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SOUTH ASIA INTELLIGENCE REVIEW
Weekly Assessments & Briefings
Volume 13, No. 16, October 20, 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


ASSESSMENT

PAKISTAN
USA
Click for PrintPrint

Death from the Skies
Tushar Ranjan Mohanty
Research Associate, Institute for Conflict Management

At least eight terrorists — including a senior member of al Qaeda’s South Asia chapter and a key Tehreek-e-Taliban Pakistan (TTP) ‘commander’ — were killed and three others were wounded in two separate United States (US) drone strikes in the Khyber Agency and North Waziristan Agency (NWA) of the Federally Administered Tribal Areas (FATA) on October 11, 2014. In the first attack that took place around noon, a drone fired two missiles at a compound in the Chancharano Kandaw area of the remote Tirah Valley in Khyber Agency, killing four suspected terrorists and injuring another two. Sources indicated that terrorists fleeing Operation Zarb-e-Azb [Sharp and Cutting] in NWA were sheltered in the compound, which was located in the area dominated by tribesmen from the Kukikhel sub-clan of the Afridi tribe. The casualties were shifted across the border into Afghanistan, since the area where the drone struck is close to the Nazyan District of Afghanistan's Nangarhar province.

The same evening, the second drone attack targeted a vehicle carrying suspected terrorists in the Margha area of Shawal tehsil (revenue unit) in NWA, killing four terrorists. According to the local political administration, the drone fired two missiles at the vehicle, which was en route to Afghanistan. An unnamed political administration official claimed that four terrorists, including a key TTP commander, Muhammad Mustafa, were killed in the attack. The other dead were foreigners, though the country they belonged to was not identified.

US drones strikes resumed in June 2014, after a hiatus of nearly five and half months. Before this, the last drone target had been hit on December 25, 2013, and the attacks only resumed on June 12, 2014. The silencing of the US drones coincided with the Pakistan Government’s process of peace-talks with TTP, and the resumption of strikes followed Pakistan’s announcement of long-pending military operations in NWA, where dreaded terrorists of al Qaeda, the Haqqani Network and Hafiz Gul Bahadur faction of TTP were sheltered, after talks with TTP collapsed.

The present series of drone attacks, which raised the death toll to 35 within a week, concentrated around areas where Pakistan is presently conducting the military Operation Zarb-e-Azb, launched on June 15, 2014, in the aftermath of the attack on Karachi Airport on June 8-9, 2014. At least 33 persons, including all ten attackers, were killed in the Karachi attack. Operation Zarb-e-Azb has, according to Pakistan Army sources, thus far killed more than 1,200 terrorists and 86 soldiers (no independent verification of fatalities of identities of those killed is available, as media access to the areas of conflict if severely limited).

According to partial data compiled by the South Asia Terrorism Portal (SATP), the US has carried out at least 301 drone attacks, resulting in over 2,688 fatalities since 2005 (all data till October 19, 2014). While drone strikes and resultant fatalities increased every year till the peak of 2010, they started to fall thereafter. Significantly, in comparison to 158 fatalities in 24 drone attacks in 2013, the current year has recorded 15 such attacks with 94 fatalities in just four months [after the resumption of drone strikes], out of which seven attacks were reported in just seven days between October 5 and October 11.

Drone attack in Pakistan: 2005-2014*

Years

Incidents
Killed
Injured

2005

1
1
0

2006

0
0
0

2007

1
20
15

2008

19
156
17

2009

46
536
75

2010

90
831
85+

2011

59
548
52

2012

46
344
37

2013

24
158
29

2014

15
94
25

Total*

301
2688
335+
Source: SATP, *Data till October 19, 2014

According to the New America Foundation (NAF), a total of 3,546 persons have been killed in US drone attacks since 2005; of these, 15 were killed in 2005; 94 in 2006; 63 in 2007; 298 in 2008; 549 in 2009; 849 in 2010; 517 in 2011; 306 in 2012; 153 in 2013; and 110 in 2014 (till October 19).

