Terrorist Islamic Republic of Pakistan (TSP): Aug 09, 2010

pgbhat · Post by **pgbhat** » 23 Aug 2010 05:23

Canadian aid arrives in former Taliban stronghold in Pakistan

Care Canada’s Rauff said he hopes renewed media interest in the floods may trigger more donations, and said Pakistan’s cloudy political picture shouldn’t deter contributions.

“If terrorism is held as a reason to not give generously, then that’s a pretty sad thing,” he said, adding that Pakistan is a “seriously different place” than in 2005, when Canadians last donated for a crisis here in the wake of an earthquake in Kashmir.

“There weren’t drones in 2005 and the war on terror wasn’t taking form,” Rauff said. “I think there’s a gradual shift that’s taking place as well in the Indian relationship. Pakistan may be realizing that India isn’t so consumed with its neighbour. India is a global player and becoming a bigger player on the world stage. What was a major distraction for India is now a wasp in its side.”

comment straight out of musharraf.

James B · Post by **James B** » 23 Aug 2010 05:28

Pakistan has recalled a diplomat from its Dubai mission

Consul General Amjad Ali Sher Mohmand has been asked to report back to the Foreign Office in Islamabad. Sher Mohmand, contrary to clear-cut policy instructions reportedly issued visas to 86 US (Black water agents?) and 150 Indian nationals (RAA agents) during the months of March and April this year, the source added.

Amjad Sher was summoned by the foreign ministry early this month to explain his actions and during the questioning he is reported to have confessed to the charges but in a written reply maintained that he had done so under pressure from a politically influential Pakistani based in Dubai. (who could that be?)

CRamS · Post by **CRamS** » 23 Aug 2010 06:45

A_Gupta wrote:In today's New York Times, Thomas Friedman comes up with a new theory of the 9/11 attack.
http://www.nytimes.com/2010/08/22/opini ... edman.html

Can India be viewed as inadvertently being caught up in the Pakistan intra-communal Muslim conflict? If you accept Friedman's framing, is there some way to extricate India from this conflict (since ending the conflict is outside India's power)?

Makes absolutely no sense. TF has this annoying habit of pulling something from his Musharaff and giving it some kind of seminal importance. And at least as far as India is concerned, the conflict with TSP has Islamic roots, no doubt about that, but at its core, its plain old jealousy of the evil, paranoid TSP RAPE against India, and Islam is a malleable tool in their objective.

Prem · Post by **Prem** » 23 Aug 2010 07:17

http://www.dailytimes.com.pk/default.as ... 2010_pg3_5
VIEW: Direct Action Day: lessons to be learnt — II

The worst enemies of the Muslim League cannot help envying the leadership of Mr Jinnah...cataclysmic transformation of the League from the reactionary racket of the Muslim Nawabs, Noons, and Knights into a revolutionary mass organisation dedicated, by word if not be deed, to an anti-Imperialist struggle, compels us to express the sneaking national wish that a diplomat and strategist of Jinnah’s proven calibre were at the helm of the Indian National Congress. There is no denying the fact that by his latest master-stroke of diplomacy, Jinnah has outbid, outwitted and outmanoeuvred the British and Congress alike and confounded the common national indictment that the Muslim League is a parasite of British Imperialism.”
In fact, the opposite was true. Jinnah had been outwitted by both Congress and the British in Calcutta who had managed to sully the pristine reputation of a politician who throughout his life had been known for his secular and constitutional approach to politics. He was now branded a communalist, hate-monger and a mass murderer. Unsourced lines like “we shall have India divided or destroyed” are attributed to him even though there is no record of him saying any kind of it. Reliance instead is placed on the highly partisan account given by Margaret Bourke-White who was a devotee of Mahatma Gandhi and whose account fails verification not the least because she was actually not where she claimed to be that day. Thus a caricature.
In this, however, Jinnah only had himself to blame. He had tragically miscalculated the power of mob hysteria. As a much younger man, Jinnah had been prophetic in his predictions about the consequences of mob hysteria when he warned Gandhi in his letter:

