On Thursday, two suicide bombers blew themselves up outside of Pakistan’s main army munitions factory, killing 59 people, reported the Associated Press. News sources (as is expected after major attacks) varied in their reports of casualties and few identified which group perpetrated the bombings. However, the Associated Press, Reuters, BBC News and Dawn all reported the attackers were from the Pakistani Taliban. According to Dawn’s coverage, “Pakistani Taliban militants have warned in recent days that they would launch attacks on the military in revenge for an ongoing army operation in the troubled tribal region of Bajaur on the Afghan border.” Speaking to the BBC, Mullah Omar, the spokesman of the Tehreek-e-Taliban [the umbrella organization headed by Beitullah Mehsud] further affirmed that today’s bombings were in retaliation for the deaths of “innocent women and children” in Bajaur. The news agency added, “He said more attacks would take place in Pakistan’s major urban conurbations unless the army withdrew from the tribal areas.”
Today’s bombings, noted the AP, “hit one of Pakistan‘s most sensitive military installations” and was framed by news agencies as, “the deadliest attack on a military installation in the country’s history.” The factory is located in the town of Wah, located just 18 miles outside of the capital, Islamabad. Wah, the BBC noted, “is a strategically important town normally under heavy security as it is home to a large industrial complex producing conventional arms and ammunition.” Reuters also quoted Mullah Omar, who justified today’s attack by asserting, “The Wah factory is a killer factory where arms are being produced to kill our women and children.”
Officials tell news agencies that casualties are likely to rise. Just prior to the bombings, PM Yousaf Raza Gilani had appealed to Pakistani lawmakers to urgently draw up a national strategy against terrorism “even if you have to sit together for a week.” Addressing a ceremony for police officials who received counterterrorism training through the U.S. State Department, the PM said, “The threat that we are facing today has no precedent…Our enemy lurks silently within our society. This is our war.” Today’s attacks therefore, should further affirm such commitment. It should also emphasize to Pakistanis that a fight against terror within our own borders is not a U.S.-driven policy, but a strategy by our government and the military for the protection of its people. A successful anti-militancy policy will therefore not only require the support of the Pakistani people, but also a coordinated effort by both the government and its security forces. Only then can we have any hopes of success. [Image from BBC News]
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it was major setback to efforts to restore peace in the country, i am always curious why don’t they make use of goddamn technological devices to hunt down all of religious freaks or we would be better off to nuke them all so we don’t have to deal with them ever again
It is time for Pakistanis to stop being ambivalent about the Taliban and join the fight against them. The Taliban perpetrating these atrocities in the name of Islam are criminals and thugs. They are no friends of Islam, Muslims or Pakistan and they must be stopped, not for America’s sake, but for the sake of Pakistan.
Please read my post at http://www.riazhaq.com/2008/07/yet-another-peace-d eal-amidst-shia.html to get the full picture of Taliban’s ambitions and the ineptitude of our current leadership.
For those who defend the Taliban or the Lal Masjid terrorists, here’s what I’d like to say:
Let’s not be blind to the wave of deadly suicide bombings in Pakistan and the rest of the world unleashed by your jihadist friends who have killed large numbers of innocent, nameless, faceless people, mainly Muslims, and innocent civilians of other faiths.
Let us not be blind to the threats issued by your Lal Masjid friends to Najam Sethi recently and many more in the past. A bold attempt to muzzle the media by a non-state entity.
Let us not be blind to the broadcast threats of your radical Lal Masjid friends who threatened to throw acid in the un-veiled faces of Muslim women in Islamabad during their reign of terror.
Let us not be blind to the desecration of masjids in Pakistan by your friends who turned them into arms depots and launch pads for attacks against fellow Muslims who disagreed with their extreme interpretation of Sharia.
Let us not be blind to those who are trying to impose their violent version of Shariah by the force of arms.
Let us not be blind to the atrocities Taliban and Al-Qaeda and their sympathizers have committed against the poor Aghans during their short rule and later, particularly against the weak including women and girls whose schools have been shut down or burned down. or the barber shops which have been shut or burned down for shaving men’s facial hair.
