Update to the story on the attack on Sergey Bondareko, commander of the rebel's Lugansk "Rus" battalion. Russian language press had mentioned the attack in reference to another attack on the commander of the Lugansk "Ghost Brigade", Alexei Mozgovoi, which took place March 7th.
My story, dated on last Friday said that Russian language press failed to mention the date of the attack on Bondarenko. This story from Ukrainian press says it took place March 6th. This attack, like the attack on Mozgovoi, appears to be another directional mine, detonated by cell phone.
From the article:
Infighting continues among the pro-Russian terrorists and criminals.
On March 6 in Antratsyt (Luhansk oblast) there was an explosion of a powerful radio-controlled explosive device. This explosion was associated with the assassination attempt on Sergey Bondarenko (also known as “Bondar” and “Bendiks”), the leader of Rus, a local militant unit. According to various estimates, this unit consists of more than 200 fighters.
The epicenter of the explosion was on the shoulder of the Rostov highway (Rostovskaya Street) across the street from the Russia department store, next to the store’s service access road and a gas station controlled by Bondar. There was no damage, except for a destroyed spruce tree. Some press and videos finger Lugansk president Igor Plotininsky for the two attacks.
[DAWN] NECESSARY and welcome as it is for the state to take its law-and-order and judicial responsibilities more seriously, there is an unmistakable sense that politics is driving the many stunning revelations in Bloody Karachi ...formerly the capital of Pakistain, now merely its most important port and financial center. It is among the largest cities in the world, with a population of 18 million, most of whom hate each other and many of whom are armed and dangerous... at the moment.
From a bizarre, late-night televised confessional of a death-row convict to the interior minister dilating on the murder of Imran Farooq in London, there are important, disturbing facts coming to light -- but few of those seem to be purely about the logic of law and order.
Consider just one fact: the interior minister, Nisar Ali Khan, has spoken about the murder of Imran Farooq, as though there have been sudden revelations.
In fact, for a while now, for years in fact, there has been speculation on the Imran Farooq front. Does the security establishment have in jug two men who may be connected to the murder in London?
If it does, why have they not been brought forward for so long to admit the crimes they may have committed? Surely, it belies the state's attempt to bring to justice criminals as and when they are discovered, as opposed to prosecuting when it is politically convenient.
Beyond the Karachi episode, beyond the convenient timing of state intervention, there remains a troubling question. When will the powerful recesses of the state ever be brought to a position where they are made to act when evidence is unearthed, as opposed to when it is politically convenient or relevant to do so?
Surely, be it Karachi or Fata or Balochistan ...the Pak province bordering Kandahar and Uruzgun provinces in Afghanistan and Sistan Baluchistan in Iran. Its native Baloch propulation is being displaced by Pashtuns and Punjabis and they aren't happy about it... or Khyber-Pakhtunkhwa ... formerly NWFP, still Terrorism Central... , this country needs to evolve in a way where politics is fundamentally separate from institutional interests.
It is quite remarkable that a city of an estimated 20m individuals has been held hostage for so long, in so naked and ugly a fashion, as Karachi has -- and to what end?
The myth of the dominance of one or more political parties, and possibly myrmidon elements within, dominating Karachi has been shattered. But the denizens of Karachi -- nationally, in fact -- ought to ask why it has taken so long for the state to do its job.
In the midst of the overtly politicised actions on Karachi, and, now, possibly including the PPP, owing to sensational headlines created by a known criminal element, there is also a question that needs to be asked of the political parties that dominate urban and rural Sindh.
Why have those parties, be it the PPP, ANP, or sundry regional parties, not sought to rescue the erstwhile city of lights by the Arabian Sea from the ugly, parochial and violent politics that have dominated it for decades?
Surely, for all the misdeeds and unwise ideas that may emanate from certain, non-political quarters, the politicianship of Sindh needs to accept that it has failed the people of Sindh.
Posted by: Fred ||
03/21/2015 00:00 ||
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[DAWN] ANOTHER murderous attack on Christian worshippers. More expressions of shock and horror. And yet more crocodile tears.
