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Face of a Terrorism (Suicide Bomber caught in Nowshera Cantt)

Who can say these are terrorists. You might also want to take a look at this post to realize that we could have prevent this guy from being used by some psychos.

Bomb recks havoc in Islamabad....

A truck full of explosive materials hit the famous "Marriot" hotel in the heart of Islamabad at around 7:30 pm on Saturday, causing deaths & injuries to the people in vicinity.

As I see the details coming on various local & international news channels/websites all I could infer was the loss of lives is the least this particualr balst has done. I hope not, but it seems probable that there will be ramifications of this blast.

First things first, already many people were asking of Pakistan's involvement on the War on terror, while there are primarily two prevailing thoughts i.e. 1. We should be part of it as we have to deal with local and foriegn militia's gathering in force in our tribal regions sooner or later, 2. No, its not our problem and by playing a role in this war, we will be in harm's way, bringing destruction to our cities.

This blast will shift the balance in favour of the second argument even more. As a short term resolution seems to be to turn our face away from it, and save our own skin. In the meanwhile owing to International pressure, I believe it will not be an easy thing to do. With Unipolar world and its pressure tactics on one side, and a nation always at their whim, this decision is impossible in current situation.

So the ever rising resentment against the government will be further rising. It will definitely put this young setup to a lot of stress.

Also I personally belive that there is a need to seperate militant elements from the local tribes. The American Involvement on this side of border is not helping it. The recruitment slogan is very simple "Let's fight the greater Satan".

The Governor, Army & newer political setup had successfully seprated the vigilantes in Khyber agency from people. and then with the cooperation of tribal elders, they were able to contain the menace and eventually route it out.

Now if American troops would have entered Khyber agency, it wouldnt have been possible. The locals and tribal elders would have sided along side the militia, cuz they would prefer to fight against the foriegn agressors, rather than among themselves any day of the week.

Now, after this blasts the two situation, will go from bad to worse. The general public will call for distancing Pakistan from War on Terror. If the government does that, Americans would definitely, in effort to stop the attacks in Afghanista, target our tribal belt. This will give rise to more n more tribes aligning themselves with anti american militia's, in the same time strengthening them.

If the Government doesnt distance itself from the War on Terror, with each attack, there will be moer outcry of doing so. More and more people will be raising there voice to persuade the governement of doing so. This can lead to another street movement against American agression & inability of our government to make the hard decision.

Lost cause

In all the political juggling and manouvers we have lost two very important things crucial to our country's two provinces......i.e Balouchistan & Frontier.

Alaskan model proposed for Balouchistan was commendable, Any local produce will be owned by the province 80% and Federal Govt. 20%. This would have restored the confidence of Balouch people in Federal Govt. and things might have been moved forward, positively.

The identity issue of NWFP population was addressed by the name change to 'Pakhtoonkha', and deprivation issue with the better distribution of Water & Energy royalty among NWFP(as its still the official name) & Punjab.

But the political manouvers led to two pre-conditions, resignation of the then President & restoration of Judges.

Even when one is done and the other not being done, we dont hear any voice regarding these matters.

We cannot solve the foreign policy issues untill we dont have the confidence of the local people, and to regain that, we will have to address their issues. situation in Balouchistan & Frontier would have been way better if the earlier would have been done.

As an example consider the Mangal Bagh issue, it wouldnt have been where it is today, if Khyber Agency locals wouldnt have cooperated, isnt it?

US sponsored 'democracy': An interesting analysis

zaid hamid talks abt involvement of cia in pakistani affairs... he also mentions how deep does this involvement go... he describes how pakistan shot itself in its feet by helping usa against Taliban... when pakistan started refusing to act on US orders coz they got proofs tht cia n raw r destabilising pakistan in the wake of this american defined war on terror... talks abt indian sponsored govt. in balochistan... he further talks abt barahamdagh bugti's relationships with indian agency... n much more... he talks abt media war being staged against pakistani ppl... many secrets revealed... a must see!!

Back to Back: Proven Writ of Govt.

(Daily Express 08 September 2008)

(Daily Express 09 September 2008)

Much more has been said in this regard and i think i should not comment anything at this proven 'writ of Govt'.

Be ready for more: US media warns of more attacks

US media warns of more attacks

By Anwar Iqbal

WASHINGTON, Sept 4: The US administration is officially refusing to comment on a cross-border raid into Pakistan that killed at least 15 people, but unnamed US officials are confirming that American troops entered Pakistan to target extremists and may continue to do so.

“In regards to the reports about that incident, we have not commented, and I won’t today,” White House spokeswoman Dana Perino told reporters on Thursday. “I’m just not going to comment on the incident in any way.”

At the State Department, Secretary Condoleezza Rice made almost identical comments, saying: “I don’t have anything for you on Pakistan except to say that, obviously, we are working very closely with the civilian government there, the newly democratically elected, civilian government.”

Asked why was she reluctant to comment on the reported US strike, Ms Perino replied: “All I can tell you is that I am going to decline to comment on reports about that incident.”