abhishek_sharma · Post by **abhishek_sharma** » 23 Aug 2010 07:27

Pakistanis Say Taliban Was Seized to Hurt Peace Effort

http://www.nytimes.com/2010/08/23/world ... liban.html

shiv · Post by **shiv** » 23 Aug 2010 07:37

CRamS wrote:
A_Gupta wrote:In today's New York Times, Thomas Friedman comes up with a new theory of the 9/11 attack.
http://www.nytimes.com/2010/08/22/opini ... edman.html

Can India be viewed as inadvertently being caught up in the Pakistan intra-communal Muslim conflict? If you accept Friedman's framing, is there some way to extricate India from this conflict (since ending the conflict is outside India's power)?

Makes absolutely no sense. TF has this annoying habit of pulling something from his Musharaff and giving it some kind of seminal importance. And at least as far as India is concerned, the conflict with TSP has Islamic roots, no doubt about that, but at its core, its plain old jealousy of the evil, paranoid TSP RAPE against India, and Islam is a malleable tool in their objective.

There are two ways to approach knowledge - one is to look at consequences and try and figure out the roots. the other is to figure out the roots and then see every consequence that emerges from that. If you see a leaf, a branch or flower in isolation you may never know they come from the same tree - but once you stand under the tree and see it all emerge from the same trunk you know. Friedman (like most of the US) is picking the consequences and trying to figure out the origins. That would have been fine if the origin had not all been pointed out by a many others. 9-11, Kashmir freedom fighters, GWOT, Times square bomber all have the same origin

CalvinH · Post by **CalvinH** » 23 Aug 2010 08:55

James B wrote:
“
He managed to grab a 10-kilogram bag of flour to share with his family of 50. But he hasn’t received anything else.

http://www.thestar.com/article/850957-- ... ir-stories

Add this to couple of other quotes we have
1. A doctor and a farmer who owns 500 acres of land
2. A villagers who owns 30 acres of fish pond.

Can we please add more of these here..

pgbhat · Post by **pgbhat** » 23 Aug 2010 09:09

The Militant Myth ---- Farhana Ali.

In recent conversations with senior Pakistani commanders, the military still considers the civilian government to be out-of-touch with reality. So why does an unpopular President continue to hold power? As one commander said to me in private, “We are waiting for the civilians to create a mess inside Pakistan so that the military will look like the better option for governance.” As Pakistan’s history has previously shown, in civilian chaos and confusion may come military might.

abhishek_sharma · Post by **abhishek_sharma** » 23 Aug 2010 09:13

Some more fotu

http://www.nytimes.com/slideshow/2010/0 ... eshow.html

abhishek_sharma · Post by **abhishek_sharma** » 23 Aug 2010 09:33

ISI chief met Lakhvi in jail after 26/11: Headley to 26/11

http://epaper.indianexpress.com/IE/IEH/ ... tml?Mode=1

Normal version is infected with malware

abhik · Post by **abhik** » 23 Aug 2010 11:04

I dint see this being posted before, I guess not many people reading TOIlet any more.
-Aid flooded Pak by withdrawing Army-
http://blogs.timesofindia.indiatimes.co ... ithdrawing
Is there any way we could reach(other than kammenting on that page) this well respected "wise" man for a piece of our mind?

abhik · Post by **abhik** » 23 Aug 2010 11:11

amdavadi wrote:One damn frustrated paki....It is bit long, but well worth your time. Make sure, you are not drinking coffee..
....

The best whine since "LEAVE BRITNEY ALONE!"
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=kHmvkRoEowc
Hope this becomes Just as viral!

naren · Post by **naren** » 23 Aug 2010 11:28

(not sure if this was posted before. Link x-posted from benis)

Link

Dr Marie Lall says: "This was not one cataclysmic event, but one which grew over three weeks. The fact that 25% of the country was or is under water is not understood. The low numbers of dead, relatively speaking, mask the disaster on the ground. The crisis has destroyed crops, dead livestock and damaged homes and infrastructure. Food prices are through the roof and there won't be a normal harvest. It will get worse. Farmers will starve."

