Salon.com article posted to commondreams.org
by Glenn Greenwald April 28, 2010
Excerpt--The Independent declared on February 9, 2010, that General McChrystal wants the Marjah offensive to "be one of the most significant in the country since the fall of the Taliban in 2001" and, of Obama's war strategy, said that "Marjah looks like being its first major -- and possibly decisive -- test." The BBC quoted a NATO official who proclaimed that Marjah "was 'probably the definitive operation' of the counter-insurgency strategy" and "this operation could potentially define the tipping point, the crucial momentum aspect in the counter-insurgency." Time helpfully informed us that "U.S. officials believe it will mark a turning point in the war."
Now that that "make-or-break decisive test" has failed (or, at best, has produced very muddled outcomes), did the Government and media follow through and declare the war effort broken and the strategy a failure? No; they just pretend it never happened and declare the next, latest, glorious Battle the real "make-or-break decisive test" -- until that one fails and the next one is portrayed that way, in an endless tidal wave of war propaganda intended to justify our staying for as long as we want, no matter how pointless and counter-productive it is.
commondreams.org
Wednesday, April 28, 2010
Morale among troops in Afghanistan: a non-embed story
Joyce M. Davis, writing for the Pennsylvania Patriot-News in Mechanicsburg (pennlive.com), struck up an illuminating conversation with a soldier returning from the battlefields near Kandahar.
"As troop morale drops, Afghanistan war isn't encouraging" April 28, 2010
... “Morale stinks, ma’am,” she said. “We don’t know why we’re there.”
A modern soldier is a laborer. As you read, try to think of a job you had where you couldn't figure out what the bosses were trying to accomplish or why they insisted upon going about it the way they did ... then think of David Patreus and Stanley McChrystal in the way you would think of, say, Lloyd Blankfein and Richard Fuld.
Joyce M. Davis/Patriot-News
"As troop morale drops, Afghanistan war isn't encouraging" April 28, 2010
... “Morale stinks, ma’am,” she said. “We don’t know why we’re there.”
A modern soldier is a laborer. As you read, try to think of a job you had where you couldn't figure out what the bosses were trying to accomplish or why they insisted upon going about it the way they did ... then think of David Patreus and Stanley McChrystal in the way you would think of, say, Lloyd Blankfein and Richard Fuld.
Joyce M. Davis/Patriot-News
Tuesday, April 27, 2010
U.S. State Dept. hones in on trade with Pakistan
Under the U.S. State Department, the Office of the United States Trade Representative announced in Washington its course of action for Pakistan April 26
Comment: Does this sound like somebody in D.C. and in Islamabad has their priorities a long way from organized only to me? The sociopolitical situation in Pakistan, as it is with many other parts of the world to be fair, can quite fairly be described as a complete and utter mess. Neoliberal economics continues rigidly, relentlessly, unapologetically the enabling of business by those who can keep it together under sociopolitical duress to operate businesses ... in order to spur solutions to endemic problems including all things public health and lack of infrastructure. The opposite side of this coin continues--overtly or covertly--to be that simply providing assistance to victims of violence and strife is socialism, a methodology more deeply flawed than neoliberal capitalism. Ladies and gentlemen, the United States Trade Representative ...
Statement from U.S. Pakistan Trade and Investment Council Meeting
Washington, D.C. - Senior Representatives of the Governments of the United States and Pakistan met at the Office of the U.S. Trade Representative in Washington today for the fourth meeting of the United States-Pakistan Trade and Investment Council, under the U.S.-Pakistan Trade and Investment Agreement (TIFA) that was signed in 2003. Today’s meeting builds on the commitments made during the recent U.S. and Pakistan Strategic Dialogue to develop an open, results-oriented partnership between our two countries. This meeting demonstrates the continuing close cooperation between Pakistan and the United States on economic, trade, and investment issues. It manifests the importance both governments place on strengthening a long-term relationship by focusing on issues of importance to the Pakistani people.
Participants fully recognized that Pakistan’s participation in the global community’s effort to defeat the forces of extremism had seriously impacted the country’s export competitiveness. We reaffirmed our commitment to support Pakistan through market access initiatives. Both sides agreed to work together and with the U.S. Congress to move ROZ legislation forward so that we realize the key priority of creating legitimate and productive jobs in areas vulnerable to the influence of violent extremism. We also agreed to work together to develop new ideas to enhance market access, foster investment, and create jobs in both of our countries. By providing trade-based sustainable development, we will assist in the reconstruction and development of areas affected by the insurgency.
We also discussed progress on labor rights monitoring and enforcement, including Pakistan’s efforts to improve and consolidate its labor laws. We discussed ways that the United States and Pakistan can work together to enforce labor rights for Pakistani workers, an important issue for international investors. We reviewed a wide range of trade capacity building programs that the United States and Pakistan are implementing.
The parties also discussed a full range of investment climate issues, including intellectual property rights concerns, and sector-specific investment challenges. We reviewed the status of negotiations for a United States-Pakistan Bilateral Investment Treaty (BIT). The Overseas Private Investment Corporation, and U.S. Export-Import Bank, provided an overview of their programs in Pakistan and discussed areas for possible future cooperation. Both sides recognized the need for increased private sector involvement in the TIFA, the U.S.-Pakistan Strategic Dialogue, and other bilateral initiatives to highlight the challenges that businesses and investors face and develop practical solutions that effectively address these issues.
The two sides agreed to continue this discussion on market access issues at a U.S.-Pakistan Joint Trade Study Group meeting in Islamabad. The TIFA process and Joint Trade Study Group together support our shared objective of building closer ties between the citizens of our two countries. Over the long term, solid economic, trade, and investment policies will create jobs, boost investment, and generate sustainable development.
Today’s meeting also occurred on the eve of the South Asian Association for Regional Cooperation (SAARC) Summit. In that regard, we also exchanged views on the importance of improving South Asian regional trade cooperation. The United States agreed to support Pakistan’s efforts to expand market access with key developed nations in Europe and Asia, and Pakistan confirmed its intention to conclude a new transit trade agreement with Afghanistan. Pakistan provided an update on the implementation of the South Asia Free Trade Area (SAFTA).
The TIFA process has been a key part of a sustained and multi-faceted high-level engagement between our governments, focused on tackling major economic, trade, and investment challenges. The process is designed to guide and complement the practical work that officials from a wide range of agencies in both our governments carry out daily. Our meeting provided an excellent review of key economic, trade, and investment issues, helped to focus our efforts to achieve priority goals, and allowed us to identify new areas for cooperation. With an overarching goal of providing a better quality of life for our peoples, the United States and Pakistan strengthened our commitment to work together to enhance market access, boost economic development, and increase private sector investment.
Comment: Does this sound like somebody in D.C. and in Islamabad has their priorities a long way from organized only to me? The sociopolitical situation in Pakistan, as it is with many other parts of the world to be fair, can quite fairly be described as a complete and utter mess. Neoliberal economics continues rigidly, relentlessly, unapologetically the enabling of business by those who can keep it together under sociopolitical duress to operate businesses ... in order to spur solutions to endemic problems including all things public health and lack of infrastructure. The opposite side of this coin continues--overtly or covertly--to be that simply providing assistance to victims of violence and strife is socialism, a methodology more deeply flawed than neoliberal capitalism. Ladies and gentlemen, the United States Trade Representative ...
Statement from U.S. Pakistan Trade and Investment Council Meeting
Washington, D.C. - Senior Representatives of the Governments of the United States and Pakistan met at the Office of the U.S. Trade Representative in Washington today for the fourth meeting of the United States-Pakistan Trade and Investment Council, under the U.S.-Pakistan Trade and Investment Agreement (TIFA) that was signed in 2003. Today’s meeting builds on the commitments made during the recent U.S. and Pakistan Strategic Dialogue to develop an open, results-oriented partnership between our two countries. This meeting demonstrates the continuing close cooperation between Pakistan and the United States on economic, trade, and investment issues. It manifests the importance both governments place on strengthening a long-term relationship by focusing on issues of importance to the Pakistani people.
Participants fully recognized that Pakistan’s participation in the global community’s effort to defeat the forces of extremism had seriously impacted the country’s export competitiveness. We reaffirmed our commitment to support Pakistan through market access initiatives. Both sides agreed to work together and with the U.S. Congress to move ROZ legislation forward so that we realize the key priority of creating legitimate and productive jobs in areas vulnerable to the influence of violent extremism. We also agreed to work together to develop new ideas to enhance market access, foster investment, and create jobs in both of our countries. By providing trade-based sustainable development, we will assist in the reconstruction and development of areas affected by the insurgency.
