America Punjab mai b army operation karwana chahta hai | The war on terror comes to Punjab|Blackwate
ConcernedPakistani
MPA (400+ posts)
Yes ofcourse start operation in Panjab aswell. Actually start an operation in all of PAkistan. Even better since India is such a good friend of Pakistan let Indian forces come inside Pakistan and start a joint operation against the terrorists. US army should lead the operation and Pakistan and Indian forces alongwith Israeli forces should follow and this operation should be expanded all over Pakistan. And since USA, India and Israel would help PAkistan so much, Pakistani nation should allow them to have military bases all over Pakistan. Israeli, Indian and US military bases all over Pakistan would definitely keep Pakistan safe. Since PAkistan doesnt deserve to keep nuclear weapons, all the nuclear weapons should be taken by India and Indian Army should keep a permenant presence inside Pakistan alongwith Israeli and US forces.
ALI ARYAN
Senator (1k+ posts)
As a matter of fact operation is necessary, but not on dictation of any other country, ruthless operation against all terrorists, all over the Pakistan. Chun Chun kar nikalen or sirf Pak Army or security forces nahin balake her aam Pakistani is main hissa le or aisi **** bheroon ko jo hum main mojod hain pointout karen, initialy social boycott se unki Maut tak. buhat ho gaya. sayasi Deeni wabastagi ko Balaye Taq rakh kar khule dil ke sath. Inko Panah denay walay, inki mali madad karnay walay sab is qatle aam main shamil hain.
ConcernedPakistani
MPA (400+ posts)
Yes. Go Go Go
India, Israel and USA want Pakistan to start operation all over Pakistan. So this operation is necessary indeed. No doubt. ruthless operation with India, Israel and USA's help. Thats what is needed.
India, Israel and USA want Pakistan to start operation all over Pakistan. So this operation is necessary indeed. No doubt. ruthless operation with India, Israel and USA's help. Thats what is needed.
greywolf
Councller (250+ posts)
There is an other side to the story also. Since US wants fast re-deployment of its active forces from the region and needs more space to re-line-up for Iran, they want Pakistan to be rendered totally harmless in event of their conflict with Iran. They don't want Pakistan to stand because it will only incite Muslim Ummah and wake up muslims all over the world, give them courage and moral boost to declare Jihad against zionist designs. Thats why all those explanations have been coming about considering Jihad very euphemistic and respecting mujahideen ...
I think coming year is gonna be proved even bloodier for Pakistan ... (I can't have a heavier heart analysing this) ... but still it does not mean that we will be taken. Only when we are turned into a wilderness, thats when the real battle begins. All the things that our governments have been throwing under the carpet for 62+ years are bringing out their color in our society now. People want their rights and if they get their rights by welcoming US, Taliban or any such rule, they won't hesitate to. The only thing that matters is "will they get their rights ? or will they lose whatever little identification they already have ?"
Since we are not ready to foresee or sense that danger ... it will only be established when it happens and when it happens not much will be left.
I think Palestinians should thank Israel for taking their homes away and bombing them into rubles so that US ball-lickers should declare them peaceful and not terrorists.
I think Iraqis should thank US for turning the heat on them with their media-propagated hype of WMDs, and thank them further for giving them charity to rebuild some buildings American bombers have destroyed so that they are not termed as Jihadists but are labeled as moderates.
I think Iran should roll back its atomic plan, kneel down before US and Israel and apologize for whatever banter they have had ensued against them.
I think Pakistan should turn their military into a para-medical force who would only go on famine-hit missions assigned to them by UN in Somalia, Ethiopia, Haiti, Nigeria or other african nations.
I mean we MUST spend as many days and as many nights we could watching tvs, having our regular meals, enjoying the comforts of our homes ... as many as we can ... until we are awakened rudely from our dreams and then wait for UN rationing trucks to come and drop us a few sacks of raw grains over which we should fight like dogs ....... duhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhh.
