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Pakistan and the al-Qaeda
curse
By Syed Saleem Shahzad
KARACHI - The release on Monday of another audio
tape purported to be from Egyptian Ayman al-Zawahiri,
the No 2 to Osama bin Laden in al-Qaeda, in which he
calls Pakistan's President General Pervez a "traitor",
has severely rattled Pakistani intelligence officials.
In the tape, aired by the Qatar-based al-Jazeera
Arabic TV channel, al-Zawahiri said that people should
topple Musharraf as "the president will hand you [army
officers and soldiers] over to the Hindus and flee to
enjoy his secret bank accounts" if India attacked their
country.
"Muslims in Pakistan must unite to oust
this 'traitor' and put in place a loyal leadership in
Pakistan which defends Islam and Muslims," the speaker
said. This message follows a similar one also attributed
to al-Zawahiri released in a tape by al-Jazeera on
September 10.
Pakistani intelligence circles
read the messages as a clear signal for al-Qaeda and its
allies to take up arms against Musharraf, and to help
sympathizers of radical Islamic groups in the country.
The release of the latest tape coincides with
Musharraf's return from meetings of the United Nations
General Assembly in New York. The speaker on the tape
also urged Muslims around the world to fight the
"Christian-Zionist crusade aimed at eradicating Islam
and Muslims".
The tape blasted Musharraf for
aiding the United States in its war in Afghanistan
against al-Qaeda and the Taliban, and accused him of
planning to send Muslim troops to Iraq "to be killed
instead of American soldiers".
Since the release
first tape attacking Musharraf, he has adopted a number
of special security arrangements, including the erection
of extra barricades around Army House in Rawalpindi,
where he lives.
And since the first tape's
release, al-Qaeda has become more active in Pakistan.
One of its members, Hadi al-Iraqi, is known to operate
in the Pakistan-Afghanistan border areas near North
Wazirstan Agency, along with one Amjad Farooqui, a
suspect named in the case of slain US journalist Daniel
Pearl. Intelligence sources now tell Asia Times Online
that Hadi has traveled into Pakistani cities, including
Rawalpindi, and lately even as far as the port city of
Karachi.
These sources say that Hadi, although
an Arab, can speak good Pashtu, Dari, and also some
Urdu, so he is able to mingle well. They add that
al-Zawahiri's exhortation is aimed not at common
Pakistanis, but those who have in the past interacted
with al-Qaeda, but under the previous bin Laden orders
prohibiting any act of terror on Pakistani soil.
This could all change now. In the past few days,
a local network is learnt to have grouped to plan
attacks, similar to those on US embassies in Africa, and
the Bali and Riyadh bomb blasts. These attacks will
target not only Musharraf, but also prominent aides.
However, key Islamic political and jihadi groups
have been quick to denounce the tapes. The chief of the
Jamaat-i-Islami and a member of the national assembly,
Qazi Hussain Ahmed, said in an interview with the BBC
World Service that al-Qaeda leaders should not intervene
in Pakistani politics. He maintained that they are
struggling against Musharraf through democratic means.
The prominent jihadi outfit, Jamaatut Dawa
(risen from the ashes of the banned Lashkar-e-Toiba),
has questioned the authenticity of the tapes.
Intelligence sources also point out that
following the arrest or killing of several key al-Qaeda
operators in Pakistan, few of its planners remain in the
country, apart from Hadi al-Iraqi.
The Asif
Ramzi group of the Lashkar-i-Jhangvi (LJ), a Pakistani
sectarian outfit, has been the prime force behind
attacks on Western targets in Pakistan. However, it
lacks the terror expertise and the finances to carry out
sustained attacks.
Now, the sources suggest that
those al-Qaeda members still holed up in Pakistan, if
they linked with the LJ, would be able to form an
effective network to answer al-Zawahiri's calls.
(Copyright 2003 Asia Times Online Co, Ltd. All
rights reserved. Please contact content@atimes.com for
information on our sales and syndication
policies.)
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