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SOUTH ASIA INTELLIGENCE REVIEW
Weekly Assessments & Briefings
Volume 14, No. 30, January 25, 2016

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


ASSESSMENT

PAKISTAN
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Khyber Pakhtunkhwa: Terror Untamed
Tushar Ranjan Mohanty
Research Associate, Institute for Conflict Management

Shocking memories of the gruesome attack on December 16, 2014, at the Army Public School (APS) Peshawar were revived when terrorists stormed the Bacha Khan University in the Charsadda District of Khyber Pakhtunkhwa (KP) on January 20, 2016, killing at least 21 persons and causing injuries to another 35. The victims included 17 students, two gardeners, a caretaker and a professor. The attack ended with all the four attackers shot dead after a three hour operation. Deputy Inspector General of Police (DIG), Mardan Range, Mohammad Saeed Wazir, who led the operation, declared, “Our cops fought bravely to shoot dead all the four attackers one by one. They were wearing suicide jackets but none of them could succeed in blowing himself up.” The mastermind of the APS Peshawar attack, Khalifa Umar Mansoor aka Aurangzeb, of the Tehreek-e-Taliban Pakistan (TTP)’s Geedar faction claimed the attack through a post on his Facebook page. However, the ‘central spokesperson’ of the TTP, Muhammad Khorasani, denied any involvement stating, “The TTP and its amir Maulana Fazalullah have nothing to do with the attack.” The TTP has three prominent factions – Jamaat-ul-Ahrar (JuA), the Geedar faction and the Mehsud faction (also known as Sajna faction). The parent TTP is led by Mullah Fazlullah.  

A day earlier, on January 19, 2016, a TTP suicide bomber targeted the tribal Khasadar (locally raised security formations selected from each tribe) force at the Karkhano checkpost, the entry-point to Peshawar from the Khyber Agency in the Federally Administered Tribal Areas (FATA), and killed 12 persons, including a journalist, Mehboob Shah Afridi, while 39 others sustained injuries. Afridi, president of the Tribal Union of Journalists, Khyber Agency chapter, was talking to the Line Officer Nawab Shah at the time of the attack.

In the latest of a series of attacks on Security Force (SF) personnel, unidentified terrorists shot dead two personnel of the Police Elite Force Unit in the Rasheed Ghari area of Peshawar on January 22. Superintendent of Police (SP) Imtiaz disclosed that the Policemen were trained in the use of security scanners. The motorcycle-riding assailants escaped from the site of the attack.

According to the South Asia Terrorism Portal (SATP) database, KP has recorded at least 27 terrorism-related fatalities, including 21 civilians, four terrorists and two SF personnel, in the first 22 days of the current year, 2016. During the same period of the preceding year the Province had recorded 18 such fatalities, including eight civilians, eight terrorists and two SF personnel, indicating a definite increase in the level of terrorist violence.  

While the trend in 2016 is nascent, it conforms to the trajectory established over the preceding six months, as compared to the first six months of 2015. While total fatalities stood at 119 (63 civilians, 23 SF personnel, 33 terrorists) between January and June 2015, they increased to 149 (54 civilians, 53 SF personnel, 42 terrorists) between July and December 2015. Significantly, the two major incidents of January 2016 followed the December 29, 2015, attack in which a suicide bomber had blown himself up at the gate of National Database and Registration Authority (NADRA) office located on the Link Road in Mardan town, killing 26 people and injuring 50. The blast took place at a time when the office was crowded, with people lining up to apply for Computerised National Identity Cards (CNICs). The JuA, a TTP splinter, claimed responsibility for the attack. 

It will clearly be a major challenge in 2016 to sustain the declining trend of fatalities recorded in the Province since 2014 on an year on year basis. Terrorism-related fatalities recorded a sharp decline from 617 fatalities (406 civilians, 108 SF personnel and 103 terrorists) in 2014, to 268 fatalities, including 117 civilians, 76 SF personnel and 75 terrorists, in 2015. This was the lowest number of such fatalities recorded in the Province since the formation of TTP in 2007. At its peak in 2009, terrorism in the Province had accounted for 5,497 fatalities (1,229 civilians, 471 SF personnel, 3,797 terrorists).

