South Asia Terrorism Portal

PAKISTAN

Pakistan-China: Increasing Pressure
Ajit Kumar Singh
Research Fellow, Institute for Conflict Management

In the second ever worst ever attack, in terms of fatalities, targeting Chinese nationals and projects in Pakistan, a vehicle driven by a suicide attacker and laden with explosives rammed a convoy of Chinese workers headed to the Dasu Hydropower Plant project site at Dasu in the Upper Kohistan District of Khyber Pakhtunkhwa (KP), killing at least 13 persons, including nine Chinese, on July 14, 2021. Two buses carrying workers from the China Gezhouba Group Co., a construction company based in Wuhan, China, were badly damaged in the explosion. The Dasu Hydropower Plant project is part of the China Pakistan Economic Corridor (CPEC) project.

The worst attack targeting Chinese nationals, since March 2000, when South Asia Terrorism Portal (SATP) started compiling data on conflicts in Pakistan, was recorded on July 19, 2007, when a suicide bomber tried to ram his explosive laden vehicle into a van taking Chinese engineers to Karachi from Hub town, at the Gadani Bus Stop in the industrial town of Hub in Balochistan, but missed the target when a Police van blocked its way. At least 30 people, including seven Policemen, were killed and 28 were injured. All seven Chinese engineers, including a woman, remained unhurt. This was also the first ever attack directly targeting Chinese nationals.

According to partial data compiled by the SATP, since July 19, 2007, at least 11 attacks directly targeting Chinese nationals have been recorded thus far, resulting in 67 deaths (data till July 18, 2021). The dead included 10 Chinese nationals, 13 Pakistani Security Force (SF) personnel, 36 Pakistani civilians and eight attackers. Another, 50 persons, including five Chinese nationals, have been injured in these attacks.

Some of the other prominent incidents targeting Chinese nationals include:

April 21, 2021: At least five persons, including four Pakistani civilians and a police official, were killed and another 12 sustained injuries, when a bomb exploded in the parking lot of the Serena Hotel located on the Shahrah-e-Zarghun Road in Quetta, Balochistan. No Chinese national was injured. It was a suicide car bombing, but the terrorists could not enter the main hotel building where a Chinese delegation was staying. The explosion occurred before Chinese ambassador, Nong Rong, who was  in Quetta on that day, was to arrive at the hotel. The apparent target of the attack was Nong Rong.

May 11, 2019: Four terrorists stormed the luxury Zaver Pearl-Continental Hotel, in Gwadar, Balochistan. The Hotel had around 70 guests at the time, including 40 Chinese nationals. Nine persons, including four hotel employees, one Pakistan Navy soldier and all four attackers, were killed during the eight-hour long siege. BLA’s ‘Majeed Brigade’ claimed responsibility for the attack, saying that it was aimed at Chinese and other foreign investors.

November 23, 2018: Baloch Liberation Army (BLA) Fidayeen (suicide attacker) ‘Majeed Brigade’ militants attacked the Chinese Consulate in Block 4 of the Clifton area in Karachi, the provincial capital of Sindh, leaving at least six people dead. However, no Chinese national was hurt in the attack. Three militants were killed in the operation by SFs. BLA claimed that the attackers had been assigned the task to target the Consulate.

February 5, 2018: A Chinese national, Chen Zhu (46), who was a top official at a shipping firm, was shot dead by unknown armed assailants in a targeted attack at Zamzama Park in Clifton, Karachi.

Further, one failed terror attack directly targeting Chinese nationals was recorded during this period. SFs defused a bomb planted on the car of a Chinese restaurant owner in the Clifton locality near Bilawal House in Karachi on December 15, 2020. The car being driven by a Chinese national was the target of the would-be attackers.

At least four Chinese nationals were abducted in three separate incidents during this period: two were killed, one is missing and one was released.  On May 24, 2017, a Chinese couple, Lee Zing Yang (24) and Meng Li Si (26), was abducted from the Jinnah Town area of Quetta, and subsequently killed. On June 8, the Islamic State claimed the killings and this was confirmed by Foreign Office on October 30.

Not all the Chinese nationals who were targeted by the terrorists were involved in CPEC projects.