I express my deepest regret to the purest of the pure nation of Bakistan.

arun · Post by **arun** » 23 Aug 2010 11:51

X Posted from the Pakistani Role in Global Terrorism thread.

Rangin Dadfar Spanta, the National Security Advisor of Afghanistan indicts the Islamic Republic of Pakistan for fomenting Islamic Terrorism in Afghanistan in an Op-Ed in the Washington Post.

I expect the Wa Po comment section will shortly be crawling with many much peeved Pakistani’s.

Excerpt:

Pakistan is the Afghan war's real aggressor

By Rangin Dadfar Spanta
Monday, August 23, 2010; A13

After the Sept. 11, 2001, terrorist attacks, Afghanistan became a rare example of international consensus. The global community, amid competing regional and international interests, undertook a military intervention endorsed and legitimized by the U.N. Security Council. It was common knowledge that al-Qaeda had created a haven in Afghanistan with the support of Pakistan's intelligence agency. Dismantling this regional terrorist infrastructure was considered vital to the international counterterrorism strategy.

Then-U.S. Deputy Secretary of State Richard Armitage delivered a message to Pakistan's president, Gen. Pervez Musharraf, in November 2001: It could join the international coalition or be bombed "back to the stone age." Across the border, the Afghan people persecuted by the brutal rule of the Taliban and al-Qaeda, as well as by the lordship of Pakistani generals, welcomed the international community with open arms. We have made significant progress in recent years. But our achievements in education, health, development and civil rights have been overshadowed and eroded by terrorist attacks.

There is ongoing domestic and international confusion in identifying Afghanistan's friends and foes. The Afghan people are wholeheartedly grateful to the international community for its sacrifices in blood and treasure. Unfortunately, the military-intelligence establishment of one of our neighbors still regards Afghanistan as its sphere of influence. While faced with a growing domestic terrorist threat, Pakistan continues to provide sanctuary and support to the Quetta Shura, the Haqqani network, the Hekmatyar group and al-Qaeda. And while the documents recently disclosed by WikiLeaks contained information that was neither new nor surprising, they did make public further evidence of the close relations among the Taliban, al-Qaeda and Pakistani intelligence.

The international community is present in Afghanistan to dismantle these international terrorist networks. Yet the focus on this fundamental task has progressively eroded and has been compounded by another strategic failure: the mistaken embrace of "strategic partners" who have, in fact, been nurturing terrorism. ……………….

WaPo

PTI’s take on the WaPo article by Spanta:

Pak harbouring terrorists: Afghan national security advisor

arun · Post by **arun** » 23 Aug 2010 12:09

The adverse genetic consequences of the penchant of marrying Cousins by those originating in the Islamic Republic of Pakistan :

700 children born with genetic disabilities due to cousin marriages every year

More than 700 children are born with genetic diseases every year as a result of cousin marriages, an investigation has found.

By Rebecca Lefort
Published: 8:45AM BST 22 Aug 2010

The problem is worst among children born in Britain's Pakistani community, where more than half of marriages are between first cousins, and children are 10 times more likely than the general population to suffer genetic disorders…………….....

Research shows the number of cousin marriages has risen dramatically in the UK over the last three decades, mainly between British Pakistanis, ………….........

The Telegraph, UK

arun · Post by **arun** » 23 Aug 2010 12:54

Text of Asian Age’s interview of Ambassador G. Parthasarthy. Ambassador Parthasarthy points out that the aid offered by India to the Islamic Republic of Pakistan will in no way alter the Islamic Republic of Pakistan’s hatred of India.