We also discussed progress on labor rights monitoring and enforcement, including Pakistan’s efforts to improve and consolidate its labor laws. We discussed ways that the United States and Pakistan can work together to enforce labor rights for Pakistani workers, an important issue for international investors. We reviewed a wide range of trade capacity building programs that the United States and Pakistan are implementing.
The parties also discussed a full range of investment climate issues, including intellectual property rights concerns, and sector-specific investment challenges. We reviewed the status of negotiations for a United States-Pakistan Bilateral Investment Treaty (BIT). The Overseas Private Investment Corporation, and U.S. Export-Import Bank, provided an overview of their programs in Pakistan and discussed areas for possible future cooperation. Both sides recognized the need for increased private sector involvement in the TIFA, the U.S.-Pakistan Strategic Dialogue, and other bilateral initiatives to highlight the challenges that businesses and investors face and develop practical solutions that effectively address these issues.
The two sides agreed to continue this discussion on market access issues at a U.S.-Pakistan Joint Trade Study Group meeting in Islamabad. The TIFA process and Joint Trade Study Group together support our shared objective of building closer ties between the citizens of our two countries. Over the long term, solid economic, trade, and investment policies will create jobs, boost investment, and generate sustainable development.
Today’s meeting also occurred on the eve of the South Asian Association for Regional Cooperation (SAARC) Summit. In that regard, we also exchanged views on the importance of improving South Asian regional trade cooperation. The United States agreed to support Pakistan’s efforts to expand market access with key developed nations in Europe and Asia, and Pakistan confirmed its intention to conclude a new transit trade agreement with Afghanistan. Pakistan provided an update on the implementation of the South Asia Free Trade Area (SAFTA).
The TIFA process has been a key part of a sustained and multi-faceted high-level engagement between our governments, focused on tackling major economic, trade, and investment challenges. The process is designed to guide and complement the practical work that officials from a wide range of agencies in both our governments carry out daily. Our meeting provided an excellent review of key economic, trade, and investment issues, helped to focus our efforts to achieve priority goals, and allowed us to identify new areas for cooperation. With an overarching goal of providing a better quality of life for our peoples, the United States and Pakistan strengthened our commitment to work together to enhance market access, boost economic development, and increase private sector investment.
Monday, April 26, 2010
Monday drone strike not to be confused with Saturday's
Notable about this campaign in Pakistan:
1. In February and March this campaign was being conducted by U.S. military contractors under dispatch of the CIA using UAV's, unmanned drones. Scrutiny was the result both locally and in the U.S. because reports of civilian deaths in these drone strikes were very high. It did not help the U.S. effort that targets were not high profile enough to resonate with the public as Public Enemy #X being "taken out," albeit through extrajudicial (illegal) means. Names of the dead in these attacks have not been made available let alone information that might corroborate claims the target was actually an armed enemy of U.S. soldiers in Afghanistan and/or civilians in the U.S.
2. This month operations shifted to a significant campaign mounted by Pakistan's own military within its borders. This shift in campaigns followed a meeting between Pakistan's foreign minister and U.S. Secretary of State Hillary Clinton. A campaign of this type will naturally accent the rifts in Pakistani society between people who live and work in populated areas and the capital Islamabad whose lives could be described as modern or influenced by the West and those who live out their lives on the land in remote areas and have little contact with national Pakistan. This can be said of many conflicts, especially in previously colonized areas of Africa and Asia.
3. News reports from the Pakistani campaign were typically sourced to one local official who presides to some effect over the region where a battle occurred. Pakistani officials consistently reported number of militants killed with no reports of civilians present, let alone killed or injured in violent exchanges. This marks a measurable departure from the press situation in Afghanistan where journalists embedded with the U.S. military report from the front of battle with the unit they accompany. Information in Pakistan is limited to the honesty of the official source and is difficult to dispute with no witness from international or regional media present.
4. In the last two weeks efforts in Pakistan against militants including members and recruits of the Pakistani Taliban have again shifted to CIA-operated drones. We have to ask if this is a separate campaign (probably classified information), if this is a joint operation supporting Pakistan's military, if Islamabad knew about the resumption of CIA drone strikes or if there ever was a cessation to the drone program whatsoever. Also, it has been reported these operations, which can be operated as remotely as U.S. military bases in the western hemisphere, have previously been administered by private contractors including Xe, formerly Blackwater, Inc. Is this still the case, and is anyone in Pakistan aware of that?
5. While we're at it, since the financial world back home is collapsing around us, we might as well ask how much it costs to run a CIA drone program in Pakistan. If the U.S. is hunting terrorists associated with attacks on New York City or a perpetrated Christmas attack in Detroit, the U.S. public across the spectrum will likely support financing of such a program. If the CIA drone program is stimulating anger toward U.S. military presence in the Middle East and drafting new terrorists by hundreds or thousands a month into the camps of organizations bent on the destruction of the enemies of radical Islam, that situation will realistically not be reported by Western media or entirely classified by the U.S. government based upon what we've seen so far.
Newest report follows ...
U.S. drone strike kills five in Pakistan
Reuters story
Mon Apr 26, 2010 3:11am EDT
MIRANSHAH, Pakistan (Reuters) - Three missiles fired by U.S. drone aircraft struck a militant compound in Pakistan's North Waziristan region near the Afghan border on Monday, killing five militants, intelligence officials said.
World
The strike took place about 24 km (15 miles) east of Miranshah, the main town in North Waziristan, known as a hotbed of Taliban and al Qaeda militants, they said.
"We have got confirmed reports of five dead but the number could be higher," said a Pakistani intelligence official in the region, who declined to be identified.
Another official said militants had cordoned off the area.
It was the second attack by pilotless U.S. aircraft in the area in the past two days. Seven militants were killed in a similar strike on Saturday.
The United States, struggling to stabilize Afghanistan, stepped up its missile strikes in Pakistan's northwest after a Jordanian suicide bomber killed seven CIA employees at a U.S. base across the border in the eastern Afghan province of Khost in December.
Most of the attacks this year have been in North Waziristan.
U.S. ally Pakistan officially objects to the drone strikes, saying they are a violation of its sovereignty and fuel anti-U.S. feeling, which complicates Pakistan's efforts against militancy.
(Reporting by Haji Mujtaba and Alamgir Bitani; Writing by Kamran Haider; Editing by Robert Birsel and Paul Tait)
1. In February and March this campaign was being conducted by U.S. military contractors under dispatch of the CIA using UAV's, unmanned drones. Scrutiny was the result both locally and in the U.S. because reports of civilian deaths in these drone strikes were very high. It did not help the U.S. effort that targets were not high profile enough to resonate with the public as Public Enemy #X being "taken out," albeit through extrajudicial (illegal) means. Names of the dead in these attacks have not been made available let alone information that might corroborate claims the target was actually an armed enemy of U.S. soldiers in Afghanistan and/or civilians in the U.S.
2. This month operations shifted to a significant campaign mounted by Pakistan's own military within its borders. This shift in campaigns followed a meeting between Pakistan's foreign minister and U.S. Secretary of State Hillary Clinton. A campaign of this type will naturally accent the rifts in Pakistani society between people who live and work in populated areas and the capital Islamabad whose lives could be described as modern or influenced by the West and those who live out their lives on the land in remote areas and have little contact with national Pakistan. This can be said of many conflicts, especially in previously colonized areas of Africa and Asia.
3. News reports from the Pakistani campaign were typically sourced to one local official who presides to some effect over the region where a battle occurred. Pakistani officials consistently reported number of militants killed with no reports of civilians present, let alone killed or injured in violent exchanges. This marks a measurable departure from the press situation in Afghanistan where journalists embedded with the U.S. military report from the front of battle with the unit they accompany. Information in Pakistan is limited to the honesty of the official source and is difficult to dispute with no witness from international or regional media present.
4. In the last two weeks efforts in Pakistan against militants including members and recruits of the Pakistani Taliban have again shifted to CIA-operated drones. We have to ask if this is a separate campaign (probably classified information), if this is a joint operation supporting Pakistan's military, if Islamabad knew about the resumption of CIA drone strikes or if there ever was a cessation to the drone program whatsoever. Also, it has been reported these operations, which can be operated as remotely as U.S. military bases in the western hemisphere, have previously been administered by private contractors including Xe, formerly Blackwater, Inc. Is this still the case, and is anyone in Pakistan aware of that?
5. While we're at it, since the financial world back home is collapsing around us, we might as well ask how much it costs to run a CIA drone program in Pakistan. If the U.S. is hunting terrorists associated with attacks on New York City or a perpetrated Christmas attack in Detroit, the U.S. public across the spectrum will likely support financing of such a program. If the CIA drone program is stimulating anger toward U.S. military presence in the Middle East and drafting new terrorists by hundreds or thousands a month into the camps of organizations bent on the destruction of the enemies of radical Islam, that situation will realistically not be reported by Western media or entirely classified by the U.S. government based upon what we've seen so far.
