Peace Talks with Militants and Return of the `Midnight Jackal.

2014 ISLAMABAD: Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif on Wednesday announced that his government would pursue peace talks with Taliban militants despite a recent spate of attacks, naming a four-member committee to facilitate the talks. Addressing a session of the National Assembly after a span of six months, Sharif said the government wanted to give peace another chance. The premier announced the constitution of a four-member team – comprising his Advisor on National Affairs Irfan Siddique, veteran journalist Rahimullah Yusufzai, former ambassador and expert on Afghanistan affairs Rustam Shah Mohmand and former ISI official Major (Retd) Amir Shah – to holds talks with the militants. He said that Interior Minister Chaudhry Nisar Ali Khan would assist the committee. Sharif also called on the militants to observe a ceasefire in the televised speech. He said that he would personally supervise the performance of the committee, adding that he was sincerely trying to restore peace in the country and expressed his hope that the other side would reciprocate in a similar manner. The announcement came the same day Taliban militants targeted paramilitary soldiers, killing at least three Rangers personnel in separate bomb attacks in Karachi. Speaking to Dawn.com from an undisclosed location, Tehrik-i-Taliban Pakistan (TTP) spokesman Shahidullah Shahid claimed responsibility for the attacks. Shahid said the Taliban have convened a meeting of the Shura (council) to “assess the committee formed by the federal government for peace talks.” “Taliban are united under Fazlullah and rumours about rifts are baseless,” he said. REFERENCE: PM Sharif announces another push for Taliban peace talks http://www.dawn.com/news/1083531/pm-sharif-announces-another-push-for-taliban-peace-talks & Page 271 from Talibanistan: Negotiating the Borders Between Terror, Politics, and Religion by Peter Bergen (Editor) , Katherine Tiedemann (Editor) http://www.amazon.com/Talibanistan-Negotiating-Borders-Politics-Religion/dp/0199893098

May 19, 2009 Nawaz Sharif told the conference the Swat operation must continue until the elimination of the Taliban. LAHORE: PML-N Quaid Nawaz Sharif, expressing concern about a controversial peace deal with militants, has said militants in Swat were trying to export their particularly harsh version of Sharia. “How do we deal with the situation in Swat?” Nawaz asked in an hour-long interview with USA TODAY at his home on the outskirts of the city. “They are now threatening to get out of Swat and take other areas into their custody. So we’ve got to avoid that situation.” Nawaz said he opposed attacks by US drones on militant hideouts as “counterproductive” and wanted to see dialogue with more moderate groups. Nawaz downplayed fears that the country could be taken over by the Taliban militants. He said the insurgency in Swat and border areas could be defused in just two years if sufficient economic development took place. Any deal with militants should include commitments that “democracy will not be allowed to deteriorate and the writ of the government will be honoured,” Nawaz said, adding that women’s schools and universities must be allowed to stay open. REFERENCES: Nawaz voices concern over Swat deal News Desk Wednesday, April 22, 2009 http://www.thenews.com.pk/TodaysPrintDetail.aspx?ID=21661&Cat=13&dt=4/22/2009 Nawaz voices concern over Swat deal http://www.paktribune.com/news/print.php?id=213937 APC wants end to terror Irfan Ghauri May 19, 2009 http://archives.dailytimes.com.pk/main/19-May-2009/apc-wants-end-to-terror

