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South Asia Terrorism Portal

SOUTH ASIA INTELLIGENCE REVIEW
[SAIR]

Weekly Assessments & Briefings
Volume 19, No.32, February 1, 2021
 
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: Sindh: Fuelling Separatism - Tushar Ranjan Mohanty
  • INDIA: Odisha: Continuing attrition - Deepak Kumar Nayak


PAKISTAN

 

    Print

Sindh: Fuelling Separatism
Tushar Ranjan Mohanty
Research
Associate, Institute for Conflict Management

 

On January 18, 2021, in a massive pro-freedom rally organised in Sann Town in Jamshoro District of Sindh, on the 117th birth anniversary of Ghulam Murtaza Syed, one of the founding fathers of modern Sindh nationalism, protesters raised placards of several world leaders to seek their intervention for the liberation of Sindh. The world leaders whose placards were used include Afghanistan President Ashraf Ghani, Bangladesh Prime Minister (PM) Sheikh Hasina, British PM Boris Johnson, French President Emmanuel Macron, German Chancellor Angela Merkel, Indian PM Narendra Modi, Russian President Vladimir Putin, Saudi Arabia’s Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman, US President-elect Joe Biden (he later assumed office on January 20) and UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres. The posters declared, “Sindh wants freedom from Pakistan”.

A rally was organised on November 8, 2020, in Karachi, the provincial capital of Sindh, where a large number of protestors took to the streets, protesting against what they called the illegal occupation of their land by Pakistan. Held under the banner of 'Sindhudesh Freedom Movement', the demonstrators carried placards reading: "Sindhudesh is our vision, mission, destiny and motherland." People held up pictures of Sindhi political activists and leaders who had been abducted or killed.

Though, pro-freedom rallies in Sindh have been a regular feature since 1972 when the freedom movement was started by Ghulam Murtaza Syed, they have gained momentum of late.

The ‘freedom movement’ in Sindh is led by groups such as Jeay Sindh Qaumi Mahaz (JSQM), Jeay Sindh Muttahida Mahaz (JSMM), Jeay Sindh Students' Federation (JSSF) and Sindh National Movement Party (SNMP).

On November 8, 2020, Shafi Burfat, the chairman of JSMM, stated,

Sindh is a colony of Punjabi imperialism and a victim of its atrocities and tyranny. Punjab has continuously been exploiting our natural and mineral resources including the sea, the river, the national wealth, the lands, the oil, the gas, the coal, the ports, and the sea islands have been plundered by Punjab for the last seventy-three years with both hands as spoils of war. There is no political, economic, moral, and historical basis for Pakistan's existence after the separation of Bangladesh in 1971.

The ‘freedom movement’ has got the support from terrorist groups operating in Sindh and Balochistan, which also is witnessing similar demands. The prominent groups include Sindhudesh Revolutionary Army (SRA), Sindhudesh Liberation Army (SLA), Balochistan Liberation Army (BLA), Baloch Republican Army (BRA), Balochistan Liberation Front (BLF) and Baloch Republican Guards (BRG).

Parallel to the groups leading the ‘freedom movement’, Sindhi and Baloch militant groups have increased their activities on ground, resulting in increased violence in Sindh. According to partial data compiled by the South Asia Terrorism Portal (SATP), Sindh recorded 52 fatalities (21 civilians, 20 Security Force, SF personnel and 11 militants) in 2020, as compared to 25 fatalities (15 civilians, five SF personnel and five militants) in 2019, registering an over two-fold increase. Significantly, overall fatalities had been declining in Sindh since 2014, when fatalities fell to 1,147 from 1,656 in 2013. 2013 recorded the maximum number of fatalities in a year since March 6, 2000, when SATP started compiling data on major conflicts in Pakistan.

The numbers suggest that SFs have again lost ground. The SF:terrorist kill ratio was in favour of the terrorists in 2020, at 1.81:1, for the first time since 2010, when it was 2.57:1.    

There were 21 civilian fatalities in 2020 as against 15 in 2019.

Further, the number of overall terrorism-linked incidents increased marginally from 69 in 2019 to 70 in 2020. However, incidents of killing increased from 18 to 29, and included one successful suicide attack in 2020, as against one failed attempt in 2019.

