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SOUTH ASIA INTELLIGENCE REVIEW
Weekly Assessments & Briefings
Volume 13, No. 18, November 3, 2014

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


ASSESSMENT

PAKISTAN
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Punjab: Growing Vulnerabilities
Ajit Kumar Singh
Research Fellow, Institute for Conflict Management

At least 60 people, including children and women, were killed and more than 150 persons were injured when a suicide bomber detonated his suicide vest in the parking area, at least 500 meters from the Wagah Border on the Pakistan side, at around 5:45pm [PST] on November 2, 2014. The death toll in the incident is likely to rise as many of the injured were in critical condition. Wagah, a town on the outskirts of Lahore, the provincial capital of Pakistan’s Punjab Province, falls along the India-Pakistan border (on the Indian side lies Amritsar in the Indian State of Punjab). Indian and Pakistani Forces hold a flamboyant flag-lowering ceremony at Wagah every day.

Giving details about the incident, Inspector General Police (IGP) Punjab, Pakistan, Mushtaq Ahmad Sukhera stated, "A large number of people were returning after watching Rangers flag ceremony at Wagah border when a suicide bomber blew himself up near one of the exit gates. At least 15 to 20 kilogrammes (of) explosives have been used in the blast, showing some of the explosives was in his suicide jacket and remaining he might have carried."

This particular attack reemphasizes the deepening anarchy across Pakistan, with terrorists operating at will, even within Pakistan’s 'stable' Punjabi heartland. In the current year, Pakistan has already recorded a total of 4,260 terrorism-linked fatalities, including 1,458 civilians, 459 Security Force (SF) personnel and 2,343 terrorists [all data till November 2]. 4,897 fatalities, including 2,756 civilians, 602 SF personnel and 1,539 terrorists were recorded in the corresponding period of 2013.

Meanwhile, reports indicate that intelligence agencies had informed the Punjab Government about the possibility of a terror attack targeting Shias, religious personalities, public processions and important buildings, during Muharram (the first month of the Islamic calendar), between October 24-November 23, 2014. Indeed, the Federal Minister of Interior Chaudhry Nisar Ali Khan, on November 2, 2014, noted that the Ministry of Interior had issued a warning of a suicide bombing in Lahore. IGP Sukhera claimed there was specific intelligence that terrorists could target the Wagah border post. Nevertheless, the attack took place despite the Government's claims that it was 'ready to meet any eventuality'.

On October 27, 2014, Punjab Chief Minister Shahbaz Sharif had asserted that “foolproof” security arrangements had been made in the Province to maintain law and order during the holy month of Muharram. A day earlier, Lahore Capital City Police Officer Muhammad Ameen Vance had claimed that foolproof security arrangements were finalised to cope with any untoward incident in the Provincial Capital during Muharram. IGP Sukhera argued, “The Rangers had made stringent security measures but it was difficult to check suicide bomber."

The Wagah attack is not an incident in isolation and, in fact, demonstrates the widespread vulnerability across Pakistan, and the inherent weakness of the state. While Punjab has long been thought to be relatively insulated from the wider movements of insurgency and terrorism that have engulfed the country's other three provinces, this seat of military and political power in Pakistan has demonstrated increasing evidence of growing volatility. Just in 2014, Punjab has already recorded a total of 162 fatalities, including 122 civilians, 18 SF personnel and 22 terrorists, as against 55 fatalities, including 43 civilians, four SF personnel and eight militants in the corresponding period of 2013, according to partial data compiled by the South Asia Terrorism Portal. Moreover, Punjab also recorded four suicide attacks, resulting in 82 fatalities, as against no such attack in the corresponding period of 2013. However, terrorists had carried out a suicide attack outside an Imambargah (Shia place of worship) at Gracy Line in Rawalpindi, on December 17, 2013, killing four persons. Likewise, four explosions, resulting in nine fatalities, were recorded in 2013 (till November 2), but the number of blasts as well as resulting deaths have witnessed a steep escalation in the current year, with at least 15 explosions registered, resulting in 49 fatalities, thus far. The numbers clearly suggest a rapidly deteriorating security environment in Punjab.