Other parameters of violence also saw a drop. The Province recorded six suicide attacks resulting in 63 fatalities and 113 injured through 2015, as against nine such attacks recorded in 2014, resulting in 196 fatalities and 260 injured. KP also saw 19 major attacks (each resulting in three or more fatalities) causing 133 deaths in 2015, as against 49 major attacks accounting for 436 deaths in 2014. The number of explosions and resulting fatalities stood at 40 and 77 respectively through 2015, as against 109 and 354, respectively, in 2014. Violent incidents in 2015 were reported from 21 of the 26 Districts in the Province. In 2014, violent incidents were reported from 22 Districts. The number of sectarian attacks decreased from nine in 2014 to five in 2015, though the resultant fatalities increased to 28 in 2015 from 18 in 2014. As in 2014, Peshawar, the provincial capital, remained the worst affected District through 2015, recording 74 terrorism-related incidents, in which 99 people were killed and another 91 were injured.

Nevertheless, the attack on January 20, 2016, clearly demonstrates that the terrorists retain capacities to execute significant attacks at will. Moreover, through 2015, the number of terrorists neutralized in the Province stood at 75, the lowest since 2006, when it was 27. However, an assessment on the implementation of the National Action Plan (NAP), undertaken in the wake of the Peshawar APS attack, which was released on November 11, 2015, stated that SFs in the Province have made over 10,000 arrests, 22,000 detentions and 508 search and strike operations from December 17, 2014 to October 31, 2015. However, the rise in extortion activities and the recent incidents of killing in the Province raise doubts over the quality and impact of such arrests and detentions.

In the interim, the Government has sought repeatedly to buy peace with the terrorists, and SF operations have slowed down in the Province. Expectedly, the terrorists are using this phase of relative peace to regroup and regain their strength, with rampant extortion to shore up their war chest. The worrisome growth of extortion activities in the Province in general and in provincial capital Peshawar in particular is a matter of concern. Peshawar has emerged as a second extortion capital, after Karachi, in recent times. According to Peshawar Police data released on November 14, 2015, as many as 58 cases of extortion had been reported under separate Police Stations falling under three Police Circles over the preceding 10 months. Of these, 38 were reported in the Peshawar Cantonment Circle; 14 in Peshawar City Circle; and six in the Peshawar Rural Circle. An unnamed Police official, on the condition of anonymity, is reported to have stated that the actual incidence would likely be much higher, because most victims don’t contact the Police out of fear. Data collected from the Central Police Office, Peshawar, puts the annual average of extortion cases registered during years 2011, 2012, and 2013, at 30 per year. 13 cases of extortion were registered in 2011; 21 in 2012; 56 in 2013. The figure rose abruptly to 285 cases in the first three quarters of 2014.

In another worrying development, the Islamic State of Iraq and Levant [ISIL, later, the Islamic State (IS) or Daesh] appears to be making inroads in the already volatile region. Pamphlets and hate materials were recovered and suspected persons linked with the outfit were arrested through 2015. On May 15, 2015, Police arrested two suspects during a raid for allegedly circulating Daesh literature in the Nauthia area of Peshawar. Similarly, on July 2, 2015, Police arrested three suspected terrorists said to be inspired by the Islamic State from the Shamshadu Bazaar area of Peshawar. Inspector General of Police (IGP), KP, Nasir Khan Durrani conceded, "IS's presence in Pakistan is not a new phenomenon, members who belonged to the outlawed TTP have switched sides in some cases. It is wrong to say IS does not have a presence in KP."

Meanwhile, Islamabad has demonstrated extraordinary ambivalence towards ending the menace of terrorism. According to a January 23, 2016, report, the Federal Government has failed to respond to the KP Government’s request for a PKR 66.280 billion special security package for the Province, made on March 24, 2015. Concerned officials told the media, on January 22, 2016, that the KP Government had written again to the Federal Finance Ministry on December 31, 2015, reminding it of the Province’s financial needs for security. No response had been received.

