South Asia Terrorism Portal
KP: Terror under Wraps Ajit Kumar Singh Research Fellow; Institute for Conflict Management
A local Jamaat-i-Islami (JI) leader, Malik Tufail, was shot dead by unidentified assailants in the Mughalkhel area of Bannu District in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa (KP) on February 4, 2018.
On February 2, 2018, at least 11 Army personnel were killed and another 13 injured in a suicide bombing near an Army camp in the Sharifabad area of Kabal tehsil (revenue unit) in Swat District. The suicide bomber targeted the sports area of the military base camp where soldiers were playing volleyball. Claiming responsibility for the attack, Mohammad Khorasani, a spokesman for the Tehreek-e-Taliban Pakistan (TTP), said they had sent a young suicide bomber, Siddiqullah, to conduct the attack.
On January 23, 2018, a ‘commander’ of the Haqqani Network, Ehsan alias Khawari, and two of his associates were killed when a US drone targeted a house in the Speen Thall area of Hangu District.
According to partial data compiled by the Institute for Conflict Management (ICM), KP has accounted for at least 19 terrorism-related fatalities (two civilians, 11 Security Force, SF, personnel, and six terrorists) in the 2018, thus far (data till February 11, 2018). During the corresponding period of 2017, the Province had accounted for just two fatalities, both terrorists.
Through 2017, KP recorded a total of 123 fatalities (40 civilians, 26 SF personnel, and 57 terrorists) as against 213 such fatalities (123 civilians, 50 SF personnel, and 40 terrorists) registered in 2016. The trend of decline in overall fatalities thus continued for the fourth consecutive year since 2014.
Other parameters of violence like major incidents (each resulting in three or more fatalities), bomb blasts, and sectarian attacks also registered declines. There were 16 major attacks causing 80 deaths in 2017; as against 17 such attacks resulting in 121 fatalities in 2016. The most prominent attack in 2017 was on December 1, when at least nine persons, including six students, were killed and 37 were injured as TTP terrorists attacked the Agriculture Training Institute (ATI) in Peshawar, the provincial capital. All the four terrorists involved in the attack were also killed. KP accounted for 17 incidents of bomb blast, resulting in 23 fatalities and 110 persons injured, in 2017; as against 32 such incidents, resulting in 70 deaths and over 218 persons injured. Also, as against six incidents of sectarian attack, resulting in eight deaths and three persons injured in 2016, KP recorded only one such incident in 2017, resulting in three fatalities.
However, little has changed on the ground in terms of dealing with the reasons responsible for the growth of terrorism, including mischievous state policies, radicalization and growing fundamentalism, among others. In the most recent example of growing radicalisation, life in KP’s Mardan District came to a halt on February 9, 2018, as thousands of workers and supporters of the Aalmi Majlis Tahaffuz Khatm-e-Nubuwwat (AMTKN, the International Organisation for the Protection of the Finality of Prophethood), joined by locals, participated in protests to pressure the Government into releasing 31 men convicted in the lynching of Mashal Khan, a resident of Swabi and a student at the Abdul Wali Khan University in Mardan, on April 13, 2017. Holding banners that read "Mashalyon [Mashal supporters], stop us if you can!” the protesters chanted slogans against Mashal and the Government. Qari Ikramul Haq, leader of the AMTKN demanded that the men convicted for the murder be released. Several of the 26 men acquitted by the court in the same case, including Ajmal Mayar, attended the rally and were given a ‘Ghazi (Muslim warrior) welcome’. The people in rally offered a dua (grand prayer) for those acquitted. AMTKN is a Pakistan-based anti-Ahmadi group, closely affiliated with Sipah-e-Sahaba Pakistan (SSP); Jamaat-e-Islami Pakistan (JI) and the Fazl faction of JI (JI-F)
Mashal Khan was lynched to death after being falsely accused of blasphemy. A group of students had shouted religious slogans during the attack and had stripped Mashal naked and about 10 of them assaulted him with planks until his skull caved in, as the others students looked on. An anti-Terrorism Court in Abbotabad awarded the death sentence to one of the accused on February 7, 2018. It also awarded 25-year prison sentences to five others and four-year sentences to another 25 accused. The decision, announced by judge Fazal-e-Subhan Khan at Haripur Central Jail, exonerated 26 of the accused. There were a total of 57 accused in the Mardan lynching case.
