The Jewish Lobby, Mr Pervez Musharraf and other short stories

NOW, something a little different — or not entirely so, perhaps. Israeli Foreign Minister Shimon Peres was in Washington last week. In an interview with The Washington Post and Newsweek, he was asked for a comment on reports that President Bush had told him that Israel should pull out of Palestinian-controlled areas that it had re-taken following the assassination of an Israeli cabinet minister. Mr Peres replied: “I said we don’t intend to remain there. The president modified the State Department declaration to pull out ‘immediately’, and said (pull out) as soon as possible. I told him we understand your strategy. As a good Jewish boy, I would have never dreamed that I would pray for the safety of (Gen Pervez) Musharraf, the president of Pakistan. That is a most unexpected experience. But we understand and don’t want to have an agenda of our own.” Reference: Fears of a more combative society: WASHINGTON NOTEBOOK By Tahir Mirza DAWN - Opinion; November 1, 2001 https://www.dawn.com/news/1062232

Did General (R) Hamid Gul Support Jewish Backed Martial Law of Musharraf in 1999

ISLAMABAD: A former chief of Pakistan's intelligence agency ISI has alleged that the United States was behind the October 1999 coup staged by general Pervez Musharraf to overthrow the Nawaz Sharif government. Commenting on president Musharraf's book 'In the Line of Fire,' former ISI chief Hamid Gul said Musharraf has not stated in his memoirs that Washington was behind his military coup of October 12, 1999. US hand in 1999 Pak coup: Hamid Gul Oct 17, 2006, 02.52 AM IST https://economictimes.indiatimes.com/news/politics-and-nation/us-hand-in-1999-pak-coup-hamid-gul/articleshow/2181270.cms General (R) Hamid Gul actually supported that Military Coup (watch the clip above) ---> Hamid Gul, a retired general, accuses Mr Sharif of having presided over an administration which had failed to deliver the goods. "Sharif turned out to be a great destroyer of national institutions," he told the BBC. "Look at what he did to the judiciary. "He stripped them of power, put a set of judges against the chief justice, did the same to the press. "He gagged the parliament and finally he wanted to do the same to the army." Reference: World: South Asia Pakistan's coup: Why the army acted Wednesday, October 13, 1999 Published at 23:20 GMT 00:20 UK http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/south_asia/473297.stm

Jewish Lobby, Israel, Musharraf and Imran Khan

ISLAMABAD, Jan 28: President Pervez Musharraf last week met Israeli Defence Minister Ehud Barak in Paris and the Foreign Office described it as ‘a chance encounter’. There are reports that the two leaders met again and discussed the nuclear arms issues, especially the safety of Pakistan’s nuclear arsenal and Iran’s nuclear programme; the Middle East peace process; and the situation in Gaza. The second meeting is said to have lasted about an hour. Pakistan and Israel have no diplomatic ties and their officials rarely meet. But there have been several ‘chance meetings’ between the two sides in the past, apart from an arranged meeting between the then foreign minister Khurshid Kasuri and his then Israeli counterpart Silvan Shalom in Turkey in 2005. Reference: Musharraf met Israeli defence minister by Baqir Sajjad Syed January 29, 2008 https://www.dawn.com/news/286939 NEW YORK: The WikiLeaks documents reveal that Israeli intelligence agency Mossad was concerned for former Pakistan President Pervez Musharraf’s well-being and wanted him to remain in power in 2007. The revelation was made in a secret cable message originating from the American embassy in Tel Aviv. It records a meeting between Mossad chief and US Under-Secretary of State Nicholas Burns under the Bush administration. Mr Burns met Mossad chief Meir Dagan on Aug 17, 2007, to give his assessment of the Middle East region, Pakistan and Turkey. The Israeli spy chief said he was concerned about how long President Musharraf would survive. “He is facing a serious problem with the militants. Pakistan’s nuclear capability could end up in the hands of an Islamic regime.” Dagan observed that Musharraf appeared to be losing control and his coalition partners could threaten him in the future. He linked Musharraf’s retaining control over Pakistan to his dual president and commander-in-chief role. The cable says that if Musharraf cannot retain his army role, he will have problems. The Mossad chief referred to attempts on Musharaf’s life and wondered whether he could survive the coming years. Reference: Israelis wanted Musharraf to stay, says WikiLeaks November 29, 2010 https://www.dawn.com/news/587328

ISLAMABAD, Aug 31: Pakistan and Israel are all set to have the first overt high-level political contact on Thursday. In what is seen as a major diplomatic development the foreign ministers of the two countries will meet in Istanbul, informed sources told Dawn on Wednesday. The meeting between Foreign Minister Khurshid Kasuri and his Israeli counterpart Silvan Shalom is taking place in response to Israel’s keenness to establish contact with Pakistan, it is learnt. Reference: Kasuri ‘to meet Israeli minister’ September 01, 2005 https://www.dawn.com/news/154828 KASUR: Former foreign minister Khurshid Mahmood Kasuri announced his decision to join Imran Khan’s Tehrik-i-Insaf on Tuesday, DawnNews reported. Kasuri, who had parted ways with the PML-Q after developing differences with the Chaudhrys of Gujrat, had been in contact with Khan for over a year. The PTI chief welcomed Kasuri to the party and congratulated him on his decision. Talking to the media in Lahore earlier during the day, Khan credited PTI’s success and popularity to the combined failures of the ruling PPP, their coalition partners the PML-Q and the opposition PML-N. Reference: Former Foreign Minister Kasuri, others join PTI December 20, 2011 https://www.dawn.com/news/681931

Jewish Lobby, Mr Amjad Shoaib and Musharraf

The second factor is the local sleeper cells and facilitators who help the foreigners carry terrorist attacks in Pakistan. The foreigner terrorists mostly come from Afghanistan and have no knowledge of Pakistani areas. Definitely, local facilitators provide them with shelter, weapons and information about the target. As you know, terrorists of Lashkar-e-Jhangvi Al Almi carried out the attack at Police training center in Quetta. Now this banned outfit has origins in South Punjab and interior Sindh. In South Punjab, areas like Jhang, Muzaffar Garh, DG Khan and Bahawalpur are hotbeds of LeJ terrorists while the same banned outfit has also facilitators and supporters in interior Sindh where many terrorist attacks have been conducted. However, Punjab’s chief minister has been refusing to allow Rangers to carry out operations in South Punjab while Sindh chief minister is reluctant to permit Rangers operation in interior Sindh. On the other hand, the international community blames Pakistan for terrorism but they never care how we are targeted by terrorist organisations. Our foreign ministry and civilian leadership have failed in presenting out case to the world. References: “Our leaders have failed us” – An interview with Lt. Gen (R) Amjad Shoaib OCTOBER 30, 2016 BY MIAN ABRAR https://www.pakistantoday.com.pk/2016/10/30/our-leaders-have-failed-us-an-interview-with-lt-gen-r-amjad-shoaib/ Pakistan army pushed political role for militant-linked groups by Asif Shahzad SEPTEMBER 16, 2017 https://www.reuters.com/article/us-pakistan-politics-militants/pakistan-army-pushed-political-role-for-militant-linked-groups-idUSKCN1BR02F

Hamid Gul, Musharraf and Banned Terror Jihadi Sectarian Outfits

In a television programme aired recently, former chief of the Inter Services Intelligence (ISI) and an important leader of Difa-e-Pakistan Council (DPC) General (retd) Hamid Gul cast doubts over the authenticity of a picture run by the website of The Express Tribune. The picture in question was that of Malik Ishaq, commander of the banned outfit Lashkar-e-Jhangvi (LeJ), who was shown to be in attendance at the DPC meeting in Multan – a meeting also attended and addressed by General Gul. During a talk show on Aaj TV, host Wajahat S Khan showed Gul the picture on The Express Tribune’s website as evidence of Ishaq’s attendance – in response to which the retired general alleged that the photo had been doctored. When he was further challenged by the show’s host, Gul resorted to questioning the reporter of the story. The Express Tribune takes strong exception to General Gul’s allegations and contends that the picture is authentic. It was taken by our photographer, who was assigned to cover the gathering. In fact, the picture was also run by other newspapers. If Gul has the slightest doubt regarding the authenticity of the photograph, we ask him to take the matter to court. Express Media Group Published in The Express Tribune, February 16th, 2012. https://tribune.com.pk/story/337252/notice-a-note-to-hamid-gul/ 3. (S) XXXXXXXXXXXX shared with Principal Officer an Urdu-language sticker that he claimed he had confiscated from several of his madrassa students in Faisalabad. The sticker, which he stated was also being printed and distributed as a pamphlet, praised the implementation of Sharia law in Swat and exhorted Muslims to pursue the same sort of Sharia law in Faisalabad. It then recounted five steps that every Faisalabad based Muslim should take to begin the process of implementation in the district. The steps were: : (1) cease business and social activities at the five daily calls to prayer, (2) remove all sources of ""vulgarity"" such as televisions, cd players, and radios from their homes, (3) seek dispute resolution through local imams rather than the courts, (4) take Friday rather than Sunday as the weekly holiday, and (4) strictly enforce purdah for female family members. 4. (S) Maulana XXXXXXXXXXXX told Principal Officer that he had initially dismissed the pamphlet campaign, but became increasingly concerned after learning of specific threats received by several girls' schools (NFI) in Faisalabad. He claimed that these schools had received letters sent from SSP, referencing the situation in Swat, and warning that if these schools did not begin having their students observe complete purdah, the schools could be the target of violence, including suicide bombing. Maulana XXXXXXXXXXXX did not produce a copy of the threat letter. Principal Officer inquired whether any violence had yet occurred in Faisalabad in connection with the SSP campaign. Maulana XXXXXXXXXXXX responded that to his knowledge it had not, but he believed that it could occur in short order if police did not check SSP activities. References: 2009: Was Qaddafi funding Sipahe Sahaba? May 25, 2011 https://www.dawn.com/news/631599 Saudi Arabia, UAE financing extremism in south Punjab May 21, 2011 https://www.dawn.com/news/630599 2008: Extremist recruitment on the rise in south Punjab madrassahs May 21, 2011 https://www.dawn.com/news/630656/2008-extremist-recruitment-on-the-rise-in-south-punjab-madrassahs WikiLeaks cables portray Saudi Arabia as a cash machine for terrorists - Hillary Clinton memo highlights Gulf states' failure to block funding for groups like al-Qaida, Taliban and Lashkar-e-Taiba by Declan Walsh in Islamabad Sun 5 Dec 2010 https://www.theguardian.com/world/2010/dec/05/wikileaks-cables-saudi-terrorist-funding