Meanwhile, three terrorist formations have claimed responsibility for the attack. The al Qaeda affiliated anti-Shia group Jandullah, claiming responsibility for the attack, declared that it was in retaliation to the ongoing military operations - Zarb-e-Azb and Khyber 1 - in the North Waziristan and Khyber Agency, respectively, of Federally Administered Tribal Areas (FATA). [Operation Khyber 1 was launched by the Pakistan Army on October 31, 2014].  Later, ‘rubbishing’ the Jandullah claim, Jamat-ul-Ahrar (Group of the Free Ones), a breakaway faction of the TTP, claimed that the attack was engineered by "our friend Hafiz Hanifullah" in retaliation against operation Zarb-e-Azb, and had been carried out to send a bold "open message to Governments on both sides of the border". JuA ‘spokesman’ Ehsanullah Ehsan declared, "It was a suicide attack and the target were the Pakistani Security Forces protecting the Shia community." Another group introducing itself as the TTP’s Mahar Mehsud faction also called reporters to claim responsibility for the attack. 

Correctly identifying the actual perpetrators of the attack will be crucial in view of Islamabad's 'new policy' on fighting terror. Interestingly, on February 26, 2014, while unveiling its first ever counter-terrorism policy, Pakistan announced that “every act of militant violence would be met with retaliation on their bases”. Federal Minister of Interior Chaudhry Nisar Ali Khan had then announced, "We have made a significant shift in our policy, now we will react to each and every act of terrorism in the country with an attack on the headquarters of the militants along the Afghan border. Whenever there is a strike anywhere, we will target the headquarters of the militants and it is because of this new policy that we have been carrying out precise strikes in the tribal areas."

Operations in the tribal areas of FATA have been ongoing for last over four months. According to most reports, all the terror groups which have claimed responsibility for the Wagah attack are headquartered in these areas only. Since these areas are already under attack, “without any discrimination”, according to Islamabad's past claims, it is not clear what impact the 'targeting of militant headquarters' could possibly have. Crucially, SAIR has noted earlier that operations in the tribal areas have amounted to little more than pointless symbolism and the Wagah incident demonstrates that the operational capacities even of TTP-linked groups remain substantially untouched. Pakistan's broader strategy of sponsoring and protecting Afghanistan- and India-oriented terrorist formations, of course, remains entirely unchanged, creating an environment that allows anti-Islamabad groups to flourish as well.

BANGLADESH
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Death for Merchants of Death
S. Binodkumar Singh
Research Associate, Institute for Conflict Management

After forty-three years, justice finally caught up with Jamaat-e-Islami (JeI) ameer (chief) Motiur Rahman Nizami (71) as the International Crimes Tribunal-1 (ICT-1), one of the two War Crimes Tribunals constituted by the Sheikh Hasina Wajed Government, sentenced him to death on October 29, 2014, for atrocities during the Liberation War of 1971. Nizami was found guilty on eight of the 16 charges brought against him. The four charges which brought him death included involvement in the killing of intellectuals; the murder of 450 civilians; rape in Bausgari and Demra villages in Pabna District; the killing of 52 people in Dhulaura village in Pabna District; and killings of 10 people and rape of three women in Karamja village in Pabna District. He was also sentenced to imprisonment for life on the charges of involvement in the killing of Kasim Uddin and two others in Pabna District; torture and murder of Sohrab Ali of Brishalikha village in Pabna District; torture and killing at Mohammadpur Physical Training Centre in Dhaka city; and killing of freedom fighters Rumi, Bodi, Jewel and Azad at Old MP Hostel in Dhaka city.