At least 66 Pakistani nationals (including civilians and SF personnel) have been killed in attacks not directly targeting Chinse nationals, but targeting Pakistani nationals associated with the CPEC project during this period. In one such attack, on October 31, 2018, five labourers working at a CPEC-related private housing scheme on the Peshkan-Ganz Road, which links Gwadar and Jewani, were killed when a group of unidentified assailants riding motorcycles appeared on the scene and opened fire near Ganz, some 15 kilometers west of Jiwani town in the Gwadar District. BLA 'spokesperson' Azad Baloch, claiming responsibility for the attack, stated,

In another attack intended to hurt Chinese economic interest in Pakistan, at least 11 persons were killed when four terrorists attacked the Pakistan Stock Exchange (PSX) on Chundrigar Road, Karachi, on June 29, 2020. Those killed included four private security Guards, one Policeman, two bystanders and all the four attackers. All the persons killed were Pakistani nationals. Significantly, after the June 29, 2020, attack BLA 'spokesperson' Jeehand Baloch declared,

There has, for long, been strong resentment in Pakistan against China’s ‘economic design’ and this has grown further after the start of the CPEC project in 2013, as both the civilian population and insurgents believe that CPEC is part of a 'strategic design' by China to loot resources and eliminate Pakistani, particularly Baloch, culture and identity. The USD 62 billion CPEC is a massive series of projects that includes a network of highways, railways and energy infrastructure spanning the entire country. CPEC is a flagship project in China's ambitious Belt and Road Initiative. 

Not surprisingly, the Government of Pakistan has deputed an estimated 37,000 security personnel to guard Chinese workers engaged in some 22 projects directly associated with CPEC and another 214 related small and mega projects in Pakistan. These include 15,780 military personnel trained under the umbrella of the Special Security Division (SSD) and the Maritime Security Force (MSF).

Despite this, attacks against Chinese nationals/Chinese economic interests continue in Pakistan and have, in fact, increased. Consequently, Chinese anger is brewing. Indeed, on July 22, 2021, China sent a strong message cancelling the 10^th Joint Coordination Committee (JCC) meeting, under the CPEC, for an indefinite period. The meeting was scheduled to take place on July 23. Reports indicate that CPEC projects have significantly slowed down. There was hope in Islamabad that things would change after the JCC meeting. CPEC chairman Lt. Gen. (Retd.) Asim Saleem Bajwa had thus stated, on July 10, “The much-awaited JCC meeting will open new vistas for the CPEC and expedite work on the under-construction projects.” Bajwa noted, further, that normally the JCC met at least once a year, but its 10^th  meeting was being held after considerable delay because of the COVID-19 pandemic. The 9^th JCC meeting was held in November 2019.

Pakistan has, in fact, long been under immense pressure to heed to Chinese demands for a direct military presence to safeguard its interest in the country and its surrounding areas. Indeed, the US Department of Defense a report "Military and Security Developments Involving the People's Republic of China 2020," noted,

Though there is no official presence of Chinese troops in Pakistan, reports have emerged from time to time about Chinese troops' presence inside Pakistan. Way back in 2010, a New York Times report claimed that 7,000 Chinese troops were stationed in Gilgit-Pakistan (Pakistan-occupied Kashmir). The Dasu attack will further increase the pressure to allow Chinese bases in Pakistan.

China has repeatedly asked Pakistan to take definitive measures to stop attacks on its projects and citizens. Reiterating the demand in the aftermath of the Dasu attack, Foreign Ministry Spokesperson Zhao Lijian's, stated on July 14, 2021,

And again, on July 15,

With the economic situation worsening every day, Pakistan is no position to anger its “all-weather-friend.” It needs to take immediate and definitive measures to stop attacks on Chinese. However, this will be a difficult task for Islamabad, as its policy of supporting ‘good terrorists’ has created an environment that enables all kinds of armed groups. Inevitably, moreover, as Islamabad’s desperation and ineffectiveness grow, and as the US dilutes its military commitments in the country, the probabilities of a significant Chinese military presence on Pakistani soil can only grow.

BANGLADESH

ABT/Ansar al-Islam: Latent Threat
S. Binodkumar Singh
Research Associate, Institute for Conflict Management

On July 15, 2021, the Rapid Action Battalion (RAB) arrested Mahmudul Hasan Gunabi aka Hasan, the ‘spiritual leader’ of banned Ansarullah Bangla Team (ABT)/ Ansar al-Islam from the Shah Ali area of Dhaka city. Gunabi used to deliver religious speeches at different madrasas (seminaries) to identify a target group, lure them into militancy and train them in secret dens in the country's hilly areas.

On June 29, 2021, RAB arrested two cadres of ABT/Ansar al-Islam from the Sabujpara area of Kurigram District. The arrestees were Mohamad Abdul Quader Salman (25) and Mohamad Minhazul Islam (21). Extremist literature, mobile phones, SIMs and memory cards were recovered from them.