Significantly, according to a report published on September 29, 2014, by the Centre for Research and Security Studies, Pakistan, a total of at least 59 persons ‘accused’ of blasphemy have been victims of extra-judicial killings in the country since 1990. Of these, only one case was reported from KP: Ashiq Nabi was shot dead on April 20, 2005, in Nowshera District. Though no further definitive data is available in this regard, according to open media sources, the April 13, 2017, killing of Mashal Khan, is the second such incident reported from the Province.
The Imran Khan led Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI), in alliance with JI – which formed the Government in the Province under the Chief Ministership of Parvez Khattak on May 31, 2013, replacing the Awami National Party (ANP) led Government of Chief Minister Ameer Haider Khan Hoti – came to power on a platform that is deeply sympathetic to the Islamist extremist ideology. The stated position of the present Government on TTP and other Islamist terrorist formations, according to Chief Minister Khattak's declaration of January 26, 2014, is that military operations against these groups would be opposed. This was only a further reiteration of the position that Imran Khan and other party leaders, both of the PTI and the JI, had defined well before the elections, and that brought them to power. In October 2012, Imran Khan had claimed that the Taliban were fighting a 'holy war' justified by Islam in neighbouring Afghanistan: "It is very clear that whoever is fighting for their freedom is fighting a jihad… The people who are fighting in Afghanistan against the foreign occupation are fighting a jihad."
More recently, on February 4, 2018, Imran Khan defended Afghan Taliban (to which the TTP pays allegiance) against the North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO), claiming that they represent Western "liberals [who] are thirsty for blood."
In the meantime, the Islamic State (IS, also Daesh) has made some inroads into KP, as in other parts of Pakistan. On June 24, 2017, at least two suspected Daesh terrorists, including its KP ‘chief’ Arif aka Khalil aka Abuzar, were killed and five SF personnel (three Policemen and two Army soldiers) injured in an exchange of fire which lasted for six hours in Shahpur village, Peshawar. A large quantity of explosives, AK 47s and material used in assembling improvised explosive devices was found at their hideout. According to reports, the terrorists had completed their ‘preparations’ for terrorist attacks in the city with the help of videos of their intended target sites.
It is not surprising therefore that terror groups continue to get more ‘dedicated cadres’ for them to work. Indeed, incidents of suicide attack, which are an important indicator of the level of existing threat in a particular region witnessing a protracted conflict, more than doubled. In 2017, KP accounted for seven such incidents resulting in 34 deaths and 80 injuries as against three such incidents recorded in 2016 which had resulted in 21 fatalities and 53 injuries. The current year, 2018, has already witnessed one such incident (February 4, mentioned above).
The surge in violence during the first 40 days of the current year, as compared to the same period last year, indicates that terrorists continue to have a significant presence in the region. Acknowledging the danger on January 10, 2018, the US Government issued a new travel advisory to it citizens cautioning them against travel to KP, Federally Administered Tribal Area (FATA), and Balochistan. The US State Department statement read:
Apart from ‘domestically oriented’ terror groups, the Haqqani Network continues to operate out of the tribal regions of KP and FATA. Significantly, US drone attacks returned to KP in 2017. A US drone strike killed a ‘commander’ of the Haqqani Network and his partner in the Speen Tal area of Hangu District on June 12, 2017. The last such attack had taken place on November 21, 2013, when at least eight suspected terrorists were killed and five were injured in a US drone strike at a seminary in the Tal area of Hangu District. The Haqqani Network's ‘spiritual leader’, Maulana Ahmad Jan, was among eight persons killed in the attack. More recently, on January 23, 2018, a ‘commander’ of the Haqqani Network, Ehsan aka Khawari and two of his associates were killed when a US drone targeted a house in the Speen Thall area of Hangu District.
Despite recording a continuous decline in terrorism-related fatalities over the past four years, KP remains a troubled region, where terrorism is just under wraps and can flare up again at any moment. All the factors responsible for the rise of terrorism, including its political sponsorship, remain intact, and no honest effort has been made to deal with these issues, as the declared state policy, both at Islamabad and Peshawar, is against taking any hard measures.
Giriraj Bhattacharjee Research Assistant, Institute for Conflict Management
On February 5, 2018, Security Forces (SFs) killed a militant of the Saoraigwra faction of the National Democratic Front of Bodoland (NDFB-S), ‘platoon commander’ Jordan Narzary, in an encounter at Belguri village in the Chirang District of Assam. A 7.62 mm pistol, along with one magazine and two rounds of live ammunition, was recovered from the possession of the slain militant.