I think coming year is gonna be proved even bloodier for Pakistan ... (I can't have a heavier heart analysing this) ... but still it does not mean that we will be taken. Only when we are turned into a wilderness, thats when the real battle begins. All the things that our governments have been throwing under the carpet for 62+ years are bringing out their color in our society now. People want their rights and if they get their rights by welcoming US, Taliban or any such rule, they won't hesitate to. The only thing that matters is "will they get their rights ? or will they lose whatever little identification they already have ?"
Since we are not ready to foresee or sense that danger ... it will only be established when it happens and when it happens not much will be left.
I think Palestinians should thank Israel for taking their homes away and bombing them into rubles so that US ball-lickers should declare them peaceful and not terrorists.
I think Iraqis should thank US for turning the heat on them with their media-propagated hype of WMDs, and thank them further for giving them charity to rebuild some buildings American bombers have destroyed so that they are not termed as Jihadists but are labeled as moderates.
I think Iran should roll back its atomic plan, kneel down before US and Israel and apologize for whatever banter they have had ensued against them.
I think Pakistan should turn their military into a para-medical force who would only go on famine-hit missions assigned to them by UN in Somalia, Ethiopia, Haiti, Nigeria or other african nations.
I mean we MUST spend as many days and as many nights we could watching tvs, having our regular meals, enjoying the comforts of our homes ... as many as we can ... until we are awakened rudely from our dreams and then wait for UN rationing trucks to come and drop us a few sacks of raw grains over which we should fight like dogs ....... duhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhh.
US State Department
Banned
Fawad Digital Outreach Team US State Department
جو دوست اس مفروضے پر يقين رکھتے ہیں کہ سی آئ اے يا امريکی حکومت صوبہ پنجاب اور پاکستان ميں بے يقينی اور افراتفری کی فضا قائم کرنے کی خواہش مند ہے، ان سے گزارش ہے کہ وہ اعداد وشمار اور جاری منصوبوں پر نظر ڈاليں جو اس وقت بے شمار امريکی نجی اور سرکاری تنظيموں کے توسط سے جاری ہيں۔ مختلف سطحوں پر جاری يہ تعاون اور کاوشيں دونوں ممالک کے مابين تعلقات کی نوعيت کو اجاگر کر تی ہيں۔ گزشتہ چند ماہ کے حوالے سے يہ خبريں پيش ہيں جو عام طور پر ميڈيا اور ہر خبر ميں سازش کی بو سونگھ لينے والے دوستوں کی نظروں سے اوجھل رہتی ہيں۔
جولائ 21 2009 کو امريکی حکومت کی جانب سے 75 ملين ڈالرز کی لاگت سے ايک پانچ سالہ پروگرام کا لاہور ميں باقاعدہ افتتاح کيا گيا جس کا مقصد صوبہ پنجاب ميں اساتذہ کی مہارت اور ان کی قابليت ميں بہتری لانا ہے۔ پری سروس ٹيچر ايجوکيشن کے نام سے جاری يہ پروگرام يو ايس ايڈ اور پنجاب حکومت کے مابين باہمی تعاون اور کاوشوں کا نتيجہ ہے۔ يو ايس ايڈ نے قومی سطح پر ايک معاہدے پر بھی دستخط کيے ہيں جس کے توسط سے اسی طرز کے پروگرام دوسرے صوبوں ميں بھی شروع کيے جائيں گے۔
جولائ 24 2009 کو امريکی حکومت اور پنجاب ڈيپارٹمنٹ آف پبلک پراسيکوشن کے تعاون سے ايک ورک شاپ کا انعقاد کيا گيا جو 22 سے 24 جولائ تک جاری رہی۔ اس ورک شاپ کا مقصد وکلاء کی جانب سے عوامی سطح پر انصاف کی فراہمی کے نظام ميں بہتری اور پنجاب ڈيپارٹمنٹ آف پبلک پراسيکوشن کی معاونت کے لیے تجاويز اور مختلف منصوبوں کی منظوری دينا تھا۔