How Ijazul Haq Fought US War Against Terror

Many Palestinians realized the need to control the movement, so Dr. George Habash founded the Popular Front for the Liberation of Palestine and Yasser Arafat founded Harakat Tahreer Falasteen or Al-Fatah. Habash announced that “the liberation of Palestine will come through Amman [capital of Jordan],” mostly to challenge both King Hussein and a broken Nasser (both of whom came under Israeli hegemony by 1970, something recognized in the US Secretary of State Rogers’ Plan). King Hussein (with help from Zia-ul-Haq of the Pakistani army) sent in his Bedouin army on 27 September to clear out the Palestinian bases in Jordan. A massacre of innumerable proportions ensued. Moshe Dayan noted that Hussein “killed more Palestinians in eleven days than Israel could kill in twenty years.” Dayan is right in spirit, but it is hardly the case that anyone can match the Sharonism in its brutality. Reference: Memories of Barbarity, Sharonism and September by VIJAY PRASHAD APRIL 9, 2002 https://www.counterpunch.org/2002/04/09/memories-of-barbarity-sharonism-and-september/ At that dinner, Crile writes, “Zia had dangerous decisions to make in the coming months about the CIA’s involvement in his inflamed North-West Frontier, and all of them centred on whether he could trust the United States. Joanne’s startling toast was strangely therapeutic for the much-maligned leader, who remembered how quickly Jimmy Carter had turned on him. In Houston that night, Joanne Herring saw to it that a host of powerful Americans actually honoured him. And that same night, Charlie Wilson provided yet another dimension to Zia’s growing partnership with the United States when he took the general into a side room for a private talk. The congressman had a novel proposition for the Muslim dictator. Would Zia be willing to deal with the Israelis? “This was not the sort of proposal just anyone could have made. But by now, the Pakistanis believed that Charlie Wilson had been decisive in getting them the disputed F-16 radar systems. As he saw it, Wilson had pulled off the impossible. Now the congressman, in his tuxedo, began to take Zia into the forbidden world where the Israelis were prepared to make deals no one need hear about. “He told Zia about his experience the previous year when the Israelis had shown him the vast stores of Soviet weapons they had captured from the PLO in Lebanon. The weapons were perfect for the mujahideen, he told Zia. If Wilson could persuade the CIA to buy them, would Zia have any problems passing them on to the Afghans? “Zia, ever the pragmatist, smiled on the proposal, adding, ‘Just don’t put any Stars of David on the boxes.” Reference: Charlie Wilson’s war by Masood Haider DAWN - Features; July 23, 2003 https://www.dawn.com/news/1064817 --- The mystery is that the Vice Chief of Army Staff (VCOAS), General Aslam Beg, having himself hovered over the disaster site, preferred to fly back to Rawalpindi. Major General Mehmud Durrani, the host of the whole episode, moved to Multan for a comfortable sleep. Now, claiming credit for democracy and decorated with the democracy medal, General Aslam Beg did not feel obliged to care for the fallen comrades. Without knowing about the survivors and the urge to take over, he rushed to Rawalpindi where in a high-level meeting, he faced tough resistance. References: A conspiracy against my father (The News - September 8, 2009 https://www.thenews.com.pk/archive/print/195448 ) A conspiracy against my father (The News - September 9, 2009 https://www.thenews.com.pk/archive/print/195563 ) by Ijaz ul Haq - Ejaz says he helped release Ghazi in terror cases Wednesday, April 11, 2007 ISLAMABAD: Federal Minister for Religious Affairs Ejaz-ul-Haq has admitted that he had made personal efforts to get Maulana Abdul Rashid Ghazi, Naib Khateeb of Lal Masjid, released in cases of terrorism. Expressing his views in a talk show on Geo TV alongside Pakistan Muslim League-Nawaz Information Secretary Ahsan Iqbal, Nayyar Bukhari of the Pakistan People’s Party and Maulana Abdul Rashid Ghazi on Tuesday, the minister said he took the action after a written confirmation from the Maulana guaranteeing his good behaviour. Reference: Ejaz says he helped release Ghazi in terror cases (Wednesday, April 11, 2007 The News) Ziaul Haq in Jordan (1970) Photo Archive By Isa Daudpota's collection TFT ISSUE| May 24-30, 2013 - Vol. XXV, No. 15 http://www.thefridaytimes.com/beta3/tft/article.php?issue=20130524&page=30 

How Sheikh Rasheed Fought US War Against Terror

RAWALPINDI: Retired army generals said on Tuesday that jihad was the only way to liberate Kashmir. Addressing a seminar on Kashmir Solidarity Day at a local hotel, they said the faulty policies of President Pervez Musharraf over the past eight years had moved the Kashmir issue to the backburner. They said it would remain unresolved while he was in power. They showered praise on sacked chief justice Iftikhar Muhammad Chaudhry for dispensing justice to the masses and Dr Abdul Qadeer Khan for turning the country into a nuclear state. They demanded that both men be released from detention promptly. General (r) Mirza Aslam Baig, General (r) Faiz Ali Chishti, General (r) Hameed Gul, General (r) Jamshaid Gulzar Kiyani, General (r) Asad Durrani, General (r) Sardar Anwar Khan, General (r) Abdul Qayyum and General (r) Ali Quli Khan and former bureaucrat Roedad Khan were prominent among the participants of the seminar, which was organised by the Pakistan Ex-Servicemen Society. The participants later rallied outside the hotel to show solidarity with the Kashmiris fighting Indian forces in the held valley for freedom. Former Steel Mills chief General (r) Abdul Qayyum claimed that Kashmir could only be liberated by waging jihad. He said dictators had ruled Pakistan for most of its history, adding that the country was without leadership. Former army chief General (r) Mirza Aslam Baig said freedom was the birthright of Kashmiris and no one could deprive them of it. Former Rawalpindi Corps Commander General (r) Jamshaid Gulzar Kiyani said that Pakistan had rendered many sacrifices for the Kashmir cause. He alleged that Indian forces had sexually assaulted scores of Kashmiri girls and women. Former ISI chief General (r) Hameed Gul said Srinagar was just as important as Islamabad for Pakistanis. He praised ex-servicemen for supporting the Kashmiris fighting Indian forces by making a human chain on the road. REFERENCE: Jihad only way to liberate IHK: ex-generals * Claim there will be no solution to Kashmir issue while Musharraf is in power By Terence J Sigamony Wednesday, February 06, 2008 

The Jewish Lobby is all over the place with Musharraf

Pakistani Women get themselves Raped to get Foreign Visa, said General Pervez Musharraf --> Interview with Pakistan president Musharraf September 23, 2005 http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/audio/2005/09/23/AU2005092301253.html - This is nine minutes of a 50-minute interview with the Washington Post, Pakistan president Gen. Pervez Musharraf said that claiming rape has become a "moneymaking concern" in Pakistan. Musharraf later denied saying this to the Post. The remark, in regards to the case of Mukhtar Mai, an illiterate woman who spoke publicly about having been gang-raped on the orders of a village council in 2002, was quoted in the 12th paragraph of an article on Sept. 12. --- Riots disrupts Karachi calm: 34 killed, 134 injured . rivals trade allegation . 13 May 2007 https://www.dawn.com/news/246766 The recent disclosures of Brig (retd) Imtiaz seem to be at the behest of MQM or some one else, said former corps commander Quetta Lt Gen (retd) Tariq Pervez while participating in the Private TV Channel programme. He quoted the then chief of the staff Gen Iqbal that Musharraf used to visit ‘90’ (MQM headquarters) in the staff car when he was a brigadier. Tariq Pervez said the instant appearance of Brig Imtiaz and his disclosures obviously force every one to doubt his sincerity. He said the MQM is the major beneficiary in this regard. Tracing the background of Brig Imtiaz in the intelligence department, he said every one under him used to be afraid of him as he had the tendency not only to tease people on different excuses but at times had spoiled their careers. Reference: Musharraf had already made up mind to remove Nawaz: Gen Tariq 01 September, 2009 (The News) & Pak Tribune http://paktribune.com/news/Musharraf-had-already-made-up-mind-to-remove-Nawaz-Gen-Tariq-218739.html

