Peshawar mosque attack confronts Pakistan with tough security choice

Plain-clothed policemen gather over the rubble of a damaged mosque following January's 30 suicide blast inside the police headquarters in Peshawar on February 1, 2023. (Photo courtesy: AFP)
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Updated 17 February 2023
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Peshawar mosque attack confronts Pakistan with tough security choice

  • Government under pressure to launch all-out offensive against militant groups amid economic, political turmoil
  • January’s suicide bombing at the police mosque in Peshawar was the deadliest terrorist attack in several years

ISLAMABAD: Pakistan’s perfect storm of crisis — economic turbulence, plunging currency, political polarization and Islamist militancy — has been compounded by last month’s suicide bombing at a mosque in a highly fortified police compound in Peshawar.

The attack — Pakistan’s deadliest in several years — harked back to a period more than 10 years ago when Peshawar, a city near the former tribal areas that borders Afghanistan, was scarred by militant violence and a military counteroffensive.

Authorities in Peshawar believe the Jan. 30 attack was in retaliation for the police force’s role on the front line of Pakistan’s battle with a resurgent insurgency since the Taliban returned to power across the border in Afghanistan.




Family members of a mosque blast victim weep during a protest against the militancy and the suicide blast inside a police headquarters in Peshawar on February 1, 2023. (Photo courtesy: AFP)

The suicide bombing was the latest in a string of attacks targeted at security personnel across the country since the militant group Tehreek-e-Taliban Pakistan, or TTP, called off its cease-fire deal with the Pakistan government in November.

Visiting Peshawar soon after the attack, Pakistan Prime Minister Shahbaz Sharif said “all resources” would be mobilized to flush out the militants. “This is no less than an attack on Pakistan ...  I have no doubt terrorism is our foremost national security challenge,” he said in a tweet.

If Sharif’s government decides to match words with resolute action, it would not be lacking in support judging by the public outrage fanned by the high death toll.

“Pakistan needs to come out of the confusion, end appeasement of the militants through peace talks, and go all out against them to achieve permanent peace,” Mosharraf Zaidi, a Pakistani security analyst, told Arab News.

Until Pakistan “separates itself from its romance with violent extremism,” the militants will continue to believe they can seize power, he said.

“We have to crush the militants’ ideological infrastructure and supply chain to break their backbone,” Zaidi said, adding that the government needed to formulate a “decisive strategy” to flush out the terrorists.

The Peshawar attack happened at a time when Pakistan is facing a slew of daunting challenges, with domestic political tensions soaring over a worsening cost-of-living crisis in the run-up to general elections due by October.




This handout picture taken on January 30, 2023 and released by Pakistan's Police Department shows Pakistan's security officials gather to attend funeral prayers for police officers who were killed in a mosque blast inside the police headquarters in Peshawar. (Photo courtesy: AFP)

Analysts say political disunity and ideological confusion have provided space for militants to regroup and target the state.

The situation is complicated by the fact that the TTP has distanced itself from the Peshawar bombing, claiming it does not target mosques. Police are investigating whether the attack was the handiwork of an on-off TTP affiliate, Jamaat-ul-Ahrar.

Although separate, the Pakistani Taliban, established in 2007, is allied with the Afghan Taliban, which returned to power in neighboring Afghanistan in August 2021 when US and NATO forces concluded their 20-year occupation of the country.

Several militant groups, including the TTP, began operating in Pakistan’s former Federally Administered Tribal Areas, or FATA, shortly after the US and its allies invaded Afghanistan in response to the Taliban’s refusal to hand over Al-Qaeda leader Osama bin Laden following the Sept. 11, 2001 terror attacks.

During that time, the militants unleashed a wave of terror in FATA, killing soldiers, murdering outspoken politicians and celebrities, and eliminating perceived opponents. Compounding the crisis, they outlawed women’s education in the area, destroying about 200 girls’ schools.

It was in 2012 in the Swat district of Khyber Pakhtunkhwa that 15-year-old Malala Yousafzai was shot in the head by a Pakistani Taliban militant. She miraculously survived the attack, going on to win the Nobel Peace Prize for her advocacy of girls’ education.

FASTFACT

 

Allied with Al-Qaeda, Tehreek-e-Taliban Pakistan emerged in 2007, killing tens of thousands of civilians and security personnel.

Crushed in a military crackdown after 2014, TTP has regrouped since the Taliban came to power across the border in August 2021.