Nine persons, including four private security guards and one Police Sub-Inspector, were killed in a suicide attack targeting the Pakistan Stock Exchange on Chundrigar Road in Karachi, on June 29, 2020. Though all the four fidayeens (suicide attackers) were killed near the entrance gates, before they could enter the building, five SF personnel at the gates and one bystander were killed in the attack.

There was also a considerable increase in the number of explosions in 2020. As compared to just one blast resulting in one fatality in 2019, year 2020 recorded 13 explosions resulting in 16 fatalities.

The geographical spread of violence also increased, with fatalities reported from eight Districts of Sindh in 2020, as against just two districts in 2019. Provincial capital Karachi recorded the highest number of fatalities in 2020, with 38 killings, followed by Dadu, six; Sukkur, two; and one fatality each in Jacobabad, Khairpur, Larkana, Naushahro Feroze, Sanghar and Tando Allahyar. Sindh has a total of 29 Districts.

Of the two major attacks (each involving three or more fatalities) reported in 2020, the BLA and SRA claimed one each. While the BLA claimed responsibility for the June 29 Pakistan Stock Exchange attack, the SRA claimed responsibility for the coordinated attacks on Pakistan Rangers (Sindh) at three places of Sindh (Larkana, Karachi and Ghotki) on June 19, in which nine SF personnel were killed and 14 were injured. SRA spokesperson, Sodho Sindhi, declared in a statement,

Pakistani Intelligence agencies had been abducting and later it (sic) throwing the bullet riddled bodies of Sindhi Nationalist Political workers. From Shaheed Samiullah Kalhoro to Shaheed Niaz Lashari have been victimized of these brutalities (sic) of Pakistani agencies. SRA owns those all (sic) Sindhi Martyrs and vows for retaliation of those all of Martyrdoms (sic) of Sindhi Political Workers.

According to SATP, out of 21 civilian fatalities recorded in Sindh in 2020, the BLA was responsible for 10, while 11 fatalities remain unattributed. Similarly, out of 20 SF fatalities recorded in 2020, SRA was responsible for 12, and BLA for one, while seven fatalities remain unattributed.

According to the Security Report 2020 released by the Pakistan Institute for Peace Studies (PIPS), an Islamabad-based think tank, Sindhi nationalist groups perpetrated 10 terrorist attacks in Sindh in 2020, including eight by the banned Sindhudesh Revolutionary Army alone.   

In view of the increasing violence by Sindhi nationalist groups, the Federal Government banned three groups on May 7, 2020: SRA, SLA and Jeay Sindh Qaumi Mahaz – Arisar (JSQM-A), the militant wing of JSMM.

Further, to suppress the rising Sindhi nationalism movement, the Government continues with its policy of enforced disappearances. According to Pakistan’s Commission of Enquiry on Enforced Disappearances (COIED), Sindh accounted for a total of 1,618 cases of missing persons between March 1, 2011 (the date of inception of the Commission) and August 31, 2020. According to the Commission, of these 1,618 persons, 1,008 were traced – 53 dead bodies, 246 in prisons, 37 in internment centre and 672 returned home. The Commission ‘deleted’ cases of another 419 missing persons, claiming that these were “closed due to not being cases of enforced disappearances, incomplete address, withdrawal by complainants, non-prosecution. etc.” Thus, as per the commission, a total of 1,427 cases were ‘disposed of’, leaving another 191 cases under investigation.

In the most recent incident, on January 28, 2021, Sanaullah Aman, a Sindhi activist working against enforced disappearances, was arrested from Lahore (Punjab) and subsequently shifted to an undisclosed location. According to the Voice for Missing Persons of Sindh (VMPS), Sanaullah Aman has been ‘forcibly disappeared’ by state agencies.

Earlier, on January 20, 2021, Sagar Mukesh, a Sindhi nationalist and human rights activist, was abducted by unidentified persons in Karachi. Sagar Mukesh’s fellow activist have blamed the SFs for Sagar’s enforced disappearance.

To counter state atrocities, Sindhi and Baloch nationalist groups have decided to join hands. On July 25, 2020, the Baloch Raji Ajoi Sangar (BRAS) – a conglomerate of four Baloch ethno-nationalist militant groups – announced an operational alliance with SRA. According to BRAS’ communiqué, the decision to create an operational alliance between BRAS and SRA followed the meeting of senior ‘commanders’ of BLA (Bashirzeb Baloch faction), Baloch Republican Army (Gulzar Imam faction), BLF, BRG and SRA, at an undisclosed location. The common objective of creating this united front against Pakistan was declared to be to ‘liberate’ Balochistan and Sindh. Moreover, opposition to the China–Pakistan Economic Corridor (CPEC) and ethno-nationalist grievances were other factors which have contributed to the alliance. The new alliance announced that it would connect with other ethno-nationalist militant groups to build a strong and vast united front against the Pakistani state.

