Wednesday, May 19, 2010

26/11 -- what Pakistan stands to Gain from the Incident.


Ever since 26/11 i have been wondering what Pakistan stands to Gain from the Incident.

The Pakistani establishment was aware that such audacity can lead to war. With two Corps and party of strategic reserves committed to counter terrorist operations in West, the Professional Pakistan Army, i know would have never taken such a catastrophic risk.

Here is food for some thought:-


Drone Strikes

Between 2004- 2007 there were seven drone strikes. There were 17 Drone Strikes in 2008 prior to 26/11. There were 54 Drone Strikes in Pakistan in 2009 and deeper into hinterland. There has been 34 drone strikes up to may end this year.( http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Drone_attacks_in_Pakistan)

Pakistan has repeatedly protested these attacks as they are an infringement of its sovereignty and because civilian deaths have also resulted, including women and children, which has further angered the Pakistani government and people.
In September 28, a spokesman for the Pakistani army condemned Washington's killing of Pakistani civilians and warned of retaliatory action: "Border violations by US-led forces in Afghanistan, which have killed scores of Pakistani civilians, would no longer be tolerated, and we have informed them that we reserve the right to self defense and that we will retaliate if the US continues cross-border attacks.

However after 26/11/ 2008 the intensity of Drone attacks increased and Pakistani protest was muted.

David Coleman Headley, formerly known as Daood Sayed Gilani,

Gilani ran a video store in Philadelphia. In 1997 he was one of two men arrested for smuggling heroin into the country from Pakistan. In exchange for information about his Pakistani drug contacts, he received a considerably lighter sentence than his co-defendant: fifteen months in jail and five years of supervised release. In November 1998, Headley was delivered to the low-security Federal Correctional Institution in Fort Dix. However, his supervised release period was never completed. Instead, in November 2001, an assistant U.S. attorney applied to have Headley discharged. Headley traveled to Pakistan multiple times to conduct undercover surveillance operations for the Drug Enforcement Administration. In 2002 and three times in 2003, he attended Lashkar-e-Taiba training camps in Pakistan.
Indian investigators were surprised at how easily Headley had obtained a visa to enter India, a process that is extremely difficult for Pakistani nationals. Headley's U.S. passport, his new Christian sounding name, and the fact that the passport and his visa application made no mention of his prior name or nationality, made it easy for him to obtain an Indian visa from the Indian consulate in Chicago. He also falsely stated on his visa application that his father's name was William Headley and that his own name at birth was "Headley", a claim that was difficult to refute since the U.S. passport, unlike the Indian one, does not provide the father's name, and does not require endorsements on name changes by the passport holder.
Some Indian analysts have speculated that David Headley was a CIA Double agent within LeT, an accusation denied by the CIA. As soon as Headley was arrested in Chicago, the Indian media had a barrage of questions for the government about him, whose answers were slow in coming. Among other questions, Indian investigators wanted the FBI to share its tapes of Headley's communications with his Pakistani handlers to match with the voices taped on cell phones during the 2008 Mumbai attacks.
Following intense coverage and speculation in the Indian press, U.S. ambassador Timothy J. Roemer told reporters in New Delhi that the United States is working at the "highest level" to provide India access to Headley, even as it is passing along answers to questions in "real time”. The access is yet to happen.

Tahawwur Hussain Rana

Tahawwur Hussain Rana has served as captain in Pakistan Army, before becoming a citizen of Canada. He lives primarily in Chicago and owns several businesses including an immigration service agency.
Rana and David Coleman Headley were charged and arrested on 18 October 2009.

Hafiz Muhammad Saeed Amir LeT

Hafiz Muhammad Saeed was born in Sargodha to a conservative Pakistani Punjabi family. General Mohammad Zia-ul-Haq appointed Saeed to the Council on Islamic Ideology. He was sent to Saudi Arabia in the early 1980s by the university for higher studies where he met Saudi Sheikhs who were taking part in the Afghan jihad. They inspired him to join his colleague, Professor Zafar Iqbal, in taking an active role supporting the Mujahedeen in Afghanistan.

If ISI is not controlling LeT who is?

The Bigger question is Who controls ISI.

Contribution- Mr Skand Nayal Khan, NCCT (chief- research wing)

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