On June 26, 2021, the Counter Terrorism and Transnational Crime (CTTC) Unit arrested three ABT/Ansar al-Islam cadres from the Rampura area of Dhaka. The arrestees were Maruf Chowdhury aka Farhan, Mohamad Foyzul Morsalin and Sayed Taimia Ibrahim aka Anowar.

On June 11, 2021, the CTTC Unit arrested the ‘IT [Information Technology] expert’ of ABT/Ansar al-Islam from the Khulshi residential area of Chittagong District. The arrestee was identified as Shakhawat Ali aka Lalu (40).

According to partial data collected by the South Asia Terrorism Portal (SATP), at least 42 ABT/Ansar al-Islam cadres/leaders have been arrested in 2021, thus far (data till July 18, 2021). 54 such arrests were made in 2020. Since 2013, Security Forces have arrested at least 304 ABT/Ansar al-Islam cadres/leaders from across the country.

Some of the other prominent recent arrests included:

May 6, 2021: Ali Hasan Osama (27), the ‘spiritual leader’ of ABT/Ansar al-Islam, was arrested in the Rajbari District of Dhaka Division. Osama had assumed the role of ‘spiritual leader’ of ABT/Ansar al-Islam after the arrest of Mufti Jasim Uddin Rahmani in 2013.

April 6, 2021: ‘IT chief’ of ABT/Ansar al-Islam, Ariful Islam Zahed aka Ayman aka Arahan aka Rehan (30) and his accomplice Baki Billah aka Abu Samir (34) were arrested by the CTTC Unit of the Dhaka Metropolitan Police from the Paltan area of Dhaka city.

March 10, 2020: Abu Kaiser aka Rony ‘coordinator’ of ABT/Ansar-al-Islam was arrested by the CTTC Unit of Dhaka Metropolitan Police from the Bangshal area of Dhak city. The CTTC team recovered two passports and a mobile phone from Rony.

March 4, 2018: RAB arrested the ‘military commander’ of ABT/Ansar al-Islam Sadman Rahik aka Jabir from the Tikatuli area of Dhaka city. Since 2014, Rahik had been serving as the commander of the military unit of the militant group.

One ABT/Ansar al-Islam cadre has been killed in Bangladesh so far. On June 19, 2016, Shariful aka Shakib aka Sharif aka Saleh aka Arif, ‘IT trainer’ of ABT/Ansar al-Islam, was killed in a gunfight with the Police in the Khilgaon area of Dhaka city.

During 2007 a group named Jama’atul Muslemin, funded by different Non-Governmental Organisations, started its activities in Bangladesh. The group, however, ceased to operate when funding ended. It resurfaced during 2013 as ABT. The ABT was banned on May 25, 2015. It resurfaced as Ansar al-Islam, which, in turn, was banned on March 5, 2017.

The outfit came to prominence when its cadres started hacking to death bloggers, free thinkers and secular activists in 2013. It started with the killing of blogger Ahmed Rajib Haider near his house in Mirpur, on February 15, 2013. Till date, 10 bloggers, free thinkers and secular activists have been killed, with the last killing reported on April 8, 2016, in which cadres of ABT/Ansar al-Islam killed blogger Nazimuddin Samad (26), a master's student at Jagannath University, in Dhaka city. All the victims were hacked to death in a similar manner.

ABT/Ansar al-Islam, like other Islamist extremist groups in Bangladesh, has suffered losses due to measures taken by the Sheikh Hasina Government since it came to power in January 2009. Like other terrorist formations, it is currently finding it difficult to operate.

Nevertheless, there are continuous efforts to engineer a revival. Indeed, officials of the CTTC Unit of the Dhaka Metropolitan Police asserted, on March 6, 2021, that ABT/Ansar al-Islam was regrouping. 

ABT/Ansar al-Islam now has a new ‘spiritual leader’, Sheikh Tamim Al Adnani [now living in Malaysia]. A former madrasa teacher, he is responsible for reorganising the group. Sheikh Tamim's sermons are published in different platforms to attract potential militants.

Apart from making recruitments on online platforms, including Facebook, ABT/Ansar al-Islam is targeting the needy, even non-Muslim and transgender people, who would not ever come under suspicion of joining militancy.

ABT/Ansar al-Islam now has around 700 to 800 active members and at least 274 of them are sleeper cell members. The organisation has at least 56 sleeper cells. A sleeper cell comprises three to four full members. In every cell, a chief gets appointed to coordinate activities of the other full members. Only the sleeper cell chiefs are connected with each other and they can communicate up to the section chief.