Worse, instead of working for the de-weaponisation of society, the Government appears to be promoting the menace of a gun culture. On January 14, 2015, in a bizarre response to the Peshawar APS attack, the KP Government granted male teachers permission to carry licensed weapons in school. Media reports on April 19, 2015, quoting the statistical documents submitted by the Provincial Home and Tribal Affairs Department to the Provincial Assembly, disclosed that licenses for around 161,441 prohibited bore weapons had been issued since May 2013. According to documents submitted, Bannu District topped the list with around 66,000 licences issued. When contacted, Bannu Deputy Commissioner Mohammad Ayaz Khan stated, on April 19, 2015, that the issuance of 66,000 licences in the District during the preceding two years was astonishing: “I doubt this figure. Let me check it because I don’t believe that licences would have been issued in such a large number.”

Against the Government’s lackadaisical approach, the terrorists continue to issue new threats. Following the December 29, 2015, attack targeting NADRA, JuA ‘spokesman’, Ehsanullah Ehsan, had warned, “NADRA is an integral part of the State and any such targets that directly or indirectly work for the State will be our target.” Most recently, on January 22, 2016, releasing a video showing four attackers involved in January 20, 2016, University attack, Umar Mansoor warned, "Now we will not kill the soldier in his cantonment, the lawyer in the court or the politician in Parliament but in the places where they are prepared, the schools, the universities, the colleges that lay their foundation. With the mercy of god, our attacks on all universities and schools will continue."

The Bacha Khan University attack has once again underscored Pakistan’s enormous vulnerabilities, particularly to soft target attacks, as well as the capacity and intent of terrorist formations to inflict harm on the country’s social and political fabric. The state is yet to demonstrate the will and the capacity to wipe out terrorism, and state agencies remain deeply embroiled with a range of terrorist factions operating across international borders. Widespread weaponisation of non-state actors and active collusion of state agencies have created an environment in which terrorism – including domestic groups that have gone rogue and target the state itself – flourishes. The transient rise and fall of trends in domestic terrorist violence are yet to alter the fundamental and perverse realities of Pakistan.

INDIA
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Assam: Volatile Peace
Nijeesh N.
Research Assistant, Institute for Conflict Management

As Assam recorded the lowest insurgency-related fatalities in 2015, since 1992, hopes of a lasting peace were regenerated. Nevertheless, enduring challenges have scuttled such hopes in the past, and many of these remain unaddressed.  Significantly, the trend of overall fatalities has remained erratic in the State, recording a sustained decline between 2010 and 2012 (158 in 2010; 94 in 2011 and 91 in 2012); escalated in 2013 to 101; and took Assam to the status of the worst-affected State in India, with 305 fatalities in 2014.

According to the South Asia Terrorism Portal (SATP) insurgency-related violence accounted for a total of 59 deaths, including 48 militants, 10 civilians and one Security Force (SF) trooper through 2015. In comparison, 2014 had recorded 305 killings, including 184 civilians, 116 militants and five SF personnel. Prior to this, the lowest insurgency-related fatalities in the State stood at 91 (55 militants, 32 civilians, four SF personnel) in 2012. At the peak of insurgency, Assam had recorded 783 fatalities (531 civilians, 180 militants, 72 SF personnel) in 1998.

In 2016, there have been just two fatalities – one civilian and a militant – in the State, till date. A cadre of the National Santhal Liberation Army (NSLA), an Adivasi (aboriginal tribal people) militant group, identified as Ram Kishku aka Ram Hembrom, was killed in an encounter with Assam Police near Grahampur under Srirampur Police outpost in the Gossaigaon Subdivision of Kokrajhar District on January 13, 2016. Earlier on January 1, 2016, in a clash that took place inside the Sudempuri Camp in Kokrajhar District, where surrendered National Democratic Front of Bodoland (NDFB) cadres have been kept, one Darendra Basumatary was killed and another militant, Aninda, was injured, when the accused, Rakesh Brahma, opened fire at them after a fight. Police subsequently arrested Rakesh Brahma along with his weapon. The trio had surrendered in 2006.

Crucially, the number of civilians killed through 2015 (at 10) was the lowest since 1992. Earlier, the lowest figure in this category was 32 in 2012. The civilian population in the State thus appears to be more secure than it has been for nearly a quarter of a century – the single most significant achievement of the year.