Ambassdor Parthasarthy certainly has a sound understanding of the warped mentality of the Islamic Republic of Pakistan. Some excerpts:

They go with a begging bowl all around the world, seeking economic aid and military assistance from China, Saudi Arabia, Japan, the US or the European Union (EU). But if there is a well-meaning offer from India, they would rather die than accept it! It reflects the deep-set prejudices against this country.

I would not be surprised if after accepting the aid they keep it in a godown and don’t utilise it. And if the aid is in the form of medicines and supplies, don’t be surprised if there is an effort to malign its quality.

Hostility helps the Pakistan military perpetuate itself. So, emergency aid is not going to change established mindsets. Next time when a sewage pipe jams in India, Pakistan is capable of offering “aid” to fix it in an effort to show to its people it is as capable as India, and offers assistance.

Read it all:

‘Aid won’t change hostility towards India’

shiv · Post by **shiv** » 23 Aug 2010 14:00

arun wrote:Text of Asian Age’s interview of Ambassador G. Parthasarthy. Ambassador Parthasarthy points out that the aid offered by India to the Islamic Republic of Pakistan will in no way alter the Islamic Republic of Pakistan’s hatred of India.

Ambassdor Parthasarthy certainly has a sound understanding of the warped mentality of the Islamic Republic of Pakistan. Some excerpts:

They go with a begging bowl all around the world, seeking economic aid and military assistance from China, Saudi Arabia, Japan, the US or the European Union (EU). But if there is a well-meaning offer from India, they would rather die than accept it! It reflects the deep-set prejudices against this country.

I would not be surprised if after accepting the aid they keep it in a godown and don’t utilise it. And if the aid is in the form of medicines and supplies, don’t be surprised if there is an effort to malign its quality.

Hostility helps the Pakistan military perpetuate itself. So, emergency aid is not going to change established mindsets. Next time when a sewage pipe jams in India, Pakistan is capable of offering “aid” to fix it in an effort to show to its people it is as capable as India, and offers assistance.
Read it all:

‘Aid won’t change hostility towards India’

The article is a keeper. He tells it like it is.

SSridhar · Post by **SSridhar** » 23 Aug 2010 14:03

arun wrote:Ambassdor Parthasarthy certainly has a sound understanding of the warped mentality of the Islamic Republic of Pakistan.

‘Aid won’t change hostility towards India’

Yes, he has. Among all our diplomats ever posted to TSP, he is probably the one who has understood it the most. He also speaks his mind. Among the worst is Mani Shankar Aiyar. In one of the interviews that I recently saw, he openly said that he and Shri G.Parthasarathy stand at the opposite ends. I won't be surprised if he chooses to spend two weeks in TSP during the CWG.

Suppiah · Post by **Suppiah** » 23 Aug 2010 14:22

Kurram blast sends 7 to 72.

http://www.dawn.com/wps/wcm/connect/daw ... ared-ss-03

The flood must have receded by a couple of inches...

Suppiah · Post by **Suppiah** » 23 Aug 2010 14:25

Yet another Pakbarian gives priority to his cot over all other possessions...

http://www.dawn.com/wps/wcm/connect/daw ... dadkot-380

Shahdadkot town wore a deserted look with only one shopkeeper seen selling mangoes on Sunday.

And their love affair with mango continues...

no roti, no kapda, but mango yes..

Lalmohan · Post by **Lalmohan** » 23 Aug 2010 14:48

news lines are reporting that pak coastal tides will surge with flood waters to inundate coastal areas... more mayhem

Pratyush · Post by **Pratyush** » 23 Aug 2010 14:56

The design behind the ISI's leaked assessment

The analysis is quite accurate, thus posting in full.

The recently published ISI's assessment in the Wall Street Journal leaked by a senior ISI official, which concludes that a "two-thirds likelihood a major threat to the state coming from militants rather than from India or elsewhere," appears to be a well crafted stratagem to ensure continued inflow of US aid without any criticism in the US congress as also to counter charges that the US aid is misused to develop the Pak Army's capabilities against India.