Newest report follows ...
U.S. drone strike kills five in Pakistan
Reuters story
Mon Apr 26, 2010 3:11am EDT
MIRANSHAH, Pakistan (Reuters) - Three missiles fired by U.S. drone aircraft struck a militant compound in Pakistan's North Waziristan region near the Afghan border on Monday, killing five militants, intelligence officials said.
World
The strike took place about 24 km (15 miles) east of Miranshah, the main town in North Waziristan, known as a hotbed of Taliban and al Qaeda militants, they said.
"We have got confirmed reports of five dead but the number could be higher," said a Pakistani intelligence official in the region, who declined to be identified.
Another official said militants had cordoned off the area.
It was the second attack by pilotless U.S. aircraft in the area in the past two days. Seven militants were killed in a similar strike on Saturday.
The United States, struggling to stabilize Afghanistan, stepped up its missile strikes in Pakistan's northwest after a Jordanian suicide bomber killed seven CIA employees at a U.S. base across the border in the eastern Afghan province of Khost in December.
Most of the attacks this year have been in North Waziristan.
U.S. ally Pakistan officially objects to the drone strikes, saying they are a violation of its sovereignty and fuel anti-U.S. feeling, which complicates Pakistan's efforts against militancy.
(Reporting by Haji Mujtaba and Alamgir Bitani; Writing by Kamran Haider; Editing by Robert Birsel and Paul Tait)
Sunday, April 25, 2010
Drone strike Saturday kills seven in Pakistan
U.S. drone attack kills seven in Pakistan
By Haji Mujtaba and Augustine Anthony
Reuters story appearing on Washingtonpost.com
Saturday, April 24, 2010; 1:33 PM
MIRANSHAH, Pakistan (Reuters) - A U.S. drone aircraft fired three missiles into Pakistan's North Waziristan region on the Afghan border Saturday, killing seven militants, Pakistani intelligence officials and residents said.
The strike targeted a militant compound in the town of Mir Ali, some 24 km (15 miles) east of Miranshah, the main town in North Waziristan. The region is known as a hotbed of Taliban and al Qaeda militants.
"The place where the missiles struck is still on fire and militants have surrounded the area and were not letting anyone close to the site of the attack," said an intelligence official who declined to be identified.
"We have reports of seven militants killed in the attack."
The United States has stepped up missile strikes in Pakistan's northwestern region since a Jordanian suicide bomber killed seven CIA employees at a U.S. base across the border in Afghanistan's eastern province of Khost in late December.
Most of the attacks this year have been in North Waziristan.
U.S. ally Pakistan officially objects to the drone strikes, saying they are a violation of its sovereignty and fuel anti-U.S. feeling, which complicates Pakistan's efforts against militancy.
By Haji Mujtaba and Augustine Anthony
Reuters story appearing on Washingtonpost.com
Saturday, April 24, 2010; 1:33 PM
MIRANSHAH, Pakistan (Reuters) - A U.S. drone aircraft fired three missiles into Pakistan's North Waziristan region on the Afghan border Saturday, killing seven militants, Pakistani intelligence officials and residents said.
The strike targeted a militant compound in the town of Mir Ali, some 24 km (15 miles) east of Miranshah, the main town in North Waziristan. The region is known as a hotbed of Taliban and al Qaeda militants.
"The place where the missiles struck is still on fire and militants have surrounded the area and were not letting anyone close to the site of the attack," said an intelligence official who declined to be identified.
"We have reports of seven militants killed in the attack."
The United States has stepped up missile strikes in Pakistan's northwestern region since a Jordanian suicide bomber killed seven CIA employees at a U.S. base across the border in Afghanistan's eastern province of Khost in late December.
Most of the attacks this year have been in North Waziristan.
U.S. ally Pakistan officially objects to the drone strikes, saying they are a violation of its sovereignty and fuel anti-U.S. feeling, which complicates Pakistan's efforts against militancy.
Pakistan's army kills 9 insurgents in border region
Officials: Army kills 9 insurgents in NW Pakistan
Associated Press story April 25, 2010
By HUSSAIN AFZAL (AP) – 5 hours ago
PARACHINAR, Pakistan — Officials say nine militants were killed and 10 others wounded in clashes with Pakistani troops near Afghanistan.
Local official Jahanzeb Khan says militants attacked a checkpoint near Goain village in Orakzai tribal region Sunday, but security forces fought back. Two intelligence officials said troops then used heavy artillery to target militants' positions, killing at least nine.
Both intelligence officials spoke on condition of anonymity because they were not authorized to speak on the record.
Many insurgents have fled to Orakzai to escape an army offensive against the Pakistani Taliban in South Waziristan tribal region.
The information could not be verified independently because access to the area is restricted.
Associated Press story April 25, 2010
By HUSSAIN AFZAL (AP) – 5 hours ago
PARACHINAR, Pakistan — Officials say nine militants were killed and 10 others wounded in clashes with Pakistani troops near Afghanistan.
Local official Jahanzeb Khan says militants attacked a checkpoint near Goain village in Orakzai tribal region Sunday, but security forces fought back. Two intelligence officials said troops then used heavy artillery to target militants' positions, killing at least nine.
Both intelligence officials spoke on condition of anonymity because they were not authorized to speak on the record.
Many insurgents have fled to Orakzai to escape an army offensive against the Pakistani Taliban in South Waziristan tribal region.
The information could not be verified independently because access to the area is restricted.
Saturday, April 24, 2010
Bill Maher calls out defense spending as overlooked in economic reporting
From Huffington Post April 24, 2010
Excerpt--"Everything that goes into defense costs us about a trillion dollars a year, most of which goes into fighting the Russians in 1978. Fighter planes for all those dog fights we get into with the Taliban, submarines to foil their evil plot to blow up our ships with car bombs, and space lasers to shoot down their exploding underpants...scream about handouts, this is what they should be protesting."
If you are interested in this question about how we as a society allocate resources, I recommend the film "Why We Fight" featuring extensive interviews with Chalmers Johnson and testimonial footage from President Dwight Eisenhower and his surviving family members.
Why We Fight on Google Video
Excerpt--"Everything that goes into defense costs us about a trillion dollars a year, most of which goes into fighting the Russians in 1978. Fighter planes for all those dog fights we get into with the Taliban, submarines to foil their evil plot to blow up our ships with car bombs, and space lasers to shoot down their exploding underpants...scream about handouts, this is what they should be protesting."
If you are interested in this question about how we as a society allocate resources, I recommend the film "Why We Fight" featuring extensive interviews with Chalmers Johnson and testimonial footage from President Dwight Eisenhower and his surviving family members.
Why We Fight on Google Video
Al Jazeera opens forum on Pakistan: is ISI stoking insurgency?
Pakistan's political landscape
From aljazeera.net April 24, 2010
As Pakistan's security forces battle Taliban fighters in the northwest and explosions tear through its cities, many are asking if the country is paying the price for the policies of its powerful spy agency - the Directorate for Inter-Services Intelligence (ISI).
The ISI came into the limelight in the 1980s when it worked with the CIA to fund, train and arm Afghan and foreign fighters against the Soviet occupation of Afghanistan.
Since then, the Islamabad-based agency has helped create and support the Taliban which ruled Afghanistan from 1996 to 2001.
Officially, Pakistan's backing for the Taliban ended after the attacks of September 11, 2001 and the group was overthrown by US-led forces.
But today, many of those fighters have turned their fury on Pakistan's establishment for siding with the US in Afghanistan - and have targeted ISI offices in Lahore and Peshawar.
New Delhi also accuses the Pakistani agency of undermining peace efforts with Islamabad by waging a covert guerrilla war in Kashmir, but the ISI says it endorses what it calls a legitimate liberation struggle against India's occupation in the disputed region.
JOIN THE DEBATE
Send us your views and get your voice on the air
On Monday's Riz Khan we ask: Is the ISI safeguarding Pakistani interests in a volatile region, or destabilising the subcontinent by pushing its own agenda?
Joining the conversation will be Hamid Gul, the former head of the ISI, ex-CIA agent Michael Scheuer who spent his career working in South Asia, and journalist and author Shuja Nawaz, who has written extensively on Pakistan.
You can join the conversation. Call in with your questions and comments on Monday, April 26, 2010 at our new live time of 1630GMT, with repeats at 2130GMT, and the next day at 0230GMT and 1130GMT.
From aljazeera.net April 24, 2010
As Pakistan's security forces battle Taliban fighters in the northwest and explosions tear through its cities, many are asking if the country is paying the price for the policies of its powerful spy agency - the Directorate for Inter-Services Intelligence (ISI).
