USA Has Bared Its
Teeth
By Asif Haroon Raja
21/09/08 "Asian
Tribune" -- The US and its allies succeeded in
toppling Taliban regime in November 2001 and replacing it with a
puppet regime, but the Taliban were neither militarily defeated
nor eliminated from the system. But for effective encirclement
of Afghanistan from all directions and massive air support
provided by USA, the Northern Alliance could not have made any
progress. Once the Taliban realised that they were no more in a
position to offer resistance particularly after Pakistan ditched
them, they considered it prudent to carry out a tactical
withdrawal from Kabul and most took shelter in Pashtun dominated
southern and eastern Afghanistan. Some trickled into FATA and
Baluchistan where they had their kith and kin and some moved
into Iran. They remained inactive till 2002 but utilised this
time to regroup and refit themselves to be able to strike back
at the invading forces that had devastated their country. Bush
and his teams of neo-cons felt complacent that the Taliban and
Al-Qaeda had been taken care of and only the remnants had to be
flushed out. It was this smugness which impelled them to invade
and occupy Iraq in March 2003.
In the meanwhile, the vices that had been eliminated by the
Taliban during their short rule reappeared in a big way. Besides
lack of justice, war lordism, corruption, poppy growing, drug
business and nepotism reigned supreme. The Taliban and their
supporters were either brutally killed or put in Bagram jail and
subjected to horrendous torture. The Pashtuns being in great
majority were persecuted and power got concentrated in the hands
of non-Pashtun Northern Alliance elements and war lords. The
occupation forces inflicted heavy collateral damage on civilians
whenever they confronted the militants. These developments
disillusioned the Afghans and sympathy wave among the Pashtuns
living both sides of the border started to shift towards the
Taliban. Induction of NATO forces in 2003 together with
deteriorating law and order situation provided the spark to
ignite insurgency.
When Gen Musharraf submitted to US pressure after 9/11 and
ditched the Taliban in Afghanistan, he provided air bases as
well as logistics support and shared intelligence with CIA. He
allowed CIA and FBI to recruit agents in FATA and other places
and to establish their outposts. The focus of ISI and other
agencies was shifted towards hunting and nabbing so-called
terrorists all over the country, in monitoring dissident
elements within the army and in political wheeling and dealings.
The CIA acquired all the links ISI and MI had both sides of the
Pak-Afghan border and gradually took most agents on ISI payroll
within its fold. By virtue of having better technology and means
the CIA was able to take over intelligence acquisition and
dissemination system. As a consequence the troops operating in
FATA became entirely dependent upon CIA inputs. Taking advantage
of complete liberty of action, CIA succeeded in buying the
loyalties of many tribal chiefs and notables in FATA by doling
out dollars in sacks since it knew that the Pashtun could not be
crushed by force but could be purchased. Those not falling in
line were got killed.
In FATA, Nek Muhammad was first cultivated and provided logistic
support. When he entered into a peace deal with Pak Army in July
2005, he was killed using precision guided missile. Abdullah
Masood, an Afghan war veteran who had also fought the Northern
Alliance in October-November 2001 was captured and brainwashed
during his two years internment in Guantanamo Bay. He was
released after agreeing to work on terms dictated by CIA and he
soon was able to takeover the leadership role. His death at Zhob
at the hands of Pak security forces was a loss for CIA.
Baitulah Masood and Fazlullah had not taken part in Afghan jihad
and do not qualify to head Taliban; yet 30 year old Baitullah
has managed to create Tehrik-i-Taliban Pakistan (TTP) and
Fazlullah calls the shots in Swat. Mulla Omar had never shown
interest in establishing any links with Pakistani Taliban and
had warned Nek Muhammad not to operate under the brand name of
Taliban. It is being questioned as to how come Baitullah,
Fazlullah and their spokesmen desperately wanted by Pakistan
security forces have escaped the hawk eye of USA, particularly
after they have been seen giving detailed interviews to media
and using their cell phones? ISI had once given six figure
coordinates of Baitullah and yet no Hellfire missile was fired
on his hideout by CIA. The TTP that has spread its influence in
all the seven agencies of tribal belt and in neighbouring
settled districts of NWFP has succeeded in making inroads into
Punjab, particularly southern Punjab. Large number has got
recruited from Chiniot, Bahawalpur, Dera Nawab, Bahawalnagar,
Faisalabad, Sialkot and other places. Though they do not speak a
word of Pashto, but are fighting side by side with Pathan
Taliban.
After Shakai peace deal with the militants in South Waziristan
in July 2005, Pakistan was subjected to a calculated slander
campaign. Having fixed more than one lac troops into the furnace
of FATA it was scoffed at for not doing enough to control
militancy in FATA. Pakistan was also accused of nuclear
proliferation and IAEA kept up the pressure to hand over AQ Khan
for interrogation. Musharraf accepted the charge and forced AQ
Khan to make a confession to defuse the heat. The religious
extremist threat was blown out of all proportions and it was
repeatedly stated that Pakistan’s nuclear assets had become
unsafe. Musharraf accepted this charge as well and promised to
fight extremism and terrorism with full force.
