| |
SOUTH ASIA INTELLIGENCE REVIEW
Weekly Assessments & Briefings
Volume 11, No. 2, July 16, 2012
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
|
Drone
Success
Tushar Ranjan Mohanty
Research Associate, Institute for Conflict Management
Continuing
it’s highly controversial but indisputably successful
covert drone operations in Pakistan’s tribal area, the
US, in one of its deadliest drone strikes, killed 24 suspected
terrorists and injured another 10 at the Gorwaik village
of the Dattakhel area in the North Waziristan Agency (NWA)
of the Federally Administered Tribal Areas (FATA), on
July 6, 2012. Datta Khel is considered to be a stronghold
of Hafiz Gul Bahadur, a Taliban ‘commander’ accused of
sending fighters across the border to fight NATO troops
in Afghanistan. Unlike the Tehreek-e-Taliban Pakistan
(TTP),
Hafiz Gul Bahadur has a secret deal with Islamabad not
to attack Pakistani Security Forces (SFs) and, in lieu,
has freedom to operate from Pakistan.
Earlier,
on July 1, 2012, eight terrorists were killed in a US
drone attack on a compound in the Kund Ghar area of the
Shawal tehsil (revenue unit), 50 kilometres southwest
of Miranshah, the NWA headquarters. The attack also killed
cadres loyal to Gul Bahadur, and included some foreign
militants belonging to the Turkmenistan Islamic Movement
(TIM).
With Pakistan
continuing to provide support and safe haven to a range
of Islamist terrorist formations, including a number of
factions operating against International Security Assistance
Force (ISAF) and Afghan National Security Forces (ANSF)
troops in Afghanistan, the US opted for drone operations
way back in 2004, with the first such attack launched
on June 18, 2004, at Wana, the regional headquarters of
the South Waziristan Agency (SWA). The South Asia Terrorism
Portal (SATP) database has, thus far, recorded
244 such attacks, in which at least 2,303 persons have
been killed (all data till July 15, 2012).
Drone
attacks in Pakistan: 2004-2012
Years
|
Incidents
|
Killed
|
2004
|
1
|
5
|
2005
|
1
|
1
|
2006
|
0
|
0
|
2007
|
1
|
20
|
2008
|
19
|
156
|
2009
|
46
|
536
|
2010
|
90
|
831
|
2011
|
59
|
548
|
2012
|
28
|
312
|
Total*
|
245
|
2409
|
*Data
till July 15, 2012
Crucially,
a number of top terrorists have been killed in drone strikes,
including:
June 4,
2012: Abu Yahya al-Libi, the ‘second-in-command’ of the
al Qaeda, reportedly killed in Hisokhel, in the east of
Miranshah. Though White House spokesman Jay Carney on
June 6, 2012, stated that “our Government has been able
to confirm al-Libi’s death,” two al Qaeda-linked websites,
Ansar and Alfidaa, on June 10, 2012, claimed
that Libi was alive. Another 14 terrorists were killed
in the attack.
February
9, 2012: Badr Mansoor, a Pakistani citizen who served
as al Qaeda's Pakistan chapter ‘commander’ and a key link
to the Taliban and Pakistani jihadi groups, was killed
near Miranshah.
October
13, 2011: Jan Baz Zadran, top aide to the Haqqani Network
leader Sirajuddin Haqqani, was killed in a US drone attack
on a militant outpost on a hill in Zeba Mountain, close
to the Afghan border in SWA.
September
11, 2011: Abu Hafs al Shahri, a senior al Qaeda leader
who served as the ‘operations chief for Pakistan’, was
killed in the Hisokhel village of NWA.
August
22, 2011: Atiyah Abd al Rahman, a senior al Qaeda leader
who served as Osama bin Laden's chief of staff and a top
‘operational commander’, was killed in Mirkhunkhel area
near Mir Ali in NWA.
June 11,
2011: Ilyas Kashmiri, the leader of al
Qaeda's Lashkar al Zil and the ‘operational
commander’ of Harkat-ul-Jihad-al-Islami (HuJI)
was killed in a US drone strike in Wana Bazaar area of
SWA. He was a member of al Qaeda's external operations
council.
February
14, 2010: Abdul Haq al Turkistani, the "overall leader"
of the East Turkistan Islamic Party (ETIP), was killed
in the Mir Ali town of NWA.