The ISI came into the limelight in the 1980s when it worked with the CIA to fund, train and arm Afghan and foreign fighters against the Soviet occupation of Afghanistan.
Since then, the Islamabad-based agency has helped create and support the Taliban which ruled Afghanistan from 1996 to 2001.
Officially, Pakistan's backing for the Taliban ended after the attacks of September 11, 2001 and the group was overthrown by US-led forces.
But today, many of those fighters have turned their fury on Pakistan's establishment for siding with the US in Afghanistan - and have targeted ISI offices in Lahore and Peshawar.
New Delhi also accuses the Pakistani agency of undermining peace efforts with Islamabad by waging a covert guerrilla war in Kashmir, but the ISI says it endorses what it calls a legitimate liberation struggle against India's occupation in the disputed region.
JOIN THE DEBATE
Send us your views and get your voice on the air
On Monday's Riz Khan we ask: Is the ISI safeguarding Pakistani interests in a volatile region, or destabilising the subcontinent by pushing its own agenda?
Joining the conversation will be Hamid Gul, the former head of the ISI, ex-CIA agent Michael Scheuer who spent his career working in South Asia, and journalist and author Shuja Nawaz, who has written extensively on Pakistan.
You can join the conversation. Call in with your questions and comments on Monday, April 26, 2010 at our new live time of 1630GMT, with repeats at 2130GMT, and the next day at 0230GMT and 1130GMT.
Thursday, April 22, 2010
Previously posted here, today reiterated
The following excerpt, which has already been noted here in the pages of Extraordinary Edition is from Feb. 4, 2010, "The Expanding US War in Pakistan" by Jeremy Scahill. It appeared in The Nation.
What appears below are the last two paragraphs. My apologies for repetition if you've already read them. This simply addresses what I have been asking myself and anyone who's read pieces on this site since the beginning of this year. Pakistan has been phased in under our noses. Officials from Pakistan's government have appeared on the Daily Show. Things have transitioned rather than being announced: why has this administration not been straight with its citizens about military escalation across the border between Afghanistan and Pakistan, which is no different than the border between Vietnam and Cambodia as an invisible political line where the political circumstances change according to what side of that line your hundreds of millions of dollars worth of troops and equipment are amassed.
From Scahill's Nation article of Feb. 3 ...
The United States does not publicly acknowledge US military operations in Pakistan. On CENTCOM's website, they are described in vague terms. "We will of course continue to target, disrupt, and pursue the leadership, bases,and support networks of Al Qaeda and other transnational extremist groups operating in the region," declares CENTCOM's Pakistan page. "We will do this aggressively and relentlessly."
Since President Obama's inauguration, the administration has downplayed the role of US military forces in Pakistan. In July, Ambassador Richard Holbrooke said bluntly, "People think that the US has troops in Pakistan, well, we don't." On Wednesday, after the US soldiers' deaths, his tune changed dramatically: "There's nothing secret about their presence," he said. One thing is certain: as the situation in Pakistan becomes more volatile and the US military presence in the country expands, it will become increasingly difficult for the Obama administration to downplay or deny the reality that a US war in Pakistan is already underway.
What appears below are the last two paragraphs. My apologies for repetition if you've already read them. This simply addresses what I have been asking myself and anyone who's read pieces on this site since the beginning of this year. Pakistan has been phased in under our noses. Officials from Pakistan's government have appeared on the Daily Show. Things have transitioned rather than being announced: why has this administration not been straight with its citizens about military escalation across the border between Afghanistan and Pakistan, which is no different than the border between Vietnam and Cambodia as an invisible political line where the political circumstances change according to what side of that line your hundreds of millions of dollars worth of troops and equipment are amassed.
From Scahill's Nation article of Feb. 3 ...
The United States does not publicly acknowledge US military operations in Pakistan. On CENTCOM's website, they are described in vague terms. "We will of course continue to target, disrupt, and pursue the leadership, bases,and support networks of Al Qaeda and other transnational extremist groups operating in the region," declares CENTCOM's Pakistan page. "We will do this aggressively and relentlessly."
Since President Obama's inauguration, the administration has downplayed the role of US military forces in Pakistan. In July, Ambassador Richard Holbrooke said bluntly, "People think that the US has troops in Pakistan, well, we don't." On Wednesday, after the US soldiers' deaths, his tune changed dramatically: "There's nothing secret about their presence," he said. One thing is certain: as the situation in Pakistan becomes more volatile and the US military presence in the country expands, it will become increasingly difficult for the Obama administration to downplay or deny the reality that a US war in Pakistan is already underway.
Wednesday, April 21, 2010
What are Fascism, Socialism and Kleptocracy?
This William Astore essay, 4:00pm, April 20, 2010 from tomgram.com posted to commondreams.org 4/21.
It covers a set of political topics I've been concerned about since Hillary and Obama were still duking it out for the nomination. Until now I haven't successfully seen it put to words.
Tomgram: William Astore, The Business of America Is Kleptocracy
Excerpt from Astore's article appears below ...
It’s hard to miss these days. The headlines tell the story -- repetitively. Everyone, it seems, is on the take. The Securities and Exchange Commission has charged Goldman Sachs with securities fraud for creating and selling “a mortgage investment that was secretly intended to fail” -- and then betting against its own customers. JPMorgan Chase which, in a pinch in 2008, happily took taxpayer dough, just reported $3.3 billion in profits for the first quarter of 2010, a jump of 55% over the previous quarter. The bank set aside $9.3 billion in what’s called “compensation and benefits” for its employees in 2009.
Even when they lose, they win. According to James Kwak of the Baseline Scenario website, on a deal in which JPMorgan swallowed $880 million in losses, its bankers still managed to walk away with up to $10 million in compensation. As he wrote, “JPMorgan’s bankers did just fine, despite having placed a ticking time bomb on their own bank’s balance sheet.” Meanwhile, Robert Rubin, who helped create the world that led to the 2008 financial meltdown as Treasury Secretary under Bill Clinton, then took a top position at Citibank and made more than $100 million before it tanked on his watch. As economist Dean Baker puts it, “In the fall of 2008, when Citigroup was saved from bankruptcy with a taxpayer bailout, Rubin quietly slipped out the back door (with his money), resigning from his position at Citigroup.” Only recently Rubin made the headlines for offering the least apologetic (non-)apology imaginable for taking the American people to the cleaners.
And when it comes to taking, according to Eric Lichtblau of the New York Times, “more than 125 former Congressional aides and lawmakers are now working for financial firms as part of a multibillion-dollar effort to shape, and often scale back, federal regulatory power.” In other words, the regulators and their aides legislate the rules and then simply step through that infamous revolving door and pick up a handsome check on the other side. There are, in fact, at least 11,000 well-employed registered lobbyists in Washington today. A $3.4 billion “industry” in 2009, lobbying is definitely a field to get into, even in bad times, and according to the Christian Science Monitor, “when the cost of grass-roots efforts and of strategic advisers are all counted, total spending on influencing policy in Washington approaches $9.6 billion a year.”
As for the money flowing into politics from corporate deep pockets, 2008 not only saw the first billion-dollar presidential campaign, but at $1.7 billion, more than doubled the 2004 campaign’s costs, and no one expects 2012 to be anything but more expensive. All this is, of course, known to anyone who glances at the front page of a daily newspaper, but what exactly do we make of it all? What does it add up to? William Astore, historian and TomDispatch regular, has a suggestion, but before you start his piece, you might want to close your purse or button that back pocket with your wallet in it. Otherwise, they could be picked bare by the time you’re done.
It covers a set of political topics I've been concerned about since Hillary and Obama were still duking it out for the nomination. Until now I haven't successfully seen it put to words.
Tomgram: William Astore, The Business of America Is Kleptocracy
Excerpt from Astore's article appears below ...
It’s hard to miss these days. The headlines tell the story -- repetitively. Everyone, it seems, is on the take. The Securities and Exchange Commission has charged Goldman Sachs with securities fraud for creating and selling “a mortgage investment that was secretly intended to fail” -- and then betting against its own customers. JPMorgan Chase which, in a pinch in 2008, happily took taxpayer dough, just reported $3.3 billion in profits for the first quarter of 2010, a jump of 55% over the previous quarter. The bank set aside $9.3 billion in what’s called “compensation and benefits” for its employees in 2009.
Even when they lose, they win. According to James Kwak of the Baseline Scenario website, on a deal in which JPMorgan swallowed $880 million in losses, its bankers still managed to walk away with up to $10 million in compensation. As he wrote, “JPMorgan’s bankers did just fine, despite having placed a ticking time bomb on their own bank’s balance sheet.” Meanwhile, Robert Rubin, who helped create the world that led to the 2008 financial meltdown as Treasury Secretary under Bill Clinton, then took a top position at Citibank and made more than $100 million before it tanked on his watch. As economist Dean Baker puts it, “In the fall of 2008, when Citigroup was saved from bankruptcy with a taxpayer bailout, Rubin quietly slipped out the back door (with his money), resigning from his position at Citigroup.” Only recently Rubin made the headlines for offering the least apologetic (non-)apology imaginable for taking the American people to the cleaners.