After declaring Pakistan as the most dangerous country, FATA was
declared as the most dangerous place on earth. Pakistan was
blamed for growing turbulence in Afghanistan since in view of US
military leaders and Karzai; Pak army was not doing enough to
control militancy. The phenomenon of missile attacks by drones
commenced in January 2006 when a suspected target in Damadola
was attacked killing scores of innocent civilians. Another
deadly missile attack was launched on a Madrassa in Bajaur in
October that year killing 80 students. Ever since, this
phenomenon continues unabated.
Once the ISI got freed from wild goose chase of so-called
terrorists and came under pressure on account of missing
persons, it started to concentrate on its primary task in the
troubled spots. To its horror it found far too many militant
groups and criminal gangs operating under the guise of religious
militants and cultivated by foreign agencies. They were the ones
involved in carrying out gruesome beheadings of security
personnel and torching girls’ schools to defame the real Taliban
who had a peaceful agenda. Besides CIA, RAW and RAM, even Iran
and Uzbekistan had developed its tentacles in Baluchistan, Swat
and Kurram Agency. Most of the pro-Pakistan groups had been
purchased or neutralized and those not coming to terms were
eliminated by groups sponsored by CIA. Things had gone
topsy-turvy and ISI found itself at a loss how to differentiate
between friend and foe.
It is when the ISI began to recover the lost ground and renewed
its old contacts in FATA and started to expose and block
clandestine activities of CIA, RAW and RAM that all hell broke
lose on ISI. Instead of feeling ashamed of what they were doing,
USA had the cheeks to start making hue and cry that ISI was
linked with the Taliban and that it must be emasculated. The
three colluding partners lost their cool when the Indian Embassy
in Kabul was subjected to a suicide attack on 7 July 2008. The
trio fumed with anger and blamed ISI without even carrying out
preliminary investigations. It was alleged that the perpetrator
of suicide attack belonged to Gujranwala. Adm. Mike Mullen and
Deputy Director CIA Stephen Kappes came huffing and puffing to
Islamabad on 12 July and expressed their concern in strong
words. Both Gen Tariq and Gen Kayani were told to bring the ISI
to heel and to control militancy on their side of the border.
The details of suicide bomber provided by the visitors proved
false. It transpired later on that it was a bomb planted in a
parked jeep which was detonated with the help of a remote
control and was master minded by Mossad.
In the meanwhile Bush gave a green signal to Pentagon to extend
the sphere of operations in Afghanistan into neighbouring FATA
in July. He said that besides Iraq and Afghanistan, Pakistan is
the third battleground. The military was told to hit targets
whenever any actionable intelligence was available without
notifying Pakistan. US troops started to man mobile posts all
along Pak-Afghan border with Paktika as their main forward base
camp. These hostile steps were taken in spite of the fact that
the new government under Zardari had abandoned its policy of
dialogue and resumed the policy of force against the militants.
After a month long Frontier Corps led operation in Khyber
Agency, the army was employed in Hangu to control the unrest. In
continuation of offensive policy, the army launched powerful
operations in Swat in July and in Bajaur on 6 August backed by
jetfighters, gunship helicopters, tanks and artillery guns and
started to make rapid progress against the well entrenched
militants. Operations in these two restive areas are still going
in with full steam and several hundred militants have been
killed. Instead of getting pleased, the Americans got disturbed
since they never intended to control militancy but to spread the
flames of militancy into cities and create anarchic conditions.
The month of September saw intensification of missile attacks
and each attack resulted in loss of innocent lives. To create
fear and panic among the peaceful residents of Waziristan and
also to target pro-government elements, missile attacks were
intensified and each attack killed innocent men, women and
children. The idea was to antagonise pro-government Waziris and
also to force them to migrate as had happened in case of Bajaur.
To further up the ante, Pakistan was declared as a battleground
and a first ever ground attack was carried out by US troops on
the night of 3 September at Angoor Adda killing 15 men women and
children. A deadly missile attack was conducted on pro-Pakistan
Jalaluddin Haqqani house in North Waziristan on 8 September
killing 25 inmates mostly women and children. He was blamed for
carrying out attack on Indian Embassy. The intruding drone was
forced to beat a hasty retreat on 12 September when own jets got
airborne and started to track it. A ground attack on 15th was
also thwarted by the troops and locals. So far 62 border
violations have been carried out by US-ISAF forces including 36
after the takeover by PPP government in March 2008. So far 30
missile attacks have been made killing innocent people. In none
of the attack any Al-Qaada operative or militant Taliban was
killed.