Similarly, with just one SF trooper killed in 2015, this was also the lowest SF fatality since 1992. In 2014, SF fatalities stood at five; the highest number of SF fatalities were recorded way back in 1996, when 87 personnel had been killed fighting the insurgents.

48 militants were killed through 2015, as against 116 through 2014. The fall in this category coincided with overall decline in total fatalities, and can mainly be ascribed to the fact the SF operations have forced the militants to scale down their activities in the State, even as the progressive splintering of the principal militant formations has undermined their operational capacities. Significantly, 2015 saw the best SF/militant kill ratio recorded in the State, at 1:48. At the peak of insurgency, in 1996, the ratio stood at 1:0.7.  

Most militant formations operating in Assam continued to suffer losses in 2015. Of the 48 militants killed, the I.K. Songbijit faction of the NDFB (NDFB-IKS) lost the largest number in clashes with SFs, 23; followed by Karbi People's Liberation Tigers (KPLT), 11; the Action faction of Dima Halim Daogah (DHD-A), two; Jabinkhe Naiso Boshom (JNB), two; the Original faction of the United Democratic Liberation Front (UDLF-O), two. One cadre each of the Independent faction of the United Liberation Front of Asom (ULFA-I), Garo National Liberation Army (GNLA), Kamtapur Liberation Organization (KLO), Dima Hasao National Army (DHNA) and United Peoples Liberation Front (UPLF) were also killed. Group affiliation of the remaining three militants killed was not specified. The prominent militants killed included, DHD-A ‘chairman and commander-in-chief’, Sibu Kemprai and a founding member of the group, Nigam Phonglo. Of 10 civilian killings, ULFA-I was responsible for five and NDFB-IKS for two. The remaining three killings in this category remained unattributed. NDFB-IKS was responsible for the lone SF killing in 2015.

SFs arrested 602 militants of different outfits during 2015. These included 234 belonging to NDFB-IKS; followed by KPLT, 58; ULFA-I, 37; NSLA, 22; Jama'atul Mujahideen Bangladesh (JMB), 20; Muslim Tiger Force of Assam (MTFA), 19; CPI-Maoist, 19; GNLA, 18; United People's Liberation Army (UPLA), 11; and Muslim United Liberation Tigers of Assam (MULTA), 10. 405 militants had been arrested through 2014.  

On August 14, 2015, SFs arrested 12 KPLT militants, including its self-styled ‘chairman' Sarmung Timung, from the forested area of East Karbi Anglong in Karbi Anglong District. After the operation, Defence Public Relations Officer (PRO), Lieutenant Colonel Suneet Newton stated, “This operation has practically put an end to KPLT in East Karbi Anglong."

Similarly, following the killing of the NSLA militant in the January 13, 2016, encounter in Kokrajhar District, Bodoland Territorial Council (BTC) Inspector General of Police (IGP), L.R. Bishnoi asserted that, with the elimination of NSLA militant Ram Hembrom, the area would be peaceful to a great extent, as most disruptive activities were carried out under his command. He said the total strength of the NSLA was around 40, of which 22 were arrested in 2015, four were killed in different encounters and the remaining cadres were involved in criminal activities.

Notably, SFs had launched ‘Operation All Out’ to flush out militants after the NDFB-IKS militants massacred over 69 Adivasis on December 23, 2014. The operation, in which Indian Air Force, Army, Paramilitary Forces and State Police work together, is still on.

Meanwhile, other parameters of violence, including major incidents, Districts affected by violence, killing of non-locals, etc., recorded sharp declines as well. 

As against 18 major incidents (each involving three or more fatalities) resulting in 181 deaths recorded in 2014, 2015 saw just two such incidents, accounting for six deaths. Further, the number of Districts from where the fatalities were reported stood at 13 in 2015 as compared to 19 in 2014, out of a total of 32 Districts in the State (including five new Districts created in 2015; Biswanath Chariali, Hojai, West Karbi Anglong, Charaideu and South Salmara-Mankachar). The Districts from where killings were reported in 2015 were Karbi Anglong (12), Kokrajhar (12), Dima Hasao (9), Chirang (6), Sonitpur (5), Dhubri (2), Karimganj (2), Sivasagar (2), Tinsukia (2), Udalguri (2), Darrang (1), Goalpara (1), and Lakhimpur (1). In 2015, five non-locals were killed as against eight such deaths recorded in 2014. However, the number of attacks on non-locals increased from three in 2014 to four in 2015. ULFA-I was responsible for all the four attacks against non-locals in 2015. No such attacks had been reported through 2012 and 2013.  Also, the number of explosions decreased from 20 in 2014 to just six in 2015, and resultant fatalities reduced from eight in 2014 to two in 2015.