Go through the "efforts (Jirga 3 March 2011)" of Jang Group and GEO TV to further distort the Recent History of Afghan War and Pakistan's Cooperation with US CIA during General Zia's period (1979 - 1988), the Anchor, Mr. Salim Safi in the start of the Program "Jirga" mentioned Unnamed CIA Officials and showed the cover of a Steve Coll's book on Afghanistan -- Ghost Wars: The Secret History of the CIA, Afghanistan and bin Laden, from the Soviet Invasion to 10 September 2001) and shamelessly declared Steve Coll, a Former US CIA Employee whereas he is is a Pulitzer Prize-winning American journalist and writer. Coll is currently president and CEO of the New America Foundation. Prior to assuming that post on September 17, 2007, Coll was a staff writer for The New Yorker, and served as managing editor of The Washington Post from 1998 to 2004. Coll was also an associate editor for The Post from late 2004 to August 2005. Coll used to maintain a blog on The New Yorker website entitled Think Tank, where he wrote primarily on issues of foreign and public policy, and American national security. June 1, 2010 What I Learned About Blogging Posted by Steve Coll http://www.newyorker.com/online/blogs/stevecoll 

The facts which were conveniently forgotten by the host and guests as well during that programs are as under:

Toasts of President Reagan and President Mobammad Zia-ul-Haq of Pakistan at the State Dinner December 7, 1982 - In the last few years, in particular, your country has come to the forefront of the struggle to construct a framework for peace in your region, an undertaking which includes your strenuous efforts to bring peaceful resolution to the crisis in Afghanistan—a resolution which will enable the millions of refugees currently seeking shelter in Pakistan to go home in peace and honor. Further, you've worked to ensure that progress continues toward improving the relationship between Pakistan and India. And in all these efforts the United States has supported your objectives and will applaud your success. And, Mr. President, unfortunately, a new and menacing turbulence has arisen in our region. More than a fifth of the entire population of Afghanistan has been compelled to seek shelter in Pakistan as a result of the armed intervention in that country by a foreign power. We are bending our effort to resolve this tragic situation through a peaceful political settlement, in accordance with the principles enunciated by the international community. The latest manifestation of this was the Resolution of Afghanistan adopted by the United Nations General Assembly, once again with the overwhelming support of the member states. Spread this America, Mr. President, to areas other than the United States of America. Let America be the torchbearer of peace, peace not only on the American continent but peace in Afghanistan, peace in Vietnam, peace in Somalia, and above all, peace in Palestine. We wish you, sir, all the best in your endeavors. And you will never find Pakistanis faltering. We'll be there right behind you to give you the helping hand, if we can, at the moment that you wish us to do so. REFERENCE: Toasts of President Reagan and President Mobammad Zia-ul-Haq of Pakistan at the State Dinner December 7, 1982 http://www.presidency.ucsb.edu/ws/index.php?pid=42083

The demolition of the temples in Buner was initiated by Maulana Dua Noor, a cleric who belonged to the Panjpiri sect of Wahabism. After the death of Maulana Muhammad Tahir, his son Maulana Tayyab became the chief of this organization who also manages a huge religious seminary in the town of Panjpir. Muhammad Amir, another brother of Maulana Tayyab was a major in Pakistan Army and worked for Inter Services Intelligence (ISI), the country’s spy agency in 1980s. Major Amir allegedly conspired and collaborated with others to topple the democratically elected government of the then Prime Minister Benazir Bhutto in 1989.

Swat Valley The Metamorphosis by Shaheen Buneri http://www.scribd.com/doc/203155147/Swat-Valley-The-Metamorphosis-by-Shaheen-Buneri

Swat Valley The Metamorphosis by Shaheen Buneri by Aamir Mughal

Here comes the Lies and Blatant Distortion by the Jang Group of Newspapers and GEO TV: CIA and ISI: friends or foes? ---> Watch debate on ‘Jirga’ tonight - KARACHI: CIA and ISI: Friends or Foes? Watch a conversation among ISI officials, who had close links with the CIA, in ‘Jirga’. Guests are Brigadier (R) Mohammad Aslam Ghumman (Former Station Chief ISI, Lahore), Brigadier (R) Asad Munir (Former Station Chief ISI, Peshawar), Colonel (R) Bashir Wali (Former Station Chief ISI, Peshawar), Major (R) Mohammad Aamir (Former Station Chief ISI, Islamabad) with host Salim Safi. ‘Jirga’ will go on air tonight at 7 pm. Geo glimpses Thursday, March 03, 2011 http://www.thenews.com.pk/TodaysPrintDetail.aspx?ID=34105&Cat=2&dt=3/3/2011

