Balochistan: An Addiction to Murder | South Asia Intelligence Review (SAIR), Vol. No. 10.31
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SOUTH ASIA INTELLIGENCE REVIEW
Weekly Assessments & Briefings
Volume 10, No. 31, February 6, 2012

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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Balochistan: An Addiction to Murder
Ajai Sahni,
Editor, SAIR; Executive Director, Institute for Conflict Management & SATP
Tushar Ranjan Mohanty
Research Associate, Institute for Conflict Management

Zamur Domki (34), the wife, and Jaana Domki (13), the daughter of the Balochistan Member of Provincial Assembly (MPA) Mir Bakhtiar Domki, were shot dead near Gizri flyover of Karachi on January 31, 2012. The driver of their vehicle was also killed. Zamur and Jaana were also the sister and niece, respectively, of Baloch Republican Party (BRP) leader Brahamdagh Khan Bugti, and the granddaughter and great-granddaughter of Nawab Akbar Khan Bugti, one time Governor and Chief Minister of Balochistan, a former Federal Minister of State for the Interior, and eventual rebel leader, who was killed in a military operation in August 2006 , by then President Pervez Musharraf’s regime.

According to the eyewitness account of a helper’s 12 year old daughter, who was also in the vehicle, but whose life was spared, the incident occurred a short distance from the residence of Zamur Domki’s maternal uncle in the exclusive and heavily policed Clifton area, with a Police unit “spectating (sic) from a distance”. The Baloch nationalist website Balochwarna records,

Between 1 and 1:30 AM on the 31st of January, shortly after leaving the uncle's house, a black coloured car intercepted Bugti's car near Gizri Bridge, Clifton. A man dressed in black shalwar kameez and wearing a black face mask jumped out of the car and shot the driver, Barkat Baloch, as they tried to get away. The driver was killed on the spot as a result of multiple bullet wounds to the head. Then the assailant opened the rear door at which point two bikes arrived at the scene and parked on the left and right side of the car. Upon opening the door, Zamur Bugti offered her jewellery, phone and valuables to the man, thinking that he was a robber. In response the killer told Zamur that he didn't need her valuables and that he was there to kill her and her daughter, in urdu. Zamur Bugti told him to spare her daughter and that he could kill her. At this point the killer went to the daughter who was sitting on the front passenger seat and fired multiple shots at her, hitting her in the chest and neck.

Zamur Bugti was made to witness the brutal killing of her daughter. Zamur Bugti was then shot over a dozen times in the head, face and neck at point blank range and was left in a pool of blood. During this incident, the police were spectating from a distance.

These ‘target killings’ have all the characteristics of a political assassination by Pakistan’s security and intelligence agencies, in a long succession of what have come to be known as “kill and dump” operations targeting Baloch rebels, dissidents, and their families, both within and outside Balochistan. Commentators have noted that their apparent intent was to send a “chilling message” to Brahamdagh Bugti, currently living in exile in Geneva. Pakistani efforts to secure Brahamdagh’s extradition have recently failed.

Qadeer Baloch, Vice President of Voice for Baloch Missing Persons, claims that as many as 14,362 people, including 150 women, had ‘disappeared’ in Balochistan since 2001, and at least 370 mutilated bodies had been recovered from different parts of the Province since the latest cycle of insurgency broke out in 2004. Giving far more conservative estimates of confirmed disappearances, Zohra Yusuf, Chairperson of the Human Rights Commission of Pakistan (HRCP), a non-government body, notes, “It is a matter of grave alarm that 107 new cases of enforced disappearance have been reported in Balochistan in 2011, and the ‘missing persons’ are increasingly turning up dead.” The Asian Human Rights Commission (AHRC) had estimated the number of executions of ‘disappeared’ persons at 270 in just six months, between July and December 2010. The disappearances and killings are widely believed to be orchestrated by Pakistan’s security and intelligence agencies, particularly including the Frontier Corps (FC) and the Inter Services Intelligence (ISI), or by their proxies, prominently including the Tehreek-e-Nafaz-e-Aman Balochistan (TNAB, Movement for the Restoration of Peace, Balochistan). According to AHRC, TNAB had confessed to the killing of many Baloch nationalists, and had also announced its intention to kill another 35 on its hit list. TNAB is said to be the armed wing of the Muttahida Mahaz Balochistan (United Front Balochistan), headed by Siraj Raisani, the brother of Balochistan Chief Minister Nawab Aslam Raisani. TNAB has allegedly been formed by secret agencies, particularly by the ISI, to crush the Baloch nationalist movement. On November 5, 2011, TNAB had claimed responsibility for the killing of two abducted Baloch activists. Their bodies were recovered with marks of extreme torture, and bullet wounds to the head – a pattern widely seen in executions attributed to FC and intelligence agencies as well. TNAB had also declared they were holding another four people, who would be killed ‘soon’. Significantly, while the Federal Ministry of Interior released a list of 31 banned outfits on November 5, 2011, including six Baloch organisations, the TNAB was conspicuous by its absence from the list. Despite its public claims of abductions and executions, no action by security agencies against the TNAB is yet on record.