Let us not be blind to the fact that any one, including Musharaf ( and I admit he is no angel) , who challenged your extremist friends engaged in violence against fellow Muslims, has become the object of hate by you.
Let us not be blind to the to the fact that your radical “Islamic” friends have done more to damage the name and perception of Islam and Muslims than any one else in the history of the world.
For those of who can’t get to the correct page on my blog post about the Taliban, here is the link again:
http://www.riazhaq.com/2008/07/yet-another-peace-deal-amidst-shia.html
[…] Link to the original site Author: wtfpakistan Time: Friday, August 22nd, 2008 at 4:19 am Category: Pakistan Comments: You can leave a response, or trackback from your own site. RSS: You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. Navigation: « Sharif Emerges as Pakistan’s Power Broker […]
just kill mehsud. he is no better than musharaf. still some people think him of as their hero. it was a shameful act of terrorism
the death toll has gone up to 100 now.
Very shameful and cowardly act. I sincerely hope that all Pakistanis will condemn this crime.
Kalsoom,
May I suggest maybe a linkup with the Edhi Foundation or other relief agency of where we can send money to help these innocent families? Many men died and I am sure they have families that need help financially. This is the least we can do, aside from praying for them.
@Let us not be blind exaggerating and give green signal to all
Islamophobes, anti-Jihadist, opportunists, the defenders
of permanent Dictatorship, they happen to be seculars
and at the same time Marxist Roshankhayyals followers
of impostor-Messie. Let me inform you all as I know JUI
personally since late 1960 (JUI of Mufti Mehmood & Hazarvi
I was their worst enemy, and am still).
Mr Najam Sethi was not even born, later on he started licking
political lollypop of PPP’s Bhuttos. He is not that important
to be threatened !!
What are Talibans ? (Talibs = students)
Populus : Balochistan and NWFP’s, Afghan Pashtoons
Essential members of Jamiat-e-Ulema-e-Islam Pak, Deobandi
militant of strict beleivers in application of only Hudood, but don’t beleive in Islamic HumanRights, Govt as Guarantor of
health, education, pension, unemployement benefits etc.
Just the contrary to Huqooq before Hudood, an Islamic imperative.
mostly illiterates, unemployeds in their 20s, they can only read Quran in Urdu khat, that is all.
Hierarchy is purely clerical, contrary to Islamic norms,
Net product of Fazlurrehman & Benazir coalition 1994,
Fazlur would vote for BB on condition that he be appointed as
Governor of Baluchistan and send Talibans to Afghanistan, to
which Benazir got approval from Clinton and gave OK !
fazlur became Governor of Baluch and sent Taliban to Afghanisatn, and BB got condifence vote and saved her elections. (If someone has any doubts please consult records).
They were battered and sized by Afghani Mujahids, EVEN
genocided, inside 12 containers, machingunned 7000 of them.
Fazlur JUI F wanted Talibans to run the militancy in the
historical murderous style of Al-Unf (terrorism) Hassan Bin
Sabah strategy, yes they managed, but now are infiltrated
by Indians and CIA, they are running different agenda now.
I SHALL; FROM NOW ONWARDS, CALL THEM ” BATILANS ”
AS IT INCLUDES ALL ANTI-ISLAM PHOBIAS, THEY ARE WORKING
TOGETHER ESSENTIALLY FOR THE LAST ONE YEAR, SINCE THE
MEETING AT FAIZABAD, BADAKHSHAN OF SEVEN SECRET
SERVICES OF THE WORLD, FEW WEEKS LATER BB WAS
ASSASSINATED !!
Tariq,
Thanks for the suggestion – I’ll look into it. It’s so sad that with the amount of bombings occurring in Pakistan, I am not sure we have a system with which to donate money to the families after one particular blast.
People opposed Wana operation in 2004 calling it wagging war on its own people. And since then any military opeartion in FATA was criticised by all except the govt at time.
Now Hoti, Ceif Minister NWFP, says there are thousands off foreign millitants in Bajur Agency. He says, we will not forgive even those who will surrender.
PM says, we will chase the millitants to their doors.
Rehman Malik says, Millitants will be crushed.