For the Jan. 30 Peshawar blast, Pakistani police have blamed Jamaat-ul-Ahrar, a more radical group occasionally affiliated to the TTP, which has denied involvement.

Large-scale counterinsurgency operations began in 2014, killing most militant commanders and fighters and driving the rest into Afghanistan. The areas constituting FATA, established at the time of partition from India in 1947, were amalgamated into Khyber Pakhtunkhwa in 2018.

However, after the Taliban returned to power in Kabul and the US ended counterterrorism operations in the border region, Pakistani militants began to regroup in the former tribal districts. Since then, a rash of deadly attacks have left Pakistanis in little doubt that their country faces a renewed insurgency.

Ismail Khan, a Pakistani journalist and security analyst, believes the Sharif government urgently needs to devise “a holistic and long-term strategy in the conference to deal with the problem at hand.”

At the same time, he told Arab News, “the government should also directly engage with the Afghan government to put an end to the cross-border movement of the terrorists, besides formulating and implementing a robust counterterrorism strategy.”

In January alone, the militants killed 124 security personnel and injured 247 in 26 separate attacks, the majority of them in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa, which borders Afghanistan, according to data shared by the Pak Institute for Peace Studies, an Islamabad-based think tank.

The breakdown of the data shows that of these 26 attacks, seven took place in Balochistan, in which six people were killed and 17 were injured; one in Sindh with no casualties; two in Punjab, killing two; and 16 in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa, killing 116 and injuring 230.

According to the think tank, attacks rose by 50 percent in Pakistan, mostly along the western provinces bordering Afghanistan, during the first year of Taliban rule in Kabul.

In recent months, Islamabad has accused Kabul of failing to secure its borders and allowing militants inside Afghanistan to plan attacks against Pakistan.

Peace negotiations between the TTP and Pakistan, mediated by the Afghan Taliban, fell through in November, shattering a shaky cease-fire. During the talks, the militants had their numbers boosted by the release of about 100 low-level fighters from Pakistani jails.

Major General Ejaz Awan (retired), a prominent security analyst and former Pakistani ambassador to Brunei, believes a military response is the only solution to the terror threat.

“They are not willing to acknowledge Pakistan’s constitution, law, and writ of the state, therefore there is only one option left now and that is to wage a full-fledged war against them,” Awan told Arab News.

Awan, who held several rounds of unsuccessful peace talks with the militants in the early 2000s, wants the Pakistani government to launch an intelligence-based operation in the country’s tribal districts and other areas to eradicate the militants, their facilitators and supporters.

“These militants are equipped with the latest gadgets like night vision goggles left by the US and NATO forces in Afghanistan after their withdrawal, so Pakistan should also take it up with the Afghan authorities,” he said. 

According to investigators who spoke to the AFP news agency, the suspect appeared on CCTV arriving at the compound gates on a motorcycle before walking through a security checkpoint and asking officers where the Police Lines Mosque was located.

Moazzam Jah Ansari, the head of Khyber Pakhtunkhwa province police force, said the bomber used 10-12 kg of explosive material, brought to the site in advance of the attack in bits and pieces.

Authorities have been hard put to come up with an explanation for the suicide bomber’s success in gaining access to the mosque dressed in police uniform.

They are investigating how such a major breach could have occurred in one of the most secure areas of the city, which houses the intelligence and counterterrorism bureaus, amid concerns that people inside the police compound may have enabled the attack.

Hundreds of police were attending afternoon prayers inside what should have been a tightly controlled police headquarters when the blast erupted, causing a wall to collapse and crush scores of officers.

On Feb. 2, police officials revised the death toll down from 101 to 83 officers and one civilian, after saying there was confusion in registering bodies. Many survivors remain in hospital in a critical condition.

Expressing solidarity with Pakistan, Saudi Arabia’s Ministry of Foreign Affairs “stressed the Kingdom’s firm position that rejects targeting places of worship and terrorizing and shedding the blood of innocent people,” according to a Saudi Press Agency report.

The ministry “also affirmed that the Kingdom stands by the brotherly Islamic Republic of Pakistan against all forms of violence, extremism, and terrorism, regardless of its motives or justifications.”

The attack also drew strong condemnations from the Muslim World League and the secretary general of the Gulf Cooperation Council, among other international organizations.

“It is particularly abhorrent that the attack occurred at a place of worship,” Antonio Guterres, the UN secretary-general, said through a spokesperson. “Freedom of religion or belief, including the ability to worship in peace and security, is a universal human right.”

