| |
SOUTH ASIA INTELLIGENCE REVIEW
Weekly Assessments & Briefings
Volume 13, No. 1, July 7, 2014
Data and
assessments from SAIR can be freely published in any form
with credit to the South Asia Intelligence Review of the
South Asia Terrorism Portal
|
Uzbek
Challenge
Tushar Ranjan Mohanty
Research Associate, Institute for Conflict Management
Security
Forces (SFs) involved in the ongoing military
operation, Zarb-e-Azb [Sword
of the Prophet], in the North Waziristan Agency (NWA)
of the Federally Administered Tribal Areas (FATA), have
so far killed a total of 391 alleged terrorists. 19 troopers
have also lost their lives during the Operation that began
at 01:30am [PST] on June 15, 2014. A total of 61 terrorist
hideouts have been neutralized.
Reports
suggest that the Operation has primarily targeted the
Hafiz Gul Bahadur faction of the Tehrik-e-Taliban Pakistan
(TTP-Hafiz
Faction), which has just come out of the truce pact with
the Government signed back in 2006, and the Islamic Movement
of Uzbekistan (IMU). While the TTP-Hafiz Faction has been
targeted because it has turned renegade, the IMU is being
targeted because of its blatant claim to having attacked
the Karachi Airport on June 8-9, 2014, in which at least
33 persons, including all ten attackers, were killed,
as well as its recent record.
Claiming
responsibility for the attack, the IMU posted a statement
that read, “...This is revenge for the killing of civilians,
migrant women and their children. This is revenge for
the violence of the corrupt Pakistani Government.” The
statement signed by Usman Ghazi, IMU emir, concludes,
“The jihad already in place in Afghanistan should be extended
to Pakistan’s territory as well. Jihad in Pakistan should
be fought by the entire Muslim Ummah and not just a few
people or groups.” Pakistani Major General Rizvan Akhtar,
speaking on the day of the attack, had claimed that there
were Uzbeks among the suicide fighters in Karachi, and
some reports claimed that most of the slain terrorists
were Uzbeks. TTP had also claimed responsibility for the
attack.
It was
claimed that the attack on Karachi Airport was retaliation
against the May 21, 2014, aerial attack by the military
in NWA. At least 60 terrorists, mostly Uzbek, were killed
in those attacks.
The Karachi
Airport attack was not first of its kind in which direct
involvement of Uzbek terrorists had been established.
Prominent among such attacks were the following:
July 30,
2013: At least 24 persons, including 12 Policeman and
four prisoners, were killed and nine others were injured
when around 150 terrorists, including Uzbeks, stormed
the Central Prison at Dera Ismail Khan in the Khyber Pakhtunkhwa
(KP) Province. More than 243 prisoners were set free.
Police later re-arrested 48 prisoners.
December
15, 2012: Nine persons, including five terrorists and
four civilians, were killed and another 40 were injured,
when a group of terrorists, including Uzbeks, attacked
Bacha Khan International Airport in Peshawar, KP.
April 15,
2012: Around 200 terrorists, including Uzbeks, stormed
a prison in Bannu town in Bannu District of KP and freed
384 inmates, including one on death row for trying to
assassinate former President General (Retd.) Pervez Musharraf.
KP Home Secretary Azam Khan later disclosed that, out
of the 384 prisoners who had fled the jail, 108 had voluntarily
returned while another 35 had been arrested by law enforcement
agencies.
May 22,
2011: 18 SF personnel were killed when four Uzbek terrorists
orchestrated a suicide attack on the PNS Mehran at Shahrah-e-Faisal
in Karachi, the provincial capital of Sindh. Two P3C-Orion
surveillance aircraft of the Pakistan Navy were destroyed,
while a third was damaged in the attack.
Though
the IMU has declared no particular ideological hostility
towards the Pakistan Army or Government, their continuous
association with the TTP and al Qaeda fraternity, and
the losses they have suffered during military operations,
have pitted them against the state.