Saudi Arabia, Osama Bin Laden and Jewish Lobby

ISLAMABAD, March 18: Jamaat-i-Islami chief Qazi Hussain Ahmed has revealed that Osama bin Laden had offered to buy loyalties of legislators to see Mian Nawaz Sharif as prime minister. In an interview appearing in the magazine of an Urdu newspaper on Sunday, Qazi Hussain Ahmed said that Osama had visited the JI headquarters Mansoora and wanted to strike an agreement with the Jamaat but the suggestion was declined by him. Excerpts of the interview were published by the newspaper on Saturday. Qazi said he had met Osama several times in the past. However, the JI on Saturday clarified that meetings between the JI amir and Osama in Peshawar and Lahore were held in days when the Al Qaeda leader was staying in Peshawar. Recalling political events that took place when Mr Sharif’s Pakistan Muslim League and JI were components of the then Islami Jamhoori Ittehad, Qazi said Osama was a big supporter of IJI and Nawaz Sharif and wanted to see him Pakistan’s prime minister. “Bin Laden was prepared to pay for buying parliamentarians’ votes to achieve this objective,” said Qazi Hussain Ahmed, who also heads the Muttahida Majlis-i-Amal. He said a delegation sent by Osama had visited him in Peshawar and conveyed that they wanted cooperation from JI but “we declined the request”. In a statement issued on Saturday, a JI spokesman said that excerpts from interview were published in the daily and presented on a private TV channel in such a manner that they were creating confusion in the minds of people.—PPI Reference: Osama offered to buy votes for Nawaz: Qazi March 19, 2006 https://www.dawn.com/news/183849 ISLAMABAD, Aug 13: Jamaat-i-Islami chief Qazi Hussain Ahmed held a three-hour long meeting with President Gen Pervez Musharraf to “discuss national and international matters.” The meeting, according to party sources, was not a scheduled one as the JI chief was busy in the Mutahidda Majlis-i-Amal (MMA) central parliamentary board meeting when he received a call from the president’s house. During the meeting, which continued from 1pm to 4pm, the president discussed a host of issues “with Qazi Hussain Ahmed, including national and international matters,” a party press release said. When asked about the circumstances leading to the meeting, a party leader said: “Qazi sahib was in the meeting with other heads of the MMA, as such, he certainly would have met the president with their consent and advice.” Reference: Qazi, Musharraf talk for 3 hours August 14, 2002 https://www.dawn.com/news/52617 The [Pakistan] government of Benazir Bhutto, which came to know that he helped instigate a no-confidence vote against her in Parliament." Reference: Who Killed Abdullah Azzam? By Aryn Baker / PeshawarThursday, June 18, 2009 http://content.time.com/time/specials/packages/article/0,28804,1902809_1902810_1905173-2,00.html "We in Saudi Arabia are not observers in Pakistan, we are participants," the Saudi ambassador to the US, Adel al-Jubeir : Al-Jubeir denied that Musharraf had come to the Kingdom to meet with exiled former Pakistani Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif, although he carefully avoided ruling out such a meeting. Instead, he boldly asserted that, "We in Saudi Arabia are not observers in Pakistan, we are participants." 4. (S) Al-Jubeir added that he sees neither Sharif nor former Prime Minister Benazir Bhutto as a viable replacement for Musharraf. "With all his flaws," he said of Musharraf, "he is the only person that you or we have to work with now." He claimed that Sharif would be unable to control the Pushtun-dominated Islamic insurgency in the tribal region near Afghanistan, while Bhutto would prove to be too divisive a figure to rule the country, which he characterized as "very tribal, much like our own country." 5. (S) Al-Jubeir added that for the SAG, stability in Pakistan is an essential strategic matter. Since Pakistan possesses both nuclear weapons and delivery vehicles, from the Saudi point of view, the policy choice to be made there boils down to a drastic choice: "We can either support Musharraf and stability, or we can allow bin Laden to get the bomb, "he told the Charge'. References: US embassy cables: Saudi influence in Pakistan Wed 1 Dec 2010 https://www.theguardian.com/world/us-embassy-cables-documents/130876 WikiLeaks cables: Saudi Arabia wants military rule in Pakistan : King Abdullah and ruling princes distrust Asif Ali Zardari, the country's Shia president, and would prefer 'another Musharraf' by Declan Walsh in Islamabad Wed 1 Dec 2010 10.00 GMT https://www.theguardian.com/world/2010/dec/01/saudis-distrust-pakistan-embassy-cables

Cuteness & Naivety of Jamaat-e-Islami & Butchery of Taliban.

LAHORE: Taking a slightly different position from their traditional view point, Jamaat-i-Islami (JI) chief Syed Munawar Hasan Friday said that neither bombings (airstrikes) can help restore peace nor suicide attacks could pave way for the enforcement of Islamic Shariah. Addressing the congregation of Friday prayers at Mansoora mosque – the JI headquarters – he said that religious forces, especially Deobandi clerics should step forward and pave way for dialogue to save the country and also to prevent the emergence of a wrong image of Islam. The JI chief alleged that the Pakistan Muslim League-Nawaz (PML-N) did not hold peace talks with Tehrik-i-Taliban Pakistan (TTP) upon pressure asserted by the United States. Defending the Pakistani Taliban’s ideology, he said the notion that Taliban do not comply with law and constitution was propaganda that was being spread for some ‘special purpose’. “The government was fulfilling a longstanding wish of the US by destroying North Waziristan.” Hasan said if the religious forces did not rise at this moment, they would be driven to a blind alley and would have no way out. He claimed the religious parties had played a key role in framing the 1973 constitution, and it was their duty at this juncture to protect the country and the constitution. “A charge sheet has been issued against the religious parties and they would have to answer that.” The JI chief said that enemies had always used the differences between the Islamic sects and schools of thought as a weapon. “The need of the hour is that the Ulema (clerics) of Deobandi school of thought sit down with the Shias, the Ahle Hadith, and Ahle Sunnah to evolve an effective strategy to counter the current campaign against Islam.” Therefore, he added, it was the duty of the religious forces to go ahead with the talks with the Taliban. “Since a majority of the Taliban belongs to the Deobandi school of thought, it was for the Deobandi Ulema to take up this responsibility,” he said. REFERENCE: ‘No shariah through suicide attacks, no peace through airstrikes’ 2014-01-25 http://www.dawn.com/news/1082440/no-shariah-through-suicide-attacks-no-peace-through-airstrikes Daily Jang Friday, January 24, 2014, Rabi-ul-Awwal 22, 1435 A.H. Updated at: 2353 http://jang.com.pk/jang/jan2014-daily/24-01-2014/u8622.htm

Butchery of Taliban against the Shia Community is conveniently forgotten by the Jamaat-e-Islami, Imran Khan and all those who want to negotiate peace with these butchers --> Taliban

Afghanistan: The Massacre in Mazar-I Sharif: On August 8, 1998, Taliban militia forces captured the city of Mazar-i Sharif in northwest Afghanistan, the only major city controlled by the United Front, the coalition of forces opposed to the Taliban. The fall of Mazar was part of a successful offensive that gave the Taliban control of almost every major city and important significant territory in northern and central Afghanistan. Within the first few hours of seizing control of the city, Taliban troops killed scores of civilians in indiscriminate attacks, shooting noncombatants and suspected combatants alike in residential areas, city street sand markets. Witnesses described it as a "killing frenzy" as the advancing forces shot at "anything that moved." Retreating opposition forces may also have engaged in indiscriminate shooting as they fled the city. Human Rights Watch believes that at least hundreds of civilians were among those killed as the panicked population of Mazar-i Sharif tried to evade the gunfire or escape the city. NOVEMBER 1, 1998 http://www.hrw.org/reports/1998/11/01/afghanistan-massacre-mazar-i-sharif Read the report http://www.hrw.org/legacy/reports98/afghan/

The Massacre in Mazar-i Sharif 1998 http://www.scribd.com/doc/202112624/The-Massacre-in-Mazar-i-Sharif-1998

The Massacre in Mazar-i Sharif 1998 by Aamir Mughal

Jamat-e-Islami say Sufi Muhammad is Kaafir and Al-Qaeda is Brother in Arms.




Jamat-e-Islami say Sufi Muhammad is Kaafir & Al... by SalimJanMazari

Lt. General (R) Hamid Gul supported Butchers like Taliban - General Hamid Gul Interview 1995 Newsline

"QUOTE"

1998: How the Taliban slaughtered thousands of people - No mercy: men, women and children were murdered in their homes as Taliban gunmen took over Mazar-e-Sharif The Sunday Times , Nov.1,1998 By Michael Sheridan THE first detailed eyewitness accounts of the massacre of up to 8,000 people by Islamic fundamentalist Taliban fighters who ran amok in the northern Afghan city of Mazar-e-Sharif last August have been passed to western governments. Testimony compiled by international observers and handed to western diplomats in Pakistan reveals that hundreds of people were packed into containers where they suffocated when the doors were locked in the searing midday heat. Men, women and children were shot in their homes and on the street, and hospital patients were murdered in their beds. The massacre occurred when, during an offensive aimed at seizing full control of Afghanistan for the first time, Mazar-e-Sharif was overrun by the Taliban, who have imposed the world's most extreme interpretation of Islam, barring women from education, banning television and forcing men to wear beards. Statements made available to The Sunday Times describe a campaign of slaughter directed against a Shia Muslim minority, the Hazara. The evidence, regarded by experienced aid officials as "highly credible", paints a ghastly picture of butchery and rape as the Taliban shot and cut the throats of Hazaras. The claims are supported by the influential American group Human Rights Watch, which is due to reveal its own findings on the massacre today and will call on the United Nations to investigate what it describes as "one of the single worst examples of killings of civilians in Afghanistan's 20-year war". The detailed evidence of Taliban atrocities will embarrass western policymakers who still see the fundamentalists as useful players in a modern "great game" to keep Iranian and Russian influence out of Afghanistan and so ensure that the huge oil and gas riches of central Asia remain a prize for western multinationals. Ten diplomats from Tehran were among those who died, prompting Iran to mass 200,000 troops on its border with Afghanistan to bolster demands for the killers to be handed over for trial. Troop "manoeuvres" were due to begin yesterday. Based on eyewitness statements, The Sunday Times has pieced together an account of the nightmare that engulfed Mazar-e-Sharif when the Taliban entered the city from the west on the morning of August 8.

 They were intent on avenging a massacre of some 2,000 of their own men in 1997, when the Hazaras and other fighters turned against them. There ensued what one witness called "a frenzy" of vengeance killing. The Taliban fighters swept through the city, firing heavy machineguns mounted on pickup trucks. One man described how the streets were covered with bodies and blood. The Taliban, he said, forbade anyone to bury the corpses for six days. On the second day, according to numerous witnesses, the Taliban began a house-to-house search for Hazara men. Hazaras, descended from Mongols, are easy to recognise by their distinctive Asiatic features compared with the ethnic Pashtuns who make up the ranks of the Taliban. They share their Shia faith with Iran, while the Taliban are Sunni Muslims. A witness whose testimony is described as "extremely reliable" by aid officials said most of the victims had been shot in the head, the chest and the testicles. Others had been slaughtered in what he called "the halal way" - by having their throats slit. One housewife, who has since fled to Pakistan, said the Taliban entered her house and shot her husband and her two brothers dead. Then they cut the men's throats in front of the woman and her children. Another piece of testimony explained why one Taliban was "very worried he might be excluded from heaven". He had personally shot people in nearly 30 houses, opting to kill them as soon as they opened the door. After killing the men in two homes, he learnt that they were not Hazara but Pashtun.  "That he had killed people in 28 Hazara households seemed not to cause him any concern at all," the witness said. Men not murdered on the spot were "stuffed into containers after being badly beaten", said another witness. He saw the doors opened on a container after all the men inside had died from suffocation. He also testified that some containers were filled with children who were taken to an unknown destination after their parents had been killed. Human Rights Watch has obtained gruesome confirmation of the Taliban's penchant for death by container. It quotes a man who was detained by the militia and saw container trucks filled with victims leaving the Mazar-e-Sharif jail several times every day. Once he watched as the Taliban opened the container doors to find three prisoners alive and about 300 dead. The Taliban drove the trucks to a desert site known as Dasht-e-Leili and ordered porters to dump the cargo of corpses in the sands. The Human Rights Watch report and other statements identify three Taliban leaders who appear to be guilty of incitement to kill victims purely because of their ethnic origin. They are: Mullah Manon Niazi, the new Taliban governor of Mazar-e-Sharif. Numerous witnesses heard him make speeches at mosques and on radio inciting hatred of Hazaras. "Wherever you go we will catch you," he said. "If you go up, we will pull you down by your feet; if you hide below we will pull you up by your hair." One witness testified that Niazi personally selected prisoners to be consigned to the death containers. Mullah Musa, the so-called director of public health. A witness said Musa toured a public hospital looking for Hazara patients to mark out for death. Later that day, the witness heard from a doctor that Musa had taken a group of gunmen to the army hospital, where they had murdered all 20 or so patients, and relatives who had been visiting them. Maulawi Mohammed Hanif, a Taliban commander who announced to a crowd of 300 people summoned to a mosque that the policy of the Taliban was to "exterminate" the Hazaras. International aid workers fear the killings are continuing following the recent fall of the central Afghan town of Bamiyan. They have said thousands of people remain unaccounted for.