On January 7, 2018, SFs killed a NDFB-S militant, Ricardo Hazuary aka Rekhai, in the Akshiguri area of Kokrajhar District.
No civilian or SF fatalities have been registered in the State in 2018, so far (data till February 11, 2018). During the corresponding period of 2017, Assam recorded, according to partial data compiled by the South Asia Terrorism Portal (SATP), a total of four insurgency-related fatalities (two SF personnel and two militants).
Through 2017 Assam accounted for a total of 26 fatalities (five civilians, three SF personnel and 18 militants) as against 86 fatalities (33 civilians, four SF personnel and 49 militants) recorded in 2016, registering a steep decline of 69.77 per cent in total fatalities as compared to 2016.
More significantly, the State registered the lowest insurgency-related fatalities since 1992 [the year from which SATP data is available]. Over the years there has been a cyclical trend in total fatalities, with a peak of 783 (531 civilians, 72 SF personnel, and 180 militants) in 1998.
For the first time, since 1992, fatalities in the civilian category (five), one of the primary indices of the security situation in conflict zones, fell to a single digit in 2017. The low number of 10 in this category was recorded in 2015. At its peak, Assam recorded 531 civilian fatalities in 1998.
2017 also registered the second lowest fatalities (three) among SFs. The lowest figure (one) in this category was recorded in 2015. The State saw a maximum of 87 SF fatalities in 1996. Fatalities in this category remained in the double digits till 2011.
SFs secured a positive kill ratio against the militants in 2017, a trend established since 1997. The ratio in 2017 stood at 1: 6 in favor of SFs, as against 1:12.25 in 2016. Since 1992, the militants managed to secure a kill ratio in their favor in only three years: 1992 (1:1.78), 1995 (1:2.7), and 1996 (1:1.4)
SFs also arrested 172 militants in 2017 adding to the 490 arrested in 2016. The 2017 arrests included cadres of NDFB-S – 44; ULFA-I – 25; Nationalist Socialist Council of Nagaland-Khaplang (NSCN-K) – 17; National Democratic Freedom Fighter for Bodoland (NDFFB) – 8; United People's Liberation Army (UPLA) – 8; Nationalist Socialist Council of Nagaland-Isak Muivah (NSCN-IM) – 6; Adivasi Tiger Force (ATF) – 6, Muslim United Liberation Tigers of Assam (MULTA) – 5;and Hynniewtrep National Liberation Council (HNLC) – 5.
Nine militants surrendered in 2017, adding to 15 in 2016. One of the most prominent surrenders was that of the 'commander-in-chief' of the National Socialist Council of Adivasis (NSCA), Jharu Lohar aka Horen Karmakar, who surrendered before the Police in Sonitpur District on February 7, 2017. Lohar deposited one 9 mm pistol, two magazines and a large number of rounds. NSCA is one of the lesser known Adivasi outfits, largely involved in extortion and abduction.
Meanwhile, though no new Suspension of Operations (SoO) agreement or Memorandum of Settlement (MoS) was signed in 2017, 13 militant groups which were once violently active in the State remained under earlier SoO agreements with the Union and State Governments, through 2017. These included the United Liberation Front of Asom-Pro Talks Faction (ULFA-PTF), the Ranjan Daimary faction of NDFB (NDFB-RD), Pro Talks Faction of NDFB (NDFB-PTF), Adivasi People’s Army (APA), All Adivasi National Liberation Army (AANLA), Birsa Commando Force (BCF), Adivasi Cobra Military of Assam (ACMA), Santhal Tiger Force (STF), National Santhal Liberation Army (NSLA), United Kukigram Democratic Army (UKDA), Kuki Liberation Army (KLA), Hmar People’s Conference-Democratic(HPC-D), Karbi Longri North Cachar Liberation Front (KLNLF).
Another four groups – the Bodo Liberation Tigers (BLT), United People's Democratic Solidarity (UPDS), Dilip Nunisa faction of Dima Halim Daogah (DHD-N) and Jewel Garlosa faction of DHD (DHD-J) – which were once violently active, have already disbanded over the past years. BLT was disbanded on December 7, 2003; UPDS on December 14, 2011; DHD-J on November 26, 2012; and DHD-N on March 9, 2013. There is, meanwhile, hope that talks with ULFA-PTF may come to a conclusion in 2018. Additional Director General of Police-Special Branch (ADGP-SB), Pallab Bhattacharya stated, on December 15, 2017, “The peace talk is going towards the right direction. And the process will speed up after the draft NRC [National Register for Citizen] publication.” The Final draft NRC is to be published by December 2018.
