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SOUTH ASIA INTELLIGENCE REVIEW
Weekly Assessments & Briefings
Volume 13, No. 43, April 27, 2015
 
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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
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Another
Killer Dies
S.
Binodkumar Singh
Research Associate, Institute for Conflict Management
On April
11, 2015, Jamaat-e-Islami (JeI) Senior Assistant Secretary
General Mohammed Kamaruzzaman (63), the third most senior
figure in the JeI, was hanged at 10:30pm at Dhaka Central
Jail, for crimes against humanity during the Liberation
War of 1971. Kamaruzzaman had been arrested on July 13,
2010, and indicted on June 4, 2012, on seven
charges.
On May
9, 2013, the International Crimes Tribunal-2 (ICT-2) found
him guilty on five charges, of which he was sentenced
to death in two; to life imprisonment
in another two; and to 10 years’ imprisonment in one charge.
He was awarded the death penalty on the charge that, under
his direction, members of Al-Badr and Razakar forces murdered
164 unarmed civilians and raped many women, in association
with Pakistani troops, in the Sohagpur village of Nalitabari
upazila (sub-District) in Sherpur District on July
25, 1971; and on his instructions, collaborators took
Golam Mostafa and Abul Kasem of Gridda Narayanpur village
in Sherpur District to an Al-Badr camp and gunned them
down on August 23, 1971. The tribunal awarded him a single
sentence of life imprisonment for two offences: on June
29, 1971, under the leadership of Kamaruzzaman, a group
of Al-Badr members abducted Badiuzzaman of Ramnagar village
under Jhenaigati upazila in Sherpur District and
shot him dead the following day; and on November 16, 1971,
Kamaruzzaman, accompanied by 15 to 20 armed Al-Badr members,
abducted Tepa Mia and his elder son Zahurul Islam Dara
from Golapjan Road in Mymensingh District and, the next
morning, the father and son, along with five others, were
lined up and shot on the banks of the Brahmaputra River.
The tribunal awarded him 10 years in prison for inflicting
inhumane torture on pro-liberation intellectual Syed Abdul
Hannan, the then principal of Sherpur College, by compelling
him to walk naked through the town under constant whipping
in mid-May, 1971.
Kamaruzzaman
is the second JeI leader to be hanged for atrocities during
the 1971 war. Earlier, in the first-ever execution in
a war crimes case, JeI Assistant Secretary Abdul Quader
Mollah (65), who had earned the nickname ‘Mirpurer
Koshai (Butcher of Mirpur)’, was hanged
on December 12, 2013, at Dhaka Central Jail.
Thus far,
the War
Crimes (WC) Trials, which began on
March 25, 2010, have indicted 27 leaders, including 13
from JeI, six from the Muslim League (ML), four from Bangladesh
Nationalist Party (BNP) and two each from Jatiya Party
(JP) and Nizam-e-Islami. Verdicts against 18 of them have
already been delivered – 14 were awarded the death penalty,
while the remaining four received life sentences. Out
of the 14 who received the death sentence, two have already
been executed, while eight cases are currently pending
with the Appellate Division of the Supreme Court (SC).
The latter category includes JeI Ameer (Chief)
Motiur Rahman Nizami; JeI Secretary General Ali Ahsan
Mohammad Mojaheed; JeI central executive committee member
Mir Quasem Ali; JeI Assistant Secretary General ATM Azharul
Islam; JeI Nayeb-e-Ameer (Deputy Chief) Abdus Subhan;
Bangladesh Nationalist Party (BNP) standing committee
member Salauddin Quader Chowdhury; Mobarak Hossain, former
AL general secretary of Mogra union and a rukon (union
member) of the JeI and commander of the Razakar force;
and former State Minister of HM Ershad's Government Syed
Mohammad Qaisar. The remaining four death penalties are
in absentia, and include Abul Kalam Azad alias
Bachchu Razakar, former Al-Badr leader and JeI member;
Mohammad Ashrafuzzaman Khan alias Nayeb Ali and
Chowdhury Mueenuddin, former Al-Badr leaders and JeI members;
and Zahid Hossain Khokon alias Khokon, vice-president
of BNP's Nagarkanda unit and a Razakar commander of Faridpur
District. Out of four persons who were awarded life sentences,
two persons have already died serving their sentence –
former JeI Ameer Ghulam Azam (91), who died on
October 23, 2014; and former BNP minister Abdul Alim (83),
who died on August 30, 2014. JeI Nayeb-e-Ameer
Delwar Hossain Sayedee (74) is lodged in Kashimpur Central
jail of Gazipur District and former Jatiya Party (JP)
Member of Parliament (MP) Abdul Jabbar (82) was sentenced
in absentia.