Very significantly, news trickling out of Balochistan indicates that the Army intensified operations in the Bugti areas on January 31, 2012, precisely the date of the Domki killings. Ground operations, backed by helicopter gunships and fighter jets, were launched in Sui, Gopat, Pir Koh, Uch and adjacent areas. Initial reports confirm three deaths, including one woman, and ‘critical injuries’ to at least 15 Baloch villagers. In a statement on the operations, BRP central spokesman Mir Sher Mohammad Bugti, observed that, “occupying Forces (the Pakistan Army) have intensified military operations in Balochistan after the concerns expressed by the American State Department on genocide of the Baloch nation and human rights violations by occupying Forces in Balochistan.” He stated, further, that the Army had made certain areas of Balochistan, including Dera Bugti and Kohlu, no-go zones for the media and human rights organizations. On January 15, 2012, Victoria Nuland, the US State Department Spokesperson, had stated, “The US is deeply concerned about the ongoing violence in Balochistan, especially targeted killings, disappearances and other human rights abuses... This is a complex issue. We strongly believe that the best way forward is for all the parties to resolve their differences through peaceful dialogue... And we also urge them to really lead and conduct a dialogue that takes this issue forward.”

Earlier, in April 2011, when reports of Army operations in Dera Bugti trickled out into the media, Chief of Army Staff (COAS) General Ashfaq Pervez Kayani had stated, on April 18, 2011, that troops in Balochistan would return to barracks “soon”, and no operation would be carried out in the Province without the permission of the Provincial Government. Kayani had claimed that not even a single Army unit was conducting any operations in Balochistan, adding that just two battalions were ‘present’ in the Sui area of the Province. Chief Minister Raisani, on May 5, 2011, had gone even further, to claim that there were no Army troops or tanks present in the Province.

The truth is hard to come by in Balochistan, with one of the most repressive media regimes imposed by the state, its covert agencies, and its armed non-state proxies. On January 25, 2012, senior journalists at the Quetta Press Club described Balochistan as the ‘second most dangerous place’ on earth, after Afghanistan, for journalists. Earlier on November 26, 2011, the Baloch Muttahida Diffah Army (BMDA), an ISI-backed front outfit, issued a hit list of four journalists – Abdullah Kidrani, Abdullah Shawani, Munir Noor and Abdul Haq – from the Khuzdar District, and declared that they would soon be ‘targeted’. Mir Jang Baloch, BMDA spokesman, stated that journalists who were working as informers of the Balochistan Liberation Army (BLA), Baloch Republican Army (BRA) and other separatist groups would be punished. Subsequently, the Khuzdar Press Club had announced that all journalists of the Khuzdar District would suspend their “professional duties” for an indefinite period, commencing November 27, 2011, which is still on till date. The threat extends beyond media professionals to all groups seeking to uncover state excesses. The Human Rights Watch World Report 2012 notes,

Since the beginning of 2011, human rights activists and academics critical of the military have also been killed in the Province. They include Siddique Eido, a coordinator for the nongovernmental Human Rights Commission of Pakistan (HRCP); Saba Dashtiyari, a professor at the University of Balochistan and an acclaimed Baloch writer and poet; and Baloch politician Abdul Salam... .

Unsurprisingly, there is little expectation that the truth of the latest high profile assassinations will ever see the light, and establishment statements are already muddying the waters, suggesting that the killings were a part of a family blood feud, or of tribal rivalries. Pakistan’s Minister for the Interior, Rehman Malik, has sought to blame ‘foreign agencies’ and a ‘conspiracy against the country’, claiming, “Whenever we head towards positive development in Balochistan such things start happening.” A Joint Investigation Team, headed by an Inspector General of Police, has been established to look into what Interior Minister Malik concedes, is “not an ordinary incident”. Further, the National Assembly’s (NA’s) Standing Committee on Defence has summoned the country’s various intelligence agencies to give an in camera briefing on the incident and on the “poor security situation” in Balochistan, on February 29.