اپريل 2 2009 کو وزارت معيشت حکومت پاکستان اور امريکی حکومت کے مابين تعاون کے حوالے سے ايک مشترکہ اعلاميہ جاری ہوا۔ اس اعلاميے اور معاہدے کے نتيجے ميں یو ايس ايڈ نے 24 ملين ڈالرز کی لاگت سے 3 سالہ پروگرام کی منظوری دی ہے جس کے توسط سے بجلی کی پيداوار اور توانائ ميں اضافے کے حوالے سے منصوبے شروع کيے جائيں گے۔
يہ امر توجہ طلب ہے کہ جو تجزيہ نگار سازشی کہانيوں کی تشہير کرتے ہيں ان کے تمام دلائل اور نقطہ نظر جذباتيت، يک طرفہ اور غير منطقی تجزيوں يا محدود سوچ کی بنياد پر ہوتے ہیں۔ اعداد وشمار اور زمين پر موجود حقائق کو يکسر نظرانداز کر ديا جاتا ہے۔ جيسا کہ ميں نے بارہا اس فورم پر کہا ہے کہ امريکی حکومت اس حقیقت سے بخوبی واقف ہے اور اس کو تسليم بھی کرتی ہے کہ خطے میں امريکی مقاصد اور مفادات کا تحفظ صرف اسی صورت ميں ممکن ہے جب پاکستان ميں مکمل استحکام ہو۔ امريکی حکومت کی جانب سے کئ بلين ڈالرز کی مالی امداد اور پورے ملک ميں جاری بے شمار منصوبوں کی تکميل کے لیے دی جانے والی تکنيکی اور مالی امداد اور تعاون امريکی حکومت کے اس عزم کو واضح کرتا ہے کہ امريکہ پاکستان کے استحکام اور ترقی کے حوالے سے ہر ممکن کوشش اور تعاون جاری رکھے گا۔
فواد ڈيجيٹل آؤٹ ريچ ٹيم يو ايس اسٹيٹ ڈيپارٹمينٹ
ConcernedPakistani
MPA (400+ posts)
Yes ofcourse. The US is totally sincere to bring peace in Afghanistan, Pakistan and the whole world. The USA stands for everything good and all those who say otherwise just talk rubbish.
ConcernedPakistani
MPA (400+ posts)
The war on terror comes to panjab
WALL STREET JOURNAL
OPINION JOURNAL
jUNE 01, 2010
The War on Terror Comes to Punjab
Pakistanis must remain resolved to wipe out militancy at all costs.
By FAROOQ HAMEED KHAN
The people of Lahore had only just recovered from an attack three months ago that claimed more than 50 lives when terrorists struck again last Friday. This time the perpetrators targeted two prayer houses of the minority Ahmadi community, one located in the elite Model Town and the other in Gari Shahu near Lahore Railway Station. The Tehreek-e-Taliban Pakistan (TTP) claimed responsibility for this well-planned strike that left around 100 worshippers dead and scores injured.
The attack must be seen in the context of the government's campaign against the TTP, which is an umbrella organization for terrorist groups and is loosely affiliated with al Qaeda. The Pakistan Army and Air Force are now battling TTP militants in the Federally Administered Tribal Areas. For many weeks now, jet aircraft and Cobra helicopter gunships have been pounding militants' positions in the Orakzai Tribal Agency to eliminate the remnants of those TTP fighters who fled the Army's operations in other FATA agencies bordering Afghanistan in the last six months.
Pakistan's civilian leadership and the Army are under intense American pressure to move into North Waziristan to strike Afghan Taliban and al Qaeda sanctuaries that allegedly support cross-border activities against NATO forces in Afghanistan. However, the Pakistan government has declared that the timing of this operation will be dictated by the available resources and ground realities. Pakistanis worry that the North Waziristan offensive could result in greater al Qaeda or TTP blowback in major cities. View Full Image
European Pressphoto Agency Police and civilians take cover after an attack in Lahore, Pakistan last week.