Major drone attacks (each involving three or more killings) in 2014, included the July 19, 2014, incident, when 11 Taliban terrorists were killed in a strike targeting a TTP compound in Mada Khel suburb of Dattakhel town in NWA of FATA.

Some of the important drone attacks in 2013 included:

October 6, 2013: At least eight terrorists were killed and another four were injured in a US drone strike in Bari Mail area of Shawal Valley in NWA of FATA.

September 24, 2013: 10 Uzbek terrorists were killed when a US drone hit a vehicle in the Lowra Mandai area of Dattakhel tehsil in NWA.

June 12, 2013: A US drone fired eight missiles in the Dandy Darpakhel area of NWA that killed at least 10 terrorists while another four were wounded.

Pakistan has routinely lodged protests over US drone strikes from time to time. On October 10, 2014, Pakistan Foreign Office spokesperson Tasnim Aslam stated, “We condemn drone strikes for violation of our territorial integrity and collateral damage. Our position, that we have reiterated a number of times, remains unchanged."  

Meanwhile, experts see an 'understanding' between the two 'allies' in the so-called 'war on terror' with Pakistan tacitly approving the strikes, particularly where they target TTP elements. Rahimullah Yusufzai, a Peshawar-based expert on Afghan and tribal affairs, observes, "Drones strikes are being carried out in those areas (Shawwal and Datta Khel) where ground operations for the Pakistan Army are very difficult if not impossible. Although the foreign office has issued a customary statement of protest over the drone strikes, which it always does, Pakistan seems to be comfortable with the situation, as it also does not want the terrorists to regroup."

Similarly, a Dawn editorial noted, on October 13, 2014, “Relative silence can be interpreted as, at the very least, tacit acceptance and, possibly, active cooperation between the countries. From the general location of the strikes... it would appear active cooperation is taking place – for surely neither the US nor Pakistan could want an errant U.S.-fired missile hitting a Pakistani military target”.

However, 11 out of the 15 drone strikes launched against terrorists this year, were in the Dattakhel and Shawal areas of NWA, which are dominated by the Hafiz Gul Bahadur group, a key Haqqani Network ally. These are elements that the US would presumably want to eliminate, and who Pakistan seeks to protect as a strategic asset. Washington has repeatedly conveyed to Islamabad that Bahadur and his group have been helping al Qaeda and the Haqqani Network against the International Security Assistance Force (ISAF) in Afghanistan. As the drawdown in Afghanistan inches closer, US pressure on Pakistan has mounted manifold. However, the general perception is that Bahadur and other Afghan Taliban fighters have been allowed to escape the edge of Operation Zarb-e-Azb, and there are no reports of any clashes between the Pakistani Army and Bahadur’s faction.

The US will appreciate the decimation of any Islamist terrorist formation in Pakistan, including the TTP, but is unlikely to continue to be deceived into believing that Pakistan is now acting against all terrorist groups without discrimination. Pakistan's continued use of terrorist groups as strategic assets, and their particular focus on a post-withdrawal Afghanistan, are obvious US concerns, and drone strikes will remain one of the principle instrumentalities to keep these forces in check, both in Pakistan and across the border, into Afghanistan, as long as even limited US military commitment to the latter country remains.

INDIA
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Chhattisgarh: Quandary in Bijapur
Deepak Kumar Nayak
Research Assistant, Institute for Conflict Management

On October 9, a Central Reserve Police Force (CRPF) trooper, identified as Sandeep Kumar, was critically injured in an encounter between Security Forces (SFs) and Communist Party of India-Maoist (CPI-Maoist) cadres in a forested pocket in the Kudmel Hills under the Mirtur Police Station limits in Bijapur District, Chhattisgarh. The joint squad of CRPF and the District Force (DF) were carrying out a combing operation in the region, when the Police party confronted the insurgents.