So far, so predictable. But one element that did not follow the script was the brutal killing of two apparently innocent bystanders by the enraged mob of Christians who poured out into the streets. Horrific images of the two victims were shown repeatedly on TV being set on fire after they had been beaten to death or into unconsciousness.
Chaudhry Nisar, the interior minister, called the lynching an act of terrorism, and TV anchors swiftly shifted the focus of the tragedy from the church bombings that killed 15 people, and injured many more, to the spontaneous Christian response. Adding fuel to the fire was the attack on a car that prompted the woman driver to drive off, killing two protesters and injuring several more.
Clearly, there is no moral equivalence here between the bombings and the swift and savage reaction they provoked. Both deserve our unreserved condemnation. But while the attack on the churches was clearly premeditated and carefully planned by the TTP, the response was not.
Obviously, mob violence cannot be tolerated, and the perpetrators of the lynching will probably be tracked down, tried and punished. But can the same be said of those behind the church bombings? Although the TTP has grabbed credit, little has been done by the Punjab 1.) Little Orphan Annie's bodyguard
2.) A province of Pakistain ruled by one of the Sharif brothers
3.) A province of India. It is majority (60 percent) Sikh and Hindoo (37 percent), which means it has relatively few Moslem riots.... government to root out the organization that has infested large swathes of territory in the south of the province.
Over the years, Pakistain's minorities have come to expect no justice from the state. Time and again, imambargahs, churches and temples have been attacked; Hindu and Christian villages and localities have been sacked by baying mobs incited by local holy mans; Ahmadis have been bumped off; and Shias have been targeted across the country. Few, if any, of the perpetrators have been apprehended or tried.
It is this bitter knowledge of the state's indifference that probably clouded the minds of the survivors of the recent Lahore attacks as they mistakenly lashed out at two men they thought were involved. Tired of being forever the victims of hard boy violence, they decided to take matters into their own hands.
Not long ago, a Christian couple was burned to death in a brick kiln after their legs had been broken. The wife was pregnant at the time. They were working at a kiln as indentured labour, and the owner, thinking they would flee without repaying their debt, ordered them to be burned. The pretext for the mob was the discovery of a burned copy of the Holy Koran that had allegedly been planted.
The blasphemy law continues to be misused as a licence to kill. Between 1986, when it was introduced by Gen Zia in its present form, and 2010, over 1,700 people have been charged under it. Over 50 of them have reportedly been killed in prison before the conclusion of their trial. Anybody who wants the law to be debated and amended is at risk: for speaking up, Punjab governor Salmaan Taseer was assassinated by his security guard, while Sherry Rehman faces threats to her life.
Whereas Pak minorities face daily discrimination and violence, Moslem migrants in the West not only build mosques and proselytise freely, they also complain of Islamophobia ...the irrational fear that Moslems will act the way they usually do... if they are prevented from aggressively expressing extreme views. Any attempt by authorities to curb radicalism is considered an assault on their human rights ...which are often intentionally defined so widely as to be meaningless... .
Whenever Christians are targeted, Moslems piously quote the verse from the Holy Book declaring Jews and Christians ahle kitab, or People of the Book, and therefore to be protected. But the reality is very different across much of the Moslem world where Christians are being killed and subjected to vicious persecution in Egypt, Iraq, Syria, Nigeria and Libya.
The reality is that many in the Moslem world are increasingly intolerant of other beliefs. While they do not actively participate in the kind of religious cleansing we are witnessing today, their acceptance of the violence in the name of Islam contributes to the growing persecution of minorities.
Apart from a handful of civil society activists, few in Pakistain -- or in other Moslem countries -- protest against the treatment of non-Moslems who have lived in their midst for centuries. Contrast this with the large demonstrations that have taken place in Europe against right-wing, anti-immigrant marches aimed at intimidating Moslems.
We cite holy texts to define our relationship with non-Moslems. But surely our dealings with those who follow different religions ought to be dictated by common decency, not by articles of faith. Under our Constitution, we are all equal citizens. Except, of course, Moslems are more equal than others. And minorities are the least equal of all.