Nizami, at that time, was the President of the Islami Chhatra Sangha, the students' wing of JeI, the precursor of the present-day Islami Chhatra Shibir (ICS), and was also ex-officio chief of Al-Badr, a paramilitary wing of the Pakistan Army in 1971. As a leader, he not only took part in crimes against humanity, the judgment reads, but also delivered provocative speeches to incite thousands of his followers to commit similar crimes during the Liberation War. However, instead of being punished for the heinous crimes, President Ziaur Rahman permitted Nizami and other leaders of the JeI to revive the party in 1978. The JeI subsequently emerged as the largest Islamist party in the country and Nizami established himself as a key leader, organizing the ICS. He became JeI ameer in November 2000, and also served as the Minister of Agriculture (from October 10, 2001, to May 22, 2003) and Minister of Industries (from May 22, 2003 to October 28, 2006) in the Begum Khaleda Zia's Bangladesh Nationalist Party (BNP)-led Government between 2001 and 2006.

Nizami was first arrested on June 29, 2010, in a lawsuit for hurting religious sentiments. After three days, he was shown arrested for committing crimes against humanity during the Liberation War. Subsequently, on May 28, 2012, he was indicted on 16 specific charges for his involvement in War Crimes. It took around 29 months to go from the indictment to the sentencing, as the verdict was deferred three times in the past.

Earlier, on January 30, 2014, the Chittagong Metropolitan Special Tribunal-1 had awarded the death penalty to Nizami in the sensational 10-truck arms haul case of 2004, the country's biggest ever weapons haul case. On February 7, 2014, the verdict on the arms haul case was transferred to the Chittagong High Court for confirmation of its sentences. Nizami filed an appeal with the Chittagong High Court seeking acquittal from the charges and, on April 16, 2014, the Chittagong High Court accepted the appeal. The case is still pending in the High Court.

Meanwhile, as in earlier cases, soon after the verdict, cadres of JeI and its student wing ICS went on rampage across the country. 30 persons, including 28 JeI-ICS cadres and two Security Force (SF) personnel have been injured in violence across the country, thus far. 71 JeI-ICS cadres were also arrested from various parts of the country for bringing out processions. The JeI called for a countrywide hartal (general strike) on October 30, November 2 and November 3

The verdict has attracted some negative international attention. Calling for a commutation of Nizami's death sentence, the European Union (EU), in a statement on October 29, 2014, declared, “The case of Motiur Rahman Nizami has now reached a stage where an execution of the death sentence constitutes a serious threat.” On October 29, the United States (US) reiterated its support to bringing to justice those who committed atrocities during the Liberation War, but demanded that the trials should be fair and transparent maintaining the international standards.

On the other hand, minutes after the news of Nizami's death penalty reached the Shahbagh intersection in Dhaka city on October 29, Gonojagoron Mancha (People's Resurgence Platform) activists erupted into exhilarated cheers. Showing victory signs, they demanded the immediate execution of the verdict, chanting slogans like “we demand hanging”.

Meanwhile, on November 2, 2014, ICT-2 sentenced JeI central executive committee member Mir Quasem Ali (62) to death after finding him guilty on two charges, one for abduction, torture and killing of 15-year-old freedom fighter Jasim of Sandwip Sub-District in Chittagong District; another for abducting, torturing and killing Ranjit Das alias Lathu and Tuntu Sen alias Raju of Chittagong town in Chittagong District. Quasem, considered one of the top financiers of JeI, faces 14 charges, including murder, abduction and torture committed in Chittagong city between November and December 16, 1971. He was allegedly the chief of the Chittagong Al-Badr and was indicted on September 5, 2013, after being arrested on June 17, 2013.

Thus far, the two ICTs conducting the War Crimes Trials, which began on March 25, 2010, have indicted 18 leaders, including 13 JeI leaders, three BNP leaders and two Jatiya Party (JP) leaders. Verdicts against 12 of them (including Nizami and Quasem) have already been delivered, in which nine persons have been awarded the death sentence (including Nizami and Quasem), while three have been sentenced to life imprisonment. Remarkably, in the first-ever execution in a War Crimes case, JeI Assistant Secretary Abdul Quader Mollah (65), who earned the nickname Mirpurer Koshai (Butcher of Mirpur), was hanged on December 12, 2013, at Dhaka Central Jail, against his conviction on charges of atrocities committed during the Liberation Wars of 1971. Of the six other convicts who were awarded death sentences, three - Al-Badr leaders Mohammad Ashrafuzzaman Khan and Chowdhury Mueenuddin, and JeI leader Maulana Abul Kalam Azad - were awarded sentences in absentia. The verdicts against JeI leaders Ali Ahsan Mohammad Mojaheed and Muhammad Kamaruzzaman, and BNP leader Salauddin Quader Chowdhury, are currently pending with the Appellate Division.