But the US media, from newspapers to television and radio stations, are all quoting senior US officials as saying that American commandos entered Pakistan on Wednesday to attack an Al Qaeda target near Angoor Adda.

They also warned that the United States might conduct similar raids in future as well if it had “actionable intelligence” about the presence of Al Qaeda or Taliban commanders in a certain area.

US media warns of more attacks -DAWN - Top Stories; September 05, 2008

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Established 'rules of engagement'

RULES OF ENGAGEMENT: The foreign minister told the National Assembly that Wednesday’s raid, which drew renewed opposition calls for a review of Pakistan’s role in the anti-terror war, was in violation of what he called “established rules of engagement” as well as of “international human norms” and the UN charter.

But he did not explain “the rules of engagement” that Pakistan might have agreed with the coalition forces in Afghanistan despite a demand from the main PML-N speaker in the National Assembly Ahsan Iqbal who, like several other members, called for a detailed debate in parliament on the situation.

A report by the US-based Associated Press news agency said the circumstances surrounding Wednesday’s raid were not clear, “but US rules of engagement allow American troops to chase militants across the border into Pakistan’s lawless tribal region when they are attacked” and that “they may only go about six miles on the ground under normal circumstances” and 10 miles into Pakistani airspace through aircraft.

Both the house, which took up the issue almost simultaneously, resounded with rhetoric and anti-American sentiment, mostly from opposition parties such as the Jamaat-i-Islami and the PML-N, while some in a mainly lawyers’ crowd who protested outside the parliament house against non-restoration of the deposed superior court judges also chanted “America ka jo yar hai, ghaddar hai, ghaddar hai” (whoever is friend of America is a traitor).

Outraged parliament wants border raids repulsed -DAWN - Top Stories; September 05, 2008

will we wake up ever??? almost one year ago, i felt yes... now i m sure we wont... :'(

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Mukhtar’s stand on US raid raises eyebrows

Saturday, September 06, 2008
Rahimullah Yusufzai

PESHAWAR: Unlike other defence ministers in the world who consider it their duty to defend their frontiers and people, Pakistan’s Minister of Defence Chaudhry Ahmad Mukhtar seems to have taken it upon himself to justify the US forces’ raids in Pakistani territory.

“No one carries out shelling without any reason after coming from far away,” the defence minister told reporters in Lahore. This is how he was quoted by sections of the Pakistani and foreign media. By arguing that there must be a reason for the cross-border raid in the early hours Wednesday, it was obvious that he was justifying the US attack on a Pakistani border village in South Waziristan that killed 15 civilians and injured another two. Among the dead were five women and three children.

In fact, the country’s defence minister wasn’t even aware that US aircraft didn’t carry out shelling on the Pakistani village as he made it out to be. Instead, up to four choppers, two Chinooks and two Cobra gunship helicopters, violated Pakistan’s airspace and landed near Musa Neeka village not far from the Pakistani border town of Angoor Adda. The troops brought by the helicopters then stormed three houses of innocent Pakistani tribesmen in Zololay hamlet and shot dead at least 15 of them. Ahmad Mukhtar, either deliberately or due to ignorance, made no mention of the US ground forces that raided the Pakistani village and committed an aggression that the defence minister and the country’s armed forces should have repelled. Otherwise, how does he qualify to be Pakistan’s defence minister if he cannot make an effort to defend the country’s borders and citizens?

This is the second time that the Defence Minister Ahmad Mukhtar has given statement that tends to justify cross-border raids by US forces in Pakistan’s tribal areas. But this one was insensitive to say the least because there was no report of any attempted infiltration of militants from the Pakistan side into Afghanistan that could have provoked the US military to retaliate. Besides, there was no evidence that the US troops had entered Pakistani territory in “hot pursuit”. All those killed were civilians and among the dead were women and children, who cannot be called al-Qaeda or Taliban militants by any stretch of imagination.

Subsequently, one heard on private TV channels that the defence minister had said he would issue a statement after completion of investigations into the South Waziristan incident. But by then the damage had been done as his initial reaction conveyed by him to reporters in Lahore had been widely reported and quoted.

This is undoubtedly a huge escalation in the hostilities on Pakistan’s border with Afghanistan. As defence minister, Ahmad Mukhtar should be worrying about the consequences of such acts of aggression and planning measures to reassure Pakistanis unfortunate enough to be living in these tribal borderlands. For five hours Wednesday, the aggrieved tribesmen kept the bodies of the 15 slain Pakistanis on the road linking Musa Neeka with Angoor Adda and Wana but no government official or army officer came there to listen to their grievances, condole with them the deaths of their near and dear ones and give them assurance that such acts of aggression by outside powers would be resisted in future. Pakistan Army and the paramilitary Frontier Corps have their bases in the area but no soldier moved from his entrenched position to come to the assistance of Pakistani villagers under attack from troops who had illegally crossed over from Afghanistan.

As defence minister, Ahmad Mukhtar should visit Musa Neeka and Angoor Adda, offer condolences to the grieving families and check and upgrade Pakistan’s defences at the border. He probably has never been to these parts and it would be a good opportunity for Pakistan’s defence minister to check out how life goes in an area that is frequently in the news and under attack from US, Nato and Afghan forces. He should also take along with him Rahman Malik, the prime minister’s adviser on interior affairs, who too is increasingly dealing with tribal areas and the “war on terror”.