The rising Sindhi nationalist movement and the simultaneous increase in violence will further undermine security in Sindh.

 

INDIA

 

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Odisha: Continuing attrition
Deepak Kumar Nayak
Research Associate, Institute for Conflict Management

On January 30, 2021, Communist Party of India-Maoist (CPI-Maoist) cadres killed two civilians in the Belghar area of Kandhamal District. In a handwritten note found near the bodies of the slain villagers, the Maoists of the ‘Bansadhara-Ghumusar-Nagabali (BGN) Division’ claimed that the two were among those who had tipped off the Security Forces (SFs) about the presence of rebels in the Belghar area, which had resulted in the September 9, 2020, encounter in which five Maoists were killed. The Maoists warned other ‘informers’ to surrender before their ‘Jan Adalat’ (People’s/ Kangaroo Court organized by the Maoists) within 15 days or else, they would be sentenced to death. They also warned that the State Government, Director General of Police (DGP) Abhay, and Inspector General of Police (IGP), Intelligence, R.K. Sharma. would be held responsible for the loss of lives.

On January 31, 2021, a CPI-Maoist cadre was killed in an exchange of fire with SFs in the Nunkhari Forest under Mathili Police Station limits in Malkangiri District.

According to partial data compiled by the South Asia Terrorism Portal (SATP), these three Left Wing Extremism (LWE) violence-linked fatalities were recorded in the state in the opening month of the current year.

In comparison, in January 2020, the state accounted for two such fatalities (one civilian and one Maoist).

Through 2020, there were a total of 23 fatalities (four civilians, two SF personnel and 17 Maoists) as compared to 19 fatalities (10 civilians, one trooper and eight Maoists) through 2019.

At least 17 Maoists were killed in eight encounters with SFs in 2020. Two SF personnel were killed in these encounters (both in one incident). A kill ratio of 1:8.5 in favour of SFs was thus established in 2020, as against 1:8 (one trooper, eight Maoists) in 2019, though there was a twofold increase in Maoist fatalities. Though the overall SF:Maoist kill ratio since March 6, 2000, now stands at 1:1.37, it was in favor of the Maoists till 2014, at 1.08:1.

On January 24, 2021, a woman cadre of the CPI-Maoist, identified as Lachchi Khara aka Lachhi aka Gita, surrendered before SFs in Malkangiri District. Lachhi as an active member of the 'Andhra Odisha Border Special Zonal Committee (AOBSZC)'. While this is the lone incident of Maoist surrender in the State in the current year, thus far (data till January 31, 2021), a total of 22 Maoists surrendered in through 2020. There were 10 such surrenders in 2019. Since March 6, 2000, when SATP started compiling data on Left Wing Extremism (LWE), at least 4,770 Maoists have surrendered. SFs also arrested three Maoists in 2020, in addition to 22 in 2019. Since March 6, 2000, at least 1,574 Maoists have been arrested in Odisha. 

Clearly, the SFs have made significant gains on the ground over the past years, resulting in a significantly improved security environment for civilians in the State.

There were four civilian fatalities in 2020 as compared to 10 in 2019. Civilian fatalities in 2020 were the second lowest recorded in the State since March 2000. The lowest of three fatalities was recorded in 2006. A high of 62 fatalities was recorded in 2010.

Nevertheless, the revenge killings of January 30, 2021, and the threat issued is worrisome.

Meanwhile, other parameters of violence also suggest a waning of Maoist influence and impact in the State. A total of 71 LWE-related incidents were registered in 2020, down from 73 in 2019, maintaining the trend of declining numbers established since 2013. No major incident (involving three or more killings) targeting the civilians or SFs was reported in 2020 as in 2019. The last such incident was reported on April 23, 2018, when three civilians were killed in a landmine blast near Mundibedha village under the Raighar Police Station limits of Nabarangpur District.