The Lahore attacks may confirm these fears, but they are also a sign that the militants must be rooted out wherever they may hide. A growing nexus between al Qaeda and jihadi groups in Punjab, generally referred to as the Punjabi Taliban, is coming out into the open. In south Punjab, some banned religious extremist groups amongst the Punjabi Taliban seem to be aligned with al Qaeda and the TTP. Reportedly a few splinter militant groups of Punjabi Taliban have also joined hands with al Qaeda and the TTP and are sheltering in north Waziristan.
Most alarming is the fact that the Lahore attacks targeted a particular religious minority with brutal force to ignite a sectarian conflict that will allow the militants to radicalize Pakistani Muslims. This poses a security threat for the entire society, as Pakistan's other religious communities could feel vulnerable to such acts.
Mainstream Pakistani religious and political parties are doing their best to head off this strategy. Their leaders and the civil society have demonstrated remarkable unity and harmony to counter any attempts to incite ethnic or sectarian divides in the past. Pakistanis remain convinced that there are foreign hands behind such terrorist acts that ultimately aim to create anarchy.
Yet there remains a danger that these attacks will tarnish Pakistan's reputation as a country where religious minorities are safe and respected. The Ahmadi sect were declared "non-Muslims" through a constitutional amendment in 1974, under the government of Prime Minister Zulfiqar Ali Bhutto. But they are still afforded the same legal protections as other religious minorities.
More importantly, the attacks may have been intended as a warning to Pakistani government and the Army not to launch military operations in north Waziristan. The Punjabi Taliban-al Qaeda alliance may be retaliating in desperation against the Army's successful ongoing anti-TTP offensive in Orakzai. Or the Lahore carnage may have been designed to provoke the government into launching a military operation in south Punjab that would set the Punjab province on fire.
The emergence of the Punjabi Taliban phenomenon in south Punjab and the advisability of a major operation against them has been the subject of debate in Pakistan for some time. The terrorist attack against the Sri Lankan cricket team in Lahore in March 2009, followed by other such attacks against government establishments last year, reportedly had strong connections to these Punjabi militants and the support of a neighboring country's intelligence agency.
The bloody Lahore massacre raises the prospects of a government crackdown against certain militant groups and their madrassas, or religious schools, in south Punjab. These elements do not enjoy public support and may go underground or try to shift toward their allies in north Waziristan.
Being the frontline state in the war against terror, Pakistan has suffered more losses in this conflict than any other country in the world. Until the war in Afghanistan comes to an end and peace is restored to the region, Pakistan will continue to bear the brunt of terrorist attacks. But Pakistanis continue to resist those who want to provoke sectarian violence, and are extremely sensitive to protecting the rights and freedom of the religious minorities which are guaranteed in our constitution. We remain resolved to wipe out militancy at any cost.
Pakistan expands war front
Amanda Hodge, South Asia correspondent From: The AustralianJune 01, 2010 12:00AM
PAKISTAN is to open up a new front in the war against Islamic militancy in southern Punjab following Friday's bloody attack on a minority Muslim sect in Lahore. Interior Minister Rehman Malik said the government intended to launch an operation similar to that being conducted in the country's remote tribal agencies on the border with Afghanistan.
"There will be an operation in south Punjab on the pattern of the tribal areas," local Punjabi news channel C-42 TV quoted him as saying.
Punjab police revealed at the weekend that six gunmen belonging to the Punjabi chapter of the Pakistani Taliban were involved in the attacks on two Ahmadi mosques in Lahore last Friday in which 95 worshippers were killed.
They also claimed two gunmen arrested for the strikes had admitted, under interrogation, to receiving training in the North Waziristan town of Miran Shah.
"Punjabi Taliban" a growing threat for Pakistan
Pakistan (Reuters) - The Pakistan Taliban is not the sole militant group threatening Pakistan and the region.
Punjabi groups are deepening their ties with the Taliban, representing a growing threat for a country already hit hard by militant violence.