Even as
Operation Zarb-e-Azb was launched, Pakistani
authorities began to proclaim its 'success'. On June 16,
2014, an unnamed Pakistan intelligence official stated,
“Up to 150 people were killed during the strikes early
Sunday [June 15]. These strikes were carried out based
on confirmed reports about the presence of Uzbek and other
terrorists in the area.” An Inter Services Public Relations
(ISPR) Press Release asserted that terrorists linked to
the attack on Karachi Airport were present in the hideouts
that had been bombed. Abu Abdur Rehman Almani, a key ‘Uzbek
commander’, and alleged mastermind of the Karachi Attack,
was killed in the first day of Operation Zarb-e-Azb.
There has been no independent verification of these claims.
According
to the Foreign Military Studies Office, a research and
analysis centre for the US Army, the IMU was established
by Tahir Yuldashev and Juma Namangani in 1998 in Uzbekistan,
and declared jihad against the Governments of Uzbekistan
and Kyrgyzstan. Their ultimate goal was to overthrow the
secular government of President Islam Karimov and establish
an Islamic caliphate in Uzbekistan. The IMU later established
links with the Afghan Taliban as well as al Qaeda. After
moving to Northern Afghanistan, following Uzbek Army raids
on their bases, Yuldashev took an ‘oath of allegiance’
to Afghan Taliban chief Mullah Omar. Juma Namangani was
killed in Afghanistan in November 19, 2001, while fighting
for Kunduz town. His death left Yuldashev solely in command.
The IMU managed to survive US air strikes after 9/11,
although it was considerably weakened. Tahir Yuldashev
successfully re-organised the group in the tribal areas
of North and South Waziristan over subsequent years.
Having
initially settled in South Waziristan, Yuldashev became
"a star speaker" in local mosques. He adopted
al Qaeda's agenda and turned the IMU into one of the strongest
non-Arab al Qaeda groups. The IMU also established close
ties with the TTP.
In 2007-08,
with the backing of the Pakistan Army, pro-government
TTP leader Mullah Nazir (the then South Waziristan TTP
chief) started fight against IMU militants in South Waziristan
Agency. During the period, at least 250 Uzbeks were killed
and hundreds fled to NWA and Afghanistan.
On August
27, 2009, Tahir Yuldashev was killed in a US drone attack
in South Waziristan. His ‘deputy’ Abu Usman Adil became
new IMU head, but was also killed in a drone attack on
April 29, 2012, in Miranshah, NWA. According to The
Long War Journal, Adil augmented IMU’s profile in
Pakistan and Northern Afghanistan after Yuldashev’s death
and developed strong ties with TTP. After Adil's elimination,
his ‘second-in-command’, Usman Ghazi took control of IMU,
and currently heads the outfit.
After Mullah
Nazir was killed in a US drone attack on January 2, 2013,
Uzbek terrorists once again started regaining strength
in SWA.
Based on
its relations with TTP, IMU now has sanctuaries in the
Mir Ali area of North Waziristan. Both terrorist groups
have joined hands to launch deadly attacks in Pakistan.
Worryingly, media reports indicate, more than 5,000 Uzbek
terrorists from the IMU have taken shelter in the North
and South Waziristan Agencies. Indeed, former Inter-Services
Intelligence (ISI) official, Asad Munir, tweeted on June
25: "Mosakai, a village in Mir Ali area of NWA had
so many Uzbek, that the village was known as Uzbekistan."
As with
past military operations against terrorist formations
in Pakistan, sufficient prior warning was available, and
a mass exodus of foreign, especially Uzbek, terrorists
began before the start of Operation Zarb-e-Azb,
creating the danger of these terrorists simply shifting
to other parts of the country. Balochistan, which shares
a porous border with the region, is under imminent threat.
Naveed Khalid, a senior intelligence official based in
Islamabad, conceded, "Our internal security wing
… revealed that a large number of IMU terrorists have
fled [North Waziristan] and reportedly entered Balochistan
to hide among traders, merchants and labourers in Zhob
and adjacent areas in the Province... We have intercepted
several calls … which disclosed that the IMU has provided
suicide bombers to Tehreek-e-Taliban Pakistan (TTP)-linked
terrorists in Balochistan and they had planned new attacks
on their targets." Another intelligence official,
Ahed Khan, stated, "The TTP and the IMU have long
been collaborating with each other and conducting joint
terrorist operations. … They have carried out several
attacks in Balochistan, targeting security forces, [other]
Muslims and top government officials."