The number of Districts where fatalities were recorded also declined in 2020. Out of a total of 30 Districts in Odisha, fatalities were recorded in just three in 2020 – Kandhamal (nine), Kalahandi (seven) and Malkangiri (seven). In 2019, fatalities were reported from six Districts – Koraput (five), Kandhamal (four), Malkangiri (four), Kalahandi (three), Nabarangpur (two) and Balangir (one).

On January 20, 2021, praising the Odisha Police for successfully tackling the LWE menace in the State, the Chief of Defence Staff (CDS), General Bipin Rawat, thus observed,

It must be noted the LWE situation in the State, especially in Swabhiman Anchal [Self-respect Zone earlier known as the cutoff area] of Malkangiri District has substantially improved over the last few years. The state police gunned down 17 Maoists in separate anti-Naxal operations in different districts in 2020.

Significantly, ever since the Maoists faced a major blow in the twin encounters in the Bejingi Forest area between Ramgarh and Panasput in Malkangiri District on October 24 and 27, 2016, resulting in the death of 28 and two Maoist cadres, respectively, the Maoists area of influence shrunk dramatically in the ‘Andhra-Odisha Border (AOB)’ region, which had served as a long-time sanctuary and stronghold for the rebels. The five Districts of southern Odisha (Malkangiri, Koraput, Rayagada, Gajapati and Ganjam), along with four north coastal Districts of Andhra Pradesh (East Godavari, Visakhapatnam, Vijayanagaram and Srikakulam) fell under the erstwhile Maoist-dominated AOB region.

Shefeen Ahamed, Deputy Inspector General of Police for the South West Range, Odisha, which controls Districts of the State bordering Chhattisgarh and Andhra Pradesh, thus acknowledged,

During the past six years, there has been a steady decline in the activities of the CPI (Maoist) in the region. We have been able to consolidate in Malkangiri district bordering Chhattisgarh and Andhra Pradesh, so influx could be controlled. The security forces have managed to bust the hideouts of LWEs [Left Wing Extremists]. In Koraput district, security forces have also squeezed out CPI (Maoist) rebels. Now, special anti-Naxal [anti-LWE] forces and intelligence agencies have been working in tandem. We are receiving excellent cooperation from neighbouring Andhra Pradesh and Chhattisgarh in combating LWEs.

Indeed, Republic Day 2021 (January 26) was celebrated in two Panchayats (village level local self-Government institutions) in Swabhiman Anchal in Malkangiri District after a hiatus of over five decades. Malkangiri Superintendent of Police (SP), Rishikesh Dnyandeo Khilari, stated,

After the area was cut-off from the rest of the district due to a reservoir project in early 1970s left wing extremists had established their domination… For the first time after several decades Republic Day was celebrated and the national flag was hoisted in Panasput and Jodambo panchayats inside Swabhiman Anchal.

He added that, on October 31, 2020, the Border Security Force (BSF) and the Odisha Police set up a Company Operating Base (COB) at Gurasethu, earlier dubbed the CPI-Maoist's "ideological headquarters" in Swabhiman Anchal, signaling the fading out of Maoist influence.

Construction work on the Balimela Dam began in 1962-63 in what was then the undivided Koraput District, and the dam was completed in 1977, creating the 'Cut-off area'.

In another encouraging development, according to a December 9, 2020, report, the residents of Khajuriguda village in Chitrakonda Tehsil (revenue unit) in Malkangiri District, armed with their traditional bows and arrows, mustered the courage to defend their village against the Maoists by guarding the entrances to their village 24X7 to prevent any rebel from sneaking in under the cover of darkness. Unnamed residents of the village, thus disclosed,

Four to six villagers guard the entry points of the village during the day. At night, nearly 15 villagers are on duty. Earlier, we would fear the Maoists and were unable to oppose them. The establishment of security camps in the region, and frequent anti-Maoist combing operations, has led to a sense of security among us. We want to make our area free of Left-wing extremism. We want development. We have realised that Maoists pose an obstruction to development. Owing to their presence, development had taken a back seat in our village. Now we want to cooperate with police and the administration for the overall development of the region. We want to see better roads, schools and hospitals in our area.

Further, the Maoists have fizzled out in the 'KKBN division' - covering the Kandhamal, Kalahandi, Boudh, and Nayagarh Districts of the State, which were once considered Maoist strongholds.