This was highlighted by the twin attacks in Lahore on Friday - the capital of Punjab - which killed between 80 and 95 members of the Ahmadi sect. Initial investigations suggested a possible link to the Taliban operating from Waziristan.
Security officials in the region say while there are no "militant strongholds" in the province for them to enable them to operate independently - as is the case in lawless northwest Pakistan - their presence in the area, especially in southern Punjab, cannot be denied.
These militants are overwhelmingly members of banned organizations like the Lashkar-e-Jhangvi, Jaish-e-Mohammad and Sipah-e-Sahaba, long tolerated or even sponsored by Pakistan's powerful military and intelligence establishment. But now they are starting to turn on Pakistan, thanks to the growing influence of the Tehrik-e-Taliban Pakistan (TTP) and its ally al Qaeda.
"Those militants who were hiding in southern Punjab are now surfacing," Interior Minister Rehman Malik said on Sunday in Lahore as he visited one of the attacked mosques. "We have information they could attack the Shi'ite community."
There are more than 20,000 madrassas, or schools, in Pakistan, he said, and 44 percent are in Punjab. The government has also banned 29 organizations and put 1,764 people on its wanted lists. Of them, 729 are from southern Punjab.
All these outfits traditionally have roots in Punjab and underscore the risk militants pose to Pakistan's economically most important province and its traditional seat of power.
"These are the people who took part in the Afghan war and got training there," said Mohsin Leghari, an opposition member of the provincial Punjab assembly.
"This is the only thing they know, so it is no surprise if they develop links with the Taliban in the northwest," said Leghari, whose constituency includes the tribal belt of Dera Ghazi Khan in southern Punjab.
However, Leghari as well as security officials in the region denied that southern Punjab is a hub of militant activities.
"This is all rumor-based information. It's exaggerated," said Ahmad Mubarik, the police chief of Dera Ghazi Khan. "This is not the hub of militants. I don't think that is true."
But the recent surrender by Hanif Gabol, an alleged commander of the Taliban hailing from Dera Ghazi Khan, has once again highlighted the militants' operational network in the region.
Gabol has reportedly told police that he trained in Waziristan and led a group of about 25 men associated with the Tehrik-e-Taliban Pakistan, and was involved in dozens of terrorist activities.
OMINOUS TIES
More ominous for Pakistan, these attacks in Lahore on Friday show that ties between Punjabi organizations and the TTP are not just increasing the southern groups' capabilities, but also providing cover for the Pakistan Taliban to operate outside their traditional tribal strongholds on the border with Afghanistan.
A security official in Bahawalpur, another town in southern Punjab and considered the headquarters of JeM, said there was no doubt that some of the dozens of madrassas there were involved in recruiting volunteers for the Taliban in the northwest.
Analysts and officials said Punjab's extreme poverty, as well as lack of education, makes people in the region more vulnerable to the lure of militancy.
But they also say that the presence of Islamist militants is not new, and not directly linked to the rise of the Taliban.
"There is a presence of militants in that area for sure. But it is a long-standing presence, and they were there even before the Taliban became Taliban," said security analyst Ikram Sehgal.
Sehgal said the militants in Punjab had a good infrastructure on the ground, with many organizations involved in various feuds, including sectarian violence.
"The problem is that with the collapse of the Taliban in South Waziristan and Swat, and with them being pushed on the back foot in North Waziristan and Orakzai, there are chances they will try to reactivate these cells and make them effective," he said.
(Additional reporting by Asim Tanveer; Editing by Chris Allbritton and Ron Popeski)
DAWN NEWS
On Friday Interior Minister Rehman Malik said that there would soon be an operation in southern Punjab on the pattern of that under way in the tribal areas.
WALL STREET JOURNAL
OPINION JOURNAL
jUNE 01, 2010
The War on Terror Comes to Punjab
Pakistanis must remain resolved to wipe out militancy at all costs.
