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India-Pakistan
’Crackdown’ launched against Pak Jihadis
2003-11-17
Law-enforcement agencies were on high alert to counter any militant backlash on Sunday after launching a nationwide crackdown on three militant outfits the previous night to stop them from resuming their activities under new names. Though offices of the Tehrik-e-Islami Pakistan (TIP), Millat-e-Islamia Pakistan (MIP), and Khuddam-ul-Islam (KI) were sealed across the country, no prominent leader of the three banned organisations was arrested.
How oddly convenient, I predict that the Jihadi leaders will stay in ISI safehouses underground for a while, before reemerging after some of the international heat has died down. They will probably announce the creation of new Jihadi outfits, but it won’t be carried by anyone other than the Pak press.
Dozens of offices of the three organisations were sealed in Sialkot, Daska, Mundeyki, Goraya, Bhopalwala, Sambrial, Uggoki, Pasrur, Chawinda, Badiana, Shakargarh, Zafarwal, Baddomalhi, Narowal and during the crackdown. PPI quoted sources as saying that several activists of the outlawed organisations were arrested. Meanwhile, the Jamaat-ud-Dawa Pakistan has closed down its camps in Sialkot and Narowal districts opened to collect zakat for the heirs of deceased militants. Workers of the banned outfits have gone into hiding fearing arrest, Karachi police chief Tariq Jamil told AFP.
I wonder if this was the result of the Jihadis openly holding conferences in order to attract donations as reported a couple weeks ago? It wouldn’t be the first time that the Pak government has had to move quickly after the local press has reported on an ’unpleasant’ story. The last time I remember was when The Herald reported that Dawood Ibrahim was living safely in a posh residence in Karachi, after that he had to be moved to a different safehouse.
“They (militants) are on the run fearing arrests, but some of them can retaliate and we are alert for any such situation,” Jamil said. “So far there is no order to arrest them unless they try to resume their activities.” Karachi police sealed 15 offices of the three organisations and put Jamaat-ud-Dawa on a watch list under the Anti Terrorist Act, Jamil said. Offices of the three organisations were also shut down in Nawab Shah, Larkana and Naushehro Feroz districts.
Jamaat-ud-Dawa is the new name of the Lashkar-e-Taiba, declared a terrorist outfit by the US gov 2 years ago.
More
Four more militant groups including two Muslim charities are likely to be banned soon, Daily Times learnt on Sunday. The groups facing a ban are Jamaatul Furqan (JF), a breakaway faction of the Tehrik-e-Kuddamul Islam (TKI), Jamaatul Ansar (JA), the new name of Harkatul Mujahideen, Al Rasheed Trust and Al Akhtar Trust. Sources said these groups are working openly in Pakistan. “Most of their publications were banned in March 2002, but they resurfaced with new names, whereas others did not follow the instructions and continued publication,” he said.
A little trouble with followup?
The JF came into existence on September 25 and is led by Commander Abdul Jabbar, Maulana Abdullah Shah Mazhar and Commander Umer Farooq. The JF’s Chief Commander Jabbar is facing charges for an attack on churches and Christian missionaries in Pakistan. The JF has been actively engaged in raising funds during the last two months and in establishing new offices in Pakistan.
The only reason beyond it’s split from the Jaish seems to be a dispute over funds.
The JA was not banned by the government but it was the first Pakistani jihadi outfit which the US declared a terrorist organisation in October 2001 and the Government of Pakistan froze its assets in November 2001. Sources said despite pressure from the US the Pakistan government refused to ban Hizbul Mujahideen, Al Badr Mujahideen and Jamaatul Mujahideen.
JA aka Harkat ul Mujahideen used to be the biggest Pak Jihadi outfit, and was extremely close to al Qaeda and the Taliban, but after it was connected to the kidnapping and murder of 5 western tourists in Kashmir, the Jaish-e-Mohammad was ’engineered’, taking with it around 75% of the Harkat’s membership.
Sources said the publications to be banned include TKI’s fortnightly Shamsheer (Hyderabad), monthly Banat-e-Aisha (Karachi), JD’s weekly Ghazwa Times, Majalla Al Daawa, Voice of Islam (English), Al Rihat (Arabic), Zerb-e-Taiba (Lahore), Al Badr’s Al Babar (Karachi), Jamaitul Mujahideen’s Al Masood (Muzaffarabad/ Karachi), Jamaitul Ansar’s Al Hilal (Islamabad/ Karachi), Tehrikul Mujahideen’s Shahadat(Srinagar/Muzaffarabad/Islamabad), Hizbul Mujahideen’s Jihad-e-Kashmir (Muzaffarabad), Al Rasheed Trust’s Zerb-e-Momin (Karachi), Islami Akhbar and JF’s Tadbeer-e-Nao (Lahore).
The Jihadi press in Pakistan has a readership approximately equal to the mainstream Urdu press, and more than ten times the local English press. It also is full of insane fantasies and represents a view of the world than no one else would recognise.
Posted by:Paul Moloney

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