Meanwhile, on October 8, three woman cadres of CPI-Maoist were killed in an encounter with SFs in the District. A joint team of the District Police and CRPF personnel came under fire from the Maoists near Potenar Forest in Bijapur, and the SFs retaliated. After the encounter, the Police recovered the bodies of three women Maoists and two country made rifles.

On October 1, the Police shot dead a Maoist ‘deputy commander’ after an exchange of fire in a forested patch in the District. The Police team comprising DF personnel had started on a search operation from the District Headquarters on September 30. During the operation, the Police teams were attacked by Naxals [Left Wing Extremists (LWEs)] at different places. The rebels had also placed IEDs (Improvised Explosive Device) and pressure bombs in different places and a Head Constable of the District Police, Dasrath Nag, was injured in one of the blasts during the operation. While searching the area after an encounter in the forests near Munga village, the body of a Maoist cadre, identified as Korsa Ayatu (26), resident of Munga Devgudipara village, was recovered. 

Elsewhere, on the same day, a Panchayat (village level local self Government institution) Secretary, identified as Hingaram Kodiyam, was killed by the Maoists near Keshkutul village under Bhairamgarh Police Station limits in Bijapur District. Police recovered Kodiyam's body, lying in a pool of blood, from a restive patch of the Bhairamgarh-Kutru Road in the District.

According to partial data compiled by the South Asian Terrorism Portal (SATP), Bijapur has recorded 448 fatalities in 194 incidents of LWE-related violence, including 140 civilians, 118 SF personnel and 190 LWEs, since its inception as a District on May 1, 2007. In 2014, the District has already recorded 28 fatalities in 17 incidents of LWE-violence, including 10 civilians, six SF personnel and 12 LWEs (all data till October 19, 2014).

Fatalities in Left Wing Extremist violence in Bijapur: 2007-2014

Years

Civilians
SFs
LWEs
Total

2007*

27
23
10
60

2008

16
20
44
80

2009

28
17
41
86

2010

18
20
31
69

2011

12
16
14
42

2012

14
6
27
47

2013

15
10
11
36

2014

10
6
12
28

Total**

140
118
190
448
Source: SATP, * Data from May 1, 2007
**Data till October 19, 2014

Bijapur District is one of the twenty seven Districts of Chhattisgarh, and was earlier part of Dantewada District. Located in the extreme south-west part of the State, Bijapur shares its boundary with the Narayanpur District to the North; Bastar District to the North-east; Dantewada District to the east; Karimnagar, Warangal and Khammam Districts of Telangana on the south; and Gadchiroli District of Maharashtra on the West. With a total area of 6,562.48 square kilometres, the District comprises four blocks – Bijapur, Bhairamgarh, Bhopalpatnam and Usoor – and is famous for its rich wildlife and its very thick cover of forest over an area of 3,202.64 kilometres. According to Census 2011, Bijapur has a population of 255,230, with a literacy rate of 40.86. The Scheduled Tribes Population is 48,767 (Male 24,310 - Female 24,457).

Bijapur is at the locus of Maoist activities in Chhattisgarh, and has recorded 40 major incidents (each involving three or more fatalities) since its formation in 2007, resulting in 231 fatalities [60 civilian, 76 SF personnel and 95 LWEs]. In the current year, the District has seen three major incidents:

February 8, 2014: Three CPI-Maoist cadres of the National Park Supply Dalam (squad) were killed in a joint combing operation by Maharashtra and Chhattisgarh Police in the forest between Bada Kakler and Chota Kakler villages under the Pharasgad Police Station limits.

April 12, 2014: Seven polling officials were killed in a landmine blast and five others were injured in subsequent firing by around 75-100 armed Maoists between Kutru and Gudma village in Bhairamgarh tehsil (revenue unit).

October 8, 2014: Three CPI-Maoist women cadres were killed in an encounter with SFs near the Potenar Forest.