Some of the Pak analysts have commented which give credence to this assessment. Talat Masood, a retired general and an analyst on security matters, stated that the assessment is based on the awareness that some of its previous friends have become its sworn enemies. Another analyst Imtiaz Gul similarly remarked that "many of the militant groups that the Pakistani military worked with in the past have now turned against them". However others like Ayesha Siddiqa suspect it to be a part of a game plan. Siddiqa have remarked that" there are games within games".

Since this assessment reflects the ground realities, it is logical to conclude that the Pak intelligence agency has changed its stance. Some articles in the media have highlighted that for the first time in 63 years, the ISI has determined that a majority of threats come from the Islamist militants rather than India or elsewhere. However, an examination of two related dimensions suggests that there had been no change in the ISI's objectives.

The first dimension relates to the ISI's activities towards India that would provide indicators that in the Pakistani perception its homegrown terrorists have overtaken the Indian Army as the greatest threat to its national security. Statements of politico-military nature by top Pakistani leadership continue to reflect a high degree of antipathy towards India. In fact, the anti-India statements have become shriller. In February 2010, Gen Ashfaq Pervez Kayani , the Pak Army averred that" the Pak Army remains an India centric institution and this reality would not change in any significant way till the Kashmir issue and the water disputes are resolved." Since Sharm El Sheikh joint statement, Pak leadership has been increasingly harping on the allegation that India was assisting the Baluchi insurgents. The Pak Interior Minister, Rahman Malik went further and blamed India of not only assisting the insurgents in Baluchistan but also for destabilizing FATA as well as for involvement in Lahore terrorist attacks in March 2010.

The views of Kayani are of utmost importance as he in the capacity of head of the Pak Army determines Pakistan's India policy. Kayani appears to be a true disciple of one of his predecessors Mirza Aslam Beg. The latter, who is known to be articulating the policies of the Pak Army, had systematized the use of terrorism as an instrument to deal with India during his tenure. Even in his recent articles he continues to put emphasis that Kashmir remains the unfinished agenda of the partition. More important was his view on Afghanistan. During his tenure as the Army Chief, Beg provided maximum articulation to the concept of strategic depth. This doctrine calls for the need for dispersal of Pakistan's military assets in Afghanistan, well beyond the reach of India's military offensive capabilities. This aspect of the doctrine became clear during the Pak Army exercise called Zarb-e-Momin. Keeping this concept in view, Kayani during his tenure as the ISI chief began to oppose forcefully the Indian presence in Afghanistan. The attacks on the Indians have substantially increased since 2004 and the Pak proxy war has been extended to Afghanistan. The current reports suggest increased use of Taliban and networks of Hekmatyar and Haqqani as also Lashker-e-Toiba against Indians by ISI. In fact there are no indicators to suggest that the Pak Establishment has given up the policy of using terrorism as an instrument against India.

In recent months, assiduous efforts have been made by pak Establishment to pressurize the Karzai government to accept the Taliban and Islamist groups to form the part of the power structure and remove those who oppose this move with the objective of removing Indian influence in Afghanistan. In the last few months, the ISI chief Ahmad Shuja Pasha had been shuttling between Kabul and Islamabad to pressurize Karzai. In the last month, Kayani himself went to Kabul. This followed the sacking of Amrullah Saleh, Karzai's security chief and Hanif Atmer, head of the interior ministry, who were not willing to tow the Pak line of accommodating the Taliban elements.

In addition, the Pak Army continues to acquire weapons which can be used only against India and not against terrorists. In view of the above, it would be unrealistic to assume that Pakistan Army and ISI could have downgraded the threat from India. The Pak Army, which is using the threat from India to remain in a dominant position, is doing its best to keep it in the sharper focus of the Pakistanis. The impact of this policy is that in Pakistani nationalism is equated with anti Indian sentiments.