By FAROOQ HAMEED KHAN
The people of Lahore had only just recovered from an attack three months ago that claimed more than 50 lives when terrorists struck again last Friday. This time the perpetrators targeted two prayer houses of the minority Ahmadi community, one located in the elite Model Town and the other in Gari Shahu near Lahore Railway Station. The Tehreek-e-Taliban Pakistan (TTP) claimed responsibility for this well-planned strike that left around 100 worshippers dead and scores injured.
The attack must be seen in the context of the government's campaign against the TTP, which is an umbrella organization for terrorist groups and is loosely affiliated with al Qaeda. The Pakistan Army and Air Force are now battling TTP militants in the Federally Administered Tribal Areas. For many weeks now, jet aircraft and Cobra helicopter gunships have been pounding militants' positions in the Orakzai Tribal Agency to eliminate the remnants of those TTP fighters who fled the Army's operations in other FATA agencies bordering Afghanistan in the last six months.
Pakistan's civilian leadership and the Army are under intense American pressure to move into North Waziristan to strike Afghan Taliban and al Qaeda sanctuaries that allegedly support cross-border activities against NATO forces in Afghanistan. However, the Pakistan government has declared that the timing of this operation will be dictated by the available resources and ground realities. Pakistanis worry that the North Waziristan offensive could result in greater al Qaeda or TTP blowback in major cities. View Full Image
European Pressphoto Agency Police and civilians take cover after an attack in Lahore, Pakistan last week.
The Lahore attacks may confirm these fears, but they are also a sign that the militants must be rooted out wherever they may hide. A growing nexus between al Qaeda and jihadi groups in Punjab, generally referred to as the Punjabi Taliban, is coming out into the open. In south Punjab, some banned religious extremist groups amongst the Punjabi Taliban seem to be aligned with al Qaeda and the TTP. Reportedly a few splinter militant groups of Punjabi Taliban have also joined hands with al Qaeda and the TTP and are sheltering in north Waziristan.
Most alarming is the fact that the Lahore attacks targeted a particular religious minority with brutal force to ignite a sectarian conflict that will allow the militants to radicalize Pakistani Muslims. This poses a security threat for the entire society, as Pakistan's other religious communities could feel vulnerable to such acts.
Mainstream Pakistani religious and political parties are doing their best to head off this strategy. Their leaders and the civil society have demonstrated remarkable unity and harmony to counter any attempts to incite ethnic or sectarian divides in the past. Pakistanis remain convinced that there are foreign hands behind such terrorist acts that ultimately aim to create anarchy.
Yet there remains a danger that these attacks will tarnish Pakistan's reputation as a country where religious minorities are safe and respected. The Ahmadi sect were declared "non-Muslims" through a constitutional amendment in 1974, under the government of Prime Minister Zulfiqar Ali Bhutto. But they are still afforded the same legal protections as other religious minorities.
More importantly, the attacks may have been intended as a warning to Pakistani government and the Army not to launch military operations in north Waziristan. The Punjabi Taliban-al Qaeda alliance may be retaliating in desperation against the Army's successful ongoing anti-TTP offensive in Orakzai. Or the Lahore carnage may have been designed to provoke the government into launching a military operation in south Punjab that would set the Punjab province on fire.
The emergence of the Punjabi Taliban phenomenon in south Punjab and the advisability of a major operation against them has been the subject of debate in Pakistan for some time. The terrorist attack against the Sri Lankan cricket team in Lahore in March 2009, followed by other such attacks against government establishments last year, reportedly had strong connections to these Punjabi militants and the support of a neighboring country's intelligence agency.
The bloody Lahore massacre raises the prospects of a government crackdown against certain militant groups and their madrassas, or religious schools, in south Punjab. These elements do not enjoy public support and may go underground or try to shift toward their allies in north Waziristan.
Being the frontline state in the war against terror, Pakistan has suffered more losses in this conflict than any other country in the world. Until the war in Afghanistan comes to an end and peace is restored to the region, Pakistan will continue to bear the brunt of terrorist attacks. But Pakistanis continue to resist those who want to provoke sectarian violence, and are extremely sensitive to protecting the rights and freedom of the religious minorities which are guaranteed in our constitution. We remain resolved to wipe out militancy at any cost.