A high-level meeting to review LWE in the country, held under the Chairmanship of Union Home Secretary Anil Goswami in May 2014, reviewed incidents of LWE violence in the affected States in 2013 and observed that Jharkhand and Chhattisgarh remained the worst affected, followed by Bihar, Odisha and Maharashtra. According to the data presented in the meeting, 80 per cent of all LWE violence remained confined to 23 Districts, with Chhattisgarh's Sukma, Bijapur and Dantewada topping the list of the 10 worst affected. Incidentally, Chhattisgarh accounted for 31 per cent of total LWE violence in the country in 2013.

The impact of conflict appears to have taken a toll on population growth in the District. According to the 2011 Census, the decadal population growth rate of Bijapur was just 8.76 per cent in comparison to the State average of 22.6 per cent. The decadal population growth rate of neighbouring affected Districts is similarly placed in comparison to State average. Concerned, the then Chhattisgarh Governor Shekhar Dutt reportedly sought details from the State Government in this regard in April 2013. As of 2011, Bijapur was the second least populous District in the State (out of 18 districts existing at that point of time), after Narayanpur. It also holds the dubious distinction of being the second least literate District in India, with literacy at 41.58 per cent, after Alirajpur in Madhya Pradesh at 37.22 per cent, as against a national average of 74.04 per cent.

As is generally found in Maoist-affected Districts, civil governance is very weak and in large parts the State’s presence is nominal. Government employees working in the affected region find sufficient excuses not to join duties if posted a little deeper inside the problem areas. An official in the Dantewada Collectorate reportedly stated, in June 2013, that till two years earlier the District of Bijapur, with about 3,000-4,000 11th and 12th standard students studying science, had just one Chemistry teacher, and the number may subsequently have risen to two. Due to the conflict, at least 273 primary schools were shut down, of which the District Administration has managed to reopen only 80 according to the District Information System for Education (DISE) data for the year 2012-13. As the District Administration fails to reopen schools in many places, temporary residential schools catering to a cluster of villages at locations where the Government has some presence have come up. These schools are now popularly called PORTA cabin (prefabricated temporary structure) schools, of which there are at least 28 in Bijapur, each having a capacity of 500 students.     

Similarly, the public health care system is largely dysfunctional in Bijapur, with high vacancies among medical staff. The District Hospital at Bijapur has just five community, 10 primary and 93 sub-health centres, with a sanctioned strength of 76 doctors and 43 nurses. However, only six doctors and 12 nurses are currently on the rolls in the entire District as of May 2014. Not surprisingly, the entire District has no paediatrician or gynaecologist. Indeed, the situation is difficult across the entire Bastar Division. According to the Health Department's records, only 77 doctors of class I and II category were posted in District Hospitals in the Bastar Division, against 202 sanctioned posts. Even at the package of INR 125,000 salary (per month), doctors were not available for these regions, State Health Services Director Dr. Kamalpreet Singh stated in August 2014.

The condition of roads in Bijapur is disastrous. National Highway (NH) 202, connecting Bijapur via Bhopalpatnam to Hyderabad, has a 40 kilometres stretch in Bijapur that is 'non-metalled', virtually reducing the NH to a 'kutcha road' (dirt track). During the visit of the then Union Rural Development Minister Jairam Ramesh in 2013, State officials informed the Minister that, in Bijapur, nearly 33 roads were to be constructed under the Pradhan Mantri Gram Sadak Yojana (PMGSY, Prime Minister's Village Roads Scheme), of which construction of just 13 was underway. Sources indicate that, as of now, only one road has been completed. Contractors refuse to take on the jobs for fear of the Maoists. It was noted during the General Elections of April 2014, that the abysmal condition of important roads had slowed down mobilisation of troops and proved a major handicap for the SFs.

While the Maoists have suffered significant reverses across Chhattisgarh, as well as in Bijapur in particular, the state of Governance, the availability of infrastructure and public services, and the abysmal conditions in which the population is condemned to survive ensure that the Maoists will continue to have a substantial recruitment pool to renew cadres, despite the rapid losses, particularly in terms of recent arrests and surrenders. The Maoists have engineered several cycles of resurgences in the vacuum created by poor governance and the poverty and backwardness of large populations. Bijapur provides ideal ground for another such revival.