Imran Khan, the former Pakistan prime minister who is a fierce critic of the current government, said: “It is imperative we improve our intelligence gathering and properly equip our police forces to combat the growing threat of terrorism.”

Prime Minister Sharif has appealed for national unity in the wake of the Peshawar attack. “We should unite and tackle this,” he said on Feb. 3 during his visit to the city.

But given the array of challenges facing Pakistan, his government’s attention is likely to continue to be divided across multiple fronts.

 


Pakistani bank signs LC Confirmation deal with International Islamic Trade Finance Corporation

Updated 4 sec ago
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Pakistani bank signs LC Confirmation deal with International Islamic Trade Finance Corporation

  • This product facilitates trade flow by allowing exporters and issuing banks to gain assurance from the ITFC
  • It will support private sector clients by working with banks in Organization of Islamic Cooperation states

ISLAMABAD: Meezan Bank, a leading Islamic bank in Pakistan, has signed a new strategic partnership with the International Islamic Trade Finance Corporation (ITFC) under its Letter of Credit (LC) Confirmation product to support the private sector, the Pakistani bank said on Tuesday.
This product facilitates trade flow by allowing exporters and issuing banks to gain assurance from the ITFC, a member of the Islamic Development Bank (IsDB) Group, to secure payment and thus eliminate credit risks, according to a statement issued by Meezan Bank.
It will support private sector clients, including small-medium enterprises (SMEs), by working with local banks in the Organization of Islamic Cooperation (OIC) member countries to facilitate various import transactions.
The agreement was signed by Nazeem Noordali, Chief Operating Officer of ITFC, and Syed Amir Ali, Deputy Chief Executive Officer of Meezan Bank, in the presence of executives from both sides.
“Today marks a significant milestone in our business relationship with ITFC as we solidify our partnership. This arrangement reinforces our Bank’s commitment to reliability, stability, and financial excellence,” said Syed Amir Ali, Deputy Chief Executive Officer of Meezan Bank.
“The Letter of Credit Confirmation Agreement strengthens our position in the market, enabling us to capitalize on new opportunities and facilitate international Islamic trade.”
Meezan Bank is the first bank in Pakistan to partner with ITFC for the LC Confirmation facility. It will enable the Pakistani bank to extend geographical coverage by leveraging the ITFC network, both in member and non-member countries. It will also enable the Bank to handle LC Confirmation transactions of up to 12 months.
“We are proud to strengthen our partnership with Meezan Bank through this Letter of Credit Confirmation Agreement, which reflects our commitment and support to private sector clients in our member countries,” M. Nazeem Noordali, Chief Operating Officer of ITFC, was quoted as saying by Meezan Bank.
 


Pakistani actors Mahira Khan, Humayun Saeed starrer ‘Love Guru’ to release on Eid

Updated 24 min 23 sec ago
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Pakistani actors Mahira Khan, Humayun Saeed starrer ‘Love Guru’ to release on Eid

  • The movie will be directed by industry veteran Nadeem Baig and also feature actor Ahmed Ali Butt
  • Pakistani cinema has witnessed a revival over the past decade with the release of a number of movies

ISLAMABAD: Pakistani superstar Mahira Khan has said that her new film ‘Love Guru’ will be released on Eid next year, which will feature her alongside actors Humayun Saeed and Ahmed Ali Butt.

Khan, who will be playing the female lead alongside Saeed, said the movie is directed by Nadeem Baig. Both Khan and Saeed appeared together in the Pakistani film ‘Bin Roye’ nine years ago, with fans admiring their chemistry on screen.

“There is one project that we are shooting for the past month,” Khan told reporters at an event in London. “It’s film Love Guru that will be released on Eid.”

The actress expressed happiness and thanked her fans for the amount of love she received in London.

Khan has made a mark in international cinema with her performances in ‘The Legend of Maula Jatt’ (2022) and Bollywood flick ‘Raees’ (2017) alongside Shah Rukh Khan. Her acting skills in the two movies were widely praised by critics and made her a household name in Pakistan and India.

Pakistani cinema industry has witnessed a revival over the past decade with the release of a number of movies, including ‘Zinda Bhaag’ (2013) and ‘Ho Mann Jahaan’ (2016), which were based on a mix of traditional and modern themes.

The success of these films has led to an increase in investment in movie production, with many new films being released each year.