Pakistan expands war front
Amanda Hodge, South Asia correspondent From: The AustralianJune 01, 2010 12:00AM
PAKISTAN is to open up a new front in the war against Islamic militancy in southern Punjab following Friday's bloody attack on a minority Muslim sect in Lahore. Interior Minister Rehman Malik said the government intended to launch an operation similar to that being conducted in the country's remote tribal agencies on the border with Afghanistan.
"There will be an operation in south Punjab on the pattern of the tribal areas," local Punjabi news channel C-42 TV quoted him as saying.
Punjab police revealed at the weekend that six gunmen belonging to the Punjabi chapter of the Pakistani Taliban were involved in the attacks on two Ahmadi mosques in Lahore last Friday in which 95 worshippers were killed.
They also claimed two gunmen arrested for the strikes had admitted, under interrogation, to receiving training in the North Waziristan town of Miran Shah.
"Punjabi Taliban" a growing threat for Pakistan
Pakistan (Reuters) - The Pakistan Taliban is not the sole militant group threatening Pakistan and the region.
Punjabi groups are deepening their ties with the Taliban, representing a growing threat for a country already hit hard by militant violence.
This was highlighted by the twin attacks in Lahore on Friday - the capital of Punjab - which killed between 80 and 95 members of the Ahmadi sect. Initial investigations suggested a possible link to the Taliban operating from Waziristan.
Security officials in the region say while there are no "militant strongholds" in the province for them to enable them to operate independently - as is the case in lawless northwest Pakistan - their presence in the area, especially in southern Punjab, cannot be denied.
These militants are overwhelmingly members of banned organizations like the Lashkar-e-Jhangvi, Jaish-e-Mohammad and Sipah-e-Sahaba, long tolerated or even sponsored by Pakistan's powerful military and intelligence establishment. But now they are starting to turn on Pakistan, thanks to the growing influence of the Tehrik-e-Taliban Pakistan (TTP) and its ally al Qaeda.
"Those militants who were hiding in southern Punjab are now surfacing," Interior Minister Rehman Malik said on Sunday in Lahore as he visited one of the attacked mosques. "We have information they could attack the Shi'ite community."
There are more than 20,000 madrassas, or schools, in Pakistan, he said, and 44 percent are in Punjab. The government has also banned 29 organizations and put 1,764 people on its wanted lists. Of them, 729 are from southern Punjab.
All these outfits traditionally have roots in Punjab and underscore the risk militants pose to Pakistan's economically most important province and its traditional seat of power.
"These are the people who took part in the Afghan war and got training there," said Mohsin Leghari, an opposition member of the provincial Punjab assembly.
"This is the only thing they know, so it is no surprise if they develop links with the Taliban in the northwest," said Leghari, whose constituency includes the tribal belt of Dera Ghazi Khan in southern Punjab.
However, Leghari as well as security officials in the region denied that southern Punjab is a hub of militant activities.
"This is all rumor-based information. It's exaggerated," said Ahmad Mubarik, the police chief of Dera Ghazi Khan. "This is not the hub of militants. I don't think that is true."
But the recent surrender by Hanif Gabol, an alleged commander of the Taliban hailing from Dera Ghazi Khan, has once again highlighted the militants' operational network in the region.
Gabol has reportedly told police that he trained in Waziristan and led a group of about 25 men associated with the Tehrik-e-Taliban Pakistan, and was involved in dozens of terrorist activities.
OMINOUS TIES
More ominous for Pakistan, these attacks in Lahore on Friday show that ties between Punjabi organizations and the TTP are not just increasing the southern groups' capabilities, but also providing cover for the Pakistan Taliban to operate outside their traditional tribal strongholds on the border with Afghanistan.