September
14, 2009: Najmiddin Jalolov, the leader of the Jama'at
al-Jihad al-Islami, a breakaway faction of the Islamic
Movement of Uzbekistan (IMU) and affiliated with al Qaeda
operations in Central Asia and Russia, was killed in the
Mir Ali area of NWA.
August
27, 2009: Tahir Yuldashev, the founder of the IMU, was
killed in the Kaniguram area in Laddha, SWA.
August
5, 2009: Baitullah Mehsud, the chief of the TTP, was killed
in a drone attack on his father-in-law’s house in Zangara
village of the Laddha sub-division, SWA.
January
1, 2009: Osama al Kini aka Fahid Mohammed Ally
Msalam, al Qaeda's operations chief for Pakistan, who
was also wanted for the 1998 bombings of US embassies
in Kenya and Tanzania, was killed in the Karikot area
of Wana, SWA.
November
19, 2008: Abdullah Azzam al Saudi, a teacher and mentor
of Osama bin Laden, who also liaised between al Qaeda
and TTP, was killed in SWA.
October
31, 2008: Abu Jihad al Masri, the leader of the Egyptian
Islamic Group and the chief of al Qaeda's intelligence
shura, was killed in Wana, SWA. Al Masri also directed
al Qaeda's external operations in Egypt.
September
8, 2008: Abu Haris, the al Qaeda chief in Pakistan, died
of injuries in a drone attack in Miranshah, NWA.
July 28,
2008: Abu Khabab al Masri, the chief of al Qaeda's weapons
of mass destruction program and a ‘master bomb maker’,
was killed in a compound in SWA near the Afghan border.
Evidently,
the effectiveness of the drones is beyond question, particularly
in view of the fact that Pakistani SFs have failed to
eliminate any significant top leader of terrorist groups
operating from their soil into the neighbourhood, and
even as the Pakistani establishment continues to deny
the presence of these various terrorist formations. Crucially,
moreover, the recent killing of al-Libi has once again
reconfirmed the fact that Pakistan’s tribal areas continue
to serve as sanctuary for the top leadership of al Qaeda
and Afghan Taliban. Indeed, John Brennan, the US Deputy
National Security Advisor, referring to al Qaeda chief
Ayman al-Zawahiri’s presence in FATA, stated, on April
30, 2012, "We believe he (Zawahiri) is in that region
of the world, as well as other al-Qaeda leaders that continue
to borough into areas of... the Federally Administered
Tribal Areas of Pakistan. We're not going to relent until
they're brought to justice one way or the other."
Interestingly,
Pakistan has resisted mounting US pressure to launch an
offensive in NWA, arguing that its Forces are too overstretched
in the fight against the local Taliban (TTP) to take on
an enemy that poses no threat to Pakistan. On June 1,
2011, for instance, then-Prime Minister Yousaf Raza Gilani
had stated, “We are not fond of any military action and
we want to have an exit strategy”, adding further that
the Government would “take action when its writ is challenged”.
Evidently, the prevailing conditions, in this interpretation,
do not constitute a ‘challenge’ to the Pakistan Government’s
writ.
Despite
the tremendous success of the drone strikes, these have
come under severe criticism from both within and outside
Pakistan. Pakistan has, of course, vehemently opposed
the attacks, arguing that they are unlawful, against international
law and a violation of sovereignty. On April 1, 2012,
Gilani thus argued that US drone attacks violated Pakistani
sovereignty and created a “negative impact”, giving rise
to deep misgivings between the Pakistani people and the
US.
Elements
within the ‘international community’ have also criticized
the drone campaigns on the grounds that they have claimed
many innocent lives. According to a report compiled by
the London-based Bureau of Investigative Journalism
(BIJ), published on February 6, 2012, 260 strikes by
Predator and Reaper drones have been recorded since President
Barack Obama took office in 2009, in which between 282
and 535 civilians, respectively, including over 60 children,
had been ‘credibly reported’ killed. American officials
claimed that the number cited by BIJ was “too high”,
though they acknowledged that “at least several dozen
civilians” had lost their lives “inadvertently” in strikes
aimed at militant suspects. They questioned the accuracy
of the higher claims, alleging that accounts might be
concocted by militants or falsely confirmed by residents
who feared extremist retaliation.