Balochistan
Home and Tribal Affairs Secretary Akbar Hussain Durrani,
however claimed, “Our forces are highly able to combat
foreign terrorists in the region. All law enforcement
agencies have been directed to keep an eye on those areas
[containing a number of Tajiks and Uzbeks] to foil any
expected terrorist activity. We have also deployed additional
troops on the entry points in Balochistan close to ...
Waziristan, and our bordering districts are under strict
surveillance to ensure the checking of each individual
crossing into the province.” "As wth Quetta is a
hub for Uzbeks and Tajiks, and thousands of these foreigners
are living in and around the city," he informed.
There are an estimated 70,000 Uzbeks in Pakistan.
Characteristic
of past counter-terrorist operations in Pakistan, the
present Operation Zarb-e-Azb has displaced large civilian
populations, with Pakistan's Army relying overwhelmingly
on aerial attacks, and using long range weapons, rather
than genuinely engaging on the ground. The operations
also left wide open spaces for terrorists to escape the
area in the guise of Internally Displaced Persons (IDPs),
with a belated 'ground offensive' commencing on June 30,
a full fifteen days after the start of the Operation.
Reports indicate that, by July 4, the number of people
displaced from NWA as a result of Operation Zarb-e-Azb
had crossed 570,000, including 240,000 children. Meanwhile,
a report titled, ‘An Eyewitness Account of Pakistan's
War in North Waziristan’, published on June 26, 2014,
observed, “We tried hard to probe the impact of Pakistani
air strikes. In interviews with dozens of North Waziristan
residents, including those in villages targeted by sorties,
it became apparent that few militants were killed in the
aerial bombing strikes, and most victims were civilians.”
The IMU
is another of Pakistan's favoured terrorist formations,
at one time, integral to Islamabad's Afghan strategy,
as were an array of other foreign terrorist groups. It
has now gone renegade and turned on its one-time masters.
While it may be forced to shift location from time to
time as a result of the Army's reluctant Counter Terrorism
(CT) operations, it has now demonstrated its capacities
to strike with devastating impact virtually across the
country, and has created a complex web of linkages with
other terrorist formations across the AfPak region.
|
J&K:
Trails of Death
Anurag Tripathi
Research Associate, Institute for Conflict Management
On July
3, 2014, Security Forces (SFs) foiled an infiltration
bid across the Line of Control (LoC), killing at least
three terrorists. The incident took place in the Balnoi
area of the Mendhar Sector in Poonch District, along the
LoC in Jammu and Kashmir (J&K).
Earlier,
on July 1, 2014, the Army foiled an infiltration attempt
by militants in the Langiot forward area of the Mendhar
Sector in Poonch District. An estimated four or five terrorists,
who were trying to sneak into Indian Territory, were forced
to retreat. Pakistani Rangers opened fire to facilitate
the infiltration attempt, in another violation of the
Ceasefire Agreement (CFA) of November 2003.
According
to partial data compiled by the South Asia Terrorism
Portal (SATP), the first six months and six days of
the current year have, thus far, witnessed a total of
19 infiltration bids – 18 along the LoC and one along
the International Border (IB). At least five terrorists
have been killed in retaliatory action by the SFs.
The same
period in year 2013 had witnessed a total of 18 infiltration
bids –16 along the LoC and another two at the IB – in
J&K. At least seven militants were killed in retaliatory
action by SFs. The last six months of 2013 recorded another
25 infiltration attempts - 23 along the LoC, and two on
the IB. At least 44 terrorists were killed in these incidents.
Clearly,
while infiltration attempts by heavily armed militants
continue relentlessly, the number of successful infiltrations
has gone down considerably. According to the Union Ministry
of Home Affairs (UMHA), very few militants have been successful
in sneaking into J&K, as most of their attempts have
been foiled by SFs deployed along the border. This, among
a range of other factors, has led to dramatic improvements
in the security situation in J&K, where fatalities
have gone down considerably since 2001, notwithstanding
a couple of spikes, including a marginal escalation in
2013, as against the preceding year. Terrorism-related
fatalities in J&K declined from
a peak of 4,507 in 2001, to just 117 in 2012, to spike
again to 181 in 2013.