Reported incidents of abduction and extortion by militants also fell during the year 2015. According to Assam Police records, there were 5,192 cases of abductions registered in the State in 2015 (data till October); as against 5,378 cases in 2014. The data further shows that there were 1,157 extortion-related cases registered in 2015 (data till October); as against 1,357 in 2014. Though most of the abductions were carried out by criminals, the Home Department records did not rule out the role of militant outfits of the region in some of the incidents.

The process of talks with some militants group also continued through 2015. In a major development, on November 11, 2015, Bangladesh handed over the ‘general secretary’ of the undivided ULFA, Golap Baruah aka Anup Chetia, and two of his prison mates who were arrested along with him in Bangladesh in 1997, to Indian Security Agencies. Soon thereafter, Chetia was brought to India, and was placed under arrest in connection with various cases of extortion, abduction, murder and attempt to murder. He was released on bail on December 24, 2015, and has made a commitment to participate in ongoing talks between ULFA-I and the Government. Seven leaders of the Pro-Talks faction of the United Liberation Front of Asom (ULFA-PTF), including Anup Chetia and ‘chairman’ Arabinda Rajkhowa, met interlocutor P.C. Haldar at the Border Security Force (BSF) camp in Patgaon in Guwahati on January 21, 2016, and discussed issues concerning the ongoing talks with the Centre. After the meeting, Rajkhowa said that Chetia's inclusion would give a fresh impetus to the talks and a solution would soon be worked out with the Government.

13 militant groups are currently under Suspension of Operations (SoO) agreements with the Government, and another four groups – Bodo Liberation Tigers (BLT), United People's Democratic Solidarity (UPDS), Dilip Nunisa faction of Dima Halim Daogah (DHD-N) and Jewel Garlosa faction of DHD (DHD-J) – have signed Memorandum of Settlement (MoS) agreements with the Government. However, no new SoOs or MoSs were signed in 2015.

Despite these broad gains, the State continues to face challenges from various insurgent groups. Then Director General of Police (DGP) Khagen Sarma in his farewell speech on November 30, 2015, observed,
Militancy might be on the decline in the State but it was far from over. Though agreements have been signed with four militant groups and 13 others are in talks with the Government, some breakaway factions of these groups, which are yet to join the peace process, remain a worry for the security forces…

Again, on December 26, 2015, he had noted “Assam has religious fundamentalists and that has generated a lot of interest in the ISIS. Hits in the Internet photos of ISIS are very high in Assam.”

Raising similar concerns, the new DGP of Assam, Mukesh Sahay, stated on November 30, 2015,
We cannot lower our guards or sit back and relax. Militancy can rise from the ashes and we have to come up to meet the challenges. Militancy may have declined but it has the potential to reignite. We have to be constantly on alert and formulate our response to any situation.

Echoing these views, Assam Chief Minister Tarun Gogoi observed, on November 6, 2015, "Islamic outfits, Maoists and all other insurgent organizations are trying to create trouble in the State, but we are vigilant, containing insurgency is the single-most (important) achievement of my three terms in office but there are several forces trying to destabilise the State and its development."

Indeed, State Parliamentary Affairs Minister Rockybul Hussain on December 8, 2015, had informed the State Assembly, that eight militant groups – ULFA-I, NDFB-IKS, KPLT, KLO, CPI-Maoist, MULTA, JMB and Harkat-ul-Mujahideen (HuM) – were presently active in Assam. Among these, NDFB-IKS and ULFA-I dominated insurgent activities in the State in 2015.