A security official in Bahawalpur, another town in southern Punjab and considered the headquarters of JeM, said there was no doubt that some of the dozens of madrassas there were involved in recruiting volunteers for the Taliban in the northwest.
Analysts and officials said Punjab's extreme poverty, as well as lack of education, makes people in the region more vulnerable to the lure of militancy.
But they also say that the presence of Islamist militants is not new, and not directly linked to the rise of the Taliban.
"There is a presence of militants in that area for sure. But it is a long-standing presence, and they were there even before the Taliban became Taliban," said security analyst Ikram Sehgal.
Sehgal said the militants in Punjab had a good infrastructure on the ground, with many organizations involved in various feuds, including sectarian violence.
"The problem is that with the collapse of the Taliban in South Waziristan and Swat, and with them being pushed on the back foot in North Waziristan and Orakzai, there are chances they will try to reactivate these cells and make them effective," he said.
(Additional reporting by Asim Tanveer; Editing by Chris Allbritton and Ron Popeski)
DAWN NEWS
On Friday Interior Minister Rehman Malik said that there would soon be an operation in southern Punjab on the pattern of that under way in the tribal areas.
Last edited:
ConcernedPakistani
MPA (400+ posts)
This is what is needed
digitalzygot
Senator (1k+ posts)
We all know who's doing these terrorist acts. we shouldn't be US allies, our people are dying and we fighting US war. CIA,MOSAD, RAW are doing these terrorist activities by training, paying and arming few local elements just so that they can put pressure of Pakistan. We still have time to withdraw support and call our troops back. This menace will finish and let US, INDIA figure out how to solve their F**k up in Afghanistan.
ConcernedPakistani
MPA (400+ posts)
So when are we getting the good news of operation in Panjab then?
ConcernedPakistani
MPA (400+ posts)
Fingers crossed. Wait for the good news
Last edited:
greywolf
Councller (250+ posts)
Uncross them fingers brother. Now is the time to bunch your fingers together and make a fist - a brandishing one.
To kiya ho gaya?
Aakhir is Punjabi foj ke haathon pehley bhi operations huey hain or hamesha Bengali or Baloch or Sindhi or Mohajir awam hi marti rahi hey, agar wahan operation ho or gand saaf kartey huey das bees laakh Punjabi mar bhi gaye to kia faraq parta hey?
Aakhir sirf doosrey hi kiun marain in ki waja se?
I say yes, do operation in Punjab and clean it up for good.
Aakhir is Punjabi foj ke haathon pehley bhi operations huey hain or hamesha Bengali or Baloch or Sindhi or Mohajir awam hi marti rahi hey, agar wahan operation ho or gand saaf kartey huey das bees laakh Punjabi mar bhi gaye to kia faraq parta hey?
Aakhir sirf doosrey hi kiun marain in ki waja se?
I say yes, do operation in Punjab and clean it up for good.
Afsr
MPA (400+ posts)
Leftbrain tumhari id tu "Withoutbrian" hona chahey thei ,,,,,,,,, yes tu youn keh rahey ho jaisey operation tu sirf tumharey he yes or no par ho ga huhhhhh.
Kitney saal ho gaey Pakistan ko baney tum loog aj taak punjabi , blochi ,sindhi aur pathaan mai he reh rahey ho.
Why don't u think all Pakistani as one nation ,, operation kahein b ho marey ga kon hamarey humwatan.Dus bees lakh punjabi tu youn kaha jaisey koi kisi janwar marney ki baat karta hai.
ConcernedPakistani
MPA (400+ posts)
Great. Soon there will be one. After Panjab move on to Balochistan aswell, there are US reports about Balochistan and that hopefully is going to be sorted out after this.
wow. get some treatment for your hatred against Panjab.
You are mssing the point. The point is not that its about Panjab. The point is that USA and India want Pakistan to start operation all over Pakistan. They started with FATA, moved on to Khyber Pakhtoonkha and now Panjab. Pakistan is being pushed to a civil war. First sort out your ''hatred towards Panjab'' issue and then think about it with whatever brain you have.