The CFA
held fairly well between its signing in November 2003
and the end of the Pervez Musharraf regime in August 2008,
but violations have been continuing regularly
since. There were 92 CFA violations in 2012, and 116 in
2013. 20 CFA violations have been recorded in the first
six months of 2014, with at least two Indian troopers
killed in the current year.
There is
also some evidence that Pakistan's Inter Services Intelligence
(ISI), which oversees the export of Islamist extremist
terrorism into India, has also started a search for new
routes to infiltrate militants into J&K and also to
re-activate some of the older routes that had fallen into
disuse with the progressive decline in terrorism. SATP
data indicates that there are at least 24 major infiltration
routes active since 2003, along the LoC and IB
in J&K. The Poonch District accounts for 10 such routes,
followed by Kupwara with four, Samba with three, Jammu
and Rajouri two each, and Baramulla, Bandipora and Kathua
one each. The major infiltration routes include, Sangiot,
Balnoi, Sona Gali, Pathri Gali, Sabjian area, Bhimber
Gali, Peeli Pama Village, Sobra Gali, Chajal and Yunus
Nallah in Poonch; Nowgam area, Tangdher, Nawahar and Keran
in Kupwara; Ramgarh, Rajpura and Ballarh post in Samba;
Abdulian and Gargrian in Jammu; Tarkundi and Nowshera
in Rajouri; Trikanjan in Baramulla; Baktur in Bandipora;
and Bobiya in Kathua.
Most of
these routes fall along the 776 kilometer long LoC. However,
as a result of the active domination of the LoC by the
Indian Army, routes along the IB are now being activated
for infiltration by the Pakistan Army and ISI. According
to SATP data, though there was no infiltration
related incident along the IB till May 9, 2008, J&K
has recorded 28 such incidents thereafter. Recently, on
March 28, 2014, terrorists infiltrated from the Hiranagar
area, along the IB, and carried out an attack in which
at least six persons, including three terrorists, two
civilians and one soldier were killed in the Kathua District.
In another
such incident, on September 26, 2013, a total of 10 people,
in addition to three Pakistani terrorists from the Pakistani
Punjab province, were killed in twin suicide attacks in
Kathua and Samba District. According reports, the terrorists
crossed the IB to mount the attack. Commenting on the
incident Border Security Force (BSF) Additional Director
General (ADG) R. D. Singh noted, "The fence has not
been cut anywhere. I have seen the terrain. There are
so many nullahs (streams or crevasses) along the International
Border, may be infiltration is from these nullahs.”
Infiltration
attempts along the 190-kilometer long IB are evidently
witnessing a surge and, in response, on December 15, 2013,
the BSF introduced a state-of-the-art Communication and
Surveillance System, backed by bullet-proof bunkers and
high-end infrared cameras, along the IB, to arrest cross-border
infiltration. BSF has identified 19 sensitive and riverine
areas and gaps along the IB on the Jammu frontier for
installation of the high-end infrared cameras and surveillance
systems.
Significantly,
Indian intelligence estimates that 2,500 terrorists, training
in 42
camps in Pakistan occupied Kashmir
(PoK) and Pakistan, are being held in readiness for operationalisation
in J&K, even as border disturbances to cover infiltration
attempts escalate. The Pakistan Army is reported to have
activated the launch pads for infiltrating terrorists
from these camps, to boost the waning strength and morale
of cadres active in J&K. The terrorists are reported
to have gone hi-tech, and are being provided special training
to negotiate the electrified border fence, as well as
to handle modern means of navigation and communication.
Infiltrators sneaking into the Indian side are increasingly
using global positioning systems (GPS) and maps, as evidenced
from the recovery of sophisticated GPS devices. In an
incident, on April 16, 2014, the Indian Army recovered
a cache of arms and ammunition from the Lampathri Forest
in Bandipora District. The recovery included a GPS device,
as well as one AK 47 along with three magazines, three
Chinese pistols, 3 pistol magazines, 28 Under Barrel Grenade
Launchers (UBGL), 8 hand grenades, 4 Chinese hand grenades,
one radio set, and other administrative stores.