NEWS BRIEFS

Weekly Fatalities: Major Conflicts in South Asia
October 13-19, 2014

 

Civilians

Security Force Personnel

Terrorists/Insurgents

Total

INDIA

 

Jammu and Kashmir

0
1
0
1

Mizoram

2
0
0
2

Left-wing Extremism

 

Chhattisgarh

0
1
0
1

Jharkhand

3
0
0
3

Telengana

1
0
0
1

Total (INDIA)

6
2
0
8

PAKISTAN

 

Balochistan

8
1
0
9

FATA

8
1
67
76

KP

1
1
2
4

Sindh

3
0
0
3

Total (PAKISTAN)

20
3
69
92
Provisional data compiled from English language media sources.


INDIA

Burdwan module planned to make West Bengal a terror hub, says NIA Report: The National Investigation Agency (NIA), which is investigating the Burdwan blast case, in a preliminary report submitted to the Central Government said that there was a conspiracy by the Burdwan terror module to convert West Bengal into a major terror hub over the next few months to carryout subversive activities in different parts of the country. The NIA along with Central intelligence agencies is investigating the matter which is suspected to have international ramifications also. Asian Age, October 18, 2014.

Central Government to use "national power" against Maoists: The Central Government will use any element of its "national power" against the Communist Party of India-Maoist (CPI-Maoist) under a new policy to deal with the extremists and not hold peace talks with them till they renounce violence and express faith in democracy. This strategy has been envisaged in the policy formulated by the National Democratic Alliance (NDA) government to combat Left-Wing Extremism (LWE) and circulated to all the nine Maoist-affected States. Zee India, October 17, 2014.

NSG director warns of 'multi-city, multiple' attack on India by al Qaeda and ISIS: National Security Guard (NSG) director general J N Choudhury on October 16 warned of the possibility of global jihadi outfits al Qaeda and Islamic State of Iraq and Syria (ISIS) joining hands to launch "multi-city, multiple attacks" in India. Speaking to the news reporters on the occasion of NSG's 30th Raising Day in Manesar near Gurgaon (Haryana), Choudhury said, "Now that they (al Qaeda) have declared an intention to attack India, they might combine with outfits like Lashkar-e-Toiba (LeT), ISIS and Indian Mujahideen (IM)."Times of India, October 17, 2014.

2,000 militants waiting to infiltrate, says Army: More than 2,000 terrorists are waiting across the Line of Control (LoC) in the Pakistan-occupied Kashmir (PoK) to infiltrate into the Indian Territory, according to Army estimates. There are more than 2,000 terrorists hiding on the other side and are getting trained in the 20 terrorist camps there, Army sources said in New Delhi on October 7. The Army troops and other border guarding forces are keeping an eye on the situation and maintaining extra vigil to thwart any attempts by the terrorists to sneak into the Indian side, they said. Daily Excelsior, October 8, 2014.

Indian Railways to recruit 17,000 Constables to counter CPI-Maoist threat, says Union Railway Minister D V Sadananda Gowda: The Union Railway Minister D V Sadananda Gowda on October 16 said fresh recruitment would be made in the Railway Protection Force (RPF) to deal with the attacks by the Communist Party of India-Maoist (CPI-Maoist). "The railway department is planning to recruit 17,000 constables, including 4,000 women, as safety and security is its topmost priority," Gowda said in reply to a query that Maoists have been targeting railway properties. Zee India, October 17, 2014.

Waving of ISIS flag in Kashmir valley worries, says Army: The most senior military officer in Kashmir valley on October 15 warned that the waving of Islamic State of Iraq and Syria (ISIS) flags in Kashmir was a matter of grave concern and the security establishment needed to take note of it at the highest level. The warning came a day after Jammu and Kashmir (J&K) Chief Minister (CM) Omar Abdullah dismissed the incident as "an act of some idiots". General officer commanding the Srinagar-based 15 Corps, Lt Gen Subrata Saha, said ISIS had the ability to attract a large number of volunteers and it was a cause of worry. Times of India, October 17, 2014.