These steps have, obviously, failed to inspire significant confidence among the Baloch, and particularly among members of the bereaved family. Bakhtiar Domki has already declared, “I do not expect justice.”

News of the Domki killings paralysed wide areas across Balochistan with a ‘shutter down’ strike and mass protests in Quetta, Sibi, Turbat, Dera Allahyar, Naushki, Mastung, Hub, Washuk, Khuzdar and other parts of the Province. The strike was called by the BRP and backed by the Balochistan Nationalist Party (BNP), National Party (NP) and other Baloch nationalist formations. The protests continued well into February 4, when the Police opened fire on demonstrators blocking the National Highway near the bridge over River Nari in Sibi. Two civilians were killed and another four, including a TV cameraman, were injured. A near complete blackout of news on atrocities in Balochistan has been imposed, worsening the already heavily restricted news flows from the Province, and all Urdu channels in the Province were shut down after the January 31 incident.

The Domki killings have also provoked retaliatory violence by Baloch militant formations. On February 1, 2012, BLA cadres attacked four security Check Posts and killed at least 15 FC personnel, and injured another 12, near the Margat coalmines in the Mach area of Bolan District. BLA spokesperson Mirak Baloch claimed the attack, declaring, “It is a reaction to the January 31, 2011, killings of granddaughter and great-grand-daughter of Nawab Akbar Bugti in Karachi.” With military operations also escalating, a bloody cycle of violence is inevitable.

Indeed, the Baloch separatist sentiment has been hardening continuously in the wake of continuous neglect and intensifying atrocities, disappearances and killings by the state and its proxies. Militant Baloch nationalist groupings have continuously sustained their campaigns against Islamabad since Nawab Bugti initiated the fifth rebellion in the Province in 2004. In December 2011, Sardar Ataullah Mengal, leader of the BNP-Mengal had warned that “Balochistan will not remain with you (Pakistan)”, if extrajudicial killings and Security Force excesses did not end ‘immediately’.

The Domki murders, finding their victims in a woman and a child from one of the most prominent Baloch families, suggest that Islamabad and its military masters continue to believe that the Baloch sentiment can easily be ignored, and the independence movement in the Province can be crushed once again, as it already has been on four earlier occasions. It is precisely such arrogance that led to the loss of Pakistan’s eastern wing, and the creation of Bangladesh. More sagacious opinion in Pakistan is already recognizing a threat to the ‘Federation’ in the vicious cycle of state and rebel violence in Balochistan. It remains to be seen whether a military and political leadership – which appears to have embarked on a suicidal enterprise both within Pakistan and in its wider neighbourhood – has the capacity to learn any lessons from the enduring disaster that is its own history.


NEWS BRIEFS

Weekly Fatalities: Major Conflicts in South Asia
January 30-February 5, 2012

 

Civilians

Security Force Personnel

Terrorists/Insurgents

Total

BANGLADESH

 

Islamist Extremism

1
0
0
1

INDIA

 

Assam

0
0
1
1

Jammu and Kashmir

0
0
2
2

Manipur

0
0
1
1

Meghalaya

1
0
0
1

Nagaland

0
0
2
2

Left-wing Extremism

 

Andhra Pradesh

1
0
0
1

Jharkhand

0
3
0
3

West Bengal

1
0
1
2

Total (INDIA)

3
3
7
13

PAKISTAN

 

Balochistan

7
33
0
40

FATA

4
18
85
107

Khyber Pakhtunkhwa

9
3
2
14

Sindh

16
2
0
18

Total (PAKISTAN)

36
56
87
179
Provisional data compiled from English language media sources.


INDIA

More than 18,000 militants have surrendered in Assam since 2001: More than 18,000 militants have laid down arms since 2001 in Assam and more than INR 400 crores has been spent alone on paying incentives to these surrendered militants without achieving its goal. Further, majority of militants, who laid down arms since 2001, did not have any Police cases against them and that militant formation do not deposit all their weapons during the surrender. Asian Age, February 6, 2012.

Government announces six projects in Maoist areas: The Union Government on February 3 announced creation of six projects in Non-Timber Forest Produce (NTFP) covering around 60 Communist Party of India-Maoist (CPI-Maoist)-affected Districts in the country to improve the livelihood options of the tribal people, who fall prey to extremist ideas owing to crushing poverty. The projects to be executed within six months will be in the Public Private Partnership mode and will cover the States like Jharkhand, Chhattisgarh, Odisha, Madhya Pradesh, Andhra Pradesh and Maharashtra. India Blooms, February 4, 2012.