Meanwhile,
the Union and State Governments have announced a multi-pronged
approach to contain cross border infiltration which,
inter-alia, includes strengthening of border management
and multi-tiered and multi-modal deployment along the
IB / LoC and near the ever changing infiltration routes;
construction of border fencing; improved technology, weapons
and equipments for SFs; improved intelligence and operational
coordination; synergized intelligence flows to check infiltration;
and pre-emptive action against terrorists within the State.
It is abundantly
clear that Pakistan will continue its policy of supporting
cross border terrorism in J&K, and enveloping regional
trends suggest that a sharp escalation is possible in
future. If the impact is to be contained, and in the absence
of effective instrumentalities to force Pakistan to dismantle
the infrastructure of terrorism on its soil, the strongest
possible measures will be required to prevent infiltration
across the LoC/IB and to track and neutralise terrorists
who manage to cross into Indian territory.
|
Weekly Fatalities: Major
Conflicts in South Asia
June 30- July
6, 2014
|
Civilians
|
Security
Force Personnel
|
Terrorists/Insurgents
|
Total
|
BANGLADESH
|
|
Left-wing
Extremism
|
0
|
0
|
1
|
1
|
INDIA
|
|
Assam
|
0
|
0
|
2
|
2
|
Jammu and
Kashmir
|
0
|
0
|
4
|
4
|
Manipur
|
0
|
0
|
1
|
1
|
Meghalaya
|
0
|
0
|
2
|
2
|
Left-wing
Extremism
|
|
Bihar
|
0
|
1
|
1
|
2
|
Chhattisgarh
|
0
|
0
|
1
|
1
|
Jharkhand
|
0
|
0
|
2
|
2
|
Total (INDIA)
|
0
|
1
|
13
|
14
|
PAKISTAN
|
|
Balochistan
|
4
|
0
|
0
|
4
|
FATA
|
6
|
2
|
30
|
38
|
KP
|
0
|
0
|
1
|
1
|
Sindh
|
11
|
7
|
10
|
28
|
Total (PAKISTAN)
|
|
|
|
|
Provisional
data compiled from English language media sources.
|
BANGLADESH
'Nation
would
never
forget
BNP-JeI's
atrocities
in
the
name
of
resisting
the
January
5
elections',
says
Prime
Minister
Sheikh
Hasina
Wajed:
Prime
Minister
Sheikh
Hasina
Wajed
on
July
3
said
the
nation
would
never
forget
the
Bangladesh
Nationalist
Party
(BNP)-Jamaat-e-Islami
(JeI)'s
atrocities
in
the
name
of
resisting
the
January
5
elections.
She
further
said,
"After
failing
to
resist
the
elections,
BNP
is
now
giving
threat
to
overthrow
the
Government
by
waging
a
movement.
But,
we
don't
want
recurrence
of
their
brutal
acts."
New
Age,
July
5,
2014.
50,000
more
manpower
for
the
Police
Force
to
root
out
terrorism,
says
Prime
Minister
Sheikh
Hasina
Wajed:
Prime
Minister
Sheikh
Hasina
Wajed
on
July
2
said
her
Government
has
taken
a
decision
in
principle
to
recruit
50,000
more
manpower
for
the
Police
Force.
She
said
a
total
of
30,474
new
manpower
have
been
added
to
the
Police
Force
by
creating
new
specialized
units
in
the
organizational
structures
of
the
force
to
maintain
law
and
order.
Creation
for
1,557
new
posts
is
under
process.
Moreover,
a
process
for
constituting
a
special
counter-intelligence
unit
is
going
on
to
contain
terrorism.
New
Nation,
July
3,
2014.
INDIA
98
people
abducted
for
ransom
in
the
past
six
months
in
Meghalaya:
98
people
were
abducted
for
ransom
in
the
past
six
months
till
June
2014,
while
a
total
of
175
people
were
abducted
since
June
2013.
The
number
of
abduction
cases
reported
during
this
period
was
135,
which
means
that
in
many
of
these
cases
more
than
one
person
was
abducted
in
a
single
kidnapping
case.
The
month
of
May
recorded
the
highest
number
of
people
being
kidnapping
at
26
with
as
many
as
15
abduction
cases
reported
from
Garo
Hills.
Nagaland
Post,
July
5,
2014.