Minutes
after Kamaruzzaman was hanged at Dhaka Central Jail, JeI
Acting Ameer Moqbul Ahmed, in a statement on April
11, 2015, announced a shutdown programme across the country.
On April 12, JeI-ICS cadres vandalized 30 vehicles, torched
several others and blasted 20 crude bombs in Dhaka city.
On April 13, two ICS cadres were killed and six civilians
were injured in separate incidents of violence. This has
become the established pattern
of response to every final judgment and execution, each
of which has been violently opposed by the BNP-JeI-ICS
combine on the streets across the country. According to
partial data compiled by the South Asia Terrorism Portal
(SATP), a total of 418 persons have been killed in such
violence since the delivery of the first verdict by the
ICT-2 against JeI leader Maulana Abul Kalam Azad alias
Bachchu Razakar on January 21, 2013 (data till April 26,
2015). These numbers include the killing of three persons,
including a local leader of JeI and two ICS cadres, after
Kamaruzzaman’s hanging.
Significantly,
on January 5, 2015, Begum Khaleda Zia, Chairperson of
BNP, had announced a countrywide indefinite blockade of
roads, rail and waterways, as she was confined to her
Gulshan office in Dhaka city, to prevent her spearheading
anti-Government protests as part of the BNP-led 20-party
alliance’s efforts to topple Prime Minister Hasina’s Government.
Enveloping shut-downs backed by street violence have a
long
tradition in Bangladesh, irrespective
of the party in power. The latest cycle of sporadic disruptions
has, however, failed to move the Hasina-led Government,
despite their significant economic impact. According to
the World Bank (WB), as disclosed at the launch of the
Bangladesh
Development Update 2015, on April
1, 2015, Bangladesh suffered a financial loss of around
USD 2.2 billion between January and March 2015, due to
political turmoil and disruptions.
The latest
execution, like the earlier verdicts and their implementation,
has received
overwhelming support across Bangladesh.
Soon after Kamaruzzaman’s execution, celebrations by activists
of the Gonojagoron Mancha (People's Resurgence
Platform) broke out in Dhaka city’s Shahbagh area. Imran
H. Sarker, President of the Mancha declared, “Hanging
of war criminal [Mohammad] Kamaruzzaman is indeed justified.
Capital punishment is the only way to punish a criminal
like him who committed so grave crime against humanity
(sic).” Likewise, freedom fighter and President
of the Sanmilita Sanskrit Jote, a platform of progressive
cultural groups, Nasiruddin Yusuf Bachchu, in his immediate
reaction after the execution, observed, “I think we've
got justice. As a freedom fighter, I express my satisfaction.
I'm happy. It is a matter of satisfaction for us. Today,
we have heaved a sigh of relief.” Gonojagoron Mancha
formed on February 5, 2013, by thousands of protestors
at Shahbagh in Dhaka city has reportedly organized demonstrations
of between 100,000 and 500,000 supporters. After the execution
of Kamaruzzaman, supporters of the sentence, including
Gonojagoron Mancha, were soon out hailing the execution.
Across the country, there were several marches calling
for the completion of other war crimes cases. Earlier,
a poll conducted by the newspaper Prothom Alo in
September 2013 had found that 80 per cent
of respondents had agreed that those who had committed
War Crimes should be tried and punished with only 19 percent
against it.
Mass support,
with the exception of committed cadres of the BNP-JeI-ICS
combine, has enabled the Sheikh Hasina Wajed regime to
weather the storm of violent street protests and to withstand
the orchestrated international pressure against the War
Crimes Trials’ process. Nevertheless, the significant
support base of the radical Islamist formations in the
country, as well as of the BNP which allies with them,
retains the potential to cause extreme harm within the
country, and it will require both an iron will and political
sagacity to carry the War Crimes Trials process to its
logical conclusion, and to sustain the dramatic improvements
that Bangladesh has registered in its development
profile over recent years , even as
the global tide of a rising Islamist extremism is effectively
resisted and neutralized within the country.
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Manipur:
Violent Hills
M.