Target Naxal leaders, says Union Home Minister P Chidambaram: Seconding the Andhra Pradesh (AP) model of dealing with Naxalism [Left Wing Extremism (LWE)], Union Home Minister P Chidambaram has asked the paramilitary top brass to identify the leaders' set-up of Naxal outfits and undertake operations to cripple the movement of LWE. In a meeting with Central Reserve Police Force (CRPF) top brass recently, Chidambaram argued that cadre can be recruited overnight but leaders cannot be made and urged the paramilitary to arrest Naxal leaders like Kishan Da of West Bengal, Sabyasachi Panda of Odisha and Kundan Pahan of Jharkhand. Pioneer, January 4, 2012.

Maoists making money through illegal coal trade in Jharkhand: The Jharkhand Police on February 3 found the Communist Party of India-Maoist (CPI-Maoist) making profits from illegal coal trade through private coal companies when they conducted raids on companies in Bokaro District. "After watching their work for 12 days, Police conducted raids on three private coal companies and seized 2000 tonne of illegally dumped coal," Deputy Inspector General of Police LP Singh said. Zee News, February 4, 2012.

Ban on SIMI to be extended: The Union Government has decided to continue the ban imposed on Students Islamic Movement of India (SIMI). The ban has been extended in light of SIMI's alleged links with certain Pakistan-based terrorist outfits including Lashkar-e-Toiba (LeT) and its front, Indian Mujahideen. Times of India, February 3, 2012.

Training Schools for spies and cops: To counter the increasing threat of terrorist and anti-state activities the Union Ministry of Home Affairs (MHA) has approved several proposals for paramilitary forces, ranging from setting up a 'detective training school' to procuring huge numbers of high-tech 'radio sets'. A school to train spies - Central Detective Training School (CDTS) - will be set up in Ghaziabad in Uttar Pradesh by the Bureau of Police Research and Development (BPR&D). Times of India, February 2, 2012.

ANVC heading for a split in Meghalaya: The Achik National Volunteer Council (ANVC) which is on a tripartite ceasefire agreement with the Government of India and the Government of Meghalaya is heading for a split. Sources said that Mukost Marak will take over as the 'commander in chief' of the new faction while Rimpu Barnard N Marak will be its new 'chairman' and Dilseng the 'general secretary'. Shillong Times, February 2, 2012.

Maoists plan 10th congress in Chhattisgarh: The Communist Party of India-Maoist (CPI-Maoist) are planning to hold their crucial 10th congress in the Maoist-controlled Abujhmad, a 6,000-Square kilometres densely forested region extending from south Bastar in Chhattisgarh to Gadchiroli in Maharashtra, reports received by the State Police said in Raipur on January 31. Asian Age, February 1, 2012.

Union Government declares GNLA as 'terrorist outfit: Union Government, on January 31, declared the Garo National Liberation Army (GNLA), a terrorist outfit under the Unlawful Activities (Prevention) Act. "The government has approved and declared GNLA a terrorist due to its growing terror activities in certain parts of Meghalaya," Shambu Singh, Joint Secretary in-charge of the Northeast in the Union Home Ministry, said. Shillong Times, February 2, 2012.

ISI and LeT involved in FICN racket: Border Security Forces have found out that a racket in fake Indian Currency Notes (FICN) is operating from Pakistan with the support of Inter-Services Intelligence (ISI) and Lashkar-e-Toiba (LeT) for distribution of FICN in India. Interrogation of apprehended FICN operatives and intelligence reports have revealed that the kingpin of this racket identified as Iqbal Rana was working at the behest of ISI. IBN Live, February 1, 2012.


NEPAL

PLA commanders seizing cheques‚ says Nepali Congress leader: Nepali Congress (NC) leader, Ram Saran Mahat, on February 6 revealed that the Maoist commanders have been seizing cheques issued to the retired PLA fighters, demanding a certain percentage to the party. "We told Prime Minister Dr Baburam Bhattarai during today's meeting and he said...he would find out the truth," he said, adding that the Maoist leaders were reluctant to discuss the issue." Himalayan Times, February 6, 2012.

Prachanda says NC's claim for government leadership 'valid': The Unified Communist Party of Nepal-Maoist (UCPN-M) chairman Pushpa Kamal Dahal aka Prachanda on February 3 said that the claim of the Nepali Congress (NC) over the Government leadership was valid. "Our party and the UML have headed the government twice each. The NC's demand for a turn is valid," he added. Nepal News, February 4, 2012.