The second dimension relates to the possibility of a group of officers in ISI holding an independent and contrary view from that of the top ISI and Pak Army leadership. Since the ISI is mainly manned at the top level by the officials drawn from the armed forces, such a possibility appears highly unlikely as they are likely to follow the line of the Pak Army and the ISI. This agency, which is involved in the collection of intelligence, has no separate unit to make an objective strategic assessment. In fact, from the intelligence documents prepared by the ISI that have become available, it is clear that the ISI assessments reflect extreme hard-line views against India.
The moot question is why ISI made such an assessment and then leaked it to the media. From the analysis of the available evidence, the reasons behind this act can be understood clearly. Of late, the US had increased the pressure on the Pakistan to give due attention to the terrorists operating from the Pakistan - Afghanistan region and stop supporting the Taliban and Al Qaeda elements. Soon after the failed attempt to attack the Time square, the US had given a stern warning to Pakistan on the support to terrorists. Prior to the US-Pak Strategic dialogue, several experts cautioned the US Congress on the growing nexus between the ISI and terrorists. Marvin G Weinbaum of the Middle East Institute-a Washington based research organization pointed out that despite ban on the LeT, the outfit was allowed to function with impunity and the ISI continued to consider the terror group as an asset. Liza Curtis of the Heritage foundation that the presence of Hafiz Md Saeed at public rallies, which were attended by Pak ministers as well, suggested continued nexus between ISI and LeT. Another analyst Ashley J Tellis of the Carnegie Endowment pointed out that ISI was providing intelligence to LeT for selected targets.

The US officials too had been pointing out the continued close nexus between the ISI and the terrorists and for over projecting unnecessarily threat from India. The former Director National Intelligence Adm. Blair said that the Pak Establishment and the ISI continue to support the Taliban to maintain its strategic depth against. In May 2010, the US administration asked Pakistan to shun India centric policy. Last month, the US officials more frequently spoke on the continued nexus of Pak intelligence agency with the terrorists. On 22nd July, Richard Holbrooke, the US Special Representative for Afghanistan and Pakistan, highlighted the nexus between the ISI and terrorists as the real problem. The next day Michael Mullen, Chairman, US Joint Chiefs of Staff Committee, stated that the overall strategic approach of the ISI needed to be fundamentally changed. Hillary Clinton, the US Secretary of State, during her visit to Pakistan had pointed out that elements in the Pak Establishment knew the whereabouts of Osama bin Laden. More recently, Elizabeth Byrs, UN spokesperson of the UN Office for Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs rightly pointed out that the reason for not being able to arrange sufficient funds for the relief work in Pakistan was its image deficit. The US President had faced problems in getting the clearance for $ 59 bn for war funding after the Wikileaks expose. The Pak linkages with the terrorists were criticized.

The above appears to have brought home the fact to the Pak Establishment that to continue to get aid from US without criticism, it was necessary at least to project that Pakistan was changing its threat perception. Pakistan knows it pretty well that the US would continue to support Pakistan because of its strategic interests, yet a hint of change in the Pak priorities of threats could reduce the criticism in the US Congress. Hence, an intelligence assessment to meet the requirement got prepared and was quickly leaked to the press. To give credence to this assessment, the Pak Ambassador in US Husain Haqqani was made to state that" Islamabad's pro-occupation with India that came in the way of its doing more to show its commitment to fighting terror". Without a directive from the top, the diplomat could not have taken a line that was contrary to the Pak Army chief's stated policy.

rohitvats · Post by **rohitvats** » 23 Aug 2010 15:15

shiv wrote: <SNIP>
The article is a keeper. He tells it like it is.

Shiv, I think these lines sum up what you have been saying about the "==" attempted by Pakis when they point to statistics - or Madrassa Maths:

Because there is technological and infrastructural backwardness in Pakistan, its rulers seek to project India also as being backward so that the local populace may not point a finger at them. This is why they don’t allow even business collaboration with India. If Indian products and technologies enter Pakistan, all the official propaganda will be seen as untrue. The mindset I spoke of affects all walks of life — business and aid

Pratyush · Post by **Pratyush** » 23 Aug 2010 15:42

Pak flood damage exaggerated to get more aid?