A. Athul
Research Assistant, Institute for Conflict Management
On March
31, two Assam Rifles (AR) troopers identified as Havildar
N.K. Dolly and Havildar B.N. Kshetri were killed and Rifleman
G.D. Shastra was wounded in an ambush by cadres of the
People’s Liberation Army (PLA)
at a location between Kamjong and Kongkan villages in
the Hill District of Ukhrul. A PLA ‘sergeant’, Prem, was
also killed in the incident. The PLA militants exploded
an Improvised Explosive Device (IED), then rained bullets
on the troops. Two IEDs were recovered during the subsequent
search by Security Forces (SFs) in the area. On April
1, PLA claimed that the assault was carried out by a team
of its 'tactical command'.
On the
same day, the Nehlun faction of Kuki National Front (KNF-N)
reportedly ‘awarded’ capital punishment to one Thanglallen
alias Abi Vaiphei, in connection with the abduction
of three construction workers on January 23, 2015, from
Saramkon in Ukhrul District.
Earlier,
on March 21, four personnel of the Gorkha Regiment, including
a Junior Commissioned Officer (JCO), were injured in an
ambush by suspected militants of the Khaplang faction
of the National Socialist Council of Nagaland (NSCN-K),
at Luklang Khunou in Tamenglong District in northwest
Manipur. The injured SF personnel were identified as Subedar
Chitra Bahadur, Rifleman Aan Singh, Rifleman Gir Bahadur
Thapa and Rifleman Mingma Dorjee.
The five
Hill Districts of Manipur - Senapati, Churachandpur, Ukhrul,
Tamenglong and Chandel – have been the most troubled by
violence. According to partial data compiled by the South
Asia Terrorism Portal (SATP), in 2011, the Hills Districts
accounted for 29 out of 65 (44.61 per cent) of total fatalities
in the State; in 2012, 55 out of 110 (50 per cent); in
2013, 36 out of 56 (64.2 per cent); and in 2014, 40 out
of 54 (74.07 per cent). Thus, while overall violence in
the State has been declining, the share of violence in
the Hill Districts has been increasing.
The trend
continues into 2015, with the State recording 23 fatalities,
(8 civilians, 2 SFs and 13 militants), till April 26,
out of which 16 (69.5 per cent) are accounted for by the
Hill Districts. The lone incident of SF killing in 2015
was recorded in Ukhrul. Further, there have already been
seven incidents of encounters between SFs and militants
in the Hill Districts (four in Tamenglong, and one each
in Ukhrul, Senapati and Chandel).
In 2015,
according to SATP data, 12 incidents of abduction have
already been reported across the State till April 26,
in which 21 people were abducted. Of these, one civilian
and two militants who were abducted have been killed,
six were released and two escaped unhurt. The current
status of the others is not known. Of the 12 incidents
of abduction, 10 are confirmed to have occurred in the
Hill Districts (four in Tamenglong, four in Senapati,
and one each in Ukhrul and Churachandpur).
Internecine
clashes among militant groups have
always been a significant aspect of violence in Manipur.
According to partial data collected by SATP, all the nine
internecine clashes in 2015 occurred in the Hill Districts
(two in Churachandpur, five in Tamenglong and one in Ukhrul
and Senapati). In a major incident Kuki factions clashed
on February 10, 2015, after which the bodies of three
Kuki Independence Army (KIA) militants, identified as
Jongkholun, Manglensei and Sotinpai, were recovered near
Vaison Cemetery in Churachandpur District. They were killed
by a splinter faction of KIA. The original KIA was formed
during the Naga-Kuki conflict in the 1990s.
Likewise,
Naga factional clashes have continued between the NSCN-IM
and the Zeliangrong United Front (ZUF), the militant group
that broke
away from NSCIN-IM in 2011, with the
proclaimed objective of protecting the interests of the
Zeliangrong tribe. In a Press Release, ZUF stated that,
on March 30, 2015, a gun fight erupted between militants
of NSCN-IM and ZUF at Taosang Khunou in Tamenglong District.
They claimed that they killed an NSCN-IM militant identified
as Joshua Thangal. This particular incident has not been
independently verified.
The five
Hill Districts, account for just 38 per cent of the Manipur’s
population, but occupy 90 per cent of the State’s total
area, and dominate the National Highways, where Naga
and Kuki militant groups regularly extort huge amounts
of money along the highways.
Three of the Hill Districts – Ukhrul, Churachandpur and
Chandel – share a porous 398 kilometre-long border with
Myanmar, and this has had an encouraging influence on
militant tactics, with the rebels crossing over into safe
havens in Myanmar after engaging in violence.