Pakistan, China conclude bilateral air exercise to bolster interoperability

Updated 05 November 2024
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Pakistan, China conclude bilateral air exercise to bolster interoperability

  • The exercise simulated various military tactics in near-realistic, multi-domain operations
  • Pakistan is separately holding a joint military exercise, Harimau-Markhore II, with Malaysia

ISLAMABAD: Pakistan and China on Tuesday concluded a bilateral air exercise aimed at strengthening interoperability between the two air forces, the Pakistani military said.

The Indus Shield-Chinese exercise, a bilateral module of the Indus Shield 2024 military exercise, concluded at an operational air base of Pakistan Air Force (PAF), according to the Inter-Services Public Relations (ISPR), the Pakistani military’s media wing.

It witnessed participation from People’s Liberation Army Air Force with its personnel and high-tech equipment comprising Active Electronically Scanned Array (AESA) radar, J-16 and J-10C fighter with Beyond Visual Range (BVR) equipment, HQ-22 surface-to-air defense system, Potent Airborne Electronic Warfare YTG-9 Platform, and the KJ-500 airborne early warning system pitched against the PAF’s J-10C and JF-17 Block-III fighter jets simulating contemporary aerial combat scenarios.

“The successful execution of such a large-scale exercise demonstrates Pakistan Air Force’s joint operational readiness among allied nations while addressing contemporary security challenges,” the ISPR said in a statement.

“Aimed at validating interoperability between China and Pakistan in the face of contemporary air combat challenges and by simulating various military tactics in near-realistic, multi-domain operations training environment, Indus Shield-Chinese has maximized the warfighting potential of both the participating air forces.”

Indus Shield-2024 is the largest multinational regional exercise, with Saudi Arabia, Egypt and Turkiye among 24 countries taking part in it. The exercise aims to foster interoperability and training through state-of-the-art facilities.

Pakistan is separately holding a joint military exercise, Harimau-Markhore II, with Malaysia, Pakistani state media reported on Tuesday. The two-week-long exercise began at the National Counter-Terrorism Center in Pabbi in Pakistan’s northwestern Khyber Pakhtukhwa (KP) province.

“The exercise will strengthen bilateral relations between the Malaysian and Pakistani forces and provide opportunities to benefit from each other’s experiences and expertise in the future,” the Radio Pakistan broadcaster reported.

Pakistan frequently holds exercise drills with regional and international allies to foster interoperability and joint deployment concepts to strengthen regional and global security.

Also, Pakistan Navy Ship (PNS) Zulfiquar visited Port Djibouti during deployment on a regional maritime security patrol, the Directorate General Public Relations (DGPR) of Pakistan Navy said on Tuesday.

The commanding officer of PNS Zulfiquar called on senior military leadership and explored avenues for further collaboration, while the crew had professionally rewarding interactions with Djibouti Navy and Coast Guards during the port call.

“Pakistan and Djibouti enjoy close and cordial relations based on mutual respect and understanding. Both the countries also have numerous common interests in maritime arena,” the DGPR said in a statement. “Upon departure, PNS Zulfiquar conducted Passage Exercise with Djibouti Coast Guards to enhance inter-operability.”


Pakistan approves Hajj Policy 2025, adds new role to improve pilgrim services

Updated 05 November 2024
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Pakistan approves Hajj Policy 2025, adds new role to improve pilgrim services

  • Pakistan will send 179,210 pilgrims, equally divided between the government and private sector
  • Government will prioritize first-time pilgrims in the official balloting process, says a statement

ISLAMABAD: Pakistan’s federal cabinet on Tuesday approved the Hajj Policy 2025, said an official statement, specifying a quota of 179,210 pilgrims and introducing a new position of the “nazim” or administrator to ensure improved services for those embarking on the spiritual journey.
Hajj, one of Islam’s five pillars, is an annual pilgrimage to Makkah undertaken by millions of Muslims. Pakistan has one of the largest Hajj quotas provided by Saudi Arabia to any Muslim country amid immense demand for the pilgrimage, with many citizens waiting years for an opportunity to participate.
“The federal cabinet approved the Hajj Policy 2025 on the recommendation of the Ministry of Religious Affairs and Interfaith Harmony,” an official handout from the Prime Minister’s Office said. “The cabinet was informed that Pakistan’s Hajj quota for 2025 will be 179,210, divided equally between the government and the private sector.”
The new policy includes the creation of a “nazim” position, aimed at ensuring the well-being of pilgrims throughout the journey.
“For every 100 pilgrims, one nazim will be appointed from the welfare staff,” the handout added, underscoring the government’s intent to improve the pilgrimage experience.
Under the policy, children under 12 will not be allowed to travel for Hajj. Government quota allocation will be conducted through computerized balloting, with 1,000 seats reserved for hardship cases and 300 for laborers or low-income employees registered with the Workers Welfare Fund or the Employees Old-Age Benefits Institution.
Additionally, the Makkah Route Initiative, offering streamlined immigration services, will be available at Islamabad and Karachi international airports. To further enhance the experience, Hajj Group Organizers will sign service agreements with the Ministry of Religious Affairs, with close monitoring of service quality.
In light of previous challenges, the cabinet has increased compensation for pilgrims who may pass away or get injured during the pilgrimage. The families of deceased pilgrims will receive Rs1 million to Rs2 million, while injured pilgrims will receive Rs1 million in compensation.
A specialized Hajj management app has also been developed to support pilgrims, along with extensive training initiatives.
The cabinet directed priority in the balloting process to first-time pilgrims and emphasized the importance of ensuring top-quality services for all participants.