Reports also indicate that ULFA-I, NDFB-IKS, KLO and the Khaplang faction of the National Socialist Council of Nagaland (NSCN-K) had jointly formed the United National Liberation Front of Western South East Asia (UNLFWSEA), a common front of militant groups in India’s Northeast region. Different ethnic armed groups (EAGs) continued with efforts to engage in disruptive activities and had formed this united platform – UNLFWSEA; they were also developing a nexus with transnational jihadi groups and Maoists, increasing the threat potential in the State.

The entrenched dangers of Islamist terrorism continued to haunt the State through 2015. According to a May 21, 2015, report, a JMB militant, Lal Mohammed aka Ibrahim, who was arrested on April 18, 2015, by Jharkhand Police, revealed to his interrogators that his group’s sabotage plans in Assam were intended to counter Bodo aggression. According to a report dated, September 20, 2015, the Guwahati Police also warned that some Islamic terror groups had started recruiting Muslim youth in the Bodoland Districts of Chirang, Kokrajhar and Baksa, with the intention of triggering fresh violence during the run-up to the 2016 State Assembly elections. Notably, two modules of JMB detected in the State were in the Barpeta and Nalbari Districts, situated close to the Bodoland Territorial Area Districts (BTAD). The JMB modules were exposed in the countrywide crackdown in the aftermath of the October 2, 2014 Burdwan blasts.

Worryingly, on September 16, 2015, Police and Central Reserve Police Force (CRPF) neutralized a jihadi training camp and arrested three suspected extremists, identified as Minarul Islam, Bodiul Zamal Sekh, and Zohorul Haque from the Daukhanagar area under the Dhaligaon Police Station of Chirang District. According to the Police, at least nine persons from Barpeta, Bongaigaon, Baksa, Nalbari and Kokrajhar were undergoing training at the residence of a man identified as Iman Ali. Subsequently, on September 18, 2015, Police recovered eight handmade AK Rifles and two handmade INSAS Rifles from the backyard of the house of another person, Mohammad Sayed Mia, allegedly associated with the training camp. Though exact information about the group behind the training camp is yet to come to light, unconfirmed sources from the Police disclosed that the Islamic extremist MULTA was the brain behind the training camp. Intelligence Bureau (IB) reports also suggest that JMB uses MULTA as the umbrella organization of various jihadi elements in Assam to carry out organizational activities, including collecting money, and imparting basic motivation and training to youth who are willing to join.

Further, according to an October, 8, 2015, report, the Maoists continue to struggle to gain a  foothold in the Northeast and they are tapping a ‘wide’ range of allies’, including rhino poachers in Kaziranga and the major militant groups operating in the region, including the Isak-Muivah faction of NSCN (NSCN-IM). Another report published on October 20, 2015, claimed that the Maoists were making fresh recruitments, particularly targeting youth aged 12 years and above, as they were running short of manpower in Assam. The seven Upper Assam Districts of Dhemaji, Jorhat, Lakhimpur, Dibrugarh, Tinsukia, Sivasagar and Golaghat, with Districts bordering the neighbouring Hill States, are believed to be vulnerable to Maoist mobilization, while the belt along the Brahmaputra River is also thought to be susceptible. Though arms’ training of recruits is largely located outside Assam, political mobilization imparted to them in Upper Assam itself.

While the Central Forces with the help of the State Police have succeeded in minimizing the threat from insurgency, neutralizing the remaining challenges to establish a lasting peace will require a significant strengthening of the State Police Forces, as well as concerted efforts on the developmental and administration fronts. The Assam Government has introduced the Centre’s ‘SMART [Strict and Sensitive, Modern and Mobile, Alert and Accountable, Reliable and Responsive, Techno savvy and Trained] Police’ initiative, to make the Police more responsive, tech savvy, physically fit, alert with a modern outlook and scientific temper. However, manpower in the Police Force continues to remain low. According to Assam Police records, 12,805 posts out of the 64,988 sanctioned posts in the Police Department are vacant. This included 26 posts of Indian Police Service (IPS) out of total 135 sanctioned. The Assam Police Department issued an official notification for recruitment to 2,564 posts in various categories in December 2015.