Thus, while
the internal security situation in the Hill Districts
remains precarious, it is infinitely compounded
by the porous Myanmar border. On April 23, 2015, reports
indicated that as many as nine Northeast militant groups
– including the United National Liberation Front (UNLF)
and the Coordination Committee (CorCom), an umbrella group
of six militant groups – had formed a joint front, the
United National Liberation Front of West South East Asia
(UNLFW) in the Sagaing Division of Myanmar, with S.S.
Khaplang of NSCN-K as its ‘chief’.
On March
29, 2015, (CorCom) issued a Press statement supporting
the abrogation of the cease fire between NSCN-K and the
Government of India (GoI). NSCN-K had withdrawn from the
ceasefire on March 27. NSCN-K has provided shelter in
Myanmar to various active militant groups, including PLA,
which is a part of CorCom. PLA also has camps located
in Mintha in Myanmar.
Earlier
this year, a Union Ministry of Home Affairs (UMHA) official
had stated that the Government of Myanmar was yet to take
strong action to evict the militants from its territory,
adding that there were about 2,000 Indian rebels sheltering
in Myanmar. Significantly, on November 29, 2014, the then
Director of the Intelligence Bureau (IB) Syed Asif Ibrahim
had observed that safe sanctuaries of the militants in
neighbouring countries, particularly Myanmar, was compounding
to the security situation in North East, which he described
as “fragile”.
India has
failed to effectively patrol the border with Myanmar,
and among the reasons of this lapse is the fact that the
bases of AR, the Force that has been guarding the Indo-Myanmar
border since 2002, are located deep inside Indian Territory.
AR troops have not been able to check the movement of
militants and other anti-national elements along the border,
and the Force has now sought to increase its strength,
for dedicated deployment along the border. There have
also been discussions of entrusting the Border Security
Force (BSF) with the responsibility of guarding the Indo-Myanmar
border, although no final decision has yet been taken.
Earlier, a UMHA official had stated that, although it
may not be possible to fence the entire border with Myanmar
due to the terrain, the border may be fenced where such
construction is possible.
Recent
revelation by NDFB-IKS militant during interrogations
by the National Intelligence Agency (NIA) have confirmed
that Chinese-made weapons were being smuggled into India
through Manipur, via Myanmar, further underlining the
necessity of secure borders and a revamp of law enforcement
agencies of the State. The Union Government, well aware
of the situation, is planning to improve border infrastructure
and enforcement capabilities. During a visit to Manipur
on April 6, 2015, Joint Secretary for the Northeast Shambu
Singh emphasised further that increasing cases of bomb
explosions and ambushes on AR personnel in the remote
areas of Manipur were due to the lack of coordination
between the State Police and AR.
Although
SFs have been able to keep a lid on the violence in Manipur,
with fatalities dropping significantly from 485 in 2008
to 54 in 2014, poor political management, porous borders
and India’s inability to get Myanmar’s cooperation to
smother the militancy, continue to be major obstacles
to a restoration of peace. NSCN-K’s withdrawal from the
ceasefire is likely to worsen the situation, and could
escalate factional clashes among Naga groups, once again
deepening problems in the Hill Districts, reversing the
declining trends in violence across the entire State.
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Weekly Fatalities:
Major Conflicts in South Asia
April 20-26, 2015
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Civilians
|
Security
Force Personnel
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Terrorists/Insurgents
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Total
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BANGLADESH
|
|
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Islamist Extremism
|
0
|
0
|
1
|
1
|
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Left-wing
Extremism
|
0
|
0
|
1
|
1
|
|
Total (BANGLADESH)
|
0
|
0
|
2
|
2
|
|
INDIA
|
|
|
Assam
|
0
|
0
|
3
|
3
|
|
Nagaland
|
1
|
1
|
0
|
2
|
|
Left-wing
Extremism
|
|
|
Chhattisgarh
|
1
|
0
|
2
|
3
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Total (INDIA)
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2
|
1
|
5
|
8
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PAKISTAN
|
|
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Balochistan
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4
|
2
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6
|
12
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FATA
|
0
|
0
|
56
|
56
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KP
|
0
|
1
|
0
|
1
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Sindh
|
1
|
0
|
0
|
1
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PAKISTAN
(Total)
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Provisional
data compiled from English language media sources.
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BANGLADESH
PBCP
'second
in
command'
killed
in
gunfight
with
Police
in
Khulna
District:
Purbo
Bangla
Communist
Party
(PBCP)
'second
in
command"
Sohel
Rana
(26)
was
killed
in
a
gunfight
with
Police
at
Jugnipasha
under
Fultola
sub-District
in
Khulna
District
on
April
25.