Significantly, former JeI Chief Ghulam Azam (92), who led the JeI during the country’s Liberation War in 1971, died at the Bangabandhu Sheikh Mujib Medical University (BSMMU) in Dhaka city after suffering a stroke on October 23, 2014. Azam had served a year and three months of his 90-year jail term for crimes against humanity. Protest rallies by opponents of JeI were held during his funeral at Baitul Mokarram National Mosque in Dhaka city, demanding that his body be sent to Pakistan for burial there. Ziaul Hasan, chairman of Bangladesh Sommilito Islami Jote, an alliance of progressive Islamic parties, observed, "The janaza (mourning procession) of a war criminal can never be held at the national mosque."

The verdict against the JeI chief is a body blow to the organization. The Government is already considering banning JeI, which was debarred on August 1, 2013, from contesting elections. Awami League (AL) Joint Secretary Mahbub-ul-Alam Hanif on October 29, 2014, noted, “The verdict has once again proved that JeI was involved in war crimes with a political decision.” With its very existence now under threat, JeI attempts to retaliate violently are imminent, and likely to vitiate the security environment of the country. 

Compounding the problem are the recent activities of other Islamist extremist and terrorist groups, particularly the Jama'atul Mujahideen Bangladesh (JMB). On September 22, 2014, the Detectives Branch (DB) of the Police claimed that 25 top leaders of JMB and seven other Islamist outfits, including Ansarullah Bangla Team (ABT), Jamaatul Muslemin, Majlish-e-Tamuddin, Hizbul Zihad, Hizbut Tahrik, Jamaatil Muslemin and Dawatul Jihad, discussed a regrouping plan at a meeting in a remote char (riverine island) area at Sariakandi sub-District in Bogra District on May 5, 2014. More recently, the Rapid Action Battalion (RAB) arrested JMB's chief coordinator Abdun Noor and four of his close aides from the Sadar sub-District Railway Station in Sirajganj District on October 31, 2014. 49 primary detonators, 26 electronic detonators, four time bombs, 10 kilograms of power gel, 155 different kinds of circuits, 55 jihadi books and a power regulator were recovered from the JMB cadres. During preliminary interrogation, the JMB operatives confessed that they were planning to carry out large-scale bomb attacks across the country, particularly in Dhaka city.

Remarkably, India's National Investigation Agency (NIA), currently investigating the October 2, 2014, Burdwan (West Bengal, India) blast case, on October 28, 2014, uncovered a suspected plot by JMB to assassinate Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina Wajed and carry out a coup. The JMB had also planned to assassinate BNP Chairperson Begum Khaleda Zia. Earlier, on October 27, 2014, Indian investigators had revealed that the JMB module in Burdwan had managed to transport six consignments of Improvised Explosive Devices (IEDs) to Bangladesh, to be used for terrorist activities in the country.

The War Crimes Trials, and the cumulative verdicts against leaders of extremist parties and groups that have been at the core of destabilization in Bangladesh over the past decades, have been crucial in turning the country around after years of mounting chaos that had brought it to the very brink of failure. This process needs to be sustained, indeed, accelerated, despite the backlash of extremist entities, if the gains of the recent past are to be consolidated.


NEWS BRIEFS

Weekly Fatalities: Major Conflicts in South Asia
October 27- November 2, 2014

 

Civilians

Security Force Personnel

Terrorists/Insurgents

Total

INDIA

 

Jammu and Kashmir

0
1
3
4

Manipur

0
0
1
1

Left-wing Extremism

 

Andhra Pradesh

1
0
0
1

Odisha

1
0
0
1

Total (INDIA)

2
1
4
7

PAKISTAN

 

Balochistan

6
0
1
7

FATA

8
16
111
135

KP

3
0
0
3

Punjab

60
0
1
61

Sindh

12
3
5
20

Total (PAKISTAN)

89
19
118
226
Provisional data compiled from English language media sources.