Though levels of violence have come down considerably, extremist undercurrents and the nexus between ethnic militants, Islamic jihadists and Maoists create enduring vulnerabilities. The presence of pan-Islamist terrorist networks, combined with the porous border with Bangladesh, and Maoist ambitions in the region, add fuel to ongoing ethnic insurgencies in the region. Former DGP Khagen Sarma noted that "ethnic and other militants come and immediately unleash their violence. Religious fundamentalists prepare and take a long time to commit crime." It is within this context of both immediate and long term threats that the State must fashion its policies and align its capacities of response.


NEWS BRIEFS

Weekly Fatalities: Major Conflicts in South Asia
January 18-24, 2016

 

Civilians

Security Force Personnel

Terrorists/Insurgents

Total

INDIA

 

Jammu and Kashmir

0
0
1
1

Meghalaya

0
0
1
1

Punjab

0
0
1
1

West Bengal

0
0
2
2

Left-Wing Extremism

 

Bihar

1
0
0
1

Chhattisgarh

0
0
3
3

Odisha

0
0
2
2

Total (INDIA)

1
0
10
11

PAKISTAN

 

Balochistan

0
7
11
18

FATA

12
4
27
43

KP

21
2
4
27

Punjab

0
0
3
3

Sindh

0
0
5
5

Total (PAKISTAN)

33
13
50
96
Provisional data compiled from English language media sources.


BANGLADESH

Five-member committee formed to gather information about 195 Pakistani POWs: International Crimes Tribunal (ICT) on January 18 formed a five-member informal committee to gather information about the 195 Pakistani prisoners of war (POWs). The five-member committee will collect information, books and documents on the atrocities committed by the Pakistani soldiers during the Liberation War of Bangladesh in 1971. Dhaka Tribune, January 21, 2016.


INDIA

13 persons arrested during search /raids conducted at 12 locations in six cities: At least 13 persons were arrested by the National Investigation Agency (NIA) during search/raids conducted at 12 locations in six cities viz. Bangalore, Tumkur, Mangalore, Hyderabad, Mumbai and Lucknow with the support of local police forces. ATS, Maharashtra also conducted raids/ reaches at two other locations. Another person was detained. NIA, January 22-23, 2016.

IS terror designs in India 'revealed', says report: Indians based out of Syria have formed a module of the deadly terror group Islamic State (IS) to carry out attacks back home, sources in intelligence agencies have said. Sources told that these terrorists have been recruiting in India since 2014 and that at least 60 could be active in the country now. This is a big jump from a previous estimate of 23 active IS local operatives. IBN Live, January 23, 2016.

37 persons on Maoist hit list in Maharashtra: The Communist Party of India-Maoist (CPI-Maoist) in Maharashtra has issued a 'hit list' of 37 persons who they vow to eliminate in 2016. The Maoists have roped in units of 'Company-10', trained to kill with precision, from Chhattisgarh to execute the plan. The Hindu, January 21, 2016.

Pathankot attack part of our activity and it has nothing to do with Indo-Pak dialogue, claims HM 'chief' Syed Salahuddin: Hizbul Mujahideen (HM) 'chief' Syed Salahuddin has taken responsibility for the Pathankot attack (January 2), calling it "a continuation of their activity, targeting Indian military installations". He also criticised Pakistan Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif's "Kashmir policy". These comments are part of an interview to an Urdu news portal, Wajood, based in Pakistan. Indian Express, January 21, 2016.


NEPAL

Nepal makes first amendment of its constitution four months after promulgation, says report: The Legislature-Parliament on January 23 endorsed the Bill on First Amendment of Constitution of Nepal and amended the country's charter with two thirds majority four months after its promulgation. Taking into consideration the demands of the Madhes-based parties, the amendment has included provisions to ensure proportional representation and electoral constituencies based on population. For that, two articles - Article 42 and Article 286 - were amended. The amendment aims at resolving the ongoing agitation by the Madhesi parties. The lawmakers of agitating parties, however, boycotted the voting, saying the purported amendment was incomplete and would not address their demands. The Himalayan Times, January 24, 2016.  


PAKISTAN

27 militants and 12 civilians among 43 persons killed during the week in FATA: At least 17 terrorists were killed in aerial raids conducted by the Security Forces (SFs) in Shawal and Dattakhel areas of North Waziristan Agency in North Waziristan Agency of Federally Administered Tribal Areas (FATA) on January 24.