Four
Policemen
were
also
injured
during
the
gunfight.
Police
also
recovered
a
six-shooter
gun,
14
rounds
of
bullet
and
five
hand
bombs
from
the
scene.
Dhaka Tribune,
April
25,
2015.
INDIA
Probe
doesn't
show
foreign
funding
for
ISIS
activists,
says
Union
Minister
of
State
for
Home
Haribhai
Parthibhai
Chaudhary:
A
high
level
probe
conducted
by
the
National
Investigation
Agency
(NIA)
and
State
Police
forces
against
Islamic
State
(IS)
or
Islamic
State
of
Iraq
and
Syria
(ISIS)
activists
has
not
revealed
any
information
on
foreign
funding
to
them.
Union
Minister
of
State
for
Home
Haribhai
Parthibhai
Chaudhary
has
informed
Rajya
Sabha
(upper
house
of
the
Parliament
of
India)
that
a
total
of
four
pro-ISIS
activists,
including
two
from
Maharashtra
and
one
each
from
Karnataka
and
Andhra
Pradesh
were
arrested
last
year
(2014).
Times
of
India,
April
25,
2015.
NRC
update
will
solve
influx
woes,
says
Assam
Chief
Minister
Tarun
Gogoi:
Chief
Minister
Tarun
Gogoi
on
April
23
said
that
the
ongoing
exercise
of
National
Register
of
Citizens,
1951,
(NRC)
update
in
the
State
has
been
given
top
priority
as
it
would
end
issues
revolving
around
the
State's
biggest
problem
of
infiltration
from
Bangladesh.
The
process
of
updating
the
NRC
now
will
facilitate
the
inclusion
of
the
names
of
the
persons
and
their
descendants
who
appear
in
the
NRC
of
1951
or
in
any
of
the
electoral
rolls
up
to
the
midnight
of
March
24th,
1971,
or
in
any
one
of
the
other
admissible
documents
of
the
pre-1971
period.
This
will
prove
their
presence
in
Assam
on
or
before
March
24,
1971.
Times
of
India,
April
24,
2015.
Al
Qaeda's
Indian
branch
leader
killed
by
US
airstrike
in
Pakistan,
says
report:
According
to
a
media
report,
Ahmed
Farouq,
an
American
who
died
in
a
United
States
(US)
counter
terrorism
airstrike
in
January,
2015
was
the
'deputy
emir'
of
Al
Qaeda
in
the
Indian
Subcontinent
(AQIS).
Two
al
Qaeda
hostages,
Warren
Weinstein
of
the
US
and
Giovanni
Lo
Porto
from
Italy,
were
killed
in
the
same
strike,
according
to
CNN.
Osama
Mehmood,
a
spokesperson
for
AQIS,
said
that
Farouq
and
another
top
figure,
Qari
Abdullah
Mansur,
were
killed
in
a
January
15
drone
strike
in
Pakistan's
Shawal
Valley.
Both
Farouq
and
Mansur
were
senior
al
Qaeda
leaders,
according
to
Mehmood.
One India,
April
24,
2015.
Nine
North
East
militant
groups
form
a
joint
front
based
in
Myanmar:
As
many
as
nine
North
East
militant
groups,
including
Independent
faction
of
United
Liberation
Front
of
Asom
(ULFA-I)
and
IK
Songbijit
faction
of
National
Democratic
Front
of
Bodoland
(NDFB-IKS)
have
formed
a
joint
front.
At
least
three
rounds
of
meetings
were
held
among
representatives
of
the
outfits
at
undisclosed
locations
in
Sagaing
division
of
Myanmar
over
the
last
one
month
after
which
the
joint
front
christened
as
the
United
National
Liberation
Front
of
West
South
East
Asia
(UNLFW)
was
floated.
SS
Khaplang
the
'chairman'
of
Khaplang
faction
of
National
Socialist
Council
of
Nagaland
(NSCN-K)
has
been
selected
as
the
'chief'
of
the
'united
front'.
There
are
conflicting
reports
as
to
the
status
of
Paresh
Baruah
of
ULFA-I.
Sentinel
Assam,
April
23,
2015.
Islamic
State
a
cause
of
grave
concern,
asserts
External
Affairs
Minister
Sushma
Swaraj:
External
Affairs
Minister
Sushma
Swaraj
called
for
unified
action
at
conquering
the
Islamic
State
(IS)
as
she
addressed
the
Asian
African
Summit
at
Jakarta
(Indonesia)
on
April
22.