ISI and US CIA : Adversary or Allies (Jirga 3rd March 2011)

 
ISI and US CIA : Adversary or Allies (Jirga 3rd... by SalimJanMazari

Swat Taliban welcome Osama bin Laden 2009-04-21 00:00:00 http://www.dawn.com/news/955474/swat-taliban-welcome-osama-bin-laden‘Swat Taliban to welcome Osama’ Wednesday, April 22, 2009 http://www.thenews.com.pk/TodaysPrintDetail.aspx?ID=21662&Cat=13&dt=4/22/2009

Afghan Jihad & Emergence of Transnational Networks by CRSS Afghan Jihad & Emergence of Transnational Networks by CRSS

Afghan Jihad & Emergence of Transnational Networks by CRSS by Aamir Mughal

2003: A new book, “Charlie Wilson’s War” by George Crile on the life and good times of a former US congressman is a frank pastiche of a lawmaker who helped Pakistan’s military ruler Gen. Ziaul Haq in procuring American money and weapons for the “holy war” against the Soviet Union in the 1980s. From humble beginnings in Lufkin, Texas, Congressman Charlie Wilson became an Israeli lobbyist and beneficiary of largesse bestowed upon him by the Jewish lobby in the United States and went on to become Ziaul Haq’s personal friend and confidant as they plotted to drive the Soviets out of Afghanistan at times using Israeli supplied arms. Charlie Wilson still works as a lobbyist for Pakistan on Capitol Hill and he was spotted at every reception that former Pakistani ambassador Maleeha Lodhi hosted. Wilson, an avowed anti-Communist and anti-Indian, sat on the powerful US House Appropriations Committee. He managed to procure millions of dollars for America’s largest covert operation ever. He has been investigated several times by the FBI for using covert money to support his lifestyle. Wilson reveals in the book that he was introduced to Gen Ziaul Haq by the Houston socialite Joanne Herring who was appointed honorary Pakistani consul-general by the then ambassador of Pakistan, soon to become foreign minister, Sahibzada Yaqub Ali Khan, when Mr Zulfikar Ali Bhutto was prime minister. Joanne Herring, described as the “Texas Bombshell” in addition to her role as “a social lioness and hostess to the powerful”, was credited with “setting in motion a process that would profoundly impact the outcome of the Afghan war”. “In the pivotal years of the Jihad, she (Herring) became both matchmaker and muse to Pakistan’s Muslim fundamentalist military dictator Ziaul Haq as well as scandal prone Charlie Wilson,” writes Crile. “Herring set the stage. She had called Zia from Houston on his private line and told him not to be put off by Wilson’s flamboyant appearance and not to pay attention to any stories of decadence that his diplomats might relate. She was adamant he win over US Congressman from Texas: he could become Pakistan’s most important ally.” Crile quotes Wilson in the book as saying that “Zia would leave cabinet meetings just to take Joanne’s calls”. When Zia made his maiden visit to the United States during the Reagan administration, he was much reviled by most Americans having hung Mr Bhutto. Ms Herring hosted a most lavish dinner for Zia at a Houston hotel where she defended Zia’s hanging of Bhutto, saying “Zia did not hang Bhutto. He was found guilty. President Zia did not commute the sentence because the Pakistani constitution based on the Quran did not allow it”. 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.