Nevertheless,
on July 2, 2012, BIJ observed that fewer civilians had
died in US drone strikes in Pakistan, so far, in 2012,
than in any other comparable period in the last four years.
It noted that between three and 24 civilians were reported
killed by drones in Pakistan from January to June 2012.
Reported civilian casualty rates have not been this low
since the first half of 2008, when between 12 and 21 civilians
reportedly died in attacks ordered by then US President
George W. Bush. Civilian fatalities this year were also
a marked decline against the 62 to 103 civilians reported
killed by drone strikes in Pakistan in the first six months
of 2011. According to the report, between 2,496 and 3,202
persons had been reported killed by drones in Pakistan
since 2004. Among them were 482 to 832 civilians, 175
of them children. Significantly, President Obama, on January
30, 2012, had stated that US drone attacks in Pakistan
had “not caused a huge number of civilian casualties.”
The impact
of the drone attacks within Pakistan has, however, been
politically devastating. A report by the Washington-based
PEW Global Survey claimed that about 74 per cent
of Pakistanis now consider the US an enemy, up from 69
percent last year [2011] and 64 percent three years ago.
According to the report, Barack Obama is held in exceedingly
low regard by Pakistanis, and civilian casualties in drone
attacks are one of the major reasons for this.
The US,
nevertheless, has justified the use of drones on grounds
of necessity. Terming the drone attacks on Pakistani soil
as ‘self defence’, US Defence Secretary Leon Panetta on
June 6, 2012, thus noted,
We
have made it very clear to Pakistani leaders that
we will continue to defend ourselves... This is
about our sovereignty as well… The leadership of
those that were involved in planning (the 9/11)
attacks located (themselves) in Pakistan...
|
Further,
on June 7, 2012, US Secretary of State Hillary Clinton
implicitly defending Washington's use of drone strikes,
said,
We
will always maintain our right to use force against
groups such as al Qaeda that have attacked us and
still threaten us with imminent attack. In doing
so, we will comply with the applicable law, including
the laws of war, and go to extraordinary lengths
to ensure precision and avoid the loss of innocent
life.
|
Significantly,
the July 6, 2012, drone strikes took place just two days
after the first NATO truck entered Afghanistan through
Pakistan after a break of more than seven months, reaffirming
the US intent to continue with drone attacks, ignoring
Pakistani objections and resentment over the issue. Indeed,
discontinuation of the drone strikes was one of the major
preconditions Pakistan had articulated for reopening the
NATO supply routes. On July 3, 2012, Pakistan agreed
to reopen its border to NATO supply convoys into Afghanistan
after the US Secretary of State Hillary Clinton offered
an apology for the loss of life in NATO’s aerial attack
on the Salala border check-post in FATA on November 26,
2011, which killed 24 Pakistani soldiers.
John Brennan,
President Barack Obama’s Counterterrorism Adviser, stressing
that targeted drone strikes in other countries were legal,
stated, on April 30, 2012, that “as a matter of international
law, the United States is in an armed conflict with al
Qaeda, the Taliban, and associated forces, in response
to the 9/11 attacks, and we may also use force consistent
with our inherent right of national self-defence.” US
President Barack Obama, moreover, had ordered a ‘sharp
increase’ in drone strikes in Pakistan’s tribal areas
in recent months, Bloomberg quoted two US officials
as disclosing on June 9. The US officials were further
quoted as saying that Obama’s decision to increase drone
attacks reflected the “mounting US frustration with Pakistan
over a growing list of disputes”.
The US
has remained rightly adamant on its policy of continuing
covert drone operations in terrorist safe havens on Pakistani
soil, though its campaigns have come under severe challenge
on grounds of the civilian fatalities inflicted. With
greater emphasis on the credibility of intelligence flows
and the precision of attacks, it should be possible to
address the legitimate concerns in this regard, though
Pakistan’s perverse support to terrorist formations operating
in the neighbourhood from its soil will ensure that domestic
opinion is constantly whipped up against the US operations.
|
Assam:
Troubling Remnants
Giriraj Bhattacharjee
Research Assistant, Institute for Conflict Management
On June
23, 2012, Security Forces (SFs) killed four militants,
including three Dimasa National Revolutionary Front (DNRF)
and one Nationalist Socialist Council of Nagaland-Isak
Muivah (NSCN-IM)
cadres, in an encounter at Milubra village, 16 kilometers
from Lungting in north of the Dima Hasao District and
51 kilometers from its administrative headquarters, Haflong.