The
Minister
said
that
the
terror
group
had
emerged
as
a
cause
of
"grave
concern".
On
the
threat
of
terrorism,
she
said
the
rise
of
extremist
violence
and
terrorism
was
"one
of
the
most
disturbing
security
phenomena
and
several
parts
of
our
two
continents
are
victim
to
a
medley
of
terrorist
groups".
India
Today,
April
23,
2015.
Army
has
strengthened
counter-infiltration
grid
along
the
LoC
over
the
years
and
has
brought
down
levels
of
infiltration,
says
Chinar
Corps
GOC
Lieutenant
General
Subrata
Saha:
Chinar
Corps
General
Officer
Commanding
(GOC)
Lieutenant
General
Subrata
Saha
on
April
22
said
that
Army
has
strengthened
the
counter-infiltration
grid
along
the
Line
of
Control
(LoC)
over
the
years
and
has
brought
down
the
levels
of
infiltration.
The
GOC
said
"If
we
see
last
year
(2014)
we
have
eliminated
101
militants
plus
apprehensions,
45
of
them.
Bulk
of
them,
have
been
eliminated
while
infiltrating.
We
are
ensuring
that
before
they
try
to
cause
damage
in
the
hinterland,
best
is
to
get
the
menace
during
infiltration
rather
than
allowing
them
to
move
to
Valley
and
endanger
people's
lives
and
do
collateral
damage.
Times
of
India
April
23,
2015.
Parliament
security
still
not
equipped
enough
to
handle
terror
strike,
says
report:
A
high
level
committee
of
three
Members
of
Parliament
(MP)
have
found
several
lacuna
in
the
current
security
status
of
Parliament.
The
panel
was
constituted
by
Lok
Sabha
(Lower
House
of
Indian
Parliament)
in
August
last
year
under
the
chairmanship
of
Bharatiya
Janata
Party
(BJP)
MP,
RK
Singh
(former
union
home
secretary)
with
two
other
BJP
MPs
-
former
Rajasthan
DGP
Harish
Chandra
Meena
and
former
Mumbai
Police
Commissioner
Satyapal
Singh.
DNA,
April
23,
2015.
NIA
and
Indian
Statistical
Institute
trying
to
collate
data
on
total
volume
of
FICN
in
the
country,
says
report:
The
National
Investigation
Agency
(NIA),
in
collaboration
with
the
Indian
Statistical
Institute
(ISI),
is
now
trying
to
figure
out
the
total
volume
of
the
Fake
India
Currency
Notes
(FICN)
in
the
country.
"At
the
moment,
the
data
on
total
FICN
in
circulation
in
the
Indian
economy
varies
from
Rs
1,500
crore
to
Rs
5,000
crore
depending
on
the
agency
projecting
it.
FICNs
undermine
the
economic
security
of
the
country
and
are
also
a
way
to
fund
terror
activities,
so
it
was
necessary
to
arrive
at
a
common
figure
after
a
scientific
analysis
of
the
data
collected
by
different
agencies,"
said
an
official
of
Union
Ministry
of
Home
Affairs
(UMHA).
Hindustan
Times,
April
23,
2015.
Pakistan
Army
protecting
26/11
mastermind
Zaki-ur-Rehman
Lakhvi,
reveals
intelligence
report:
In
what
clearly
exposes
Pakistan's
lies
and
lack
of
intent
in
tackling
terrorism,
it
has
now
emerged
that
dreaded
terrorist
Zaki-ur-Rehman
Lakhvi
is
being
protected
by
Pakistan
Army
commandos
and
is
staying
at
an
Inter-Services
Intelligence
(ISI)
safe
house
on
Lahore's
outskirts,
says
an
intelligence
agency
report
to
the
Government.
A
comprehensive
report
given
by
the
intelligence
agencies
to
the
Government
on
Pakistan's
security
scenario
since
Lakhvi's
release
said
that
in
fact,
ever
since
his
release
from
Adiala
Jail
on
April
10,
2014
Lakhvi
was
provided
with
foolproof
protection
by
the
Pakistani
establishment.
Deccan
Chronicle,
April
22,
2015.
Pakistan
is
strengthening
APHC
led
by
Syed
Ali
Shah
Geelani
and
forming
an
alliance
of
various
separatists
around
the
Hurriyat
hawk,
says
report:
Sources
said
that
after
Pakistan
failed
to
unite
various
factions
of
separatists
groups
in
Kashmir,
they
are
now
strengthening
All
Party
Hurriyat
Conference
(APHC)
led
by
Syed
Ali
Shah
Geelani
and
forming
an
alliance
of
various
separatists
around
the
Hurriyat
hawk.