And when it comes to taking, according to Eric Lichtblau of the New York Times, “more than 125 former Congressional aides and lawmakers are now working for financial firms as part of a multibillion-dollar effort to shape, and often scale back, federal regulatory power.” In other words, the regulators and their aides legislate the rules and then simply step through that infamous revolving door and pick up a handsome check on the other side. There are, in fact, at least 11,000 well-employed registered lobbyists in Washington today. A $3.4 billion “industry” in 2009, lobbying is definitely a field to get into, even in bad times, and according to the Christian Science Monitor, “when the cost of grass-roots efforts and of strategic advisers are all counted, total spending on influencing policy in Washington approaches $9.6 billion a year.”
As for the money flowing into politics from corporate deep pockets, 2008 not only saw the first billion-dollar presidential campaign, but at $1.7 billion, more than doubled the 2004 campaign’s costs, and no one expects 2012 to be anything but more expensive. All this is, of course, known to anyone who glances at the front page of a daily newspaper, but what exactly do we make of it all? What does it add up to? William Astore, historian and TomDispatch regular, has a suggestion, but before you start his piece, you might want to close your purse or button that back pocket with your wallet in it. Otherwise, they could be picked bare by the time you’re done.
Tuesday, April 20, 2010
Islamist politician blames U.S.-Pakistan alliance for violence
Associated Press story on Google News ...
Pakistan: Islamist blames US for suicide bombing
By RIAZ KHAN (AP) – 8 hours ago
PESHAWAR, Pakistan — An Islamist politician whose party lost several members in a suicide attack blamed Pakistan's alliance with the U.S. for the violence and urged Islamabad on Tuesday to break ranks in the war on terror.
The comments showed the depth of anti-Americanism in Pakistan, whose support Washington considers key to stabilizing neighboring Afghanistan. In the past three days, attacks in Pakistan have killed some 74 people in a new wave of violence.
A remote controlled bomb Tuesday hit an army convoy as it traveled in the Hangu district close to the Afghan border, killing three soldiers and a civilian, said police official Farid Khan.
The Jamaat-e-Islami party was hit Monday when a suicide bomber apparently targeted police watching over a rally of the pro-Taliban group. Many of the 24 dead and 45 wounded were party loyalists, while two were officers, police official Khan Abbas said Tuesday.
Although authorities blamed the Taliban in the immediate aftermath of the attack in Peshawar, the Islamist party's leaders have declined to do so, instead alleging the CIA or Indian intelligence were behind it.
"It is because we have brought America's war to our own country," Sirajul Haq, a provincial party leader, said Tuesday in Peshawar after attending funerals for some of the victims. "Still, there is time to end this alliance with America" to avoid more bloodshed.
No group has claimed responsibility for the attack, but that is not unusual in cases where many ordinary Pakistanis die.
Earlier Monday, a bomb exploded outside a school run by a police welfare foundation, killing a young boy and wounding 10 people. And over the weekend, multiple bombs in the Kohat region elsewhere in the northwest killed nearly 50 people.
Taliban and al-Qaida militants based in the Afghan border region — who are fighting Pakistani police and the army — have carried out hundreds of attacks over the last three years. They have frequently targeted security forces, government officials and their supporters or family members in mosques, schools and markets, showing no concern for civilian casualties.
Peshawar, the capital of the northwest region, has been one of the hardest-hit cities because it lies close to the border area.
Associated Press writer Hussain Afzal in Parachinar contributed to this report
Pakistan: Islamist blames US for suicide bombing
By RIAZ KHAN (AP) – 8 hours ago
PESHAWAR, Pakistan — An Islamist politician whose party lost several members in a suicide attack blamed Pakistan's alliance with the U.S. for the violence and urged Islamabad on Tuesday to break ranks in the war on terror.
The comments showed the depth of anti-Americanism in Pakistan, whose support Washington considers key to stabilizing neighboring Afghanistan. In the past three days, attacks in Pakistan have killed some 74 people in a new wave of violence.
A remote controlled bomb Tuesday hit an army convoy as it traveled in the Hangu district close to the Afghan border, killing three soldiers and a civilian, said police official Farid Khan.
The Jamaat-e-Islami party was hit Monday when a suicide bomber apparently targeted police watching over a rally of the pro-Taliban group. Many of the 24 dead and 45 wounded were party loyalists, while two were officers, police official Khan Abbas said Tuesday.
Although authorities blamed the Taliban in the immediate aftermath of the attack in Peshawar, the Islamist party's leaders have declined to do so, instead alleging the CIA or Indian intelligence were behind it.
"It is because we have brought America's war to our own country," Sirajul Haq, a provincial party leader, said Tuesday in Peshawar after attending funerals for some of the victims. "Still, there is time to end this alliance with America" to avoid more bloodshed.
No group has claimed responsibility for the attack, but that is not unusual in cases where many ordinary Pakistanis die.
Earlier Monday, a bomb exploded outside a school run by a police welfare foundation, killing a young boy and wounding 10 people. And over the weekend, multiple bombs in the Kohat region elsewhere in the northwest killed nearly 50 people.
Taliban and al-Qaida militants based in the Afghan border region — who are fighting Pakistani police and the army — have carried out hundreds of attacks over the last three years. They have frequently targeted security forces, government officials and their supporters or family members in mosques, schools and markets, showing no concern for civilian casualties.
Peshawar, the capital of the northwest region, has been one of the hardest-hit cities because it lies close to the border area.
Associated Press writer Hussain Afzal in Parachinar contributed to this report
Witnesses to NATO and Afghan military abuse of civilians released
From Democracy Now April 19
Italian Aid Workers Freed Following Arrests
In other news from Afghanistan, three Italian aid workers have been released one week after their arrest by Afghan forces. The three work with the charity Emergency, which runs a series of hospitals in Afghanistan. They were detained on suspicion of involvement in a plot to kill a provincial governor, but the Afghan government says an investigation has since proven their innocence. One of the three, Marco Garatti, spoke out shortly after his release.
Marco Garatti: “We are very happy to be released, and we are very happy that our name, our own personal name, and the reputation of Emergency is clear and clean. This is why we are tremendously happy.”
There has been some speculation the Emergency workers were targeted for speaking out against NATO and Afghan military actions that have harmed Afghan civilians. Earlier this year, another of the three aid workers, Matteo dell’Aira, appeared on Democracy Now! during the US assault on the town of Marjah.
Italian Aid Workers Freed Following Arrests
In other news from Afghanistan, three Italian aid workers have been released one week after their arrest by Afghan forces. The three work with the charity Emergency, which runs a series of hospitals in Afghanistan. They were detained on suspicion of involvement in a plot to kill a provincial governor, but the Afghan government says an investigation has since proven their innocence. One of the three, Marco Garatti, spoke out shortly after his release.
Marco Garatti: “We are very happy to be released, and we are very happy that our name, our own personal name, and the reputation of Emergency is clear and clean. This is why we are tremendously happy.”
There has been some speculation the Emergency workers were targeted for speaking out against NATO and Afghan military actions that have harmed Afghan civilians. Earlier this year, another of the three aid workers, Matteo dell’Aira, appeared on Democracy Now! during the US assault on the town of Marjah.
Monday, April 19, 2010
Roots of Taliban conflict fester in Pakistan's Swat
A glimpse of life in Pakistan's Swat Valley following the return of some of the 2 million refugees who fled violence there last year. For those who stayed, the violence persists.
Agence France Presse story
By Jennie Matthew (AFP) April 19
MINGORA, Pakistan — A year after Pakistan launched a major operation to evict the Taliban from Swat Valley, markets are bustling and girls are back at school, but the root causes of the conflict still fester.
For two years the Taliban paralysed much of the valley by promoting a repressive brand of Islamic law, opposing secular girls' education and beheading opponents until the government ordered in thousands of troops.
At only 125 kilometres (80 miles) northwest of Islamabad, its mountains were once a weekend getaway and ski resort.
As the offensive began, around two million people fled the district but a year later many are back, trying to rebuild their lives.
"Normalcy has returned... All segments of society are open and functioning," said Qazi Jamil, the new chief of 15,000 police serving three million people in the wider Malakand region, which includes Swat.
Girls in white headscarves walk to school, laden with books. Markets are cluttered with chickens, oranges and vegetables. Shutters are painted with the green and white Pakistani flag to signal opposition to the Taliban.