Hafiz
Saeed
sets
up
terrorist
camps
in
Pakistan
villages
across
Rajasthan
IB,
according
to
BSF:
Lashkar-e-Toiba
(LeT)
'founder'
and
Jamaat-ud-Dawa
(JuD)
'chief'
Hafiz
Muhammad
Saeed
has
set
up
terrorist
camps
in
Islamkot
and
Mithi
areas
in
Pakistan
opposite
Tanot
and
Kishangarh
areas
of
Jaisalmer
District
in
Rajasthan,
according
to
Border
Security
Force
(BSF).
On
June
29,
he
was
seen
in
Islamkot,
Meerpur
Khas,
Mithi
and
Kherpur
in
Sindh
Province
of
Pakistan
opposite
south
west
Tanot
area
of
Jaisalmer
border.
The
BSF
was
given
directions
to
be
on
alert
and
it
believes
that
Saeed
would
try
to
push
in
terrorists
via
the
Rajasthan
border.
Times
of
India,
July
1,
2014.
New
Garo
militant
outfit
UPRA
surfaces
in
Meghalaya:
Another
Garo
militant
outfit,
United
People's
Revolutionary
Alliance
(UPRA),
has
emerged
in
the
State
and
has
started
issuing
quit
notices
to
'illegal
encroachers'
from
outside
especially
in
the
plain
belt
areas
of
Garo
Hills.
The
new
militant
outfit
which
has
its
headquarters
in
an
undisclosed
location
called
'Chusimra'
claimed
that
Garo
Hills
was
being
overrun
by
'illegal
encroachers'
from
outside
which
was
due
to
the
'special
favours'
being
given
by
Members
of
Legislative
Assembly
(MLAs)
and
politicians
in
their
respective
constituencies
by
enabling
them
to
get
hold
of
job
cards,
ration
cards,
election
IDs
etc.
Shillong
Times,
July
2,
2014.
ISIS
'chief'
confirms
Indians
part
of
insurgent
group:
The
first-ever
audio
message
of
Abu
Bakr
al-Baghdadi,
the
leader
of
the
Islamic
State
of
Iraq
and
Syria
(ISIS),
released
on
July
1
confirmed
suspicions
that
Indians
could
well
be
part
of
his
organisation's
ranks.
While
enumerating
the
nationalities
of
fighters
who
constitute
ISIS,
Al-Baghdadi's
20-second-long
audio
titled
'A
message
to
the
Mujahideen
and
the
Muslim
Ummah
in
the
month
of
Ramadan'
mentions
that
Indians,
among
a
host
of
other
nationalities
including
Chinese,
American,
French,
German,
Australian,
etc.
figure
in
the
ISIS
squad.
Hindustan
Times,
July
3,
2014.
Naxals
using
children
as
human
shields
a
worry,
says
UN
report:
The
UN
has
expressed
concern
over
the
killing
and
maiming
of
children
who
continue
to
be
recruited
and
used
as
human
shields
by
Naxals
[Left-Wing
Extremists
(LWEs)]
in
India
and
over
the
threat
of
sexual
violence
against
girls
within
Naxal
ranks.
The
Annual
Report
of
the
UN
Secretary-General
on
Children
and
Armed
Conflict,
released
on
July
1,
said
the
recruitment
and
use
of
children,
as
young
as
six-years-old,
by
Naxals,
continued
in
2013.
While
no
disaggregated
data
on
the
number
of
children
associated
with
armed
groups
in
India
was
available
with
the
UN,
it
said
independent
estimates
indicate
at
least
2,500
children
are
associated
with
armed
groups
in
Naxal-affected
areas.
Outlook,
July
3,
2014.
Sri
Lanka
and
Maldives
new
places
of
FICN
origin,
states
IB
report:
According
to
Intelligence
Bureau
(IB)
reports,
Sri
Lanka
and
Maldives
have
been
named
as
Fake
Indian
Currency
Note's
(FICN's)
two
new
places
of
origin,
and
Chennai
in
Tamil
Nadu
as
the
point
of
arrival.
An
IB
official
stated,
"Until
now,
FICN
was
known
to
come
from
Bangladesh
and
Nepal.
The
addition
of
two
more
neighbours
to
this
list
is
rather
worrying".