CPN-UML won't accept ethnic federalism, says party Vice Chairman:Communist Party of Nepal-Unified Marxist Leninist (CPN-UML) Vice Chairman Bidya Devi Bhandari said that the party would not accept ethnic federalism with special rights for ethnic groups with identity. Claiming that fresh conflict would surface in the country due to the establishment of ethnicity-based federalism, Bhandari said, "The country will head towards ethnic war if the concerned authority fails to use its brain on time." ekantipur, February 2, 2012.

SC stays Government decision on conflict-era land deal legalization: The Supreme Court on January 31 stayed the Government´s decision to legalize the land deals arbitrated by the Unified Communist Party of Nepal-Maoist (UCPN-M) cadres during the insurgency, until next order. Myrepublica.com, February 1, 2012.

Party set for people's revolt‚ warns UCPN-M Chairman Prachanda: Fearing that the tasks of taking the peace process through and promulgating the constitution is only a chimerical dream, Unified Communist Party of Nepal-Maoist (UCPN-M) Chairman Pushpa Kamal Dahal aka Prachanda on January 30 warned of seizing State power through people's revolt. "If conspiracies are hatched to jeopardise achievements of the People's Movement II, we are all set to resort to people's revolt," said Dahal. Himalyan Times, January 31, 2012.


PAKISTAN

85 militants and 18 SFs among 107 persons killed during the week in FATA: 18 militants and seven soldiers were killed and three others injured during a clash that broke out when a group of 40 Tehreek-e-Taliban Pakistan (TTP) militants attacked on Security Forces (SFs) check post in Shidano Dhand area of Kurram Agency in Federally Administered Tribal Areas (FATA) on February 3.

Three militants and a volunteer of the tribal lashkar (militia) were killed in fresh fighting between the Lashkar-e-Islam (LI) and the Zakhakhel tribe in Sherkhel area in Tirah Valley of Khyber Agency.

Army fighter jets pounded militant hideouts in the Mamozai area of Orakzai Agency before dawn, killing at least 20 TTP militants on February 1.

At least 35 militants and eight soldiers were killed in a gun-battle after a newly-established security check post was attacked in Jogi heights of Mamozai tehsil (revenue unit) in Kurram Agency on January 31.

Six militants were killed in a clash with security personnel, the third day of an operation in the Frontier Region Kohat. Dawn; Daily Times; The News; Tribune, January 30-February 5, 2012.

33 SFs and seven civilians among 40 persons killed during the week in Balochistan: Three persons were killed when unidentified militants opened fire on a car in the Mashkil area of Quetta, the provincial capital of Balochistan on February 2.

At least 15 personnel of the Frontier Corps (FC) were killed and 12 others were injured when militants belonging to the Baloch Liberation Army (BLA) attacked four FC check posts near Margat coalmines in Mach area of Bolan District on February 1.

16 Frontier Corps (FC) personnel were killed and 3 others injured when BLA militants opened fire on three FC check posts in the Killi Pir Ismail area of Ziarat District on January 31. Dawn; Daily Times; The News; Tribune, January 30-February 5, 2012.

Banned jihadi outfits open new pseudonym bank accounts for receiving funds, reveals BBC Report: The banned jihadi groups have seen a revival after affiliates have started opening local and foreign currency accounts to restart their money-trains. BBC Urdu reported that it had managed to obtain a list from Intelligence Agencies of jihadi groups, which have been banned by Pakistan, have been opening new accounts under pseudonyms to receive funds from local as well as foreign sources. Tribune, February 4, 2012.

National Assembly body summons intelligence agencies for poor Balochistan security situation on February 29, 2012: In the wake of deteriorating security situation in Balochistan and the January 31, 2011 murder of the granddaughter of Nawab Akbar Bugti, the National Assembly Standing Committee on Defence on February 3 summoned Intelligence Agencies to brief it on February 29, 2012. Daily Times, February 4, 2012.

Loopholes in laws helping outlawed outfits, says Federal Minister for Interior Rehman Malik: Federal Minister for Interior Rehman Malik on February 3 stressed the need for improving law to control activities of banned organisations. Malik told the National Assembly that the delay in approval of an amendment to the Anti-Terrorism Act was the main reason behind banned outfits' holding rallies across the country. Further, Malik apprised the Senate that the January 31, 2011 murder was a conspiracy against the country. Daily Times; Dawn, February 4, 2012.