BANGLADESH

India needs to take actions to destroy Bangladeshi militants operating from India much in the same way Indian militants have been obliterated from Bangladesh's soil, says Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina Wajed: Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina Wajed in an interview with Kolkata-based Anandabazar Patrika on October 31 said, "India needs to take actions to destroy Bangladeshi militants operating from India much in the same way Indian militants have been obliterated from Bangladesh's soil." Hasina's statement came after Indian intelligence claimed that the two people killed in a recent explosion in a house at Burdwan in West Bengal (India) were Bangladeshis and members of outlawed militant outfit Jamaat-ul-Mujahideen Bangladesh (JMB). The Independent, November 1, 2014.

JeI ameer Motiur Rahman Nizami sentenced to death for war crimes during Liberation War: Jamaat-e-Islami (JeI) ameer (chief) Motiur Rahman Nizami (71) was sentenced to death, on October 29, by the International Crimes Tribunal-1 (ICT-1) for mass murder, rape and looting during 1971 Liberation War. Nizami was found guilty on eight of the 16 charges brought against him. Four charges brought him death: he was involved in the killings of intellectuals murders of 450 civilians and rape in Bausgari and Demra killings of 52 people in Dhulaura killings of 10 people and rape of three women in Karamja. Daily Star, October 30, 2014.

ICT-2 sentenced JeI central executive committee member Mir Quasem Ali to death for abduction, torture and murder during Liberation War: The International Crimes Tribunal-2 (ICT-2) on November 2 sentenced Jamaat-e-Islami (JeI) central executive committee member Mir Quasem Ali (62) to death for abduction, torture and murder during the Liberation War of 1971. The tribunal found him guilty on 10 of the 14 charges. The tribunal awarded Quasem the capital punishment on two charges, one for abduction, torture and killing of 15-year-old freedom fighter Jasim of Sandwip sub-District in Chittagong District; another for abducting, torturing and killing Ranjit Das alias Lathu and Tuntu Sen alias Raju of Chittagong town in Chittagong District. Daily Star, November 3, 2014.

NIA uncovers JMB plot to kill Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina Wajed and carry out coup: National Investigation Agency (NIA) of India on October 28 uncovered a suspected plot by banned militant group Jama'atul Mujahideen Bangladesh (JMB) to assassinate Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina Wajed and carry out a coup. The outlawed JMB also planned to assassinate Bangladesh Nationalist Party (BNP) Chairperson Begum Khaleda Zia, said the Indian officials requesting anonymity. They did not explain how the militants planned to carry out the assassinations. Daily Star, October 29, 2014.


INDIA

Different militant groups joining hands to target Assam, says CM Tarun Gogoi: Assam Chief Minister (CM) Tarun Gogoi on October 30 said different militant groups were joining hands to target Assam and some youths were being led astray to join jihadi outfits in the state. He said, "There are jihadi groups and also the Inter-Services Intelligence (ISI). All extremist groups are joining hands to target Assam." Gogoi added that terrorism was not new in Assam, but of late, the state was being targeted by international terror outfits like al Qaeda and Jamaat-ul-Mujahideen Bangladesh (JMB). Telegraph, October 31, 2014.

SIMI fugitives followed the methods of al Qaeda training manual, says report: According to reports the five Students Islamic Movement in India (SIMI) fugitives wanted for Bijnor blast in Uttar Pradesh (September 12, 2014) operated and followed the methods mentioned in the al Qaeda training manual. The manual was first implemented by al-Qaeda while bombing United States (US) embassy in Kenya in 1998. It was produced as evidence in the case's trial by the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) in 2001. FBI had first recovered it from the laptop of an alleged al Qaeda operative in Manchester in United Kingdom (UK). Times of India, October 31, 2014.