Once
the
notes
are
offloaded
at
Chennai,
they
make
their
way
to
other
states.
The
mafia
operate
in
a
syndicated
manner,
using
local
racketeers
to
put
the
currency
into
circulation
in
Karnataka,
Andhra
Pradesh,
Kerala
and
Maharashtra,
besides
Tamil
Nadu.
Pune
Mirror,
July
2,
2014.
Union
Government
starts
informal
talks
with
insurgents
in
northeast:
The
Union
Government
started
informal
talks
with
insurgent
groups
in
the
northeast
to
find
a
lasting
solution
to
the
militancy
in
the
region.
Union
Minister
of
State
for
Home
Affairs
Kiren
Rijiju
stated,
"I
have
full
charge
of
the
NE
division
and
have
been
informally
meeting
representatives
of
some
of
these
outfits.
I
have
conveyed
to
them:
'See,
here
is
your
man
in
Delhi,
and
this
is
your
best
chance
to
come
on
board
and
shun
violence'.
Times
of
India,
June
30,
2014.
NEPAL
First
round
of
deliberation
concludes:
The
first
round
of
deliberations
in
the
full
House
of
Constituent
Assembly
(CA)
in
Kathmandu
completed
on
June
30.
The
top
leaders
having
the
responsibility
of
settling
the
issues
proposed
in
a
new
Constitution
that
are
still
in
contention,
said
the
Constitution
drafting
process
has
entered
a
difficult
phase,
and
only
a
proactive
role
from
the
top
leaders
of
major
political
parties
can
take
the
process
ahead.
During
one
and
a
half
months
of
deliberations
on
disputed
issues,
the
CA
approached
each
subject
on
the
basis
of
the
progress
made
by
the
previous
CA.
eKantipur,
July
2,
2014.
PAKISTAN
40
percent
area
in
Miranshah
cleared
from
militants,
claims
military:
About
40
percent
area
of
Miranshah,
the
main
town
of
the
North
Waziristan
Agency
(NWA)
in
Federally
Administered
Tribal
Areas
(FATA),
has
been
cleared
from
terrorists
during
the
ongoing
Operation
Zarb-e-Azb.
A
military
official
told
that
40
percent
area
had
been
cleared
in
Miranshah.
However,
he
did
not
give
any
deadline
for
the
completion
of
the
ground
operation
in
the
area.
The
Army
is
facing
some
firing
incidents,
rocket
attacks
and
explosives,
but
so
far
it
has
not
faced
any
major
resistance
during
the
operation.
The
News,
July
4,
2014.
Government
will
enforce
its
writ
in
FATA,
says
Prime
Minister
Nawaz
Sharif:
Assigning
political
ownership
to
the
ongoing
military
Operation
Zarb-e-Azb
in
the
North
Waziristan
Agency
(NWA),
Prime
Minister
Nawaz
Sharif
on
July
1
stated
that
Pakistan
will
enforce
its
writ
in
the
tribal
areas.
He
stated
that
the
decision
pertaining
to
the
Operation
was
taken
after
careful
deliberations
and
weighing
all
options.
He
further
said
that
all
the
foreign
fighters
and
local
terrorists
would
be
wiped
out
without
any
exception
and
no
sanctuary
would
be
spared
by
the
Armed
Forces.
The
News,
July
2,
2014.
National
Assembly
empowers
Police
to
shoot
down
terror
suspects
under
the
Protection
of
Pakistan
Bill
2014:
The
National
Assembly
(NA)
on
July
2
passed
the
Protection
of
Pakistan
Bill
2014,
which
allows
the
Police
to
shoot
down
a
suspect,
arrest
them
without
warrant
or
keep
them
in
custody
for
60
days.
The
Bill
was
earlier
passed
by
the
Senate
on
June
30.
The
majority
approved
it
in
the
NA.
However,
the
Jamaat-e-Islami
(JI)
opposed
the
legislation
while
the
Pakistan
Tehreek-e-Insaf
(PTI)
abstained
from
voting.
The
Bill
would
become
an
Act
of
Parliament
once
it
is
signed
by
the
President.
It
will
remain
in
force
for
two
years
after
it
comes
into
force.
The
News,
July
4,
2014.