But threats and tensions remain. On February 22, the same day Jamil arrived to take up his new job, a suicide bomber killed nine people.
"The element of threat is still there unfortunately," said Jamil. "There are so many different small groups, alleys and streets it's extremely difficult to plug each and every loop. They are trying to sneak in."
Keen to address the causes of the insurgency, the civil administration wants international donors to accelerate reconstruction and rehabilitation, and for police to take over from the army as quickly as possible.
"There is a need for a new social contract between the haves and the have-nots. There is a new friction on the rise," said Naseem Akhtar, a senior official in the civil administration.
Without adequate services and reconstruction, the roots of what he calls the Taliban's "class war" -- a product of Pakistan's feudal system, the huge disparity in wealth between the landowners and peasants -- will continue to grow.
"We have a Herculean task of reconstruction and rehabilitation," said Akhtar.
Police need to be recruited and trained. Jobs need to be created. Conditions need to be made conducive to business. Out of 1,576 schools in Swat, the United Nations says 175 were destroyed and 226 damaged.
"Right now the donors' response is poor. The international community should concentrate on providing funds," Akhtar told AFP.
Under army supervision, schools are being repaired but none of those razed has been rebuilt, officials said.
Akhtar's former school, Government High School 1, is a lunar scape of rubble bulldozed by the army with 10 tent classrooms offering boys an education that would enable them to work as clerks and businessmen.
Caretaker Saif-ur-Rehman says he no longer sleeps on the premises at night, despite his faith in the army, because he is too frightened after the night the militants came, blowing up the building and pointing a gun at his head.
"There are still some rumours that the Taliban might come and again capture the entire area," he said.
Robert Wilson, USAID director in Pakistan, said the agency had set aside 36 million dollars for Swat, including 25 million to rebuild around 50 schools but conceded that not a single school had yet been fully rebuilt.
The perception that the displaced had already returned, plus earthquakes in Chile and Haiti, means less donor money is available, said Caitlin Brady, chairwoman of the Pakistan Humanitarian Forum, a group of 35 leading international aid organisations.
"There are still 1.3 million people displaced (in the northwest) and people who have gone home still need assistance. We're concerned that Pakistan is becoming a forgotten crisis," said Brady.
The Central Hospital Saidu Sharif lacks equipment, specialised surgical staff, beds, updated X-ray and CT scanners, ventilators and a defibrillator.
"I was expecting so much, but so far it (the response) has not been very encouraging and there has not been much contribution as far as this hospital is concerned," said Dr Lal Noor Afridi.
A few victims of the February attack are still on the surgical ward, like rickshaw driver Obeidullah who unwittingly drove himself and three passengers into the path of the suicide bomber, and is now looking for a new life.
"It was a warning to leave the rickshaw thing. I want no more risk," said the 35-year-old, bandages layered over his chest.
Agence France Presse story
By Jennie Matthew (AFP) April 19
MINGORA, Pakistan — A year after Pakistan launched a major operation to evict the Taliban from Swat Valley, markets are bustling and girls are back at school, but the root causes of the conflict still fester.
For two years the Taliban paralysed much of the valley by promoting a repressive brand of Islamic law, opposing secular girls' education and beheading opponents until the government ordered in thousands of troops.
At only 125 kilometres (80 miles) northwest of Islamabad, its mountains were once a weekend getaway and ski resort.
As the offensive began, around two million people fled the district but a year later many are back, trying to rebuild their lives.
"Normalcy has returned... All segments of society are open and functioning," said Qazi Jamil, the new chief of 15,000 police serving three million people in the wider Malakand region, which includes Swat.
Girls in white headscarves walk to school, laden with books. Markets are cluttered with chickens, oranges and vegetables. Shutters are painted with the green and white Pakistani flag to signal opposition to the Taliban.
But threats and tensions remain. On February 22, the same day Jamil arrived to take up his new job, a suicide bomber killed nine people.
"The element of threat is still there unfortunately," said Jamil. "There are so many different small groups, alleys and streets it's extremely difficult to plug each and every loop. They are trying to sneak in."
Keen to address the causes of the insurgency, the civil administration wants international donors to accelerate reconstruction and rehabilitation, and for police to take over from the army as quickly as possible.
"There is a need for a new social contract between the haves and the have-nots. There is a new friction on the rise," said Naseem Akhtar, a senior official in the civil administration.
Without adequate services and reconstruction, the roots of what he calls the Taliban's "class war" -- a product of Pakistan's feudal system, the huge disparity in wealth between the landowners and peasants -- will continue to grow.
"We have a Herculean task of reconstruction and rehabilitation," said Akhtar.
Police need to be recruited and trained. Jobs need to be created. Conditions need to be made conducive to business. Out of 1,576 schools in Swat, the United Nations says 175 were destroyed and 226 damaged.
"Right now the donors' response is poor. The international community should concentrate on providing funds," Akhtar told AFP.
Under army supervision, schools are being repaired but none of those razed has been rebuilt, officials said.
Akhtar's former school, Government High School 1, is a lunar scape of rubble bulldozed by the army with 10 tent classrooms offering boys an education that would enable them to work as clerks and businessmen.
Caretaker Saif-ur-Rehman says he no longer sleeps on the premises at night, despite his faith in the army, because he is too frightened after the night the militants came, blowing up the building and pointing a gun at his head.
"There are still some rumours that the Taliban might come and again capture the entire area," he said.
Robert Wilson, USAID director in Pakistan, said the agency had set aside 36 million dollars for Swat, including 25 million to rebuild around 50 schools but conceded that not a single school had yet been fully rebuilt.
The perception that the displaced had already returned, plus earthquakes in Chile and Haiti, means less donor money is available, said Caitlin Brady, chairwoman of the Pakistan Humanitarian Forum, a group of 35 leading international aid organisations.
"There are still 1.3 million people displaced (in the northwest) and people who have gone home still need assistance. We're concerned that Pakistan is becoming a forgotten crisis," said Brady.
The Central Hospital Saidu Sharif lacks equipment, specialised surgical staff, beds, updated X-ray and CT scanners, ventilators and a defibrillator.
"I was expecting so much, but so far it (the response) has not been very encouraging and there has not been much contribution as far as this hospital is concerned," said Dr Lal Noor Afridi.
A few victims of the February attack are still on the surgical ward, like rickshaw driver Obeidullah who unwittingly drove himself and three passengers into the path of the suicide bomber, and is now looking for a new life.
"It was a warning to leave the rickshaw thing. I want no more risk," said the 35-year-old, bandages layered over his chest.
Bomber Strikes Rally of Religious Party in Pakistan
New York Times article
By SABRINA TAVERNISE and PIR ZUBAIR SHAH
Published: April 19, 2010
ISLAMABAD — A teenage suicide bomber waded into a political rally by an Islamic party and detonated his explosives Monday, a police officer said.
The bomb, which went off in Peshawar, a northwestern city that was tormented by bombings last year, killed more than 20 people, including a party leader of Jamaat-e-Islami, a hard-line political party that, until recently, had publicly supported the Taliban. A police officer was also among the dead.
Television footage showed a frenzied scene of Islamic-capped youths from the protest helping people onto stretchers. No one has claimed responsibility.
It was unclear if the target was the rally, or the police station nearby. A bomb disposal official said the young bomber was wearing as much as 15 pounds of explosives.
If the target was the rally, it would be highly unusual. Jamaat-e-Islami is Pakistan’s oldest Islamic political party, and its hard-line language sometimes echoes that of the Taliban: anti-West, anti-India and strongly against Pakistan’s tiny religious minorities — Christians, Shiites and an Islamic sect called Ahmedis. But the party is also part of Pakistan’s state establishment, and critical of any direct attack on Pakistan’s army or its people.
A senior police officer in Peshawar, Kareem Khan, said the police officer who was killed, Gulfat Hussain, was a Shiite. Members of the sect have been repeated targets since late last week in violent attacks around western Pakistan.
Mr. Hussain had been active in protecting Shiite processions, whose marches to holy sites often draw militant attacks, Officer Khan said. Al Qaeda is virulently anti-Shiite. Sectarian militancy is so prevalent that Shiite police officers sometimes ask not to be posted in the field, out of fear that they will be targets because of their sect.
It was the second bomb on Monday. The first exploded just seven hours before near a school, killing one student and wounding 10, the authorities said.
By SABRINA TAVERNISE and PIR ZUBAIR SHAH
Published: April 19, 2010
ISLAMABAD — A teenage suicide bomber waded into a political rally by an Islamic party and detonated his explosives Monday, a police officer said.
The bomb, which went off in Peshawar, a northwestern city that was tormented by bombings last year, killed more than 20 people, including a party leader of Jamaat-e-Islami, a hard-line political party that, until recently, had publicly supported the Taliban. A police officer was also among the dead.