A cache of arms, including four AK-47 rifles, 236 rounds
of ammunition and two Chinese grenades; mobile handsets
and a number of NSCN-IM receipt books meant for extortion
were recovered. SFs also arrested one NSCN-IM militant
following the encounter.
The
incident occurred after the Seven Sister’s Post
reported, on June 22, that the Police, based on concrete
reports of NSCN-IM activities in Dima Hasao, had registered
a case and started an operation to flush out the militants.
Significantly, the last major incident (involving three
or more fatalities) in the District took place on February
15, 2011, when the Dimasa National Democratic Front (DNDF)
'commander-in-chief', Bihari Dimasa, and another two militants
of the group, were killed in an encounter with the SFs.
NSCN-IM
& NSCN-Khaplang (NSCN-K)
appear to be attempting to revive the insurgency in the
District, following the decimation of smaller groups,
as well as the engagement of larger Dimasa formations
in peace talks. The NSCN-IM was known to supply of arms
and ammunition and provide training to Dima Hasao based
militant outfits over the years, commencing with the initiators
of the Dimasa rebellion, the Dimasa National Security
Force (DNSF). DNSF ‘chairman’ Bharat Langthasa and a large
number of cadres, however, surrendered on November 17,
1994. However, remnants of the group formed the Dima Halam
Daogah (DHD),
which was also supported by the NSCN-IM. Relations between
DHD and NSCN-IM subsequently soured as a result of NSCN’s
efforts to consolidate ‘Greater
Nagalim’ and DHD’s demand to incorporate
Nagaland’s commercial capital, Dimapur, into its proposed
‘Dimaraji State’. The NSCN-IM subsequently shifted support
to the breakaway Black Widow (BW) aka Jewel Garlosa
faction of the DHD (DHD-J). The truncated DHD was thereafter
known as DHD-Nunisa (DHD-N).
2009 had
seen a renewal of the active involvement of both Naga
factions – NSCN-IM and NSCN-K – in the State after a gap
of many years, even as it witnessed the polarization of
the majority Dimasa and other tribesmen in the District.
In early 2009, the Zemi Naga-Dimasa ethnic
clashes resulted in the loss of at
least 70 lives, with more than 37 persons sustaining injuries,
while 614 houses were set ablaze in clashes that began
on March 19 that year. The immediate provocation was apparently
the killing of four Zemi Naga tribals in the Mahur Sub-division
of the District between March 19 and 23, 2009. The NSCN
factions and BW/ DHD-J were thought to be responsible
for the clashes.
Another
controversial move that added fuel to the fire was the
constitution of a Group of Ministers (GoM) Committee under
D.P. Goala on September 9, 2009, to look into the renaming
of the then North Cachar (NC) Hills District, as demanded
by DHD-J. The GoM Committee submitted its recommendations
on February 5, 2010, giving approval, in principal, to
the change in nomenclature. The District was renamed Dima
Hasao on April 1, 2010. The decision aggrieved the non-Dimasa
tribesmen in the District.
This polarization
over the renaming of the District and the Zemi-Dimasa
clashes led to the formation of the NSCN-IM – backed Hills
Tiger Force (HTF).
HTF opposed the renaming and took up the cause of bifurcation
of the Autonomous Council. HTF, an outfit mainly drawn
from Zemi, Kuki and Hmar tribesman, also carried out two
attacks against Dimasa villagers and several attacks on
the railway infrastructure in the District. The group,
however, suffered major reverses following SF operations,
and has since maintained a low profile. HTF denied its
collaboration with NSCN-IM, though recent reports have
demonstrated that it received support from both the NSCN-IM
and its rival NSCN-K. HTF has been involved in just two
incidents [including one allegedly carried out jointly
with NSCN-K] since the arrest of its top leaders in 2011.
Meanwhile,
a number of small Dimasa militant formations, created
by deserters of the parent outfits [According to a February
8, 2012, report, 27 militants from DHD-J and seven from
DHD-N had fled their ‘designated camps’ since 2010.],
in many cases supported by Naga militants, have emerged
in the District, after the en masse surrender of DHD-J
in 2009, to occupy the vacated space. The short lived-
DHD-James was the first to emerge and to surrender, followed
by DNDF, the latter led Janata Maramsa alias Bihari
Dimasa, earlier a member of DHD-J. Sustained SF operations
led the group to give up arms on August 3, 2011.