On July, 2020, State Director General of Police (DGP), Abhay disclosed,

The UMHA [Union Ministry of Homes Affairs] has been urged to take off the names (from the list of Maoist affected Districts) of Angul, Boudh, Sambalpur, Deogarh, and Nayagarh Districts, as the Maoist violence has been on the wane in the State and more rebels are also laying down their arms because of an intensified bid by the Security Forces to crush the internal rebellion.

Nevertheless, problems remain.

On September 21, 2020, G. Kishan Reddy, the Minister of State in the Ministry of Home Affairs, stated that 15 Districts (Angul, Bargarh, Bolangir, Boudh, Deogarh, Kalahandi, Kandhamal, Koraput, Malkangiri, Nabarangpur, Nayagarh, Nuapada, Rayagada, Sambalpur, and Sundargarh) out of the State's 30 Districts, still find place among the 90 Districts in 11 States listed as LWE-affected by the Union Ministry of Home Affairs (UMHA) and covered under the Security Related Expenditure (SRE) /LWE scheme for the purpose of reimbursement of expenditure incurred on counter-LWE operations. At peak in 2010, as many as 23 Districts (Angul, Bargarh, Bhadrak, Bolangir, Cuttack, Deogarh, Dhenkanal, Gajapati, Ganjam, Jajpur, Jagatsinghpur, Kalahandi, Kandhamal, Keonjhar, Khurda, Koraput, Malkangiri, Mayurbhanj, Nabarangpur, Nuapada, Rayagada, Sambalpur, Sundargarh) in the State were affected by Maoist activities.

Security measures need to be further strengthened to meet the residual challenge, as the Maoists have previously demonstrated the capacity to make a comeback in different regions from time to time.

Regrettably, however, according to the latest Bureau of Police Research and Development (BPR&D) data, as on January 1, 2020, the Odisha Police continued to lag in terms of capacities. Odisha had 129.31 Police personnel per 100,000 population, significantly below the inadequate national average of 155.78. More worryingly, the Police/Area Ratio (number of policemen per 100 square kilometres) was just 37.54, as against the national average of 63.63. Both the State and national averages on the Police/Area ratio were well below the sanctioned strength, at 42.49 and 79.80, respectively. Worryingly, the sanctioned strength for the States’ Police was 66,161, while just 58,455 personnel were in position, creating a deficit of 11.64 per cent. In addition, the sanctioned strength of the apex Indian Police Service (IPS) Officers in the State was 195, but just 123 officers were in position, a deficit of 36.92 per cent that considerably weakens the executive supervision of the Force.

Reports indicate that 92 companies of Central Armed Police Forces (48 of BSF and 44 of CRPF) are deployed in Odisha to combat the Maoist rebels. These Central Forces work in coordination with the State Police.

The Maoists are certainly on the backfoot and gradually failing in their erstwhile areas of influence in the State due to coordinated action by SFs. However, the Governments – both the Central and State – urgently need to address critical security deficits and enhance the necessary administrative, developmental and security outreach to consolidate state outreach and effectiveness in the remaining LWE-affected regions of Odisha.

NEWS BRIEFS
 

Weekly Fatalities: Major Conflicts in South Asia 
January 25-31, 2021

 

Civilians

Security Force Personnel

Terrorists/Insurgents

NS

Total

AFGHANISTAN

7
12
213
1
233

INDIA

 

Jammu and Kashmir

1
1
3
0
5

INDIA (Left-Wing Extremism)

 

Chhattisgarh

5
2
0
0
7

Odisha

2
0
1
0
3

INDIA (Total)

8
3
4
0
15

PAKISTAN

 

Balochistan

3
0
0
0
3

KP

0
1
0
0
1

PAKISTAN (Total)

3
1
0
0
4
Provisional data compiled from English language media sources.


AFGHANISTAN

Taliban violence remains high despite peace efforts, says NSC: National Security Council (NSC), on January 29 said that Taliban violence has "increased" after they signed the peace deal with the United States last year in February and the group has maintained ties with al-Qaeda. The NSC spokesman Rahmatullah Andar said that 11 al-Qaeda members were arrested recently by Afghan forces and that "they were operating in the ranks of the Taliban." "Three of those arrested are key members of the network," Andar said. Tolo News, January 30, 2021.