Television footage showed a frenzied scene of Islamic-capped youths from the protest helping people onto stretchers. No one has claimed responsibility.
It was unclear if the target was the rally, or the police station nearby. A bomb disposal official said the young bomber was wearing as much as 15 pounds of explosives.
If the target was the rally, it would be highly unusual. Jamaat-e-Islami is Pakistan’s oldest Islamic political party, and its hard-line language sometimes echoes that of the Taliban: anti-West, anti-India and strongly against Pakistan’s tiny religious minorities — Christians, Shiites and an Islamic sect called Ahmedis. But the party is also part of Pakistan’s state establishment, and critical of any direct attack on Pakistan’s army or its people.
A senior police officer in Peshawar, Kareem Khan, said the police officer who was killed, Gulfat Hussain, was a Shiite. Members of the sect have been repeated targets since late last week in violent attacks around western Pakistan.
Mr. Hussain had been active in protecting Shiite processions, whose marches to holy sites often draw militant attacks, Officer Khan said. Al Qaeda is virulently anti-Shiite. Sectarian militancy is so prevalent that Shiite police officers sometimes ask not to be posted in the field, out of fear that they will be targets because of their sect.
It was the second bomb on Monday. The first exploded just seven hours before near a school, killing one student and wounding 10, the authorities said.
Pakistan: Blast Hits Oil Tankers on NATO Route
AP story on nytimes.com
By THE ASSOCIATED PRESS
Published: April 19, 2010
Filed at 1:53 a.m. ET
PESHAWAR, Pakistan (AP) -- An official says suspected Taliban militants in northwestern Pakistan detonated two bombs that destroyed a pair of oil tankers along a vital supply route used by NATO and U.S. forces in Afghanistan.
Local official Iqbal Khan says the twin explosions occurred in the Takhta Beg area of Khyber tribal region Monday.
No one was wounded, but the fire also engulfed a flatbed truck and nearby shops.
Alleged Taliban militants and ordinary criminals frequently attack vehicles along the supply route that runs through the famed Khyber Pass into Afghanistan.
The U.S. and NATO say their Afghan operations have felt limited impact, but they are establishing alternate routes.
By THE ASSOCIATED PRESS
Published: April 19, 2010
Filed at 1:53 a.m. ET
PESHAWAR, Pakistan (AP) -- An official says suspected Taliban militants in northwestern Pakistan detonated two bombs that destroyed a pair of oil tankers along a vital supply route used by NATO and U.S. forces in Afghanistan.
Local official Iqbal Khan says the twin explosions occurred in the Takhta Beg area of Khyber tribal region Monday.
No one was wounded, but the fire also engulfed a flatbed truck and nearby shops.
Alleged Taliban militants and ordinary criminals frequently attack vehicles along the supply route that runs through the famed Khyber Pass into Afghanistan.
The U.S. and NATO say their Afghan operations have felt limited impact, but they are establishing alternate routes.
Sunday, April 18, 2010
Total subterfuge by U.S. Military within Pakistan
Huffington Post U.S. War in Aghanistan news roundup containing this gem about information control efforts by the U.S. military regarding civilian deaths and Pakistani Taliban responsibility claims in the incident of victims of U.S. Military within Pakistan. First Posted: 04-15-10 10:57 AM | Updated: 04-15-10 05:24 PM
The following excerpt is the Pakistan segment of that Huffington Post news roundup.
The myth of war reporting in Pakistan.
A journalist who reported on the Pakistani military campaign in the Swat Valley last year discusses (see journalist's blog) "the myth of war reporting in Pakistan." He recounts how his editors had removed any mention of civilian casualties as a result of military operations, citing that "the management has told us that we can only run pro-Army stories." The military's Inter-Services Public Relations (ISPR) restricted journalists' access to the war zone, preventing any independent assessments of the situation. It also waged a media campaign by issuing countless press releases about the number of dead militants and soldiers "martyred," excluding any mention of civilian deaths. Jerome Starkey, an independent journalist, recently accused (see Starkey's account on Nieman Watchdog) NATO forces of the same, and chastised reporters for falling victim to the NATO military propaganda machine. Starkey found that NATO had covered up an attack by NATO and Afghan forces on an Afghan family, blaming the deaths on the Taliban, when in fact coalition forces were to blame. It goes to show that readers should be critical of officially reported statistics and stories.
The following excerpt is the Pakistan segment of that Huffington Post news roundup.
The myth of war reporting in Pakistan.
A journalist who reported on the Pakistani military campaign in the Swat Valley last year discusses (see journalist's blog) "the myth of war reporting in Pakistan." He recounts how his editors had removed any mention of civilian casualties as a result of military operations, citing that "the management has told us that we can only run pro-Army stories." The military's Inter-Services Public Relations (ISPR) restricted journalists' access to the war zone, preventing any independent assessments of the situation. It also waged a media campaign by issuing countless press releases about the number of dead militants and soldiers "martyred," excluding any mention of civilian deaths. Jerome Starkey, an independent journalist, recently accused (see Starkey's account on Nieman Watchdog) NATO forces of the same, and chastised reporters for falling victim to the NATO military propaganda machine. Starkey found that NATO had covered up an attack by NATO and Afghan forces on an Afghan family, blaming the deaths on the Taliban, when in fact coalition forces were to blame. It goes to show that readers should be critical of officially reported statistics and stories.
Pakistan's army demonstratively puffing out its chest
[AP story on Google News ...]
Close to India, Pakistan shows military might
By CHRIS BRUMMITT (Associated Press) – April 18, 2010
CHOLISTAN DESERT, Pakistan — Fighter jets strafed mock enemy positions and tanks rumbled across this eastern desert Sunday in a display of military might signaling Pakistan's readiness to face traditional foe India even as it battles Taliban militants on its opposite flank.
While India and Pakistan regularly carry out army drills, the demonstration close to the Indian border was part of Pakistan's biggest military exercises since 1989, when the army was celebrating its role in ousting the Soviet Union from Afghanistan.
This time around, the exercises follow successful operations in the northwest against extremists that have improved the image of the army as a fighting force after its popularity plunged during the military-backed rule of former President Gen. Pervez Musharraf. For a domestic audience, the army was emphasizing this battlefield role, analysts said.
Close to India, Pakistan shows military might
By CHRIS BRUMMITT (Associated Press) – April 18, 2010
CHOLISTAN DESERT, Pakistan — Fighter jets strafed mock enemy positions and tanks rumbled across this eastern desert Sunday in a display of military might signaling Pakistan's readiness to face traditional foe India even as it battles Taliban militants on its opposite flank.
While India and Pakistan regularly carry out army drills, the demonstration close to the Indian border was part of Pakistan's biggest military exercises since 1989, when the army was celebrating its role in ousting the Soviet Union from Afghanistan.
This time around, the exercises follow successful operations in the northwest against extremists that have improved the image of the army as a fighting force after its popularity plunged during the military-backed rule of former President Gen. Pervez Musharraf. For a domestic audience, the army was emphasizing this battlefield role, analysts said.
Suicide bomber kills 7 in Pakistan's northwest
Reuters story on Washington Post by Hasan Mehmood
Sunday, April 18, 2010; 6:59 AM
KOHAT, Pakistan (Reuters) - A suicide car-bomber killed seven people and wounded 26 in an attack on a police station in Pakistan's northwest on Sunday, police said, the second attack in the volatile region in as many days.
On Saturday, two suicide bombers in the Kohat region attacked people displaced by fighting between the army and militants, killing 41 and wounding 65.
Security forces have made significant gains against militants in offensives over the past year, clearing the Islamist fighters from strongholds in the Swat valley and in the regions of South Waziristan and Bajaur on the Afghan border.
But the militants have demonstrated time and again they have the capacity to strike back with gun and bomb attacks in towns and cities.
On Sunday, the bomber drove a van into a roadblock outside a police station in Kohat town.
"Seven people including a child were killed and 26 people wounded, five of them policemen," a top police official, Abdullah Khan, told Reuters.
Pakistan Taliban claimed responsibility in a telephone call to police in Kohat, police said later.
A militant spokesman had said the attack on the police station was in response to police arrests and the killing of militants, said a police spokesman in Kohat town.
A group affiliated with Pakistan's Taliban claimed responsibility for Saturday's attack on a center where displaced people were registering for aid, about 40 km (25 miles) away from the site of Sunday's attack.
After its offensives in Swat, South Waziristan and Bajaur, the military has been attacking militants in other areas, including the Orakzai region, where many of the Islamists who fled the earlier offensives are believed to have taken refuge.
The army says more than 300 militants had been killed in fighting in recent weeks in Orakzai and the Kurram region but there has been no independent confirmation of the deaths.
Pakistani Taliban often dismiss military estimates of militant casualties.