Read full story: Mukhtar’s stand on US raid raises eyebrows

sad, really it is :(

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Baluchistan -

By Rauf Klasra (Monday, September 01, 2008)

ISLAMABAD: The PPP government in Balochistan is said to have finally prepared a twisted version of the case in which five women were recently buried alive in the desert. The report is to be presented in the Senate on Monday.

This belated and misleading version is being widely seen as a bid to save the perpetrator of this crime, said to be the younger brother of a PPP minister in the provincial cabinet.

Acting Chairman Senate Jan Muhammad Jamali is set to give a ruling on the brutal treatment of the five Baloch women after the report is tabled in the Senate on Monday. Jamali, a former chief minister of Balochistan, is now facing a big dilemma as he will be closely watched by the vigilant media and an outraged civil society when he sits on the seat of the Senate chairman, and gives a judgment on this shocking human tragedy.

The question is: will Jamali stand up and be counted for the rights of the oppressed women of his province, or will he prefer to be seen loyal to the centuries-old tribal tradition of killing women in the name of honour?

There seem to be a consensus among the tribal chiefs on this issue. None of the leading Pashtoon or Baloch leaders have spoken a single critical word on this tragedy so far, as they prefer to respect the tribal decisions of killing their own women in the name of honour.
The main culprit behind this gory drama is said to be a serial killer, who had already killed women of his Umrani tribe in the past in the name of honour. He has never been apprehended only because of his connections.

This correspondent made a call to Leader of the House in the Senate Raza Rabbani to get his version but he did not attend the call.
Meanwhile, the Interior Ministry is yet to issue orders for the appointment of senior policeman Tariq Khosa to investigate the killing of the five women. Interior Minister Rahman Malik had told this correspondent last week that Tariq Khosa had been appointed to probe the case, but sources said no written orders had been issued so far. Sources said the appointment of Tariq Khosa as an inquiry officer was not good news for the tribal chiefs as the officer enjoys a reputation of digging out blind cases without coming under pressure from any side.

Official sources claim that the Senate would be told that the five women were first fired at and were buried after ensuring that they were dead. The sources said the focus of the half-cooked inquiry report would be to shift the centre of attention from the burying alive of the women, as this was considered to be a more inhuman offence. Now, as in the future, the government would claim that the women were first killed and then buried.

Earlier last week, the Senate had witnessed a big uproar when Senator Yasmeen Shah agitated over the burial of the women. Senator Israrullah Zehri had defended the killing of the five women saying it was part of tribal traditions and no one should say anything in the Upper House about this incident. This shocking statement had outraged many Senators including Jamal Leghari, Maulana Ghafoor Haidari, Kamil Ali Agha and others, who challenged the statement of Senator Israr Zehri.

Acting Chairman Senate Jan Muhammad Jamali had also stated that the people sitting in Islamabad do not understand the tribal culture and they should not discuss it unless they know about these traditions.

Leader of the House in the Senate Raza Rabbani had told the House that he would present the report on the killing of the women on Monday. The government is said to have now received a new report from Balochistan, after the one sent earlier by IG Asif Nawaz was rejected outright by the Secretary Interior Kamal Shah.

The laughable report of IG Asif Nawaz was an insult to the high office of the IG, who had just collected items from newspapers and converted them into a report, which had made the interior secretary furious.

Meanwhile, the Womenís Action Forum in a press note has said the it is shocked, horrified and outraged on three counts. First on July 14 five women were brutally tortured and buried alive because three of them had the courage to transgress cultural boundaries by opting for court marriages of their own free will.

Hameeda, Ruqayya and Raheema are three of the five victims who were killed in the name of ìhonourî in Roopashakh, Goth Qaboola, at the border of Naseerabad-Jafarabad districts in Balochistan.
The WAF said, ìWe are also outraged that the local police and law- enforcing agencies not only refused to take action for six weeks, but they are even denying the occurrence of the crime because of the strong political pressure and influence being exerted on them.

Like many other 'honour' killings, this one has also been perpetrated with the knowledge, permission and active support of the local government head. This includes the reported use of a government vehicle to transport the five women from one village to the other. The district Nazim, Sardar Fateh Umrani, is the brother of the Minister of State for Housing from that area, and are both PPP stalwarts.

The WAF statement said, as if it was not enough, Senator Mir Israrullah Zehri (BNP-A) stood on the floor of the Senate and went on defending the burial of these women in the name of Baloch custom and traditions. When a woman Senator and two male Senators protested against his defending this indefensible crime, the Acting Chairman of the Senate, Jan Muhammad Jamali, intervened and refused to condemn the killings, hiding behind ìthe need to wait for a government investigationî.

The WAF statement said they would rather take the word of the local journalist and this correspondent than wait for an investigation where the victimsí families, neighbours, the local police and the provincial media are too terrorised by the ruling clique to speak up.