The improvement in the security situation led to the opening up of investment opportunities in the State. Advantage Assam-Global Investors Summit-2018 was successfully held at the Sarusajai Stadium in Guwahati on February 3-4, 2018. At least 200 Memoranda of Understanding (MoU) worth INR 1,000 billion were signed during the two day event.
The security consolidation in Assam was acknowledged by the Centre, with Union Minister of State (MoS) for Home Affairs Hansraj Ahir observing, on December 19, 2017, in the Lok Sabha [Lower House of the Parliament], "While the States of Sikkim, Mizoram and Tripura had no insurgency-related violence, the number of these incidents had come down in Assam, Nagaland, Manipur and Meghalaya in 2017 (till 30 November), as compared to the corresponding period of 2016.”
Even as insurgency-related violence fell to its lowest since the commencement of the troubles in the region, residual threats do remain. Incidents of abduction and extortion continued to intimidate people across the state. According to Police records, at least 5,059 abduction incidents were recorded in 2017 (upto July, no further data available). There were 6,137 such incidents through 2016. Further, there were 732 extortion-related cases registered in 2017 (till July); as against 1,295 through 2016. Though this data does not mention the people involved in these incidents, it is widely known that most of these incidents are carried out by militant groupings. The then Director General of the National Security Guard (NSG) and former Director General of Police (DGP), Assam, J.N. Choudhury observed, on November 28, 2014, "In (the) northeast, militancy has become almost a cottage industry where extortion and abduction for ransom is seen as an easy means for money."
Continuous illegal immigration from Bangladesh (erstwhile East Pakistan) through the porous border has created demographic imbalances. According to the interim report [submitted on July 22, 2017] of The Committee for Protection of Land Rights of Indigenous People of Assam,
This emotive issue of ‘foreigners’ has sparked several protests, some violent, in the past and these continued through 2017. A public rally in Goalpara District on June 30, 2017, to protest against the alleged inclusion of several Indian citizens in the ‘D (doubtful)-voters list’ in the State by the Police and the Foreigners’ Tribunals, turned violent. In the consequent Police firing, one of the protestors, identified as Yakub Ali, (22), died. Earlier, on July 21, 2010, the All Assam Minorities Students' Union (AAMSU) organised a rally to protest against the exercise to update NRC. The protest turned violent and the Police opened fire, killing four protestors.
The pilot project to update NRC was initially launched from Barpeta (Barpeta District) and Chaygaon (Kamrup District) revenue circle in 2010. Subsequent to the firing incident, the exercise was stopped. Later, on December 6, 2013, the Union Government issued a gazette notification to update NRC within three years. The Supreme Court later intervened on August 20, 2014, and gave the Union and the State Government three years to complete the entire process following a petition filed by a Non-Government Organisation, Assam Public Works. The updating process started in May 2015.
The first draft of National Register for Citizen (NRC) was published at midnight on December 31, 2017. The first draft of the updated NRC published the names of about 19 million persons out of a total 32.9 million applicants. The remaining names are under the verification process. Significantly, there was no incident of violence as initially feared. Nevertheless, it will be next to impossible to deport millions of migrants to Bangladesh if they are indeed found to be illegal setters, as India does not have an extradition treaty with Bangladesh.
The issue of ‘Nagalim’ (‘greater Nagaland’), which is reportedly being discussed under the Framework Agreement with the NSCN-IM has also created some trouble. Dima Hasao District witnessed violence when a mob attacked a train during the 12-hour bandh (shutdown strike) called by different organisations on January 25, 2018, following rumors that the Framework Agreement with NSCN-IM would include the Dima Hasao District. When the angry protesters, reportedly, began to attack Policemen, they opened fire, injuring seven protestors. Two of the injured persons died later.