REFERENCE: Charlie Wilson’s war by Masood Haider DAWN - Features; July 23, 2003 http://www.dawn.com/news/1064817  Pakistan got Israeli weapons during Afghan war http://archives.dailytimes.com.pk/main/20-Jul-2003/pakistan-got-israeli-weapons-during-afghan-war

Declassified - The Taliban (Documentary)
Declassified - The Taliban (Documentary) by SalimJanMazari

 “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.” With that encouragement, Wilson pushed on. “Pakistan did not have diplomatic relations with Israel, and Wilson certainly had no authority to serve as a quasi secretary of state. In fact, with this kind of talk, the congressman was walking dangerously close to violating the Logan Act, which prohibits anyone other than the (US) president or his representatives from conducting foreign policy. But as the two rejoined Joanne’s party, Zia left the congressman with an understanding that he was authorized to begin secret negotiations to open back channels between Islamabad and Jerusalem. Wilson would leave for Israel in March and travel on to Pakistan to brief Zia immediately afterward. Crile says that the CIA man in Islamabad, Howard Hart, when asked years later, if he knew about Wilson’s efforts to bring the Israelis into the Afghan war, dismissed the story out of hand, insisting that the Pakistanis would never have permitted it. “I would have burst into hysterical laughter and locked myself in the bathroom before proposing such a thing,” he said. “It was bad enough for Zia to be dealing with the Americans, even secretly. But the Israelis were so beyond the pale that it would have been impossible. You have to understand that the Pakistanis were counting on maintaining the image of holding the high moral ground — of a religious brother helping a religious brother. It is beyond comprehension to have tried to bring the Israelis into it.” “Yet right under Hart’s nose,” Crile writes, “Wilson had proposed just such an arrangement, and Zia and his high command had signed on to implement it. Seven years later, Hart still knew nothing about it.” Charlie Wilson’s strategy called for introducing a new weapon into the battle every three months or so, in order to bluff the Red Army into thinking their enemy was better armed and supported than it was, “The Spanish mortar, for example, with its satellite-guided charge, was rarely deployed and may only have succeeded because the Pakistani ISI advisers were along to direct the fire. But the Soviets didn’t know that. When the weapon was first used it wiped out an entire Spetsnaz outpost with a volley of perfect strikes.” But ultimately it was the Reagan administration’s decision to covertly supply the mujahideen with Stinger missiles which changed the course of war. President Zia, Wilson is quoted as saying in the book, was unwilling to deploy Stingers in the war fearing that the Soviets would react harshly. As it is at Leonid Brezhnev’s funeral Soviet leader, Yuri Andropov, had threatened “to destroy Zia if he didn’t cut off the Afghan bandits.” In his bid to persuade Zia to allow mujahideen to deploy Stingers, Wilson says that he told the general “that he should consider an important benefit beyond weapon’s battlefield value to mujahideen. The Stinger, he told Zia would become symbol of the special relationship that had been forged between United States and Pakistan.” Crile says Wilson’s importance to Zia and Pakistan went beyond money. “Every year the appropriations sub-committee members fought a battle royal over charges that Pakistan was actively pursuing an Islamic Bomb. And every year Wilson, sometimes single-handedly, beat back those accusations. The fact is, Pakistan was working on the bomb, as Wilson, the CIA and almost everyone knew. Furthermore it was not about to stop. The one thing all serious Pakistani politicians agreed on was the need for a nuclear deterrent. It was the only way, they believed, they could survive against militarily superior India, which had already overrun the country in three previous wars.” Thus, Crile says, “Zia knew that as long as Pakistan was backing the mujahideen, Charlie Wilson would be with them, whether they had the bomb or not.” Hence the crucial decision to deploy the Stingers was made by Zia. REFERENCE: Charlie Wilson’s war by Masood Haider DAWN - Features; July 23, 2003 http://www.dawn.com/news/1064817  Pakistan got Israeli weapons during Afghan war http://archives.dailytimes.com.pk/main/20-Jul-2003/pakistan-got-israeli-weapons-during-afghan-war

Dawn News on Operation Midnight Jackal (2009)

