Pakistan steps up raids on Sunni terrorists
By Syed Fazl-e-Haider
KARACHI - Pakistan's paramilitary forces on Friday launched a pre-dawn targeted operation in Quetta against militants from Lashkar-e-Jhangvi (LeJ), the banned Sunni outfit that claimed responsibility for the February 16 terror attack on the Hazara Shi'ite community in the city.
Two LeJ militants were killed and four others were arrested following an exchange of fire in the Nawan Killy area of the capital of southwestern Balochistan province. Four personnel of the
Frontier Corps were also injured in the shootout. A heavy cache of arms and explosives was recovered in the raid.
The minority Hazara community on Wednesday ended their four-day-protest and buried their dead after Pakistani authorities assured Shi'ite leaders that paramilitary forces would continue operations against Islamist extremists in the outskirts of Quetta after bomb blast killed 89 people and injured over 100 at the weekend in the Hazara Town area of the city. The country's apex court on Thursday stressed the need for a cleanup operation against Islamist extremists in Quetta ahead of general elections in the spring. Chief Justice Iftikhar Muhammad Chaudhry said acts of terror would continue if those involved in the bombing were not arrested.
The LeJ reportedly issued a fresh warning to continue its genocidal operations against Hazaras, who had demanded Quetta be handed over to the control of the Pakistan army to protect their lives.
LeJ spokesman reportedly made phone calls to local journalists on the night of February 16 to claim responsibility for the attack and read out a written statement on phone. LeJ statement, which was published in The News, said,
"The Mujahideen of the Lashkar-e-Jhangvi will continue to kill Shias regardless of the imposition of the Governor's rule or the deployment of the Army. We will protect the honor of Islamic Caliphs by sacrificing each and every one of us. The February 16 Fidayeen {suicide bombers} attack by a vehicle bomber was the second one in the Shia dominated area since the beginning of 2013. Let me inform the Shia Hazaras that we have 20 more such vehicles which are packed with lethal explosives and ready to hit the enemy. We are only waiting for next orders from our leadership to hit our targets in Alamdar Road, Mehrabad and Hazara Town. We are neither afraid of the Governor's Rule nor the Pakistan Army and we will continue to kill Shias Hazaras in their homes".
It further said,
"The vehicle bomb at Alamdar Road [in Quetta] was blown up by our colleague Umar Farooq. The government should be under no illusion now that the imposition of the Governor's Rule in Balochistan has failed to dissuade us from targeting our enemy - the Shia Hazaras. We want to make it clear to the Shia Hazaras that they should not consider themselves safe and secure till the establishment of the Islamic Caliphate in Pakistan. Many of the Hazara enemies had fled but there were those who decided to stay back as they loved their jobs and properties. God willing, the Lashkar will not allow any of these Hazaras to leave Balochistan alive."
In a meeting in Islamabad on Tuesday, President Asif Ali Zardari, Prime Minister Raja Pervaiz Ashraf and Army Chief Ashraq Parvez Kiani decided to continue targeted operation against LeJ militants in Quetta until its logical end.
During a targeted operation launched by the Frontier Corps on Monday night in Quetta, which led to a shootout, four LeJ militants were killed and seven others, including the suspected mastermind of Saturday's attack, were arrested.
Interior Minister Rehman Malik on Wednesday told the Senate that the explosives used in the Quetta massacre had been transported from Lahore. Malik informed the House that LeJ's headquarters were in Punjab and it had a branch in Karachi. Dismissing that Quetta incident was a result of an intelligence failure, he said there was strong evidence indicating a nexus between al-Qaeda, the Balochistan Liberation Army and the LeJ. Malik has already declared Hazara areas in Quetta city as 'red zones' to ensure security.
The Inter Services Intelligence (ISI) agency submitted its report in the Supreme Court during Wednesday's hearing of the suo motu notice taken in the aftermath of the Saturday's bombing in Quetta. The report said the intelligence agencies had on January 27 provided intimation regarding an imminent terrorist attack on Hazara community. Chief Justice Iftikhar Muhammad Chaudhry remarked that if there was prior information about the attack, then it was the duty of the police and Frontier Constabulary to prevent it.
Critics say that the ISI report has laid the entire burden on the civilian administration that had failed to maintain law and order and protect Hazara community in Balochistan. They say that officers in a terror-hit country cannot be allowed to get away with shifting the blame and that greater coordination better agencies is vital.
Dawn newspaper in its recent editorial said,
"The attacks on Hazaras take place in certain areas and have demonstrated specific patterns. So why the continuing intelligence failure? There are the straightforward explanations: that even if security agencies know which groups are responsible, it is hard to track them as they move around to avoid capture. That it isn't possible to completely guard all civilian areas against attacks at all times. And that intelligence-sharing between agencies isn't happening. The military intelligence agencies are better equipped and informed than civilian and police agencies, but poor coordination means that information isn't used effectively."
Syed Fazl-e-Haider ( www.syedfazlehaider.com ) is a development analyst in Pakistan. He is the author of many books, including The Economic Development of Balochistan, published in May 2004. E-mail, sfazlehaider05@yahoo.com
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