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Same Jamaat-e-Islami says that India and USA are behind Taliban 

PESHAWAR: Former Ameer Jamaat-e-Islami (JI) Qazi Hussain Ahmad has said the Taliban were created by Western powers to achieve their own goals. Talking to the media in Peshawar, he said the Taliban took over as an independent force only because the US was not ready to listen to them after achieving its objectives. He said the Taliban got disappointed after they were ignored by the US and began to strengthen their force. Qazi said statements by US officials on the creation of Taliban had no weight as Hizb-e-Islami Afghanistan chief Gulbudin Hekmatyar had openly made such a statement long time ago. He said more than 500,000 people were displaced from the tribal areas and Swat and most of them were living as internally displaced people (IDP) in camps in Kacha Garhi and other places of the province. He said the situation in the country had worsened only because the Taliban had the patronage of foreign forces. Qazi said all the issues could be resolved through dialogue but the NWFP government agreed to implement the Nizam-e-Adl Regulation under pressure. Taliban created by Western powers: Qazi Monday, April 27, 2009 http://www.thenews.com.pk/TodaysPrintDetail.aspx?ID=174444&Cat=2&dt=4/27/2009 Jamaat-e-Islami says India and USA Supporting Taliban Groups Daily Jang 20 January 2014 Monday, January 20, 2014, Rabi-ul-Awwal 18, 1435 A.H. Updated at: 0150 http://jang.com.pk/jang/jan2014-daily/20-01-2014/u8166.htm

Swinging Pendulum of Dr Abdul Qadeer Khan.

2012 ISLAMABAD, Nov 5: Gen (retd) Hameed Gul, former director-general of Inter-Services Intelligence, called on Pakistan Muslim League-N chief Mian Nawaz Sharif at the Punjab House on Monday and spent some time together. Confirming the meeting, Gen Gul told Dawn it was a long overdue courtesy call during which he inquired after the health of Mr Sharif’s ailing wife. They also discussed political issues, he added. “As a patriotic Pakistani, I expressed concern over the worsening situation in the country,” he responded when asked if anything important had come under discussion. After the Supreme Court judgment on Asghar Khan’s petition and Gen Gul’s assertion that he was behind the creation of the right-wing IJI against the PPP in late 80s, analysts believe the meeting was more than just a courtesy call. “Even if it was a courtesy call, a meeting between a former DG of the ISI and the head of a major political party will always attract media attention,” commented a political science teacher of the Quaid-i-Azam University, who requested not to be named. Moreover, he said, when the former ISI DG happens to be Gen Gul, who wouldn’t take notice of the meeting. In a TV interview last week Gen Gul admitted that he had played a role in the creation of the Islami Jamhoori Ittehad (IJI) during his term as ISI chief from March 1987 to June 1989. When asked about the reasons, he said: “I did this in my personal capacity.” “I had been a friend of former Jamaat-i-Islami chief Qazi Hussain Ahmad, Mian Nawaz Sharif (Mohammad Khan Junejo and General Fazl-i-Haq) and still am. I brought these politicians together for the sake of the country and I have no regrets for doing that,” Mr Gul said. About alleged distribution of funds among politicians by his successor, General Asad Durrani during 1990 general elections, he said he had no clue to that and refused to comment whether or not some politicians had received funds from the ISI. General Durrani, in an affidavit submitted in Asghar Khan case, has provided a list of politicians, including Mr Sharif, who were financed by the ISI in 1990 elections. Referring to Dr Abdul Qadeer Khan’s article, which appeared in an English daily on Monday and in which he described events leading to the then military establishment’s opposition to Benazir Bhutto, Gen Gul said: “My role in the creation of the IJI was natural which I had played for the safety of the country.” Dr Khan in his piece talked about the role of BB’s first government in capping uranium enrichment and supporting India against Sikh separatists. REFERENCE: Hameed Gul says his meeting with Nawaz was courtesy call BY Khawar Ghumman http://dawn.com/2012/11/06/hameed-gul-says-his-meeting-with-nawaz-was-courtesy-call/

Concerns of Benazir Bhutto by SalimJanMazari

2012: Fact and fiction BY Dr A Q Khan Monday, November 05, 2012 During my long and close association with Mr Ghulam Ishaq Khan, I never once found him indulging in politics and never heard him saying anything against any politician. I never met or saw any politician with his very competent military secretary, Brig Muhammed Ajaib, who efficiently and honestly served him for five years. Concerning Gen Beg, I would like to narrate one incident here, which speaks for itself. I was in Gen Beg’s office just before the 1988 general elections when the chief election commissioner, Justice S A Nusrat, came to see him. During the talks Justice Nusrat said (probably to see what Gen Beg’s reaction would be) that Benazir Bhutto’s PPP was going to win the elections. Gen Beg’s immediate reaction was to say that if the lady wins, she will rule as per her constitutional right. Not then and not at any other time did I ever hear any adverse remarks about any politician from him. The question arises: why was it necessary to sack Benazir Bhutto’s government and prevent her from winning the next elections? My understanding is that, as soon as she came to power, widespread and reliable reports surfaced about massive corruption by Mr Asif Ali Zardari and his cronies. All the intelligence agencies were sending reports to the president and the chief of the army staff. Then one of her closest associates, a federal minister, was reported to have handed over a list of all Sikh resistance leaders (Khalistan supporters) to India, which resulted in their arrests and elimination by the Indian government. The Sikh insurgency had taken the pressure off Kashmir and the Pakistani army considered their handing over as an anti-Pakistan move. Furthermore, Benazir Bhutto had agreed to freeze the enrichment of uranium at five percent, in a move to please the Americans. In a meeting at the Presidency at which Gen Imtiaz (her military secretary) was also present, I was instructed accordingly. Nobody was happy with the decision, especially not the army and the ISI, and it was considered to be against national interests. Mr Bhutto, and later Gen Ziaul Haq, had never buckled under US and Western pressure and had kept the programme running at full speed. Later, Gen Waheed Kakar took full control of the nuclear weapons programme. Probably all these factors together led to the dismissal of her government and the efforts to stop her from winning the elections. What is intriguing here is that, during her second tenure and later on, neither she nor Nawaz Sharif nor Musharraf pursued the Asghar Khan case, while Benazir Bhutto even appointed Gen Durrani as her ambassador to Germany and Saudi Arabia. After all, Gen Durrani had played a prominent role against her government. Something doesn’t seem right. I cannot doubt the integrity, honesty and patriotism of Mr Ghulam Ishaq Khan and Gen Aslam Beg. I only knew Gen Durrani superficially, but many senior officers did not have much good to say about him. Only God knows the truth. REFERENCE: Fact and fiction BY Dr A Q Khan Monday, November 05, 2012 http://www.thenews.com.pk/Todays-News-9-141163-Fact-and-fiction

2012: A.Q. Khan alleges Benazir directed for
N-tech transfer Afzal Khan / 16 September 2012 ISLAMABAD — Dr Abdul Qadeer Khan, widely acclaimed as father of Pakistan’s nuclear bomb, has alleged that he transferred nuclear technology to two countries on instructions from the slain premier Benazir Bhutto. “Ms Bhutto had summoned me to the PM House and directed me to transfer nuclear technology to two countries,” Dr A.Q. Khan said in an interview with Urdu daily Jang, adding that he acted accordingly as she was chief executive of the country. He did not name the countries believed to be North Korea and Libya. He said technology transfer was no easy task like one could put it into pocket and hand over to somebody. “At least 800 people are used to supervise the process,” he added. He said military ruler Gen. Pervez Musharraf beseeched him to publicly admit having transferred the technology saying it would save Pakistan’s nuclear programme from being eliminated by the US. Dr Khan alleged that Nawaz Sharif was reluctant to conduct nuclear tests in May 1998 in response to Indian tests for fear of US sanctions but he and some other people compelled him to do so. His delayed action, however, allowed a build-up of extreme pressure by the US and its allies. “Had he immediately decided to respond to India, there would have been no time to pressurise Pakistan whereas we had made it clear that we can conduct nuclear tests on a notice of half an hour,” he said. Dispelling impression he harboured political ambitions, Dr Khan said he had launched an outfit to preserve national unity. REFERENCE: A.Q. Khan alleges Benazir directed for
N-tech transfer Afzal Khan / 16 September 2012 http://www.khaleejtimes.com/displayarticle.asp?xfile=data%2Finternational%2F2012%2FSeptember%2Finternational_September513.xml&section=international&col