Pakistan government defends bills extending tenure of armed services chiefs

Updated 05 November 2024
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Pakistan government defends bills extending tenure of armed services chiefs

  • Parliament has approved bills to extend tenure of army, navy, and air force chiefs from 3 to 5 years
  • Opposition fears extending tenure will consolidate the hold of already all-powerful army chief

ISLAMABAD: Defense Minister Khawaja Asif has defended the passage this week by Pakistan’s parliament of bills that extend the tenures of the army, navy and air force chiefs, saying the move would check against services chiefs granting themselves extensions and “formalize” the duration of their service.

The bills, approved by Pakistan’s National Assembly and Senate on Monday, have been pushed by the coalition government led by Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif which argues that they are aimed at building continuity and avoiding some of the political turmoil that usually surrounds the appointment of the army chief every three years. The bills also extend the tenure of the heads of the navy and air force, though those positions hold less influence in Pakistan.

The office of the army chief is considered to be the most powerful in the country, with the army having ruled Pakistan for almost half of its 75-year -long history. Even when not directly in power, the army is considered to be the invisible guiding hand in politics and holds considerable sway in internal security, foreign policy, and economic affairs, among other domains. Several army chiefs in the past have been given extensions in service.

“What we did [passage of bills], these extensions [in army chief’s term] started from Ayub Khan’s time,” Defense Minister Khawaja Asif said, referring to a Pakistani general who carried out a military coup in 1958 and ruled until 1969.

“That thing has been formalized now, and we have increased the tenure. You pick up the rest of the institutions. [...] the National Assembly [term] is also for five years.”

“Now the trend of extensions, how it was in the past that people gave an extension to themselves [will be ended],” Asif added, referring to now retired Gen Qamar Javed Bajwa, who served as army chief from 2016-22 after getting a three-year extension.

Speaking to a Pakistani news channel, Information Minister Ataullah Tarar also said the uncertainty surrounding the army chief’s appointment had been addressed through the new legislation.

“The five-year tenure [of the services chiefs] will not affect the institution’s merit-based system … The amendments are not introduced suddenly, instead the consultation on them was underway, and this legislation is not done for any individual.”

OPPOSITION STANCE

As the bills were passed on Monday in the National Assembly, opposition lawmakers from the PTI party of imprisoned former Prime Minister Imran Khan chanted against the measure. Some of them tore up copies of the bills and threw them at Speaker Ayaz Sadiq for not allowing debate. A similar protest by lawmakers from Khan’s party took place when the bill was quickly passed by the Senate, where Sharif’s party also holds a majority. The bill will now go to the president for his approval.

Omar Ayub Khan, a top leader of Khan’s Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf party, or PTI, told reporters after the bill passed that the legislation “is neither good for country nor for the armed forces.”

The PTI is widely believed to be against an extension in service particularly for incumbent Army Chief Gen. Asim Munir, who it considers to be behind the ouster of Khan from the PM’s office in a parliamentary vote of no-confidence in 2022. The PTI also says the army is behind legal cases against Khan that have kept him in prison since August last year. The military denies any interference in politics.

The passage of the new bills follows controversial amendments made to the constitution last month, granting lawmakers the authority to nominate the chief justice of Pakistan, who previously used to be automatically appointed according to the principle of seniority.

The amendments allowed the government to bypass the senior-most judge of the Supreme Court, Justice Mansoor Ali Shah, and appoint Justice Yahya Afridi as the country’s top judge.

The opposition and the legal fraternity had opposed the amendments, arguing that they were aimed at granting more power to the executive in making judicial appointments and curtailing the independence of the judiciary. The government denies this.