A little-known
National Dimasa Protection Army (NDPA), formed on December
2011, is currently present in the District. Curiously,
the NDPA ‘headquarters’ are located at Dimapur. The NSCN-IM
– backed DNRF was also formed when fifteen former militants
of the DHD-N reportedly joined hands with the Naga militant
outfit in 2010, with both groups agreeing to carry out
a joint extortion drive in the District, while NSCN-IM
provided arms training and support to DNRF cadres and
shelter to the DNRF militant leadership.
The DNRF
with an estimated cadre strength of 30, is led by R.J.
Dimasa alias Arje Dimasa, Soten Dimasa and Jensingh
Dimasa. Both DHD-N and DHD-J have clarified that they
have never heard of this leading trio, though an unnamed
DHD-N source suggested that they could have adopted new
names. Some news reports suggest that the group was formed
in 2011 and was led by its 'chairman' Hasong Dimasa and
'finance secretary' Diamond Dimasa. According to 'publicity
secretary' Black Dimasa, the aim of the outfit is to "ensure
safety and security of the Dimasa people living in the
region, and all-round development of Dima Hasao District."
He also claimed that DNRF was concerned about the demand
raised by the NC Hills Indigenous Students Forum (NCHISF)
to bifurcate the Dima Hasao District: "We oppose
the demand for bifurcation at all costs. We can't allow
the district to weaken geographically by dividing it further
in the name of any community or group of people."
However,
DNRF on July 4, 2012, suffered a major setback when SFs
arrested its top leaders, identified as ‘deputy commander-in-chief’,
Manjit Phanglo alias Main Dimasa and ‘vice-chairman’
Nilesh Thousen alias Thairing Dimasa. SFs have
also arrested eight DNRF cadres since the formation of
the group.
Dima Hasao
District is a sparsely populated area of 4,890 square
kilometers, and a population of 213,529. It is home to
as many as 18 Hill tribes, and has extensive unguarded
borders with the insurgency-affected States of Manipur
and Nagaland. In the absence of any inter-state border
outposts, the border has turned into a free corridor for
militants.
Joint Secretary
(Northeast), Shambhu Singh, of the Union Ministry for
Home Affairs (UMHA), on January 8, 2012, expressed his
concern over the extortion activities in various Assam
Districts and conceded that, according to information
available with his Ministry, rampant extortion was ongoing
in areas such as Kokrajhar, Udalguri, Baksa [all three
are in Bodoland Territorial Council], Darrang, Dima Hasao,
Karbi Anglong, etc.
According
to Police sources, NSCN-IM militants recently started
issuing notices to villages of Khetra, Didamora, Tivik,
Prasademik, and Khepre in Dima Hasao District, lying along
the Assam-Nagaland border, asking them to pay ‘taxes’
at the rate of INR 200 per household. Additional Superintendent
of Police (ASP) SS Panesar stated that the Police were
aware of the problem, and had filed cases of extortion.
He asserted that the issue of demand notes in the Hill
District would soon be stopped. Recent forays into the
District by the NSCN factions could also be linked to
two National projects there, the INR 4073.50-crore Lumding-Silchar
Jiribam-Badarpur-Kumarghat broad gauge conversion project,
and the multi-million Mahasadak (East West corridor) Project,
which could be potentially lucrative extortion targets.
The extortion
networks extend well into the District Headquarters, Haflong,
with NSCN-IM rebels demanding substantial amounts from
businesspersons in the town.
The revival
of militant activities in the District is visible in the
continuous of arrests of cadres. According to the South
Asian Terrorism Portal database, since 2009, the SFs
have arrested 16 NSCN-IM militants and 3 NSCN-K militants
in the District, though there were no arrests in the preceding
few years. The two DHD factions – Nunisa and Jewel groups
– were also the biggest violators of ceasefire rules in
the State, with 462 militants from these groups arrested
on charges of extortion, abduction and other crimes. 82
weapons were also seized from them.