Hamid Mir on Wiki Leaks - 2 (Capital Talk - 6th... by SalimJanMazari

Dr Abdul Qadeer Khan in Front Line with Kamran... by SalimJanMazari

2012: Imran still politically immature:AQ Khan September 15, 2012  ISLAMABAD: Nuclear scientist Dr. Abdul Qadeer Khan said that Nawaz Sharif was not in favor of nuclear test blast, while the nuclear technology was passed on to other countries on the directive of Benazir Bhutto. In an exclusive interview to Jang correspondent, Farooq Aqdas, Dr. AQ Kahn said that the nuclear technology transfer process was not such that some one could give it to other country by just hiding it in the pocket, as it was guarded by eight hundred persons. AQ Khan said that then prime minister Benazir Bhutto had called him, gave the name of the two countries to be helped and she had given him a clear directive in this regard. AQ Khan further said that he was not self-governing instead he was bound to abide by the orders of the PM of the country and that explains he had to do it. Regarding his state TV confession of the crime during Musharraf era, he said that by doing so the nuclear program could be saved, he was told. AQ Khan said that Chaudry Shujaat was used by Musharraf for getting a confession from him. Replying to a question, AQ Khan said that he had great expectations from Imran Khan, but he was disappointed after two/four meetings with Imran. “Imran Khan’s political thinking is still immature and those having expectations from him will soon be disappointed”, he added. REFERENCE: Imran still politically immature:AQ Khan September 15, 2012 - Updated 103 PKT http://www.thenews.com.pk/article-67783-Imran-still-politically-immature:AQ-Khan

Dr Abdul Qadeer Khan, Nawaz Sharif and Nuclear... by SalimJanMazari

2012: Dr Qadeer calls on JI chief : LAHORE, Nov 7: On his mission of uniting ‘patriotic’ parties on a single platform, nuclear scientist-turned-politician Dr Abdul Qadeer Khan on Wednesday called on Jamaat-i-Islami chief Munawwar Hasan here. Briefing the media after the meeting, he said he was urging patriotic political parties to unite for setting up a grand alliance “to save the country from complete destruction before it was too late.” He said he would also meet PML-N leader Nawaz Sharif and PTI chief Imran Khan for the purpose. He cautioned that the masses were already deprived of Roti, Kapra and Makan, and if the things remained unchanged, they would not even get grass to eat. He said if the country got an honest leadership, it could achieve marvellous results, regretting that the present rulers were taking guidance from Washington instead of Makkah. He said the government was blaming the Taliban for the worsening law and order situation in the country but the fact was the actual responsibility rested on the people in power. It’s high time, he said, that honest and experienced people came forward to lead the nation in the right direction. He said the masses were facing countless problems and they should be wise to elect good people in the next elections. Mr Hasan said Dr A.Q Khan should have been the head of state but he could not rise to that office because he was not Mr 10 per cent. — Staff Reporter REFERENCE: Dr Qadeer calls on JI chief http://dawn.com/2012/11/08/dr-qadeer-calls-on-ji-chief/

General Hamid Gul would betray Nawaz Sharif Again.

2012: ISLAMABAD: Former Inter-Services Intelligence (ISI) chief Gen Hamid Gul met with Pakistan Muslim League Nawaz (PML-N) president Nawaz Sharif in Islamabad on Monday, Express News reported. Nawaz Sharif and the PML-N have been busy forming political alliances ahead of next year’s general elections. Gul is also one of the founding members of the religio-political Difa-e-Pakistan Council (Defence of Pakistan), a group which claims itself to be working for the protection of Pakistan. The DPC has on its roster the likes of Jamatud Dawa chief Hafiz Saeed and Ahle-Sunnat wal Jamaat’s Malik Ishaq. Gul has been vocal against improving ties with India. In late October, Pakistan Muslim League-Zia (PML-Z) chief Ijazul Haq had also announced he would join the PML-N. REFERENCE: Pre-election politicking: Hamid Gul meets Nawaz Sharif By Web DeskPublished: November 5, 2012 http://tribune.com.pk/story/461101/pre-election-politicking-hamid-gul-meets-nawaz-sharif/

General (R) Hamid Gul Lies on Nawaz Sharif. by SalimJanMazari



General (R) Hamid Gul with Mazhar Abbas (DO TOK... by SalimJanMazari

2009: Hameed Gul admits he formed IJI Sunday, August 30, 2009 :  ISLAMABAD: Former chief of the Inter Services Intelligence (ISI) Lt-Gen (retd) Hameed Gul on Saturday disclosed that the PPP could have got landslide victory in 1988 elections, if the Islami Jamhoori Ittehad (IJI) had not been formed. Talking to a private TV channel, he said: ìYes, we had such reports and apprehension of massive PPP victory.î Gul said they feared that the PPP was returning to power after the execution of Zulfikar Ali Bhutto. I take the responsibility of forming the IJI, though it was not my idea,î Hameed Gul said. He said that even during Benazir Bhutto’s first visit to the ISI headquarters he told her about his role in forming the IJI. “We wanted the PPP opponents who had affiliation with the GHQ to unite them on one platform,” Gul said. He said ‘emergency’ was one of the options in 1988 after General Zia ul Haq’s plane crashed, but it was decided to go ahead with November 16 election despite request from opponents of the PPP to postpone it. He disclosed that even former Soviet Union sent a message to Pakistan that the 1988 elections could be sabotaged. Gul said: “This is for the first time I am disclosing that former Russian president Mikhail Gorbachev sent his envoy with a message regarding apprehensions of sabotaging the 1988 election through foreign intervention.” He said he was not aware of the conditions to hand over power to former prime minister Benazir Bhutto, but said he was asked to brief her before she was handed over the power. “Benazir wanted a briefing from the Establishment so I was sent for this purpose and the meeting took place at her friend’s house in Karachi, which lasted over two hours, and I told her that the Afghan Jihad had not ended yet. There were two or three other things, which I briefed her and she said she understood the situation,” he said. He denied “Midnight Jackal” as intelligence plot and said it was Imtiaz’s personal plan. “No agency was involved but Imtiaz himself,” Gul said. The ex-ISI chief denied he ever sent a message to MQM chief Altaf Hussain to join IJI and rejected the allegation of former Intelligence Bureau director, Brig (retd) Imtiaz. “I never sent Imtiaz to Altaf with a message to join IJI but to express concern over allegations of collection of ìBhattaî by some elements,” he said. He predicted the victory of Afghans in Afghanistan and the US exit, but expressed concern over post-US Afghanistan situation and said a weak government was going to be set up there. “We failed to give up political system in Afghanistan after Soviet Union left and now I don’t see much will happen after the US exit, but Afghans will win,” he added. REFERENCE: Hameed Gul admits he formed IJI Sunday, August 30, 2009 http://www.thenews.com.pk/TodaysPrintDetail.aspx?ID=24196&Cat=13&dt=8%2F30%2F2009

General Hamid Gul supported Pervez Musharraf on... by SalimJanMazari

BBC: Wednesday, October 13, 1999 General Hamid Gul: "The army acted in the national interest": - Hamid Gul, a retired general, accuses Mr Sharif of having presided over an administration which had failed to deliver the goods. "Sharif turned out to be a great destroyer of national institutions," he told the BBC. "Look at what he did to the judiciary. "He stripped them of power, put a set of judges against the chief justice, did the same to the press. "He gagged the parliament and finally he wanted to do the same to the army." REFERENCE: World: South Asia Pakistan's coup: Why the army acted Wednesday, October 13, 1999 Published at 23:20 GMT 00:20 UK http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/south_asia/473297.stm

Media Gate in Mehrangate Scandal of Pakistan.

ISLAMABAD: Gen. Jehangir Karamat, former Chief of Army Staff (COAS) of the Pakistan army, said that to transform from a national security state to a social welfare state, Pakistan will have to increase the number of stakeholders in the power sharing arrangement by devolving powers to the lower levels as well as among institutions. He was the main speaker at a roundtable on “South Asian States turning into Security States and its Larger Implications” organized by the Institute of Regional Studies (IRS) here on Wednesday. Gen. (Retd.) Karamat defined national security state as a state with inordinate resource allocation towards defense at the cost of social welfare, and said that India was gradually moving away from being a national security state on that account. Pakistan, on the other hand, according to Gen. (Retd.) Karamat, is still quite defense-oriented and, thus, rooted in the national security paradigm. He attributed Pakistan’s national security concerns to its history, unresolved border disputes with India, internal problems such as insurgencies, and the recent emergence of trans-border issues, such as terrorism. REFERENCE: Report: Roundtable on “South Asian States Turning into Security States and its Larger Implications” with Gen. (Retd.) Jehangir Karamat, former Chief of Army Staff (COAS) of the Pakistan army http://www.irs.org.pk/reports/Report_021512.pdf

Please note how Several noted and leading Top Pakistani Journalists present Villains and Criminals as Heroes in their Columns and TV Programs rather they go to extent to justify Murder.

General (R) Mirza Aslam Beg in Jirga - 1 (GEO TV 4th Sep 2009)


General (R) Mirza Aslam Beg in Jirga - 1 (GEO... by SalimJanMazari

2008: Jihad only way to liberate IHK: ex-generals * Claim there will be no solution to Kashmir issue while Musharraf is in power RAWALPINDI: Retired army generals said on Tuesday that jihad was the only way to liberate Kashmir. Addressing a seminar on Kashmir Solidarity Day at a local hotel, they said the faulty policies of President Pervez Musharraf over the past eight years had moved the Kashmir issue to the backburner. They said it would remain unresolved while he was in power. They showered praise on sacked chief justice Iftikhar Muhammad Chaudhry for dispensing justice to the masses and Dr Abdul Qadeer Khan for turning the country into a nuclear state. They demanded that both men be released from detention promptly. General (r) Mirza Aslam Baig, General (r) Faiz Ali Chishti, General (r) Hameed Gul, General (r) Jamshaid Gulzar Kiyani, General (r) Asad Durrani, General (r) Sardar Anwar Khan, General (r) Abdul Qayyum and General (r) Ali Quli Khan and former bureaucrat Roedad Khan were prominent among the participants of the seminar, which was organised by the Pakistan Ex-Servicemen Society. The participants later rallied outside the hotel to show solidarity with the Kashmiris fighting Indian forces in the held valley for freedom. Former Steel Mills chief General (r) Abdul Qayyum claimed that Kashmir could only be liberated by waging jihad. REFERENCE: Jihad only way to liberate IHK: ex-generals * Claim there will be no solution to Kashmir issue while Musharraf is in power By Terence J Sigamony Wednesday, February 06, 2008 http://www.dailytimes.com.pk/default.asp?page=2008%5C02%5C06%5Cstory_6-2-2008_pg7_41 ISLAMABAD: General (r) Mirza Aslam Baig, former chief of army staff, on Wednesday confirmed that Information Minister Sheikh Rashid Ahmed used to run a militant camp in Rawalpindi. He told Daily Times that being the army chief, he had received information about the camp where militants used to receive training. “The abandoned camp still has the signboard of Freedom House,” he said.He said the camp was established during the rise of an armed struggle in Kashmir, but was closed down in 1991 when the then prime minister Nawaz Sharif found out about its existence. Asked to comment on the denials issued by the foreign office and Sheikh Rashid himself about the camp, the former army chief said: “I am telling you what I have in my knowledge.” Ex-generals, politicians confirm Sheikh Rashid ran militant camp By Shahzad Raza Thursday, June 16, 2005 http://www.dailytimes.com.pk/default.asp?page=story_16-6-2005_pg7_57 