The nexus in Kabul is working upon a scripted plan to make FATA
lawless and beyond the control of security forces, push
militancy into settled areas and then into major cities and thus
create a civil warlike situation to prove their contention that
Pakistan was the most dangerous country in the world and that
the extremists were on the verge of taking over power and
nuclear weapons. After inflaming South Waziristan, North
Waziristan, Mohmand Agency, Khyber Agency, Darra Adam Khel,
Kurram Agency, Hangu and Swat, Bajaur Agency was built into a
stronghold of militants where huge cache of arms and ammunition
was dumped. By virtue of being located at the crossroad of the
tribal belt and also linked with Dir, Swat and Afghanistan, it
was to act as bulwark and a launching pad to provide
reinforcement to other areas.
10,000 Indian troops are stationed in Afghanistan under the garb
of supervising construction of road Jalalabad-Port Chahbahar
project that has now been completed. Whereas India has
officially declared 14 Indian consulates in Afghanistan, on
ground they have 107 in which 20 intelligence units are burning
their midnight oil to destabilise Pakistan. Many mercantile
shops run by Indians have an intelligence office in the rear. In
Wakhan, a religious Madrassa run by Indian Muslim clerics is
functioning since 2002 under the patronage of RAW and Mossad.
Very young boys, mostly orphans, destitute or homeless are
recruited. Recruits are mostly Afghans, Uzbeks, Tajiks and
Caucasians. The latter being fair skinned and resembling
Europeans are trained to hit targets in Europe or in USA to once
again create a 9/11 like situation.
Reportedly, 10,000 ideologically motivated terrorist and suicide
bombers have been trained. Besides receiving military training,
they have also been made to learn Pashto and customs of Pathans.
They are regularly infiltrated into troubled spots of Pakistan.
Posing as volunteers they join the rank and file of militants to
fight the army. They are the ones who are destroying schools, CD
shops, bridges and other installations and carrying out brutal
beheading of captured personnel. The idea is to create chaos and
confusion and also to defame the real Taliban that have not come
under their influence. They are also responsible for creating
cleavages within the people of FATA and in disrupting peace
deals. In Kurram Agency, Afghan officers and soldiers are
actively involved in the sectarian conflict by way of providing
arms and ammunition to Shias belonging to Tori tribe and
physically participating in duels with Sunnis. In Swat,
Fazlullah led militants are supplied with war munitions as well
as fighters.
Likewise, dissident tribal chiefs in Baluchistan including late
Akbar Bugti were also taken on board. The CIA helped in
reincarnating BLA and providing all sorts of war munitions to
Baloch militants belonging to Bugti, Marri and Mengal tribes and
establishing over 60 Farari camps in Baluchistan. Shamsi airbase
that was handed over to USA in October 2001, houses Blackhawk
helicopters primarily engaged in monitoring the entire length of
Iranian border. CIA has cultivated Sunni Iranian Baloch
Jandullah group (not the one that had operated against 5 Corps
commander). It is anti- Iranian regime and was utilised by CIA
to carryout acts of sabotage in Iran through Zahidan. Iran has
now constructed a stone wall all along its border to prevent
cross border terrorism from Baluchistan. It has clouded Pak-Iran
relations since the latter feels that such activities could not
have been undertaken without the blessing of Pak government.
It is now clear that our so-called friends have been playing a
double game. Now that USA has bared its teeth and let its
intentions known, to pretend that it would stop short of
achieving its objectives will be like living in fools’ paradise.
It is simply degrading to unashamedly say that we cannot fight
the Americans. It is also preposterous to assume that Pakistan
may not survive without American support. Pro-American elements
within Pakistan on US payroll have been parroting this theme
since creation of Pakistan to safeguard their vested interests.
North Korea, Cuba, Venezuela, Bolivia, Iran, Somalia are living
examples who have survived despite adopting hostile posture
against USA. It is high time that we gird up our loins and put
our act together to face up to the challenge boldly.
The army under Gen Kayani has expressed its resolve to confront
the threat and safeguard country’s sovereignty irrespective of
the consequences. It is now up to our week-kneed rulers
oblivious of the ominous threat and still busy in power game as
to how they stand up to the test. It will be naive to expect
that the threat will be warded off with diplomacy alone. We must
make USA realise that it will become exceedingly difficult for
US led allied troops to operate in Afghanistan if Pakistan opts
out of fighting US war of terror and refuses to provide transit
facility to carry oil and food supplies to its troops in
Afghanistan. The magnitude of dependence can be gauged from the
fact each day over 400 containers ply from Karachi and Quetta to
Afghanistan transporting food, munitions and 300 million gallons
of fuel for US-Nato troops in Afghanistan. We may also consider
bridling CIA’s unchecked activities and closing down four bases
in control of USA.
Asif Haroon Raja is a defence and a political analyst.
-Asian Tribune -
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