CMAS leader Nachika Linga surrenders in Odisha: Nachika Linga, the leader of the Chasi Mulia Adivasi Sangh (CMAS) of Narayanpatna block, a Communist Party of India-Maoist (CPI-Maoist) front organization, who was in the most-wanted list of both Odisha and Andhra Pradesh Police, surrendered at Bhaliaput village before a Police team led by the Inspector in Charge of Narayanpatna Police Station in Koraput District on October 28, in the presence of some local elected panchayat (village level local self Government institution) representatives of Narayanpatna block. The Hindu, October 29, 2014.

JMB trained female Jihadists in West Bengal, says NIA report on Burdwan blast case: A National Investigation Agency (NIA) report on the Burdwan blast case revealed a new trend of women taking to Jihadi indoctrination and terror activities in Jamaat-ul-Mujahideen Bangladesh's (JMB) all-female jihadi training centres in Burdwan and Murshidabad areas of West Bengal. According to top officials, these centres started operating in 2011 and recruited women who were trained in bomb-making and violent extremist ideologies. New Indian Express, October 29, 2014.


NEPAL

PM consults with 'small' parties for consensus: On October 31, Prime Minister (PM) Sushil Koirala started consultation with leaders of smaller parties represented in the Constituent Assembly (CA), in an attempt to gather consensus on the disputed issues of the new constitution, in a meeting held at the PM's official residence in Baluwatar, Kathmandu. In the meeting PM held discussions with Rastriya Prajatantra Party-Nepal (RPP-Nepal) President Kamal Thapa, senior leader of Rashtriya Prajatantra Party (RPP) Surya Bahadur Thapa and Forum-Loktantrik President Bijay Kumar Gachchhadar, among others and expressed his concern about the possibility of issuing the new constitution by January 22, 2015 - given that the Constitutional Political Dialogue and Consensus Committee (CPDCC) could not forge consensus among the parties on issues of dispute. Nepal News, November 1, 2014.


PAKISTAN

111 militants and 16 SFs among 135 persons killed during the week in FATA: Five Lashkar-e-Islam (LI) militants and a soldier were killed in a clash during the Operation Khyber-1 in the Akakhel area of Khyber Agency in Federally Administered Tribal Areas (FATA) on November 2.

Three civilians, including two women, were killed and five others sustained injuries when mortar shells fired from unknown location hit houses in the Daroadda area in Akakhel on November 2.

At least 20 militants and six personnel of Security Forces (SFs) were killed and three others were injured in an attack against a check post in Lower Orakzai Agency on November 1.

At least 20 militants were killed and five militant hideouts were destroyed during targeted aerial strikes by fighter jets in Akakhel, Tirah and other areas of the Khyber Agency on October 30.

A United States (US) drone strike killed at least seven militants, including the important 'commander' of the Haqqani network, Abdullah Haqqani, in Nargas village of Birmal area in South Waziristan Agency (SWA) on October 30.

At least 21 terrorists and eight soldiers were killed during a 'clearance operation' codenamed Khyber-I in the Spin Qamar area of Khyber Agency on October 29.

At least 33 militants were killed when jets and helicopter gunships attacked suspected militant hideouts in Dattakhel and Gharlamai Districts of North Waziristan Agency on October 27. Daily Times; Dawn; The News; Tribune; Central Asia Online; The Nation; The Frontier Post; Pakistan Today; Pakistan Observer, October 28-November 3, 2014.

60 persons killed and 80 others injured in suicide attack near Wagah international border: Sixty people, including three Rangers officials, were killed and over 80 received injuries when a suicide bomber blew himself up at the third Rangers checkpost, around 500 yards away from the Wagah international border in Punjab on November 2. Forty-five people, including women and children, died on the spot, while 15 others succumbed to injuries at different hospitals. The Director General (DG) Rangers (Punjab), Major General Tahir Javed Khan, confirmed that a suicide bomber had carried out the attack who was trying to enter the parade venue at the border crossing.

Meanwhile, three militant outfits claimed the responsibility of the attack. The Jundallah group was the first to take responsibility. It was followed by the Jamaat-ul-Ahrar, the breakaway faction of the Tehreek-e-Taliban Pakistan (TTP). And finally, a group introducing itself as the TTP's Mahar Mehsud faction phoned reporters to claim responsibility for the attack. The News, November 3, 2014.