Despite
continuing troubles in the District, on June 12, 2012,
the Union Government signed a draft Memorandum of Settlement
(MoS) with the DHD-N, while an agreement with the rival
DHD-J had also reportedly been prepared. The draft MoS
has been sent to the State Government for approval by
the State Cabinet. The draft MoS was signed following
a prolonged deadlock over incorporation of over 90 villages
spread across the neighbouring Karbi Anglong, Cachar and
Nagaon Districts, into the existing Dima Hasao District.
The important points of the proposed draft MoS include
the incorporation of a few contiguous Dimasa inhabited
villages with the existing Dima Hasao District, a financial
package worth some INR 2 billion to INR 2.5 billion for
the next five years, and recruitment of about 1,500 surrendered
militants and other able bodied youth from the District
into the State Police, Central Paramilitary Forces, Assam
Rifles and the Army. On the issue of Dimasa living in
Nagaland, DHD-N has reportedly demanded that the Central
Government should include a special provision for them
as and when it signed any agreement with the NSCN-IM leadership.
The signing
of an interim accord between the DHD-N and Central Government
is a step towards the possible mellowing of the Dimasa
insurgency. However, the sentiments and interests of non-Dimasa
tribals living in the District may act as a drag on the
peace process, even as continuous violation of ceasefire
rules and the spillover of militant (principally extortion)
activities from and into the neighbouring districts, continue
to undermine the prospects of an enduring and comprehensive
peace. Crucially, as long as the NSCN factions in neighbouring
Nagaland continue to breach ceasefire rules with impunity,
simmering difficulties in the contiguous areas of Assam
will persist.
|
Weekly Fatalities: Major
Conflicts in South Asia
July 10-16,
2012
|
Civilians
|
Security
Force Personnel
|
Terrorists/Insurgents
|
Total
|
INDIA
|
|
Assam
|
1
|
0
|
3
|
4
|
Meghalaya
|
2
|
0
|
0
|
2
|
Nagaland
|
0
|
0
|
1
|
1
|
Manipur
|
0
|
0
|
1
|
1
|
Jammu and
Kashmir r
|
0
|
0
|
1
|
1
|
Left-wing
Extremism
|
|
Jharkhand
|
1
|
0
|
0
|
1
|
Odisha
|
1
|
0
|
0
|
1
|
Total (INDIA)
|
5
|
0
|
6
|
11
|
PAKISTAN
|
|
Balochistan
|
40
|
1
|
0
|
41
|
FATA
|
1
|
2
|
16
|
19
|
Khyber Pakhtunkhwa
|
4
|
1
|
0
|
5
|
Punjab
|
3
|
17
|
0
|
20
|
Sindh
|
31
|
2
|
0
|
33
|
Total (PAKISTAN)
|
80
|
22
|
16
|
118
|
Provisional
data compiled from English language media sources.
|
INDIA
LeT
planning
major
terror
attacks
in J&K
and
elsewhere
in India,
says
arrested
LeT
operative
Abu
Jundal:
One
of the
handlers
of the
November
26,
2008
(26/11)
Mumbai
terrorist
attacks'
gunmen
and
arrested
Lashkar-e-Toiba
(LeT)
operative
Syed
Zaibuddin
Ansari
alias
Abu
Jundal
told
interrogators
that
the
LeT
is planning
major
terror
attacks
in Jammu
and
Kashmir
(J&K)
and
elsewhere
in India.
"They
(militants)
are
planning
big
strikes
in Kashmir,"
a source
said,
citing
Jundal's
interrogation.
Jundal
also
told
his
interrogators
that
the
group
was
planning
to push
hundreds
of trained
gunmen
and
weapons
into
Kashmir.
Times
of India,
July
14,
2012.
11
religious
places
in Maharashtra
on terror
radar,
says
Maharashtra
Government:
The
Maharashtra
Government
told
the
State
Assembly
on July
9 that
several
places
of religious
importance
in the
state
are
on the
terror
hit-list.
The
State
Government
said
that
Indian
Mujahideen
(IM)
is believed
to be
behind
the
terror
plan.
Zee
News,
July
10,
2012.
Malda
District
fast
becoming
centre
for
Poppy
Cultivation,
says
NCB
report:
Malda
District
of West
Bengal
is fast
becoming
the
prime
destination
for
illicit
poppy
cultivation,
according
to Narcotic
Control
Bureau
(NCB)
reports
for
2011-2012.
The
agency
has
destroyed
poppy
crops
cultivated
in 714
acres
of land
in West
Bengal.