General (R) Mirza Aslam Beg in Jirga - 2 (GEO TV 4th Sep 2009)

General (R) Mirza Aslam Beg in Jirga - 2 (GEO... by SalimJanMazari

Afaq says he, Altaf got money from Younus ISLAMABAD: Mohajir Qaumi Movement’s chairman Afaq Ahmed admitted on Monday that he had received Rs5 million from Younus Habib in 1993, long after he along with several other leaders had parted ways with the party led by Altaf Hussain. He claimed that Mr Hussain had also received Rs5 million from Mr Habib in his presence and that former army chief Gen Mirza Aslam Beg was present on the occasion. Addressing a press conference, Mr Ahmed said he was presenting facts before the media so that it could highlight them without any fear. He accused the Muttahida Qaumi Movement of being involved in extortion and issuing threats to all segments of society in Karachi. “I have told this to the media in Karachi too but they do not have the courage to carry such things,” he said. Mr Afaq said Karachi was a part of the country but policymakers generally thought that negotiating with Mr Hussain was the only way to move ahead because of his influence in the city. He said it was imperative to clear the city of weapons for peace and tranquillity. “We will try to bring religious, nationalists and political groups to one platform for peace in Karachi.” In reply to a question, Mr Ahmed said that if new provinces were made on an ethnic grounds then it would be a never-ending process that might lead to disintegration of the country. REFERENCE: Afaq says he, Altaf got money from Younus A Reporter 20th March, 2012 http://dawn.com/2012/03/20/afaq-says-he-altaf-got-money-from-younus/ الطاف حسین بھتہ لیتے ہیں: آفاق احمد آخری وقت اشاعت: پير 19 مارچ 2012 ,‭ 13:46 GMT 18:46 PST http://www.bbc.co.uk/urdu/pakistan/2012/03/120319_afaq_ahmed_tf.shtml 

General (R) Mirza Aslam Beg in Jirga - 3 (GEO TV 4th Sep 2009)

General (R) Mirza Aslam Beg in Jirga - 3 (GEO... by SalimJanMazari

Hameed Gul admits he formed IJI Sunday, August 30, 2009 :  ISLAMABAD: Former chief of the Inter Services Intelligence (ISI) Lt-Gen (retd) Hameed Gul on Saturday disclosed that the PPP could have got landslide victory in 1988 elections, if the Islami Jamhoori Ittehad (IJI) had not been formed. Talking to a private TV channel, he said: ìYes, we had such reports and apprehension of massive PPP victory.î Gul said they feared that the PPP was returning to power after the execution of Zulfikar Ali Bhutto. I take the responsibility of forming the IJI, though it was not my idea,î Hameed Gul said. He said that even during Benazir Bhutto’s first visit to the ISI headquarters he told her about his role in forming the IJI. “We wanted the PPP opponents who had affiliation with the GHQ to unite them on one platform,” Gul said. He said ‘emergency’ was one of the options in 1988 after General Zia ul Haq’s plane crashed, but it was decided to go ahead with November 16 election despite request from opponents of the PPP to postpone it. He disclosed that even former Soviet Union sent a message to Pakistan that the 1988 elections could be sabotaged. Gul said: “This is for the first time I am disclosing that former Russian president Mikhail Gorbachev sent his envoy with a message regarding apprehensions of sabotaging the 1988 election through foreign intervention.” He said he was not aware of the conditions to hand over power to former prime minister Benazir Bhutto, but said he was asked to brief her before she was handed over the power. “Benazir wanted a briefing from the Establishment so I was sent for this purpose and the meeting took place at her friend’s house in Karachi, which lasted over two hours, and I told her that the Afghan Jihad had not ended yet. There were two or three other things, which I briefed her and she said she understood the situation,” he said. He denied “Midnight Jackal” as intelligence plot and said it was Imtiaz’s personal plan. “No agency was involved but Imtiaz himself,” Gul said. The ex-ISI chief denied he ever sent a message to MQM chief Altaf Hussain to join IJI and rejected the allegation of former Intelligence Bureau director, Brig (retd) Imtiaz. “I never sent Imtiaz to Altaf with a message to join IJI but to express concern over allegations of collection of ìBhattaî by some elements,” he said. He predicted the victory of Afghans in Afghanistan and the US exit, but expressed concern over post-US Afghanistan situation and said a weak government was going to be set up there. “We failed to give up political system in Afghanistan after Soviet Union left and now I don’t see much will happen after the US exit, but Afghans will win,” he added. REFERENCE: Hameed Gul admits he formed IJI Sunday, August 30, 2009 http://www.thenews.com.pk/TodaysPrintDetail.aspx?ID=24196&Cat=13&dt=8/30/2009 REFERENCE: Pakistan's ex-spy chief rebuffs Gul's remarks Author: Azhar Masood I Arab News Tuesday 28 July 2009 http://www.arabnews.com/node/326561

2009 How a jilted Karachi woman saved Pak N-programme Rauf Klasra Thursday, May 28, 2009 : ISLAMABAD: As the nation celebrates the eleventh anniversary of Pakistan’s nuclear tests today (May 28), a shocking 30-year-old secret has been exposed. It reveals how a young woman college lecturer, feeling betrayed after a romance with a nuclear scientist of the Karachi Nuclear Power Plant (KANUPP), had given a lead to the Inter-Services Intelligence (ISI) in 1978, which in turn had led to the dramatic arrest of 12 Pakistani scientists and engineers, planning to sabotage Pakistan’s nuclear sites at the behest of a superpower. The startling spy ring was exposed by this female college lecturer of a Karachi Memon family to the then head of ISI Sindh Brig Imtiaz Ahmed (Operation Midnight Jackals fame), only because she wanted revenge from her lover for being unfaithful. The expose led to the arrest of Pakistani scientists who were later given death and life imprisonment sentences by the special tribunal set up by the then president General Ziaul Haq. Brig (retd) Imtiaz Ahmed broke his silence of over 30 years to share this amazing operation with The News on the eve of the 11th annual celebration of Pakistan going nuclear. He said that while many people take credit for saving our nuclear programme, no one actually knows how an unsung jilted girl had actually ended up saving Pakistan’s nuclear project out of sheer vengeance. Brig (retd) Imtiaz Ahmed served as director in charge Internal Security ISI for several years in Islamabad and later director general Intelligence Bureau (IB) in the first government of Nawaz Sharif. The then prime minister Benazir Bhutto had put him in jail for about three years on charges of being part of the operation to oust her in 1989 during her first government. Later, General Musharraf also put him in jail for four years till his acquittal by the Lahore High Court. He is the only spymaster of Pakistan who was jailed for eight years, after serving 15 years in the ISI and the IB. Read Complete Story: Reference: How a jilted Karachi woman saved Pak N-programme Rauf Klasra Thursday, May 28, 2009 http://www.thenews.com.pk/TodaysPrintDetail.aspx?ID=22396&Cat=13&dt=5/28/2009

2009 The politics of Brigadier ‘Billa’ Tahir Hasan Khan Monday, August 31, 2009 : Brigadier (Retired) Imtiaz, also known as “Billa” is not new for the people of Sindh. He was Sindh ISI chief when political activist Nazeer Abbasi was murdered and a PIA plane was hijacked in early 80’s. The purpose of the murder of political activist Nazeer Abbasi was to warn political workers and the hijacking incident was to sabotage the MRD (Movement for Restoration of Democracy) action launched against Gen Zia-ul Haq. As a result of his work, Billa was promoted as brigadier in the army.. Predictably, his services were terminated in the first tenure of Prime Minister Benazir Bhutto. Mian Nawaz Sharif who was the then chief minister of Punjab, however, appointed Billah as his security adviser and later made him IB chief when Sharif became prime minister in 1990. The disclosure of a secret visit of Imtiaz Billa in Sindh in 1992 was reported in this newspaper and I was very much under pressure when this was published. There was a warning for me not to publish such reports about the IB chief’s secret activities in Sindh. The purpose of the secret visit was to convince the MQM to withdraw its support to Jam Sadiq Ali, a nominee of then President Ghulan Ishaq Khan. Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif was not happy with Jam Sadiq and was in favour of Liaquat Jatoi, a finance minister in Jam Sadiq’s cabinet. Ironically, Jatoi was dismissed by Jam Sadiq after his activities were disclosed by the intelligence agencies to the CM. It was the cold war between President Ghulam Ishaq Khan and Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif which eventually led to the military operation in Sindh. Nawaz Sharif had the backing of Chief of Army Staff Gen Asif Nawaz who launched the operation. Kidnapping for ransom was at its peak at that time and the federal government blamed most of the sitting provincial ministers in Jam Sadiq’s cabinet who were said to provide shelter to dacoits and criminals. The military operation was seen as the only solution against dacoits. But the operation was diverted and re-launched against the MQM to crush the party. This changed the whole political culture of the Sindh and a politics of hate was generated in the province. Four democratic governments (two each by Nawaz Sharif and Benazir Bhutto) were dismissed due to such operations and General Asif Nawaz and his team were held responsible for this damage. A number of youth were killed in the operation while the law and order situation remained very disturbed in this time. There was also a flight of capital from Sindh to Punjab. The role of the intelligence agencies is not new neither is it a secret. PPP’s founder chairman Zulfikar Ali Bhutto in the 70s blamed the agencies for funding politicians in the election against him in Sindh and Punjab. Sindh was the main target of the intelligence agencies and the purpose of all plans and conspiracies was against Zulfikar Ali Bhutto, Benazir Bhutto and the PPP. The state sponsored actors were behind the formation of Pakistan National Alliance (PNA) and then the Islami Jamhoori Ittehad (IJI) against Bhutto and Benazir and huge funds were distributed among the politicians. Politics is still hostage in the hand of ‘State Sponsored Actors’. These actors have absolute power and funds. They were free to do whatever they want. There is no law and restriction for them and they openly and proudly boast of their crimes. There is no punishment for these characters from any quarter. The disclosures of Brig Imtiaz are not new. Perhaps Pakistan is the only country in the world where the “state sponsored actors’ always act against the popular political forces. Everybody knows the role of all dictators from General Ayub to General Pervez Musharraf and the victims who are popular political forces like the PPP, the MQM and the PML from Muhammad Khan Junejo to Nawaz Sharif. Conspiracies hatched by General Ayub, General Yahya, General Ziaul Haq, General Aslam Baig, General Asif Nawaz and General Pervez Musharraf against the elected and political leadership are neither secret nor new. The tactics of every dictator was different but they used the intelligence agencies (state sponsored actors) to damage the political leadership and system as well. A few newspapers published stories about these conspiracies in the past but the majority of the media has avoided to publish these facts because they were very much under pressure from these state sponsored actors. Now it is time for the electronic media and the disclosure of these state sponsored actors on TV channels is a surprising development, especially for students of political science and political observers. There must of some reason behind the activities and disclosures of state sponsored actors. Read Complete Story: Reference: The politics of Brigadier ‘Billa’ Tahir Hasan Khan Monday, August 31, 2009 http://www.thenews.com.pk/TodaysPrintDetail.aspx?ID=195836&Cat=4&dt=8/31/2009