Even the DDM is questioning the veracity of the Pakistani narrative.

shiv · Post by **shiv** » 23 Aug 2010 16:12

Pratyush wrote:The design behind the ISI's leaked assessment

..another excellent analysis.

sum · Post by **sum** » 23 Aug 2010 16:22

IIRC, the amount of articles exposing Pak this year alone must be equal to the number of such articles ever printed in the mainstream press till last year from 1947!!!

shravan · Post by **shravan** » 23 Aug 2010 16:37

SWA blast kills 17, injures 11

WANA: At least 17 people including former MNA Maulana Noor Muhammed were killed and several others injured in an explosion in Wana Bazaar area of South Waziristan Agency (SWA), Geo News reported Monday.

It should be mentioned here that the explosion occurred in a mosque when the people were offering Zuhr Prayer in Maulana Noor Muhammed’s mosque adjacent to a seminary, killing 17 people and injuring 11 others.

Lalmohan · Post by **Lalmohan** » 23 Aug 2010 16:47

Pratyush wrote:Pak flood damage exaggerated to get more aid?

Even the DDM is questioning the veracity of the Pakistani narrative.

current issue of the economist has already called the bluff, although doesnt do so very harshly. overall prognosis is grim either way this cookie crumbles (or gets soggy)

Hari Seldon · Post by **Hari Seldon** » 23 Aug 2010 16:49

overall prognosis is grim either way this cookie crumbles (or gets soggy)

Grim for whom? TSPA? RAPE class? jihadi gangs? 3.5 friends?
I doubt it. And as long as these worthies remain unaffected, aam adbul getting gubo-ed is no comfort from dilli's POV.

Lalmohan · Post by **Lalmohan** » 23 Aug 2010 16:57

well its certainly grim from mango abdul al diveri perspective
no one else really gives a damn

A_Gupta · Post by **A_Gupta** » 23 Aug 2010 16:57

http://www.nytimes.com/2010/08/23/world ... liban.html

Pakistanis Tell of Motive in Taliban Leader’s Arrest
By DEXTER FILKINS
ISLAMABAD, Pakistan — When American and Pakistani agents captured Abdul Ghani Baradar, the Taliban’s operational commander, in the chaotic port city of Karachi last January, both countries hailed the arrest as a breakthrough in their often difficult partnership in fighting terrorism.

But the arrest of Mr. Baradar, the second-ranking Taliban leader after Mullah Muhammad Omar, came with a beguiling twist: both American and Pakistani officials claimed that Mr. Baradar’s capture had been a lucky break. It was only days later, the officials said, that they finally figured out who they had.

Now, seven months later, Pakistani officials are telling a very different story. They say they set out to capture Mr. Baradar, and used the C.I.A. to help them do it, because they wanted to shut down secret peace talks that Mr. Baradar had been conducting with the Afghan government that excluded Pakistan, the Taliban’s longtime backer.

SSridhar · Post by **SSridhar** » 23 Aug 2010 17:30

Pratyush wrote:The design behind the ISI's leaked assessment
The recently published ISI's assessment in the Wall Street Journal leaked by a senior ISI official, which concludes that a "two-thirds likelihood a major threat to the state coming from militants rather than from India or elsewhere," appears to be a well crafted stratagem to ensure continued inflow of US aid without any criticism in the US congress as also to counter charges that the US aid is misused to develop the Pak Army's capabilities against India.

As recently as February 2010, Gen. Kayani was of the opinion that India was the foremost enemy. Neither of the following two happened after that.

India changed its military or diplomatic posture vis-a-vis Pakistan so drastically that the Indian threat has simply disappeared
The Islamist/jihadi threat has increased manifold that it has overtaken the Indian threat in magnitude and complexity

It is therefore obvious that this turnaround is hogwash & taqiyyah.