25,463 persons killed in terrorist attacks in Pakistan from 2003 to 2014: As many as 25,463 civilians and security personnel have been killed in terrorist attacks from 2003 to October 19, 2014 across the country, says Punjab Home Department. Sources in the Punjab Home Department said terrorism intensified in Musharraf regime after the Pakistani establishment supported the US war against Taliban and al Qaeda after 9/11. The US drone attacks in Fata areas added fuel to the fire of terrorism. Sources said 19,525 civilians and 5,938 security personnel were killed in terrorist attacks across the country from 2003-2014. Interior Ministry data revealed that in 2014 (till October 19) a total of 1,809 people were killed including 1,369 civilians and 440 security personnel. The News, November 3, 2014.

IS bigger threat to Pakistan than Taliban and al Qaeda, says MQM chief Altaf Hussain: Speaking at a press conference in London on October 31, Muttahida Qaumi Movement (MQM) chief Altaf Hussain said that Islamic State (IS) militants are bigger threat to Pakistan than Taliban and al Qaeda. He said that Pakistan was facing a devastating threat in the shape of IS, citing sudden appearance of its flags in the country specifically from southern Punjab to Islamabad. Hussain said that militants were leaving Taliban outfits to join the new extremist group. "IS is more dangerous than Taliban and al Qaeda," he said. Dawn, November 1, 2014.

Hideouts of terrorists would be targeted where found and intelligence-based operations would continue without any discrimination, asserts ISPR Director General Major General Asim Saleem Bajwa: The Inter Services Public Relations (ISPR) Director General (DG) Major General Asim Saleem Bajwa on October 29 said that the hideouts of terrorists would be targeted where found and intelligence-based operations would continue without any discrimination. He said that operations Zarb-e-Azb and Khyber-I are successfully underway in North Waziristan Agency and Bara tehsil (revenue unit) of Khyber Agency. He said while over 1,100 terrorists have been killed in Zarb-e-Azb, 44 terrorists have been eliminated and 100 surrendered to Security Forces in Operation Khyber-I. Daily Times, October 30, 2014.

Federal Minister of Interior Chaudhry Nisar Ali Khan calls for permanent end to US drone strikes in Pakistan: Federal Minister of Interior Chaudhry Nisar Ali Khan on October 28 called for a permanent end to US drone attacks which he said was 'a difficult element' in relations between Islamabad and Washington. "It is important that the US understands Pakistan's viewpoint," he said while talking to US Special Representative for Afghanistan and Pakistan Dan Feldman. He said that the bilateral relations between the US and Pakistan improved owing to a six-month pause in drone strikes. The News, October 29, 2014.


SRI LANKA

President Mahinda Rajapaksa did not meet LTTE supporters in US, says External Affairs Minister G.L Peiris: The Government on October 30 denied the claims that President Mahinda Rajapaksa had met Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam (LTTE) supporters during his last visit to the United States. External Affairs Minister, G.L Peiris said in the Parliament that he was with the President during the US tour and he can guarantee that the President did not meet any pro-LTTE diaspora members. Earlier, the leader of the main opposition United National Party (UNP) Ranil Wickremesinghe had recently demanded answers from President Mahinda Rajapaksa over who, from the Government, met the diaspora during his recent visit to US. Colombo Gazette, November 1, 2014.

UN Human Rights Committee asks Government to repeal 18th Amendment to the Constitution:The United Nations (UN) Human Rights Committee, while welcoming several measures taken by the Government to ensure human rights of its citizens, asked the Government to repeal the 18th Amendment to the Constitution approved by the Parliament in September 2010. Presenting the Concluding Observations on the fifth periodic report of Sri Lanka, the UN human rights treaty body, which reviewed Sri Lanka on October7 and 8, said the Committee is concerned by the 18th Amendment to the Sri Lankan Constitution which, inter alia, discontinues the Constitutional Council and empowers the President to dismiss or appoint members of the judiciary and other independent bodies. Colombo Page, October 31, 2014.


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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Editor
Dr. Ajai Sahni


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