So what does the Lahore horror story teach us? For cynics, it's the same old lesson: the weak and the vulnerable are always the victims.
Posted by: Fred ||
03/21/2015 00:00 ||
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#1
I'm beginning to think Dawn is Pakistan's version of the Washington Post, slapping a thin veener of 'reasonableness' over the ideological core.
[DAWN] A major consequence of the preoccupation with ideology has been to create the dichotomy of increased dependence on the very donors whom Paks love to hate but whose assistance is crucial in maintaining an expansive national security state.
Pakistain is, of course, not the only nation where rhetoric trumps cold calculation of national interest. Only recently Greece elected a government which reflected the nation's anger against European demands for austerity and restraint. Prime Minister Alexis Tsipras made defiant statements against Germany at a time when his country most needed German support in getting out of a debt crisis.
As one observer pointed out, his poll ratings rose as a result of the grandstanding even though bank deposits in Greece fell, further aggravating the country's economic crisis. Defiant statements won Tsipras applause from his fellow countrymen but the net impact of these statements on the national economy was negative.
Compare such emotion-based decision-making with the conduct of East Asian nations including China and South Korea. After years of describing the United States as the centre of global imperialism, the Chinese Communist Party had no qualms about partnering with the Americans to modernise and expand China's economy. The South Koreans built a self-sustaining economy with a cumulative aid input from the US of only $15 billion since 1950 by avoiding confrontation with America and by cooperating with erstwhile enemy Japan.
Pakistain received $40bn in bilateral US aid over the same period. Instead of utilising aid as a catalyst for indigenous growth, Pakistain has ended up becoming dependent on it. Donor funding serves as a substitute for revenue generation while wars and terrorism have deterred investment.
On the one hand, Paks are motivated by the notion of national honour in refusing to trade with India until the Kashmire dispute is resolved. On the other, we remain dependent on others to pay our bills. Government officials celebrate whenever one of Pakistain's foreign benefactors approves a loan instead of regretting the fact of having to borrow so much so often.
Securing Kashmire, balancing India and dominating Afghanistan are Pakistain's ideological obsessions even though pragmatic considerations necessitate a course correction. For instance, Pakistain could adopt an approach to Kashmire similar to that of China over Taiwan. It doesn't need to give up its claim, but it could move on other issues with India first. Chinese president Jiang Zemin suggested as much in his address to Pakistain's Senate in December 1996. Opening trade with India could bolster Pakistain's economy while buying electricity from across the border could alleviate power shortages.
In any case, realism demands recognition of the fact that Pakistain no longer enjoys the support of the international community on the Kashmire issue. Last year, Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif ... served two non-consecutive terms as prime minister, heads the Pakistain Moslem League (Nawaz). Noted for his spectacular corruption, the 1998 Pak nuclear test, border war with India, and for being tossed by General Musharraf... was the only head of government to mention Kashmire among 193 that spoke at the United Nations ...the Oyster Bay money pit... General Assembly. Yet, our leaders refuse to budge from their stance that Kashmire is the core issue in India-Pakistain relations. Ideology and pride come in the way of charting a sensible course.
Posted by: Fred ||
03/21/2015 00:00 ||
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A multi-volume chronology and reference guide set detailing three years of the Mexican Drug War between 2010 and 2012.
Rantburg.com and borderlandbeat.com correspondent and author Chris Covert presents his first non-fiction work detailing
the drug and gang related violence in Mexico.
Chris gives us Mexican press dispatches of drug and gang war violence
over three years, presented in a multi volume set intended to chronicle the death, violence and mayhem which has
dominated Mexico for six years.
Rantburg was assembled from recycled algorithms in the United States of America. No
trees were destroyed in the production of this weblog. We did hurt some, though. Sorry.
[DAWN] NECESSARY and welcome as it is for the state to take its law-and-order and judicial responsibilities more seriously, there is an unmistakable sense that politics is driving the many stunning revelations in 
[DAWN] ANOTHER murderous attack on Christian worshippers. More expressions of shock and horror. And yet more crocodile tears.