Of this,
711
acres
of land
was
located
in Malda
and
three
acres
in Hooghly
and
Burdwan
Districts.
Malda
is already
known
for
illegal
cross-border
trade
and
being
the
entry
point
of Fake
Indian
Currency
Notes
(FICNs)
to India
from
Bangladesh.
Indian
Express,
July
14,
2012.
Threat
of terrorism
remains
in Punjab,
says
Union
Home
Minister
P. Chidambaram:
Union
Home
Minister
P. Chidambaram
on July
13 said
the
threat
of terrorism
remains
in Punjab
but
expressed
confidence
about
the
government's
ability
to tackle
any
attempt
to thwart
peace
in the
state.
He commented,
''Punjab
is by
no means
free
of all
terrorism-related
activities.
We are
keeping
a watch.
We have
inputs
that
some
individuals
and
groups
are
busy
trying
to revive
terrorism
in Punjab.
Nine
arrests
were
made
in 2011
and
47 in
2010."
Times
of India,
July
14,
2012.
No
troop
reduction
in Jammu
and
Kashmir,
says
Army:
A senior
Army
official
on July
9 said
there
was
no move
to reduce
the
number
of troops
deployed
in the
Jammu
and
Kashmir
as it
might
lead
to problems
for
security
forces
engaged
in counter
terrorist
operations.
He commented,
"No,
there
is no
such
proposal...
We have
to carry
on the
pressure
on terrorists.
If you
let
anything
loose,
then
we may
have
problems".
Times
of India,
July
10,
2012.
NEPAL
Gyanendra
Shah
wants
to be
king
again:
Nepal's
last
monarch
Gyanendra
Shah
has
said
he wants
to be
the
king
again.
Shah
expressed
his
desire
in an
interview
to a
private
television
channel.
Shah's
claim
rests
on what
he says
was
a private
agreement
with
the
leaders
of political
parties
on April
24,
2006,
the
final
day
of the
People's
Movement.
On that
night,
after
19 days
of street
protests,
the
king
conceded
that
sovereignty
lay
with
the
people,
not
the
crown,
and
accepted
the
roadmap
of the
political
parties
to bring
about
peace
and
democracy.
The
Constituent
Assembly
(CA)
had
abolished
the
monarchy
at its
first
sitting
in May
2008..
The
Hindu,
July
11,
2012.
PAKISTAN
40
civilians
and
one
SF among
41 persons
killed
during
the
week
in Balochistan:
At least
eight
persons
were
killed
and
22 others
injured
in a
bomb
blast
during
a political
rally
organised
by the
Awami
National
Party
(ANP)
in Kuchlak
area
of Quetta,
the
provincial
capital
of Balochistan,
on July
13.
The
Balochistan
Levies
on July
12 found
the
bodies
of seven
coal
miners
who
were
abducted
on July
7, in
the
Degari
area,
some
28 kilometres
from
Quetta.
Daily
Times;
Dawn;
The
News;
Tribune;
Central
Asia
Online;
The
Nation;
The
Frontier
Post;
Pakistan
Today;
Pakistan
Observer,
July
10-16,
2012.
31
civilians
and
two
SF among
33 persons
killed
during
the
week
in Karachi:
13 persons,
including
Police
and
Navy
personnel
and
a Muttahida
Qaumi
Movement
(MQM)
activist,
were
killed
on July
14 in
the
incidents
of target
killing
in the
provincial
metropolis
of Sindh,
Karachi.
Six
persons
were
killed
in Karachi
on July
11.
Five
persons
were
killed
in separate
incidents
of target
killing
in Karachi
on July
10.
Former
office
bearers
of Awami
National
Party
(ANP),
along
with
three
other
persons
were
killed
in the
separate
incidents
of target
killing
in Karachi
on July
9.
Daily
Times;
Dawn;
The
News;
Tribune;
Central
Asia
Online;
The
Nation;
The
Frontier
Post;
Pakistan
Today;
Pakistan
Observer
,
July
10-16,
2012.
17
SFs
and
three
civilians
among
20 persons
killed
during
the
week
in Punjab:
Militants
on July
12 shot
dead
nine
Police
and
prison
staff
and
wounded
three
others
after
storming
a building
in Ichra
area
of Lahore
in Punjab
where
they
were
sleeping.