Inputs suggest that the organisational activities of ABT/Ansar al-Islam appear strongest in Dhaka and Chittagong Districts. The group also has bases in Satkhira and Kushtia Districts.

The outfit continues to receive financial support from some businessmen in the country and abroad. Indeed, two ABT/Ansar al-Islam terrorists arrested on September 25, 2019, disclosed that they collected large sums of money from Pakistan and Gulf countries in the form of cryptocurrency. The militants claimed that earlier they used to collect money through 'hundi', but that is now under surveillance by enforcement agencies. Due to this, they shifted to Bitcoin, which, according to the militants, is an easier method to transfer illegal funds used in organising radical activities.

More worryingly, on July 4, 2021, CTTC officials disclosed that ABT/Ansar al-Islam was trying to represent Al-Qaeda in Bangladesh. Their plan is to send people to Kashmir in India and to the Rakhine State in Myanmar, to work for Al-Qaeda in the Indian Subcontinent (AQIS). For this, the dawah (invitation) wing of ABT/Ansar al-Islam was focusing on recruiting new members in Bangladesh. The outfit members sent financial support to Kashmiri militants through hundi and cryptocurrency.

It has also been observed that ABT/Ansar al-Islam has been continuously trying to provoke the Muslims of Bangladesh for jihad, particularly since Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi visited the country to participate in Bangladesh’s 50^th Independence Day celebrations on March 26, 2021. The outfit, which has called for a war against the US and its allies and called US the global enemy, classified India as an ally of the US and alleged that Indian Muslims are tortured and that India is consequently also a prime enemy.

Despite the ongoing counter-terrorism efforts in Bangladesh, recent arrests of ABT/Ansar al-Islam cadres and their revelations indicate that the group remains a key threat to internal security in Bangladesh, as well as in the wider Indian sub-continent.

Afghanistan

Over 10,000 jihadi fighters have entered Afghanistan from Pakistan, other places last month, says President Ashraf Ghani: President Ashraf Ghani on July 16 said that more than 10,000 Jihadi fighters entered Afghanistan from Pakistan and other places in the last month, reports 1TV.Af. President Ghani also said Islamabad had failed to convince the Taliban to participate "seriously" in the peace talks. 1 TV, July 19, 2021.

Two days of intra-Afghan talks ends with both sides agreeing to expedite the peace process and continue further talks: Two days of intra-Afghan talks between high-ranking delegations from the Islamic Republic of Afghanistan and the Taliban concluded in Qatar's capital Doha with both sides agreeing to expedite the peace efforts and continue high-level talks. A short joint statement that was issued, however, does not mention about de-escalation of violence or ceasefire. Tolo News, July 19, 2021.

Taliban will not attack cities to prevent bloodshed, says Taliban negotiator Shahabuddin Delawar:Taliban negotiator Shahabuddin Delawar said that they will not attack cities to prevent bloodshed. Taliban negotiator Delawar, during his visit to Moscow, said the reason behind their attacks is lack of addressing their demands for the release of their prisoners and removing the names of their leaders from UN blacklist. Delawar said they are in talks with other Afghans to discuss a new system "that should be Islamic, Afghan-inclusive and united." He added that they have "85% of Afghan soil under their control." Tolo News, July 13, 2021.

Dawatul Islam, an al Qaeda linked militant group active in hilly areas, say sources: According to sources, an al Qaeda-linked militant group has reportedly been active in country's hilly areas. It is learned that this group is conducting training and da'wah (invitation to Islam) work under the garb of an organisation called 'Dawatul Islam'. Mahmudul Hasan Gunbi is leading the extremist activities in the hilly areas under the banner of this organisation. He has also set up two militant hideouts in Khagrachari and Bandarban Districts. There are 20 to 25 active cadres of this group. UNI, July 15, 2021.

Neo-JMB tried to build militant den in Bandarban District, say CTTC officials: Officials of Counter Terrorism and Transnational Crime (CTTC) on July 12 said that Neo-Jama'atul Mujahideen Bangladesh (Neo-JMB) tried to build a militant den in the hilly area of Bandarban District. The officials said that Kawsar Hossain alias 'Major' Osama, an explosive expert of the Neo-JMB, tried to build a militant den in the hilly area of Bandarban to establish links with militants in nearby Myanmar's Arakan. He also wanted to use the den to recruit new operatives and train them on making Improvised Explosive Devices (IEDs). The Daily Star, July 14, 2021.