Chats between IM members reveal the emergence of a new terror module under the leadership of 'Bengali': A series of Internet chats between key members of Indian Mujahideen (IM) based in India and Pakistan provided leads as early as July 2013 to the emergence of new terror modules with links to West Bengal, Assam and Bangladesh, and a branch leader identified only as "Bengali". The transcripts of some of these chats, unearthed last year by National Investigation Agency (NIA) reveal that the ground had been laid in 2013 to launch terror operations under the leadership of "Bengali". Indian Express, October 16, 2014.

Assam faces bigger threat from jihadi elements, says CM Tarun Gogoi: Assam Chief Minister (CM) Tarun Gogoi on October 15 said that his state is more vulnerable to threats from the jihadi elements than Jammu& Kashmir (J&K). Gogoi said "They (jihadi elements) have for long been trying to set up bases here and I had once told Prime Minister Narendra Modi that Assam is more dangerous than Kashmir when it comes to the threat from them." "Fundamentalist elements and extremists are all dangerous. Not just the fundamentalist elements, we also have threats from the ULFA (United Liberation Front of Assam) and the NDFB (National Democratic Front of Bodoland)," he added. New Indian Express, October 16, 2014.

Al Qaeda planning to attack India this month (October 2014), say officials: Top officials with access to intelligence inputs have warned that al Qaeda has apparently joined hands with Indian terror outfits like the Students Islamic Movement of India (SIMI) to plan a series of bombings in the country during the festival season. The two groups were found to have joined forces when investigators discovered their roles in the recent Burdwan (West Bengal) and Bijnor (Uttar Pradesh) blasts. Deccan Hearald, October 14, 2014.

Hardly any Indian Muslim indulges in terrorism, says President Pranab Mukherjee: Asserting that the problem of terrorism in India was imported, President Pranab Mukherjee on October 13 said that indigenous terrorist activity was "extremely negligible" with hardly any involvement of the 150 million Muslims of the country. "Of course there may be one or two out of hundred fifty million but all of these are imported. These are coming from outside. Indigenous terrorist activity in India is extremely negligible and whenever such signs are visible we take appropriate steps," he said in an interview in Oslo ahead of his two-day visit to Norway. Times of India, October 14, 2014.

Maoist-hit regions report less violence, says MHA report: According to the latest data available with the Union Ministry of Home Affairs (MHA) violence in Communist Party of India-Maoist (CPI-Maoist)-affected States is continuing its downward trend of the last five years. "This year, till September 30, we have got reports of 834 incidents and 241 deaths. Last year for the same period, 288 deaths were reported," said an MHA official. Under the new anti-Maoist strategy, the government is focusing on development with an initiative to create developmental hubs in the worst affected areas.. Hindustan Times, October 13, 2014.


NEPAL

Constituent Assembly fails to abide by its calendar: The Constituent Assembly (CA) was supposed to prepare the first draft of the constitution by October 17, and forward it to the people for suggestions on October 18, as per the CA's calendar of operation, however, the CA failed to keep up with its own timetable and is now preparing to amend its calendar without changing the January 22 deadline for promulgating the constitution. Also, the Constitutional-Political Dialogue and Consensus Committee (CPDCC), as per its mandate given by the full House of the CA, has neither prepared the questionnaire on unsettled issues for putting them to vote at the CA full House, nor has it been able to forge consensus. Himalayan Times, October 18, 2014.


PAKISTAN

67 militants and eight civilians among 76 persons killed during the week in FATA: At least 37 militants were killed and 50 others, including important commanders, were surrendered to the Security Forces (SFs) in Operation Khyber-1, which successfully continued for the third consecutive day in Bara tehsil (revenue unit) of Khyber Agency in Federally Administered Tribal Area (FATA) on October 19.