Three
persons,
including
a female,
were
shot
dead
by unidentified
assailants
inside
their
home
at Tajpura
Scheme
area
under
Ghaziabad
Police
Station
Lahore
District
on July
10.
Unidentified
militants
killed
eight
security
personnel
at an
Army
camp
near
Wazirabad
town
in Gujranwala
District
on July
9, officials
said,
hours
after
a protest
march
of the
Difa-e-Pakistan
Council
(DPC)
passed
through
the
area.
Daily
Times;
Dawn;
The
News;
Tribune;
Central
Asia
Online;
The
Nation;
The
Frontier
Post;
Pakistan
Today;
Pakistan
Observer,
July
10-16,
2012
Militants'
polio
ban
puts
240,000
Pakistani
children
at risk:
Officials,
on July
13,
warned
that
the
Tehreek-e-Taliban
Pakistan
(TTP)
ban
on polio
would
put
240,000
children
at risk
in Waziristan
Agencies
of Federally
Administered
Tribal
Areas
(FATA),
if a
vaccination
campaign
didn't
start
by the
coming
week.
THE
TTP
and
Hafiz
Gul
Bahadur
group
banned
polio
vaccinations
in the
Waziristan
to protest
against
US drone
attacks.
Daily
Times,
July
14,
2012.
Supreme
Court
orders
FC general
to recover
30 missing
persons
within
10 days:
Chief
Justice
Iftikhar
Mohammad
Chaudhry
on July
13 ordered
Balochistan
Frontier
Corps
commander
Major
General
Obaidullah
Khattak
to produce
30 people
in court,
saying
there
was
evidence
troops
were
involved
in their
disappearance.
Chaudhry
ordered
Khattak
to produce
the
missing
before
the
court
in Quetta
on July
24.
The
30 people
were
allegedly
abducted
in Tutak
area
of Khuzdar
District
in February
2011.
Dawn,
July
14,
2012.
Every
third
missing
person
in Balochistan
abducted
by FC,
says
Supreme
Court:
Supreme
Court
Chief
Justice
Iftikhar
Muhammad
Choudhary
on July
9 said
that
every
third
missing
person
in Balochistan
was
picked
up by
the
Frontier
Corps
(FC).
He said
the
issue
of missing
persons
needed
to be
addressed
to solve
the
problem
of Balochistan.
Daily
Times,
July
10,
2012.
Urgent
need
to launch
an operation
against
terrorists
in NWA,
says
FATA
law
and
order
secretary:
The
Federally
Administered
Tribal
Areas
(FATA)
law
and
order
secretary
Shakeel
Qadir
while
briefing
the
Senate
Standing
Committee
on States
and
Frontier
Regions
(SAFRON)
on July
11 said
that
there
was
an urgent
need
to launch
an operation
against
terrorists
in North
Waziristan
Agency
(NWA)
as they
were
getting
hold
of the
area
and
government
was
losing
its
writ
day
by day.
He said
that
Security
Forces
were
engaged
in operation
against
terrorists
in Upper
Orakzai
while
situation
was
under
control
in Lower
Orakzai
area.
Daily
Times,
July
12,
2012.
SRI
LANKA
President
Mahinda
Rajapaksa
calls
on diplomats
to counter
threats
from
pro-LTTE
Diaspora:
President
Mahinda
Rajapaksa
on July
7 said
that
despite
the
country
having
a concise
foreign
policy
the
threat
of the
pro-Liberation
Tigers
of Tamil
Eelam
(LTTE)
Diaspora
in the
West
remains
to be
a massive
challenge
and
asked
the
country's
diplomatic
envoys
to counter
them.
The
President
said
the
Sri
Lankan
diplomats
in overseas
missions,
especially
in countries
where,
the
pro-LTTE
Diaspora
is active,
to be
aware
of the
relentless
campaign
carried
out
by them
to discredit
Sri
Lanka.
ColomboPage,
July
9, 2012.
NPC
elections
in September
2013,
says
President
Mahinda
Rajapaksa:
Sri
Lankan
President
Mahinda
Rajapaksa
said
that
elections
to Northern
Provincial
Council
(NPC)
will
take
just
over
a year
from
now.
"We
want
to hold
elections
in September
2013.
We are
working
towards
it [the
elections]
in a
systematic
manner,"
the
President
said.
The
Hindu,
July
11,
2012.
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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