Taliban have not honoured commitments to US, says Pentagon: The Pentagon said on January 28 that the Joe Biden administration would not commit to a full drawdown of United States (US) troops from Afghanistan by May because the Taliban have not honoured the commitments, they made in their agreement with the US signed in Doha last year in February. "The Taliban have not met their commitments," Pentagon Press Secretary John Kirby said in his first press conference. Tolo News, January 30, 2021.

3,000 Civilians killed in Afghanistan in 2020, says AIHRC annual report: The annual report of the Afghan Independent Human Rights Commission (AIHRC) shows that over 3,000 civilians in Afghanistan were killed due to war and violence in 2020. 5,000 civilians were injured in war in 2020. The report states that civilian casualties in Afghanistan dropped 21 percent in 2020 compared to 2019. Tolo News, January 28, 2021.

Al-Qaeda 'gaining strength' in Afghanistan, tells US Treasury report: The US Treasury Department said that the al-Qaeda is gaining strength in Afghanistan while "continuing to operate with the Taliban under the group's protection". "Al-Qaeda broadly still depends on donations from likeminded supporters, and from individuals who believe that their money is supporting humanitarian or charitable causes," it said in a report released on January 4. Tolo News, January 27, 2021.

Taliban 'not willing to engage', says Nader Nadery: A member of the peace negotiating team representing the Islamic Republic of Afghanistan Nader Nadery has accused the group of not showing interest in attending the formal meetings to end the war in the country over the past nine days. "Nine days that formal meetings are not held and the other side is not willing to engage in talks to end the conflict and save lives," said Nadery. Tolo News, January 27, 2021.

 
INDIA

JMB was hoarding PETN to target India and Bangladesh for establishment of Sharia Law, states STF of Kolkata Police: The Special Task Force (STF) of Kolkata Police on January 27, told a city court that Jama'atul Mujahideen Bangladesh (JMB), had been stockpiling pentaerythritol tetranitrate (PETN) to carry out "subversive activities across India and Bangladesh to establish Sharia Law by demolishing existing democratic governments of these countries. The STF also listed some most-wanted names in the outfit - Salauddin Saleh being one of them. Times of India, January 28, 2021.

SFJ announces USD 350,000 reward for unfurling 'Khalistani flag' on Parliament of India: The US-based banned pro-Khalistani group, Sikhs for Justice (SFJ), announced a reward of USD 350,000 for unfurling the "Khalistani flag" on the Indian Parliament on February 1, when the Union Budget 2021-2022 will be presented. In a video statement, SFJ's General Counsel Gurpatwant Singh Pannun hailed the hoisting of the 'Nishan Sahib'-which he referred to as a "Khalistani flag"-during the "siege" of the Red Fort in Delhi on January 26. Yahoo, January 27, 2021.

PAKISTAN

Frontier Corps IG for South Balochistan Major General Ayman Bilal admits China's support for crushing the Baloch liberation movement: A Major general of Army confessed China's role and support in his deployment in Balochistan, the Sangar reported on January 26. "China has deployed me here to crush the Baloch movement and has given me a six-month task", said Frontier Corps (FC) Inspector General (IG), South Balochistan, Major General Ayman Bilal at a special (jirga) meeting at FC headquarters in Turbat with few notables including local agents of FC and intelligence agencies. Sangar Publication, February 1, 2020.

Al Qaida chief Osama bin Laden used to support, fund former PM Nawaz Sharif, says former ambassador to the US Abida Hussain: Pakistan's former ambassador to the United States (US) Abida Hussain on January 30 revealed that al Qaida chief Osama bin Laden had supported and funded former Prime Minister (PM) Nawaz Sharif. "Yes, he (Osama Bin Laden) supported Mian Nawaz Sharif at one time. However, that is a complicated story. He (Osama) used to extend financial assistance (to Nawaz Sharif," she said in an interview with a private television channel. Daily Times, February 1, 2020.

SRI LANKA

No concrete information on foreign links in Easter Sunday suicide attacks, says former CID Director Shani Abeysekara: Former Criminal Investigation Department (CID) Director Shani Abeysekara on January 25 testified before the Presidential Commission of Inquiry (PCoI) probing Easter Sunday attacks said that there was no concrete information on foreign links that involved in the Easter Sunday suicide attacks at the time he was serving as the Director of the CID. Daily Mirror, January 27, 2021.

 
 
For assessments on other South Asian countries and for daily news updates on terrorism visit
South Asia Terrorism Portal 
 

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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