About 13 militants were killed in clashes in the Orakzai region on Sunday, security officials said.
The security forces' successes over the past year have eased fears nuclear-armed Pakistan, a vital ally for the United States as it struggles to stabilize Afghanistan, was sliding into chaos, although unabated bombings may still be a source of worry.
(Additional reporting by Sami Paracha and Alamgir Bitani; Writing by Augustine Anthony; Editing by Robert Birsel and Paul Tait)
Sunday, April 18, 2010; 6:59 AM
KOHAT, Pakistan (Reuters) - A suicide car-bomber killed seven people and wounded 26 in an attack on a police station in Pakistan's northwest on Sunday, police said, the second attack in the volatile region in as many days.
On Saturday, two suicide bombers in the Kohat region attacked people displaced by fighting between the army and militants, killing 41 and wounding 65.
Security forces have made significant gains against militants in offensives over the past year, clearing the Islamist fighters from strongholds in the Swat valley and in the regions of South Waziristan and Bajaur on the Afghan border.
But the militants have demonstrated time and again they have the capacity to strike back with gun and bomb attacks in towns and cities.
On Sunday, the bomber drove a van into a roadblock outside a police station in Kohat town.
"Seven people including a child were killed and 26 people wounded, five of them policemen," a top police official, Abdullah Khan, told Reuters.
Pakistan Taliban claimed responsibility in a telephone call to police in Kohat, police said later.
A militant spokesman had said the attack on the police station was in response to police arrests and the killing of militants, said a police spokesman in Kohat town.
A group affiliated with Pakistan's Taliban claimed responsibility for Saturday's attack on a center where displaced people were registering for aid, about 40 km (25 miles) away from the site of Sunday's attack.
After its offensives in Swat, South Waziristan and Bajaur, the military has been attacking militants in other areas, including the Orakzai region, where many of the Islamists who fled the earlier offensives are believed to have taken refuge.
The army says more than 300 militants had been killed in fighting in recent weeks in Orakzai and the Kurram region but there has been no independent confirmation of the deaths.
Pakistani Taliban often dismiss military estimates of militant casualties.
About 13 militants were killed in clashes in the Orakzai region on Sunday, security officials said.
The security forces' successes over the past year have eased fears nuclear-armed Pakistan, a vital ally for the United States as it struggles to stabilize Afghanistan, was sliding into chaos, although unabated bombings may still be a source of worry.
(Additional reporting by Sami Paracha and Alamgir Bitani; Writing by Augustine Anthony; Editing by Robert Birsel and Paul Tait)
Saturday, April 17, 2010
Bombs kill 20 at centre for displaced in Pakistan
Reuters story from the Washington Post
By Zeeshan Haider
Saturday, April 17, 2010; 4:34 AM
ISLAMABAD (Reuters) - Twin bombings at a center for people displaced by a Pakistani military offensive against militants in the northwest killed at least 20 people on Saturday, said an official.
Local commissioner Khalid Khan Omarzai said a suicide bombing was followed by another explosion near the town of Kohat. "The second one was very devastating," he said.
About 300 people were lined up for registration at the center when the attacks began, officials said.
Pakistan's military has carried out a series of crackdowns against homegrown al Qaeda-backed Taliban fighters seeking to topple the U.S.-backed government.
The military says the latest operations, in the Orakzai and Khyber and Kurram regions, have killed hundreds of militants, casualty tolls that were not possible to confirm independently.
Militants have managed to bounce back despite several army offensives, staging bombings that have raised questions about stability in Pakistan, a crucial ally in Washington's bid to stabilize neighboring Afghanistan.
(Writing by Michael Georgy; editing by Bill Tarrant)
By Zeeshan Haider
Saturday, April 17, 2010; 4:34 AM
ISLAMABAD (Reuters) - Twin bombings at a center for people displaced by a Pakistani military offensive against militants in the northwest killed at least 20 people on Saturday, said an official.
Local commissioner Khalid Khan Omarzai said a suicide bombing was followed by another explosion near the town of Kohat. "The second one was very devastating," he said.
About 300 people were lined up for registration at the center when the attacks began, officials said.
Pakistan's military has carried out a series of crackdowns against homegrown al Qaeda-backed Taliban fighters seeking to topple the U.S.-backed government.
The military says the latest operations, in the Orakzai and Khyber and Kurram regions, have killed hundreds of militants, casualty tolls that were not possible to confirm independently.
Militants have managed to bounce back despite several army offensives, staging bombings that have raised questions about stability in Pakistan, a crucial ally in Washington's bid to stabilize neighboring Afghanistan.
(Writing by Michael Georgy; editing by Bill Tarrant)
Friday, April 16, 2010
US missiles kill four militants in NW Pakistan
Agence France-Presse April 16
By Hasbanullah Khan (AFP)
MIRANSHAH, Pakistan — Missiles fired from US drones targeted a car and a compound in Pakistan's lawless tribal area on the Afghan border Friday, killing at least four militants, security officials said.
The attack struck Tolkhel village in the suburbs of Miranshah, the main town in the restive North Waziristan tribal district bordering Afghanistan.
"At least four militants were killed after US drones fired missiles at a car and a nearby compound used by militants," a senior security official told AFP.
Another security official and a local administration official confirmed the drone attack and the death toll.
"Missiles hit a car carrying militants and as soon as other people rushed into help, more missiles were fired by drones," the official said. "The identity of the militants was not immediately clear."
US forces have been waging a covert drone war against Taliban and Al-Qaeda-linked commanders in the nuclear-armed country's northwestern tribal belt, where militants have carved out havens in mountainous areas outside direct government control.
Washington calls Pakistan's tribal belt the global headquarters of Al-Qaeda and the most dangerous region in the world. Islamist militants in the area are believed to be fuelling the nearly nine-year insurgency in Afghanistan.
North Waziristan is a fortress of Al-Qaeda, Afghan and Pakistani Taliban, and the affiliated Haqqani network set up by Afghan warlord Jalaluddin Haqqani and now effectively run by his ambitious son Sirajuddin.
US officials say drone strikes are a vital weapon in the war to defeat Al-Qaeda and reverse the Taliban insurgency in Afghanistan, where Washington is leading a major troop surge this year in a bid to end the costly war.
More than 870 people have been killed in more than 90 US strikes in Pakistan since August 2008, with a surge in the past year as President Barack Obama has put Pakistan at the heart of his fight against Al-Qaeda.
Taliban and Al-Qaeda-linked groups have also been blamed for a wave of suicide and bomb attacks that have killed more than 3,200 people across Pakistan since 2007.
Pakistan claims to have made big gains against homegrown Taliban over the past year, following campaigns in the northwestern district of Swat and South Waziristan, but have yet to launch a major campaign in North Waziristan.
By Hasbanullah Khan (AFP)
MIRANSHAH, Pakistan — Missiles fired from US drones targeted a car and a compound in Pakistan's lawless tribal area on the Afghan border Friday, killing at least four militants, security officials said.
The attack struck Tolkhel village in the suburbs of Miranshah, the main town in the restive North Waziristan tribal district bordering Afghanistan.
"At least four militants were killed after US drones fired missiles at a car and a nearby compound used by militants," a senior security official told AFP.
Another security official and a local administration official confirmed the drone attack and the death toll.
"Missiles hit a car carrying militants and as soon as other people rushed into help, more missiles were fired by drones," the official said. "The identity of the militants was not immediately clear."
US forces have been waging a covert drone war against Taliban and Al-Qaeda-linked commanders in the nuclear-armed country's northwestern tribal belt, where militants have carved out havens in mountainous areas outside direct government control.
Washington calls Pakistan's tribal belt the global headquarters of Al-Qaeda and the most dangerous region in the world. Islamist militants in the area are believed to be fuelling the nearly nine-year insurgency in Afghanistan.
North Waziristan is a fortress of Al-Qaeda, Afghan and Pakistani Taliban, and the affiliated Haqqani network set up by Afghan warlord Jalaluddin Haqqani and now effectively run by his ambitious son Sirajuddin.
US officials say drone strikes are a vital weapon in the war to defeat Al-Qaeda and reverse the Taliban insurgency in Afghanistan, where Washington is leading a major troop surge this year in a bid to end the costly war.
More than 870 people have been killed in more than 90 US strikes in Pakistan since August 2008, with a surge in the past year as President Barack Obama has put Pakistan at the heart of his fight against Al-Qaeda.
Taliban and Al-Qaeda-linked groups have also been blamed for a wave of suicide and bomb attacks that have killed more than 3,200 people across Pakistan since 2007.
Pakistan claims to have made big gains against homegrown Taliban over the past year, following campaigns in the northwestern district of Swat and South Waziristan, but have yet to launch a major campaign in North Waziristan.
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