More worryingly, five Districts of Assam (Charaideo, Dibrugarh, Sivasagar and Tinsukia) remain at risk of a potentially escalating militancy. These five Districts are contiguous to another five – three in Arunachal Pradesh [Tirap, Changlang and Longding] and two in Nagaland [Mon and Tuensang] – which fall along the Indo-Myanmar border, constituting the surviving hub of militancy in the Northeastern region. According to partial SATP data, the five Districts (Tirap, Changlang and Longding in Arunachal; and Mon and Tuensang in Nagaland) have accounted for a total of 318 fatalities (31 civilians, 28 SF personnel, 259 militants) since January 1, 2000, of which 12 (one civilian, one SF trooper and six militants) were recorded in 2017. Further, the United National Liberation Front of Western South East Asia (UNLFWESEA) and its main constituents ULFA-I and NSCN-K along with CorCom [Coordination Committee], a conglomerate of six Manipur Valley-based militant outfits, are active along the Indo-Myanmar border. Notably, most of the major recent attacks on SFs along the Indo-Myanmar border, including the June 4, 2015, Chandel attack , were carried out by NSCN-K and UNLFWESEA.
ULFA-I remains a potent threat. Director General of Police (DGP) Mukesh Sahay noted, on December 14, 2017, that ULFA-I was ‘down but not out’, adding, “I don’t have a fair idea about its current strength, but then, strength does not lie in numbers but in lethality. I can say, however, that something which was pervasive all over the State at one point of time is today confined to pockets bordering Arunachal Pradesh and Nagaland.” In 2017, out of 26 fatalities in the State, eight were linked to ULFA-I. The group was responsible for two out of the five civilian killings in 2017. Similarly, out of three SF personnel killed, ULFA-I was responsible for two killings. Out of 18 militants killed in 2017, four were from ULFA-I.
While there has been a remarkable consolidation of peace in Assam, deficiencies and deficits in the security apparatus persist. According to Bureau of Police Research and Development (BPR&D) data, as on 1.1.2017, as against a total sanctioned strength of 65,611 Policemen; only 55,403 were in position, a deficit of 15.56 per cent. Vacancies at senior levels included: Additional Director General of Police – 1; Inspector General of Police – 6; Deputy Inspector General of Police DIG – 7; Assistant Inspector General of Police – 3; Additional Superintendent of Police – 91; Assistant Superintendent of Police/Deputy Superintendent of Police (ASP/ DySP)-237. At the apex level of the India Police Service, the State had a deficit of 20.74 per cent: 149 IPS officer were in position as against the sanctioned strength of 188, considerably weakening executive direction of the Force (the figure represents the combined cadre strength of Assam and Meghalaya).
Assam’s hard earned peace needs further consolidation and greater cooperation with neighbouring State Police formations. A peaceful environment would contribute enormously to addressing the complex questions of illegal immigration, ethnicity, land alienation, as well as economic and infrastructure bottlenecks.
Weekly Fatalities: Major Conflicts in South Asia February 5-11, 2018
Civilians
Security Force Personnel
Terrorists/Insurgents
Total
INDIA
Assam
Jammu and Kashmir
Left-Wing Extremism
Chhattisgarh
Jharkhand
Maharashtra
INDIA (Total)
PAKISTAN
Balochistan
FATA
Sindh
PAKISTAN (Total)
BNP Chairperson Khaleda Zia jailed for five years for breaching of trust in Zia Orphanage Trust case: The Dhaka Special Judge's Court-5 on February 8 jailed Bangladesh Nationalist Party (BNP) Chairperson Khaleda Zia for five years and her eldest son Tarique Rahman and four others for 10 years for breaching of trust in the Zia Orphanage Trust case on July 3, 2008, during the military-controlled interim regime. Judge Mohamad Akhtaruzzaman pronounced the verdict convicting the six. New Age, February 9, 2018.
Nine persons killed in a suicide attack at Sunjuwan Military Station in Jammu and Kashmir: A total of nine persons, including five Army personnel, a civilian, and three militants were killed and another 10 persons were injured in a suicide attack carried out by Jaish-e-Mohammed (JeM) at the Sunjuwan Military Station, close to Jammu City, in Jammu District. The attack started on the early hours of February 10 and the combing operation was going till the last reports came in. Daily Excelsior, February 11-12, 2018.
515 infiltration cases in which 75 militants killed in Jammu and Kashmir in 2017, says Government of India: Union Minister of State for Home Affairs Kiren Rijiju informed the Lok Sabha (Lower House of Indian Parliament) on February 6 that 515 infiltration cases were reported in 2017 in which 75 militants were killed in comparison to 454 cases in 2016 in which 45 militants were killed. In 2015, altogether 223 infiltration cases were reported in which 64 militants were killed. Daily Excelsior, February 7, 2018.