Eight militants and a soldier were killed as SFs launched the Operation Khyber-1 in the Akakhel area of Bara tehsil in Khyber Agency on October 17.

Twenty-one militants were killed and several others sustained injuries when jet fighters pounded their hideouts in the Tirah Valley and Bara tehsil of Khyber Agency on October 16.

Seven people were killed and 17 others sustained injuries when a suicide bomber blew himself up at a Jirga (tribal assembly) of the Zakhakhel Amn Lashkar (peace militia) in the Pir Mela area of Tirah Valley in Khyber Agency on October 15. Daily Times; Dawn; The News; Tribune; Central Asia Online; The Nation; The Frontier Post; Pakistan Today; Pakistan Observer, October 14-20, 2014.

Only 84 of 2,379 killed by drones were Qaeda terrorists, reveals Bureau of Investigative Journalism report: The United States (US) drones strikes in Pakistan have killed as many as 2,379 people since 2004, but only 84 of the victims have been named al Qaeda terrorists, a Bureau of Investigative Journalism report has revealed. On October 11, the US carried out its 400th drone strike in northwest Pakistan since its strikes started there in 2004. In almost a decade, 2,379 people have been killed. "Only 704 of the 2,379 dead have been identified, and only 295 of these were reported to be members of some kind of armed group," the Bureau of Investigative Journalism found out. As a part of its Naming the Dead project, the bureau collected the names and, where it was possible, the details of people killed by the CIA using a multitude of sources. Daily Times, October 20, 2014.

PKR one billion allocated for improvement of Khyber Pakhtunkhwa Police department, says Province Minister for Information Mushtaq Ahmed Ghani: Khyber Pakhtunkhwa Minister for Information Mushtaq Ahmed Ghani on October 17 said that Provincial Government has allocated PKR one billion for the improvement of the Police department performance. The News, October 18, 2014.

Doctor who deserted Army asks officers to join Taliban: Jamaat-ul-Ahrar (JuA), a splinter group of Tehreek-e- Taliban Pakistan (TTP) has released video of a renegade Army doctor, asking military officers and soldiers to join Taliban. Sitting beside JuA 'spokesman' Ehsanullah Ehsan in the video, the man with black beard and wearing black turban is introducing himself as Capt Dr Tariq Ali who claimed to have served in Frontier Corps Balochistan, 80 Brigade Siachen, and various places in Punjab. He cited posting in Waziristan the reason for leaving the Army. Dawn, October 17, 2014.

Six top TTP 'commanders' announce allegiance to Islamic State's Baghdadi: Six top 'commanders' of the Tehreek-e-Taliban Pakistan (TTP), including 'spokesman' Shahidullah Shahid, have announced their allegiance to Abu Bakar Al-Baghdadi of the Islamic State and an allegiance statement was also issued in this regard. Shahidullah Shahid in the statement said he along with five TTP District chiefs have announced their allegiance to IS, also known as Daish, and would be their lead fighters in Pakistan. Dawn, October 16, 2014.


SRI LANKA

European Court annuls sanctions on LTTE on technical grounds but maintains asset freeze: The European Court of Justice (ECJ) on procedural grounds on October 16 annulled the European Council measures maintaining the Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam (LTTE) on the European list of terrorist organizations but allowed measures to keep their assets frozen. The effects of the annulled measures will be maintained temporarily in order to ensure the effectiveness of any possible future freezing of funds, the Court ruled. Colombo Page, October 17, 2014.

Ready to scrap Presidency if Eelam project is dropped, says President Mahinda Rajapaksa: President Mahinda Rajapaksa declared in Killinochchi, Northern Province on October 11 that if the Tamil National Alliance (TNA) and the Tamil Diaspora gave up the Eelam and separatist ideology, before anyone else he would be the first person to scrap the executive presidential system. The President said due to thirty years of terrorism not only lives were lost but also places of residence had been lost. He said it should never be forgotten that the war the country fought to put an end to Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam (LTTE) terror had not been against the Tamil people. The Island, October 14, 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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Dr. Ajai Sahni


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