It would have been better if operation 2004 was supported by all these at that time, realizing the situtation and today our settled areas of NWFP would not be on fire.
There are still idiots sitting there, calling for dialogues with Millitants.
Dialogues are only carried out with an opposite force. Dialogues with these militants means we accept them as a force and meet their demand to reach an agreement.
Now, in FATA (and NWFP), Peace with dialogues means we accept them as force and let them implement their version of Islam in those areas and in return we will get peace in these areas. And their version of Islam is burn girl’s schools, run parallel courts, kill those who they think is doing somethign that doesnt fit in there version of Islam and dont give a damn to govt. writ in those areas. With peace dialogue they want to get all this and in return promise in those areas.
Do we want this? If the answer is YES, then go ahead with Peace Dialogues or else crush them with force before they reach deep inside us.
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Mudassar,
I disagree. It’s not simply a matter of supporting military operations, or not supporting them. The civilian government needs to have a deeper understanding of the details of the operations, and how they are being carried out which has not been in Pakistan’s history. If you read about military operations against insurgencies throughout the 20th century, you will realize that it is only a comprehensive strategy and not simply brute force that can ever have any chance of successfully defeating it.
I meant “which has not been the case in Pakistan’s history”
I have to agree with Riaz Haq completely. You are saying exactly what I was thinking. I will never associate myself with their brand of Islam. Even if that is real Islam, I would not like to be Muslim then. I feel that Islam can’t be illogical and suppressive. They are making it soffocating for people even to breath. Religion is my personal thing, I don’t want anyone meddling in it.
Earlier, I wanted Canadian and all other forces to go out of Afghanistan but I am in full support of them staying there now. If they leave Afghanistan, its going to be a mess and Pakistan will not be able to deal with these brainless people at all. I truely think that they should increase the forces in Afghanistan. They should have more presence in the border areas to stop any infilteration from Pakistani side. At the same token, Pakistan should stop them from going to Afghanistan and carry out terror acts.
If all the parties join in stance with Govt to pursue with the operation, I think this will put pressure on Taliban and they will retreat. Otherwise they will keep on killing innocents across the country.
Pakistan Zindabad
@Ha ha ha ha ha,
what a joke, regarding “Mounted Canadian ” troups,
but there is whole army of Indians, Mosad, CIA !¨
have you ever tried before asking them to leave ?
what the hell difference, if you stay muslim or not , will it
change any thing, but Pakistanis know who their
real enemy is !! they better know now !!
Your Batilans will soon show their real faces calling you
” hi, brothers we are here to serve you in Islam.bashing”
@ I invite all of you to go through the website called
” Pipelineistan by Pepe Escobar 2002, recommended for
specially those who are very sensitive to the ” Batilans ”
(so called Talibans) in their madness of disguised
Islam-bashing, would like to have opinions of serious
globbers. thanks
@ USA-INDIAN strategie in affected areas is :
no dialogue, no jirga, no individual compromise,
no stability, but relentless killings like Iraq & Afghanistan
must go on.
Now, Every day 50 to 60 ” Talibans killed in Fata and Wana.
The record in Iraq is one million killed since 2003, alarming
revelations by Iraqi Hospitals, casualty ward, deadbody
count, red crescent syndicate, mortuaries, local graveyard’s
authorities.
Afghanistan, more than 400 thousands killed, missing and
disappeared, no official sources to finalize exactitude of
the figures.
Just check the definition of ‘ Genocide’ by UNO !
Some comments need to be condemned rigorously.
@Rabia..
appreciate your opinion.
However, to agree on the modalities of operation (as to how it should be carried out as its against insurgency) we first need to agree that “Yes we need a military operation”.
So far what we see is that one group (or political party) says, Operation is the only solution and then other group disagrees and supports the peace talks (as oppose to any kind of military opertaion).
I agree with what you said; that we need to go into details as to how this operation should be carraied out. But i am talking about a step before that where all should agree that “Operation is the solution”.
So far, one day we support it when (e.g.) girls schools are burnt and then next day we oppose it when military starts an operation.
kalsoom, you are one of the very a few persons on planet whose blog got listed in my personal blog’s blogroll 😀
Thanks Imran! Much appreciated.