Four civilians died and two others received injuries when one of six rockets fired from the Afghan side of the border hit a shop in Angoor Adda in South Waziristan Agency on January 21.

Security Forces (SFs) killed nine terrorists in air raids in Khyber Agency on January 20.

12, including a journalist, were killed while 39 others sustained injuries on January 19 when a suicide bomber targeted the tribal Khassadar force in the Karkhano Market of Khyber Agency. Daily Times; Dawn; The News; Tribune; The Nation; The Frontier Post; Pakistan Today; Pakistan Observer, January 19-25, 2016.

25 persons killed in militant attack on Bacha Khan University of Charsadda: The Tehreek-e-Taliban Pakistan (TTP) militants stormed the Bacha Khan University in Charsadda District of Khyber Pakhtunkhwa (KP) on January 20, killing at least 21 persons and causing injuries to 35 others. Victims included 17 students, two gardeners, a caretaker and a professor. The mastermind of the December 16, 2014, Army Public School (APS) Peshawar attack, Khalifa Umar Mansoor alias Aurangzeb, of the TTP Geedar faction has claimed the attack through a post on his Facebook page, adding that four attackers were sent to the university. The News, January 21, 2016.

130,190 search operations carried out under NAP in Pakistan: According to authoritative sources, around 130,190 combing and search operations were conducted till the middle of January 2016 throughout the country as part of the National Action Plan (NAP). Giving the details of operations, the sources said that in the Islamabad Capital Territory and Gilgit-Baltistan, 6,580 search operations were conducted since January 15, 2015, in which 3,455 arrests were made and one terrorist was killed. Similarly, in the Punjab, the number of operations carried out was 38,038. During these operations, 6,346 arrests were made and 62 terrorists were killed. The highest numbers of operations were carried out in the KP, i.e. 55,634. The arrests made were 3,223 while the number of terrorists killed was unavailable. The News, January 25, 2016.

Bank accounts of 30 seminaries and 300 NGOs frozen in Gilgit Baltistan: The bank accounts of 30 seminaries and over 300 Non-Governmental Organisations (NGOs) have been frozen in Gilgit-Baltistan (GB) for failing to provide details of sources and activities. An official document signed by Assistant Commissioner Rana Waqas Anwar, who also has registration authority in GB, stated that the registration of NGOs and seminaries will be cancelled if they fail to submit required documents by the second week of February this year. Tribune, January 21, 2016.

Pakistan 'can and must' do more against terrorism, says US President Barack Obama: United States (US) President Barack Obama in an interview with the Press Trust of India published on January 24 urged Pakistan to show it is "serious" about crushing extremist networks operating on its territory, saying the latest mass killing of students underlined the need for more decisive action. He said that the crackdown on extremists was "the right policy" but was quoted as saying that Pakistan "can and must" take more effective action. "Pakistan has an opportunity to show that it is serious about delegitimising, disrupting and dismantling terrorist networks," Obama said, adding, "In the region and around the world, there must be zero tolerance for safe havens and terrorists must be brought to justice." PTI News, January 24, 2016.


SRI LANKA

President instructs officials to complete resettlement of 44,015 remaining IDPs in Northern Province within six months: President Maithripala Sirisena at a special discussion held at the Presidential Secretariat on January 20 instructed the relevant officials to complete the resettlement of 44,015 remaining Internally Displaced persons (IDPs) in the Northern Province within six months. The President issued instructions to the officials to complete the identification of the lands concerned within six months. The development of infrastructure in the North and other facilities for the people was also discussed. Colombo Page, January 21, 2016.  

International community need not worry about matters of state interest, says President Maithripala Sirisena: President Maithripala Sirisena in a BBC interview on January 21 said that the international community need not worry about matters of state interest. He said, "Foreign judges and prosecutors should not be involved in an investigation into allegations of war crimes. I believe in the judicial system and other relevant authorities in this regard. I will never agree to international involvement in this matter. We have more than enough specialists, experts and knowledgeable people in our country to solve our internal issues." Daily Mirror, January 23, 2016.


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.

South Asia Intelligence Review [SAIR]

Publisher
K. P. S. Gill

Editor
Dr. Ajai Sahni


A Project of the
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