It
was
decided
a
month
ago
in
a
meeting
of
the
top
functionaries
of
Government
of
Pakistan
and
its
agencies
that
Geelani
will
be
strengthened
and
other
groups
will
be
asked
to
rally
around
him.
Daily
Excelsior,
April
21,
2015.
MHA
decides
to
deploy
more
CAPFs
on
International
Border
behind
BSF:
In
view
of
"highly
alarming
reports''
about
all
out
attempts
by
the
militants
to
infiltrate
into
India,
the
Union
Ministry
of
Home
Affairs
(MHA)
has
decided
to
deploy
more
Central
Armed
Police
Forces
(CPFs)
on
the
International
Border
(IB)
behind
the
Border
Security
Force
(BSF)
to
foil
infiltration
attempts
even
if
the
militants
managed
to
breach
the
fencing.
Sources
said
there
had
been
reports
that
encouraged
by
open
support
of
Pakistan
Army
and
Jamat-ul-Dawa
(JuD)
chief
Hafiz
Sayeed,
over
a
dozen
militants
in
full
combat
dresses
have
been
camping
close
to
the
IB
in
Hiranagar
sector
of
Kathua
District
with
a
view
to
infiltrate
into
this
side.
Daily
Excelsior,
April
20,
2015.
NEPAL
Opposition
forms
team
'to
deal
with
NC,
CPN-UML':
In
an
indication
of
mending
rift
in
the
alliance,
leaders
of
the
Unified
Communist
Party
of
Nepal-Maoist
(UCPN-M)-led
30-party
opposition
bloc
have
reached
an
understanding
to
form
a
task
force
to
deal
with
the
ruling
parties
on
constitution-writing.
The
team
under
Maoist
leader
Krishna
Bahadur
Mahara
will
take
its
shape
when
the
meeting
of
the
alliance
scheduled
for
Tuesday
(April
28)
inducts
members
from
the
Madhesi
and
Janajati
parties.
Friday's
(April
24)
was
the
first
meeting
of
the
parties
after
they
withdrew
their
street
protests
two
weeks
ago.
Kantipur Online,
April
25,
2015.
PAKISTAN56
militants
killed
during
the
week
in
FATA:
Nine
suspected
militants
were
killed
in
air
strikes
in
Tirah
Valley
of
Khyber
Agency
in
Federally
Administered
Tribal
Areas
(FATA)
on
April
25.
Twenty
terrorists,
including
three
suicide
bombers,
were
killed
when
Pakistan
Air
Force
(PAF)
fighter
aircrafts
targeted
their
hideouts
in
Kukikhel,
Sepah
and
Kamarkhel
areas
of
Tirah
Valley
on
April
23.
Twenty-seven
militants
were
killed
in
air
strikes
and
a
search
operation
in
North
and
South
Waziristan
Agencies
on
April
22.
Daily
Times;
Dawn;
The
News;
Tribune;
Central
Asia
Online;
The
Nation;
The
Frontier
Post;
Pakistan
Today;
Pakistan
Observer,
April
17-27,
2015.
Sabeen
Mahmud
Director
T2F
shot
dead
in
Karachi:
Sabeen
Mahmud,
the
director
at
The
Second
Floor
(T2F),
was
shot
dead
by
unidentified
assailants
in
the
Phase-II
area
of
Defence
Housing
Authority
(DHA)
in
Karachi,
the
provincial
capital
of
Sindh,
in
the
night
of
April
24.
According
to
reports,
Sabeen,
accompanied
by
her
mother
was
returning
home
after
hosting
a
seminar
at
the
T2F
premises
in
Phase-II
area
of
Defence
Housing
Authority
(DHA),
when
unidentified
gunmen
on
a
motorbike
opened
fire
at
her
car.
Both
Sabeen
and
her
mother
were
rushed
to
a
nearby
hospital
where
Sabeen
succumbed
to
her
wounds.
Her
mother
is
severely
injured
and
still
under
treatment.
Police
said
that
Sabeen
received
five
bullet
wounds.
The News,
April
25,
2015.
38
Westerners
killed
by
US
drone
strikes,
claims
BIJ:
An
analysis
by
the
London-based
Bureau
of
Investigative
Journalism
has
revealed
that
38
Westerners
have
been
killed
in
the
US
drone
strikes
so
far
in
different
countries.