Either
extradite
or
eliminate
TTP
'chief'
Mullah
Fazlullah,
Pakistan
asks
Afghanistan:
Pakistan
on
July
1
asked
the
Afghanistan
Government
to
either
eliminate
Pakistan
Tehreek-e-Taliban
(TTP)
'chief'
Mullah
Fazlullah
or
extradite
him
to
Pakistan.
Inter-Services
Public
Relations
(ISPR)
Director
General
(DG)
Major
General
Asim
Bajwa
said
that
the
Army
will
eliminate
Fazlullah
whenever
he
comes
to
Pakistan.
Bajwa
urged
Afghanistan
to
do
more
to
track
down
Fazlullah,
who
took
over
the
TTP
leadership
in
2013
after
previous
'chief'
Hakimullah
Mehsud
was
killed
by
a
US
drone.
Daily
Times,
July
2,
2014.
Extortionists
and
target
killers
operating
freely
in
Khyber
Pakhtunkhwa,
according
to
report:
The
bombing
of
houses,
rocket
attacks,
extortion
calls
and
the
target
killings
are
taking
place
all
over
the
Khyber
Pakhtunkhwa,
particularly
in
the
provincial
capital
of
Peshawar
in
the
absence
of
proactive
policing.
Peshawar
has
been
under
attack
from
extortionists,
target
killers
and
kidnappers
for
the
last
many
months.
Robbers
and
street
criminals
are
taking
advantage
of
the
situation
as
the
Police
force
seems
to
be
struggling
hard
against
extortionists
and
militants,
mostly
carrying
out
attacks
from
the
tribal
areas
or
the
adjacent
settled
towns.
The
News,
July
2,
2014.
SRI
LANKA
Sri
Lankan
Government
reiterates
its
stance
on
UN
investigation:
The
Sri
Lankan
Government
on
July
3
reiterated
its
stance
on
the
United
Nations
(UN)
investigation
that
it
is
not
ready
to
accept
an
investigation
mandated
by
the
UN
Human
Rights
Council
(UNHRC).
Government
spokesman
and
Media
Minister,
Keheliya
Rambukwella
said
Sri
Lanka
is
ready
to
hold
discussions
at
acceptable
conditions
but
the
Government
which
has
been
ascended
to
power
by
the
people
is
not
ready
to
be
made
equal
with
a
terrorist
organization.
The
Government
has
refused
to
cooperate
with
the
UNHRC
mandated
international
investigation
despite
the
calls
from
the
UN,
US,
United
Kingdom
and
European
Union
to
do
so.
Colombo
Page,
July
4,
2014.
Investigations
show
that
jihadist
groups
targeting
India
were
using
Sri
Lanka
as
a
transit
point,
says
report:
Sri
Lanka
banned
visas
on
arrival
for
Pakistanis
after
investigations
showed
that
jihadist
groups
targeting
India
were
using
Sri
Lanka
as
a
transit
point.
A
bomb
blast
in
a
train
stationed
at
Chennai
Railway
Station
train
on
May
1
revealed
new
plots
against
India
by
Pakistan-based
jihadist
groups
using
Sri
Lanka
and
Maldives
as
transit
points.
Meanwhile,
Sri
Lankan
Defence
Secretary
Gotabhaya
Rajapaksa
on
July
1
ruled
out
any
possibility
that
its
soil
could
be
used
for
terror
attacks
against
India,
after
the
recent
discovery
of
an
alleged
terrorist
plot
to
attack
foreign
missions
in
south
India.
He
said,
"The
Indian
intelligence
agencies
have
told
me
that
there
is
a
possibility
of
Islamic
terrorism
being
based
in
Sri
Lanka
to
act
against
India.
However,
we
investigated
these
concerns
and
found
that
there
is
no
merit
in
these
concerns
or
claims.".
Times
of
India,
June
30,
2014;
Network
24,
July
2,
2014.
The South
Asia Intelligence Review (SAIR) is a weekly service that
brings you regular data, assessments and news briefs on
terrorism, insurgencies and sub-conventional warfare, on
counter-terrorism responses and policies, as well as on
related economic, political, and social issues, in the South
Asian region.
SAIR is a project
of the Institute
for Conflict Management
and the
South
Asia Terrorism Portal.
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