 

Brig Imtiaz defends agencies’ non-cooperation with UN mission Editor Reporting Sunday, April 25, 2010

ISLAMABAD: Former spymaster Brig (retd) Imtiaz Ahmed has defended the purported decision of the Army leadership and intelligence agencies to keep themselves at a distance from the UN investigation team which had probed the circumstances leading to the assassination of Benazir Bhutto, adding, however, they are not immune to domestic investigations if so required. Giving his reaction to the contents of the UN report in which it was stated that Pakistani intelligence agencies did not cooperate with the three-member inquiry commission, the former IB chief said to justify the decision of secret agencies not to cooperate with the UN commission, may not come as a surprise for many, keeping his own association with intelligence agencies at top positions for several long years — first in the ISI and then in the IB. Commenting on the contents of the report, Brig Imtiaz said it was neither an investigative nor fact finding document, and at best it was only a ‘collation’ effort of all the tangible or intangible events, tale telling narrations in circulation ever since the occurrence of the tragedy. He said this document in his estimation was a ‘cover-up’ of some core ‘actors’ (foreign and domestic) who come in the cross line of the circumstantial and ground evidence as well as regional scenario. Brig (retd) Imtiaz said the return of Benazir Bhutto to Pakistan was consequential to a tripartite understanding, if he may call it an agreement, between America, Pervez Musharraf and the late Benazir Bhutto. The NRO was also part of the same concession given to Benazir. He claimed this agreement carried political advantage for Benazir Bhutto and Pervez Musharraf. Brig (retd) Imtiaz said Benazir upon her return to Pakistan rightly grasped the ground realities and decided to put her complete political force behind the then ongoing historic movement for the restoration of Chief Justice Iftikhar Mohammad Chaudhry. The former brigadier believed she showed the red rag both to America and Pervez Musharraf, who could no longer allow this fatal end to their game plan. In this perspective, Brig (retd) Imtiaz said authors of the UN report had no other option, but to divert this critical dimension of the assassination to beef up certain other inconsequential facts and to give a colouring to malign our ‘prime intelligence agencies’ who have been always their target on the basis of fabricated and groundless arguments. He said the provision of security umbrella to Benazir Bhutto, who had twice remained prime minister and enjoyed the prominence of national and international recognition, was the sole responsibility of Pervez Musharraf which in this case was amazingly not only invisible but rather seemed to facilitate the perpetrators of the crime. He asked why was the route of Benazir’s return changed in a surreptitious manner? The box type mobile security covers (four security vehicles) were not provided to her vehicle, no arrangements for emergent availability of ambulance vehicle were made. Autopsy constitutes a critical step in criminal investigation and it was the legal obligation of the senior police officer present on the site to give in writing to the medical authorities to go ahead with prompt autopsy irrespective of the absence of immediate response from Dubai. He said the disappearance of the important party personalities in Benazir’s follow-up vehicle from the site of the incident warrants precise answers. REFERENCE: Brig Imtiaz defends agencies’ non-cooperation with UN mission Editor Reporting Sunday, April 25, 2010 http://www.thenews.com.pk/TodaysPrintDetail.aspx?ID=28488&Cat=13&dt=4/25/2010

2009 Brig Imtiaz’s arrest demanded for communist leader’s murder * Widow says her husnband ‘killed after torture’, has proof of Brigadier Imtiaz’s involvement:  The family and comrades of the late Communist Party leader Nazeer Abbasi, on Sunday demanded a retrial of Abbasi’s alleged killers and the arrest of Brigadier (Retd) Imtiaz Ahmed, former Director-General, Intelligence Bureau (IB), in the case. Speaking at a press conference at the Karachi Press Club on Sunday, Abbasi’s widow Hameeda Ghanghro, Prof. Jamal Naqvi, and Kamal Warsi who were detained along with Nazeer Abbasi allegedly by the intelligence agencies during Gen. Zia’s rule, urged the Chief Justice of Pakistan to take suo moto notice of the case. Mrs Abbasi recalled that the case was reopened in 1994 during second tenure of the Benazir Bhutto government, and, during preliminary investigation, it was revealed that Brigadier Imtiaz Ahmed had killed her husband. Nazeer Abbasi was detained and killed in August 1980. She said that the post-mortem examination report had confirmed that Nazeer Abbasi was killed because of extensive torture. She added that, after the overthrowing of the Benazir government, the case was put in cold storage. Prof. Jamal recalled that after the “murder” of Nazeer Abbasi, pictures of Nazeer and five others, including him, were published in newspapers to show that “we are alive.” He said that Abbasi’s photograph was published in the newspapers but the caption did not give his name. He said that when their pictures were taken, they were in state of unconsciousness because of torture. Kamal Warsi alleged that Brig. Imtiaz had himself interrogated him and his colleagues on assumptions that they were working on a “foreign agenda.” Hameeda Ghanghro (Mrs Abbasi) said that she had lodged an FIR of the case in August 1980 after eight days of her husband’s death and had nominated the then military ruler Gen. Ziaul Haq and the then Governor Sindh S.M.Abbasi. She claimed that Benazir Bhutto herself had informed her that Brig. Imtiaz was involved in the murder of her husband in 1990s and she had issued a statement on that occasion that Brig. Imtiaz should be nominated and arrested in the case. She said that the proceedings into the case had started on 17th August 1980 before a local court in the city but it was suddenly stopped. She urged the government to initiate an inquiry against Brig. Imtiaz on charges of killing her husband and spreading anarchy and undermining democracy in the country. She also urged the Supreme Court to take suo moto notice of the case. She urged the government to set up a commission to hold an inquiry into role of Brig. Imtiaz for undermining democracy in the country. REFERENCES: Custodial death of Nazeer Abbasi our correspondent Monday, August 31, 2009 http://www.thenews.com.pk/TodaysPrintDetail.aspx?ID=195828&Cat=4&dt=8/31/2009 Brig Imtiaz’s arrest demanded for communist leader’s murder * Widow says her husnband ‘killed after torture’, has proof of Brigadier Imtiaz’s involvement By Amar Guriro Monday, August 31, 2009 http://www.dailytimes.com.pk/default.asp?page=2009%5C08%5C31%5Cstory_31-8-2009_pg7_11

 

2009: Brig Imtiaz reveals CIA plots Ansar Abbasi Tuesday, September 01, 2009 ISLAMABAD: Former spymaster Brigadier (retd) Imtiaz Ahmad, whose recent statements caused ripples in the country’s political arena, now talks of a much serious issue ñ Pakistan’s nuclear programme. He claims to have foiled two American CIA plots to sabotage the country’s nuclear programme. While serving for the ISI, he recalled, he had conducted the operation ‘Rising Sun’ in 1979 that successfully thwarted a CIA plot to target Pakistanís nuclear programme. The operation concluded with the arrest and conviction of a Pakistani CIA agent, declaration of a few undercover CIA agents and US diplomats as personae non gratae and their return. In the second case, Brigadier (retd) Imtiaz said, he, as the Intelligence Bureau chief, had discovered another CIA plot being operated through a third country mainly to hit the countryís nuclear programme. Talking to The News here on Monday, Brigadier Imtiaz said that in the late 70s, the CIA spotted one Rafiq Munshi, a graduate of Karachi University, and took him to the US to be trained on nuclear technicalities and intelligence skills. Later, he got appointed in Kanup Karachi as an engineer. It was in 1979 when he was launched back by the CIA with a mission to penetrate into the country’s nuclear network with two clear objectives. Firstly, to provide them (CIA) information about the nuclear programme’s development, security and protection measures for the nuclear installations and identification of nuclear scientists working on sensitive assignments. Secondly, he was assigned to create an opportunity, when given signal, for a technical sabotage of certain nuclear installations. Imtiaz said that Rafiq Munshi was provided substantial financial aid and was made to operate in close coordination with a few special CIA operators, who were undercover agents and working under diplomatic cover in the US embassy in Islamabad and its consulate in Karachi. Imtiaz said during those days he was posted in Karachi as a Lt-Colonel and the ISI chief in Sindh. After getting the clue of the plot and personally monitoring it for several months, he disclosed, he conducted the operation ‘Rising Sun’. 