A_Gupta · Post by **A_Gupta** » 23 Aug 2010 17:41

Carlotta Gall reports in the New York Times
http://www.nytimes.com/2010/08/23/world ... pstan.html

Jamshaid Khan Dasti, a member of Parliament from a neighboring constituency in Punjab Province, said, “Food is creating a law-and-order situation because there is no proper system to look after these people.” There were already episodes of looting and burglary, and Mr. Dasti said he had asked the government to deploy paramilitary rangers to prevent the situation from further deteriorating.

The majority of the displaced were falling outside the humanitarian net, he said. In his district, 800,000 people were displaced, but only 100,000 were being provided for in camps. “The rest are scattered, stuck in different places and they don’t have food or water,” Mr. Dasti said.

A former prime minister, Zafarullah Khan Jamali, a member of Parliament whose constituency in neighboring Baluchistan was 90 percent underwater, warned that the mood would only worsen. “These people will be out in the streets, this is what I see,” he said. “I have been through many floods, in ’56, ’73, ’76 and 2007, but I have never seen a government less bothered.” He added, “The state is a failure, and the people will come out, and naturally nothing can stop the wave of people.”

Asked if he was talking about a revolution, he said: “Yes. We are heading toward that, very fast.”

shravan · Post by **shravan** » 23 Aug 2010 17:43

JUST IN: South Waziristan: Death toll in Wana Bazaar explosion near Mosque rises to 30, Former MNA Maulana Noor Muhammad Wazir also killed in blast

Lalmohan · Post by **Lalmohan** » 23 Aug 2010 17:51

if the law and order situation persists then its either time for martial law or full-blown taliban enforced shariah... and perhaps even a bid by the latter to take over the former...?

rsingh · Post by **rsingh** » 23 Aug 2010 18:12

When world was busy helping Bakistan over flood...................

bum ar nat bum.............sawal ye hei

James B · Post by **James B** » 23 Aug 2010 18:19

15 killed as floodwaters overturn bus in Pakistan

Brad Goodman · Post by **Brad Goodman** » 23 Aug 2010 18:22

Looks like people are buying into the jiziya theory. If yes thats a great victory for the paki martial race

In Pakistan, more aid can bring more security

We can help alleviate the immediate suffering of Pakistanis, and make them less likely to be lured to the terrorist cause.

There can, though, be a confluence between aid and stability. More Western aid may be more effective at bringing peace to the country than the large share of U.S. military aid (widely believed to have been squandered) has done to date. We can help alleviate the immediate suffering of Pakistanis, and make them less likely to be lured to the terrorist cause.

I am sort of getting impressed with ISPR for bringing out such well choreographed images of abduls in water.

shravan · Post by **shravan** » 23 Aug 2010 18:53

ANP MNA's brother shot dead in Karachi

KARACHI: Two people were shot dead in Sachal, Karachi on Monday.
The brother of Awami National Party (ANP) MNA Pervaiz Khan, Asif Jan is among the dead. Asif Jan was a City District Government Karachi (CDGK) employee. An SHO is among several injured.

Riots have been reported in the areas of Safoora Goth and Sachal Goth.

vijayk · Post by **vijayk** » 23 Aug 2010 19:17

http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/38812422/ns ... tral_asia/
3 bombs kill 36 in northwest Pakistan

Three bomb attacks in northwest Pakistan — two in tribal regions near the Afghan border and a third near the region's main city of Peshawar — killed at least 36 people Monday, officials and a witness said.

The attack on the outskirts of Peshawar killed the leader of an anti-Taliban militia, Israr Khan, and two aides as he passed through a market in the village of Matni, said police official Khurshid Khan. Three more people were injured.

The government supplies a string of militias with arms and money to fight the Taliban militants.

The deadliest blast was a suicide attack at a mosque inside a religious school in South Waziristan that killed 26 people and injured 40 more, said an intelligence official in the region. He spoke on condition of anonymity in line with the orders set down by his agency.