their legitimate political,
economic, social and cultural aspirations.
Colombo
Page, July 21,
2011.
The South
Asia Intelligence Review (SAIR) is a weekly service that
brings you regular data, assessments and news briefs on
terrorism, insurgencies and sub-conventional warfare, on
counter-terrorism responses and policies, as well as on
related economic, political, and social issues, in the South
Asian region.
SAIR is a project
of the Institute
for Conflict Management
and the
South
Asia Terrorism Portal.
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