Manipur records highest number of insurgency related incidents in Northeast: Minister of State for Home Kiren Rijiju in Lok Sabha (lower house of Indian Parliament) stated that Manipur had the highest number of insurgency related incidents amongst northeastern states in 2017. Manipur recorded 167 insurgency relate incidents, which was followed by Arunachal Pradesh which recorded 61 incidents, Assam with 33 incidents, Meghalaya 28 incidents and Nagaland with 19 incidents. Manipur also accounted for maximum casualties with 23 civilians and eight Security Forces (SFs). Manipur was followed by Assam which recorded six civilian and three SFs, then by Nagaland with three civilian and one SF, Arunachal with three civilians and Meghalaya with two civilians. Assam Tribune, February 11, 2018.
Government revises monetary incentives for surrendered militants: Union Minister of State for Home Kiren Rijiju stated that Government of India (GoI) has revised the stipend amount and fixed deposit for the surrendered militants in Northeast. The new surrender scheme will come into effect from April 2018. The monthly allowance would be increased from INR 3,000 to INR 6,000. Moreover, the militants will be given a relief amount of INR 400,000 which was earlier INR 1, 50,000. Northeast Today, February 10, 2018.
EC unveils final result of NA election: The Election Commission (EC) on February 8 unveiled the final result of the National Assembly (NA) election held on February 7. According to the EC, the Communist Party of Nepal-Unified Marxist Leninist (CPN-UML) won 27 NA seats, followed by the Nepali Congress (NC), 13; the Communist Party of Nepal-Maoist Centre (CPN-Maoist Centre), 12; and two seats each by the Rastriya Janata Party-Nepal (RJP-N) and the Federal Socialist Forum–Nepal (FSF-N). The election was held for 56 NA seats, while three NA members will be nominated by the President on the Government’s recommendation. The Himalayan Times, February 9, 2018.
EC announces PR seats won by parties in HoR: The Election Commission (EC) on February 9 announced the Proportional Representation (PR) seats won by the parties in the House of Representatives (HoR) more than two months since the federal and provincial elections were held. Only five parties—the Communist Party of Nepal-Unified Marxist Leninist (CPN-UML), the Nepali Congress (NC), the Communist Party of Nepal-Maoist Centre (CPN-Maoist Centre), the Rastriya Janata Party-Nepal (RJP-N) and the Federal Socialist Forum–Nepal (FSF-N) have got PR seats at the Lower House as the other 44 parties did not meet the three percent vote threshold. As announced by the EC, the CPN-UML received 41 seats, followed by the NC’s 40, the CPN-Maoist Centre’s 17, and six each of the RJP-N and the FSF-N among the 110 seats for PR in the HoR. The kathmandu Post, February 10, 2018.
Cabinet extends tenure of TRC and CIEDP by one year: The Cabinet on February 5 extended the tenure of two transitional justice mechanisms — the Truth and Reconciliation Commission (TRC) and the Commission of Investigation on Enforced Disappeared Persons (CIEDP) — by one. The two bodies whose tenure ends on February 10 had applied for a one-year extension as provisioned in the ordinance endorsed by President Bidhya Devi Bhandari on January 19. The ordinance adopted on January 19 had provisioned that the Government could extend the tenure of the TRC and the CIEDP by one year if the two mechanisms request for a term extension stating valid reasons for their failure to complete their jobs in the stipulated time. The two bodies had cited human and financial resource crunch, lack of necessary legislation and non-cooperation from political parties and the government as reasons for their failure to complete their tasks on time. The Himalayan Times, February 6, 2018.
US names three Pakistani nationals as ‘terrorist facilitators’: The United States (US) on February 8 named three Pakistani nationals as key "terrorist facilitators", saying they worked closely with a well-known backer of al Qaeda, Lashkar-e-Taiba (LeT) and the Taliban, Shaykh Aminullah. The US Treasury placed Rahman Zeb Faqir Muhammad, Hizb Ullah Astam Khan, and Dilawar Khan Nadir Khan, on its blacklist of "Specially Designated Global Terrorists," in an effort to disrupt the group’s ability to obtain and distribute financing. All three were tied to Shaykh Aminullah, who has been on international terror blacklists since 2009. The News, February 9, 2018.
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.
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