US State Department issues new travel warning for Pakistan: The United Sates (US) State Department issued a new travel warning for Pakistan on February 2, telling American citizens that the reaction to the November 26 NATO raid on a border post had created new threats for them in that country. The travel warning replaces the one issued on August 8, 2011, and updates information on security incidents and reminds US citizens of ongoing security concerns in Pakistan. Dawn, February 3, 2012.

Pakistan will do whatever Kabul wants for peace, says Foreign Minister Hina Rabbani Khar: Pakistan is willing to do whatever the Afghanistan want to help facilitate an end to 10 years of war with the Afghan Taliban, Foreign Minister Hina Rabbani Khar said on February 2. Speaking a day after talks with President Hamid Karzai in Kabul billed as a fence-mending visit designed to ease frosty ties, Khar sought to refute perceptions that Islamabad was an obstacle to peace. Further, Hina Rabbani Khar said that Pakistan would be willing to push the Afghan militant groups like the Haqqani Network and the Afghan Taliban to make peace if asked to do so by the Afghan Government, an action seen as key to the reconciliation process. Tribune, February 3, 2012.

Prime Minister Yousaf Raza Gilani seeks international help on Afghan refugees' repatriation: Prime Minister Yousaf Raza Gilani, on February 2, said Pakistan wanted the return of Afghan refugees to their homeland with honour and called upon the international community for assistance in this regard. The Prime Minister said Pakistan would support any reconciliation process, which was Afghan-led and Afghan-owned and added that its culmination would not destabilize Pakistan. Daily Times, February 3, 2012.

Peace in Afghanistan critical for Pakistan, says Prime Minister Yousaf Raza Gilani: Prime Minister Yousaf Raza Gilani on February 1 said that peace in Afghanistan was critical for the peace and security in Pakistan, and said that it does not want any political settlement in Afghanistan that would destabilise Pakistan. Talking to Afghan Senate delegation, Gilani reiterated that Pakistan would continue to support an Afghan-led and Afghan-owned reconciliation process that would not cause instability in Pakistan. Tribune, February 2, 2012.

Federal Government asks Punjab Government to stay away from banned outfits: A couple of Ministers from Southern Punjab during the Cabinet Meeting on February 1 raised the issue of former leader of Lashkar-e-Jhangvi (LeJ), Malik Ishaq's free movement in Punjab and said that it appeared that Ishaq got patronage from the Provincial Government. Malik Ishaq had attended a rally organised by the Difa-e-Pakistan Council in Multan District on January 30, 2011. Dawn, February 2, 2012.

ISI has direct links with the Afghan Taliban, claims a leaked NATO report: A secret NATO report claims to "fully expose" direct links between Pakistan's Inter-Services Intelligence (ISI) and the Afghan Taliban, according to January 31 report of the British Broadcasting Corporation (BBC). According to the BBC, the leaked report notes "Pakistan manipulation of the Afghan Taliban senior leadership continues unabatedly." It goes on to add "as this report is derived directly from insurgents, it should be considered informational and not necessarily analytical." Tribune, February 1, 2012.

US drone aircraft have struck Taliban and al Qaeda targets within Pakistan, confirms US President Barack Obama: United States (US) President Barack Obama on January 30 officially acknowledged and confirmed that the US drone aircraft have struck Taliban and al Qaeda targets within Pakistan. Obama said, "A lot of these strikes have been in the Federally Administered Tribal Areas (FATA). For the most part, they've been very precise precision strikes against al Qaeda and their affiliates, and we're very careful in terms of how it's been applied." Dawn, January 31, 2012.


SRI LANKA

UNP ready to assist Government to implement LLRC recommendations: United National Party (UNP) called on the Government to implement the recommendations made by the Lessons Learnt and Reconciliation Commission (LLRC) to show its commitment to finding a political solution to the ethnic issue and addresses the needs of the Tamil people. UNP General Secretary Tissa Attanayake says the UNP was ready to participate in any discussion and support the Government in its endeavour to implement the LLRC recommendations. Colombo Page, February 1, 2012.

Issues confronting normalization process in the country should be resolved democratically, says President Mahinda Rajapakse: President Mahinda Rajapakse said on January 30 that the issues confronting normalization process in the country should be resolved democratically, through the Parliamentary Select Committee (PSC) process. "Whether it be 13 plus or 13 minus, these and more issues should be sorted out through the PSC mechanism. The Opposition must join in this effort as the problems at hand should be resolved democratically," the President explained. Daily News, January 31, 2012.


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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