He said that the operation was conducted in a very secret manner and it was only between him and the then DG ISI Maj General Riaz Muhammad Khan as to what was going on against the countryís nuclear programme. “I fell impelled to pay greatest tributes to the then DG ISI Maj General Riaz Muhammad Khan, who not only encouraged me but also gave me complete authority to fearlessly conduct the operation,” Imtiaz said, adding that the operation that consumed 8-10 months finally ended up successfully with the arrest of Rafiq Munshi from Karachi while the undercover CIA agents were returned to Washington after being declared as personae non gratae. According to Imtiaz, he was later summoned by the then ruler General Ziaul Haq, whom he briefed on the operation ‘Rising Sun’ and its outcome. “After hearing all the details, General Ziaul Haq immediately went to another room to talk to the US president. And what I assessed from his body language as soon as he returned after making the telephone call was a clear message that Zia had lodged a forceful protest with the Americans over its plot against Pakistan’s nuclear programme.” Brigadier (retd) Imtiaz said that he was decorated with Sitar-i-Rasalat for foiling the CIA plot. However, he said, Rafique Munshi, who was sentenced to life imprisonment, was released during Benazir Bhutto’s first government and got closely associated with the Pakistan People’s Party. Talking about the second CIA plot targeting Pakistanís nuclear programme that he had successfully foiled, he said that he did it during his stint as DG Intelligence Bureau in Nawaz Sharifís first tenure and at a time when tension between the then president Ghulam Ishaq Khan and PM Nawaz Sharif was at its peak. Sharing the details of the plot, he said that he got a clue about an individual, who was in contact with an Islamabad-based ambassador of a European country, which was operating for the CIA as a third country. “I personally got in contact with the individual and made a concerted effort to motivate him to work in the national interest instead of becoming an agent of the countryís enemies.” Imtiaz said that he had succeeded in persuading the individual, who later agreed to work for Pakistan as a double agent and for the same reason, the ex-DG IB said, he was duty bound not to disclose his identity. The retired brigadier said that through briefing and debriefings of the same individual, who was nick-named as “Star”, he came to know about the details of the plot that was being hatched against Pakistan by the CIA. Imtiaz disclosed that “Star” was taken to the US where he had received instructions as how he was supposed to operate. Heavily financed, “Star” when came back told the IB chief in his debriefing that he was assigned multiple tasks but the topmost assignment was to find out complete details of the deficiency in the security system of Pakistanís nuclear programme, the exact location of strategic arsenals and the nature of their security arrangements and weaknesses. “Star”, he said, was also asked to create a favourable lobby in the corridors of power to seek policy decisions on the Kashmir issue in accordance with the aspiration of Washington. Imtiaz said that “Star” was also asked to fuel regionalism with focus on the activation of the demand for the creation of a Seraiki province. In this regard, Imtiaz said, “Star” was to create an NGO based in Islamabad and having branches in Bahawalpur and Sindh. Imtiaz said that one more assignment given to “Star” by the CIA was to weaken the extreme emotional attachment of the common Pakistanis with Islamic values. He said that his interaction with “Star” continued and the latter was successfully working as a double agent for Pakistan till the dismissal of the Nawaz Sharif government, which also led to his immediate resignation. Imtiaz said that on the basis of his each and every interaction with “Star”, he used to make his hand written notes all of which were saved in the safe of the DG IB. Later, what happened to those notes, Brigadier Imtiaz does not know. He, however, said that “Star” later left Pakistan and got settled in a foreign country. “Star”, according to Imtiaz, had offered his cooperation on the condition that he would never be handed over to any other IB operator. REFERENCE: Brig Imtiaz reveals CIA plots Ansar Abbasi Tuesday, September 01, 2009 http://www.thenews.com.pk/TodaysPrintDetail.aspx?ID=24241&Cat=13&dt=9/1/2009 Hamid Gul: I am being demonized by Jews Author: Azhar Masood | Arab News Monday 27 July 2009 http://www.arabnews.com/node/326516

 2009: Only bean-spilling spooks can tell why By Zaffar Abbas 2009 ISLAMABAD, Aug 31 Brigadier (retd) Imtiaz Ahmed, or others like him who served in the security services over the past three decades, may alone know the real reason for re-igniting the controversies regarding their role in the making and breaking of political parties, alliances and governments, and of institutionalising corruption in the country`s politics. It is unclear whether this was his intention but the retired brigadier, known as Imtiaz `Billa (the cat)` in the army circles of yesteryear, has done one great service to this nation. Through his confessions, which he proudly describes as `revelations`, he has revived memories of some of the worst transgressions of the law and violations of norms of decent conduct and human rights by the intelligence agencies. Particularly during the dreaded rule of the dictator Gen Ziaul Haq during the late `70s and early `80s. As these revelations jog one`s memory, one is propelled back in time to the period when Imtiaz Billa`s name had become synonymous with dirty, horrible, tactics in dealing with Zia`s political opponents. During this period, arrests, torture and even death in custody of political opponents dubbed Indian or Soviet agents, had become the order of the day. As the re-emergence of the debate takes some of us down the memory lane, an unforgettable reference comes to mind when `Imtiaz Billa` came to be known among the communist and other left-wing activists as `butcher`. Tasked by Gen Zia to eliminate anyone or everyone who had even tenuous links with the otherwise tiny communist movement, Billa and his men took upon themselves the task of hunting down those associated with groups viewed as pro-Soviet. Basking in the glory of having earned the support of the United States because of the Soviet presence in Afghanistan, Gen Zia wanted to pursue his own agenda of Islamisation by neutralising all who may have represented socialist or secular ideals. Noted journalist Sohail Sangi, one such victim of the security services, recalls that in those days Imtiaz Billa was either posted in Karachi or, as an ISI colonel, was supervising the anti-communist operation in Karachi and elsewhere in Sindh province. It was during these days in August 1980 that a group of left-wing activists approached a few journalists at the press club in Karachi to seek their help in highlighting the news of death in custody of communist student leader Nazir Abbasi. Abbasi had died during torture as attempts were made to extract information from eight prominent members of the defunct Communist Party of Pakistan (CPP). The news had come out once his body was handed over to his relatives for burial, but the newspapers were unable to publish the reason for his death because of strict censorship. As Professor Jamal Naqvi, one of the arrested communist leaders, later mentioned in his testimony during the famous `Jam Saqi trial`, it was Nazir Abbasi`s death that saved the rest of the detainees from further torture, as they were soon shifted from a military interrogation cell to a Karachi prison. Even during the military trial the actual case that the intelligence agency had framed against Jam Saqi and his comrades was not about their involvement in promoting Soviet communism in the country but of working for the Indian intelligence to topple Gen Zia`s military regime. Prof Naqvi, Jam Saqi and also others like Sohail Sangi, Jabbar Khattak, Kamal Warsi and Shabbir Sher are around to testify to the horrors of that dark period. Then there were many other cases against nationalist leaders like Rasul Bux Palijo or communist activists like lmdad Chandio and scores of others that were all fabricated so that those charged could be kept away from mainstream politics.

 Hijacking case

 The ISI`s political cell under Gen Zia had acquired a much bigger role with the hijacking of a PIA plane by the so-called Al Zulfiqar in 1981. This incident gave a new lease of life to Gen Zia, as he used it to his advantage to allow the intelligence to round up thousands of political activists in the country – perhaps the biggest crackdown since the mass arrest of political activists to coincide with Mr Bhutto`s hanging. Also, Brig Imtiaz Billa is once again trying to make a big thing of the so-called conspiracy hatched by Ghulam Mustafa Khar to topple Gen Zia`s regime. At one point, noted lawyer and activist Raza Kazim was also implicated in the case, and so were a number of junior officers. In this case too they were accused of having links with RAW. None of them ever denied having worked to remove Gen Zia, but for `Billa` and others the easiest thing was to link them to India to justify their military trial.

 `American agent`

 Perhaps the most bizarre of such incidents was the arrest of a trade union leader in Karachi, Rafiq Safi Munshi on the charge of being an American agent. A few months ago Imtiaz Billa `disclosed` in a newspaper interview how he trapped an `American agent` who was passing on nuclear secrets in Karachi to his `handlers` at the US consulate. Many may differ with the Rafiq Safi`s style of politics, but the fact is that he was associated with the PPP, and was a prominent leader of the Karachi Electric Supply Corporation`s (KESC) trade Union, and was not working at Karachi Nuclear Power Plant (Kannup) as the retired brigadier had portrayed. Even otherwise, what has Kannup plant got to do with Pakistan`s nuclear weapons programme? But in the martial law period the arrest of any opponent of the military junta was justified, and branding them as Indian or Soviet, or in one case, even American, agent kosher.

 Special courts

 What helped the junta more was a blanket news censorship and holding of trial in summary and special military courts, whose verdicts were often written before the start of the case proceedings. It will be quite interesting to find out that in many cases the only crime of such left-wing activists, including many professors of Quaid-i-Azam University, was secretly publishing anti-Zia literature. The role of the military intelligence services in former East Pakistan is often described as the worst as in those days hundreds disappeared and popular opinion was suppressed by arresting and trying Awami League leaders as foreign agents. But a close study of Gen Zia`s days, and the powers that were given to people like `Billa`, or the entire ISI under first Generals Ghulam Jilani and then Akhtar Abdur Rehman and finally Lt-Gen Hameed Gul, may show how blatantly they violated the law and human rights.

 Probe commission

 Now that Brig (retd) Imtiaz has himself decided to spill the beans, perhaps, as many believe, to defame a few more politicians, there are some quarters who argue that democracy will be served better if the politicians collectively demand a high-powered commission to probe into the role of the intelligence services in the country`s politics, particularly during the days of Gen Ziaul Haq and beyond. Politicians may or may not have taken money from the ISI or Intelligence Bureau. But if a former ISI chief, Lt-Gen (retd) Asad Durrani, accepts he distributed money among a large number of politicians, and if Lt-Gen (retd) Hamid Gul boasts of forming an anti-Benazir Bhutto opposition alliance, or if Brig (retd) Imtiaz goes on television to accuse Ghulam Mustafa Khar of taking Rs5 million for his election campaign, then there are enough grounds to initiate proceedings against them and others for subverting the democratic process in the country. Perhaps, the best person to head the commission would be Air Marshal (retd) Asghar Khan, as he is the one who had approached the Supreme Court to expose the role of the ISI in the country`s politics. And if the present Army Chief General Ashfaq Kayani is to be believed about having disbanded ISI`s political wing, it will be fair to assume he will have no objection in a public discussion about the intelligence agencies` dubious political role in the past. At a time when the military is battling forces of religious extremism and militancy, the irony won`t be lost on the leadership that under a different regime it was their own colleagues who tried to crush those representing more tolerant political thought. REFERENCE: Only bean-spilling spooks can tell why By Zaffar Abbas 2009 http://archives.dawn.com/archives/37099