These
include
an
American
and
an
Italian
whose
names
were
mentioned
in
an
unprecedented
announcement
on
April
23
by
United
States
(US)
President
Barack
Obama.
However,
these
were
not
the
only
Westerners
killed
by
the
US
in
its
covert
drone
war
in
Pakistan,
Yemen
and
Somalia.
The
analysis
by
the
Bureau
of
Investigative
Journalism
and
author
Chris
Woods
has
found
that
seven
other
US
citizens
have
been
killed
since
the
White
House
launched
its
covert
drone
war
on
suspected
terrorists
in
2002.
The News,
April
25,
2015.
Centre
wants
provinces
to
share
counter
terror
cost:
As
the
president
constituted
the
9th
National
Finance
Commission
(NFC)
to
distribute
resources
among
the
federating
units,
the
Federal
Government
has
proposed
the
provinces
share
the
cost
of
counterterrorism
efforts
and
disaster
management.
President
Mamnoon
Hussain
constituted
the
9th
NFC
on
April
24
to
determine
the
fresh
award
for
distribution
of
Federal
taxes
between
the
Centre
and
the
provinces
for
the
next
five
years,
according
to
an
official
handout.
The
Finance
Ministry
also
issued
the
notification
of
the
commission's
formation
in
addition
to
its
terms
of
reference.
Tribune,
April
25,
2015.
26/11
accused
have
set
up
Karachi-style
control
room
in
Rawalpindi
jail,
says
report:
Pakistan-based
Lashkar-e-Toiba's
(LeT)
'technology
chief'
Zarrar
Shah
and
his
fellow
militants
continue
to
direct
terrorist
activity
from
behind
bars
under
Inter-Services
Intelligence's
(ISI)
watch,
setting
up
in
jail
in
Pakistan's
Rawalpindi
a
control
room
like
the
one
in
Karachi
to
oversee
the
26/11
(November
26,
2998)
Mumbai
(Maharashtra)
attacks,
a
report
said.
Times
of
India,
April
25,
2015.
JuD
supports
Pakistan
Army's
'jihad'
in
Kashmir,
admits
JuD
chief
Hafiz
Saeed:
The
Lashkar-e-Toiba
(LeT)
founder
and
Jama'at-ud-Dawa
(JuD)
'chief'
Hafiz
Muhammad
Saeed
on
April
18
admitted
that
his
organisation
helps
the
Pakistan
Army
in
supporting
Kashmiris.
Speaking
during
an
interview
with
Pakistan's
Channel
24,
Saeed
said,
"There
are
lakhs
of
people
in
Kashmir
who
are
demanding
freedom.
If
the
Indian
government
resorts
to
firing
then
we
will
also
retaliate
in
a
strong
manner."
"We
support
Pakistan,
Pakistan
government
and
Pakistan
Army
in
their
effort
to
help
the
people
of
Kashmir
who
don't
have
freedom.
And
we
call
it
jihad,"
he
added.
Zee News,
April
22,
2015.
TTP
claims
to
have
successfully
test-fired
missile
called
'Omar-1':
The
Tehreek-e-Taliban
Pakistan
(TTP)
on
April
20
claimed
to
have
successfully
test
fired
its
first
'indigenously
developed'
missile
named
as
'Omar-1'.
To
justify
its
claim,
the
TTP
has
issued
a
statement
and
posted
a
video
demonstrating
the
launch
of
missile.
In
the
video,
different
parts
of
the
missile
were
assembled
before
its
launch.
The
TTP
said
that
special
feature
of
'Omar-1'
is
its
design.
"It
can
easily
be
assembled
and
dissembled
in
accordance
to
the
situation,"
said
Muhammad
Khorasani,
the
TTP
'spokesman'.
Times
of
India,
April
22,
2015.
SRI
LANKA
President
Maithripala
Sirisena
defends
return
of
land
to
Tamil
minorities
in
North
and
Eastern
Provinces:
President
Maithripala
Sirisena
on
April
23
defended
the
new
Government's
policy
of
returning
private
land,
once
used
by
the
Security
Forces
(SFs),
to
legitimate
owners,
especially
in
the
Northern
and
Eastern
Provinces,
where
Tamils
and
Muslims
are
present
substantially.
Sirisena,
while
addressing
the
nation
through
the
electronic
media,
said
"the
30
year
conflict"
[with
the
Liberation
Tigers
of
Tamil
Eelam
(LTTE)]
should
not
raise
its
head
again.
The Hindu,
April
25,
2015.
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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
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