 
Dawn News on Operation Midnight Jackal (2009) by SalimJanMazari

2009:  Return of the `Midnight Jackal`? ISLAMABAD, April 7 Major Amir, who allegedly conspired and collaborated with others to topple the first Benazir Bhutto government, is said to have developed close relations with the Pakistan People`s Party top leadership. Party sources told Dawn that Major Amir, a former Inter-Services Intelligence (ISI) operative, had held a few meetings with President Asif Ali Zardari. However, what was discussed in the meetings remains unclear. The sources said that Major Amir was part of the president`s entourage that accompanied him on his visit to Saudi Arabia in November 2008. They added that some PPP leaders were quite surprised to see him around. Major Amir confirmed the recent thaw in relationship between himself and the PPP top leadership. “Let it be no surprise that I have had a cordial relationship with the PPP leadership for the past few years,” he asserted. Asked what he discussed during his meetings with the president, he said, obliquely, that they had exchanged views on the issues of mutual interest. However, the presidential spokesman, Farhatullah Babar, denied reports of meetings between Major Amir and President Zardari. “I have never seen Major Amir in the Presidency during my stay. Moreover, I have not seen his name in any of the scheduled meetings of the president,” he said. But Mr Babar could not explain why Major Amir had been included in President Zardari`s entourage to Saudi Arabia. Major Amir and Brigadier Imtiaz were the two main characters of “Operation Midnight Jackal” that was reportedly launched to topple the first Benazir Bhutto government in 1989. The ISI had reportedly launched the operation to make Pakistan People`s Party MNAs support a no-confidence motion against their own prime minister. According to the then director-general of the Intelligence Bureau, Masood Sharif Khattak, Major Amir and Brigadier Imtiaz were caught on video and audiotapes influencing some PPP parliamentarians. But in an earlier interview with DawnNews, Major Amir and Brig Imtiaz had contradicted the reports of their involvement in the conspiracy. Major Amir claimed he was acting on the specific directives of the then ISI director-general, Shamsur Rehman Kallue, who was an appointee of former prime minister Benazir Bhutto. He claimed that he was acting to identify the black sheep within the ranks of the PPP. He offered the same version of events to the board in the GHQ which heard his case during court martial proceedings. The former ISI operative conceded that he kept a watchful eye on the treasury MNAs who were expected to support the no-confidence motion against the then prime minister, Benazir Bhutto. Sources said Major Amir would never have been able to find a place close to Benazir Bhutto. They added that some close aides of President Zardari helped Major Amir make his acquaintance. The former ISI operative used to be a special adviser to former NWFP chief minister Sardar Mehtab Abbasi, a close aide of former prime minister Nawaz Sharif. By then, Major Amir was said to be in the good books of the PML-N top leader. But this is not what the PML-N spokesman thought. “He was just an adviser to Sardar Mehtab. But he did not have any close contact with Mian Nawaz Sharif,” PML-N spokesman Siddiqul Farooq claimed. A political pundit, who has access to some important drawing rooms in Islamabad, did not rule out the possibility of the former ISI operative being given an important political assignment to deal with right-wing media or fundos or both. Return of the `Midnight Jackal`? 2009-04-08 00:00:00 by Shahzad Raza http://www.dawn.com/news/849385/return-of-the-midnight-jackal

Major (R) Aamir, Don Quixote & National Security.

Tilting at windmills: The phrase derives from an episode in the novel Don Quixote by Miguel de Cervantes. In the novel, Don Quixote fights windmills that he imagines to be giants. Quixote sees the windmill blades as the giant's arms, for instance. A relevant portion of the novel states: Just then they came in sight of thirty or forty windmills that rise from that plain. And no sooner did Don Quixote see them that he said to his squire, "Fortune is guiding our affairs better than we ourselves could have wished. Do you see over yonder, friend Sancho, thirty or forty hulking giants? I intend to do battle with them and slay them. With their spoils we shall begin to be rich for this is a righteous war and the removal of so foul a brood from off the face of the earth is a service God will bless.""What giants?" asked Sancho Panza. "Those you see over there," replied his master, "with their long arms. Some of them have arms well nigh two leagues in length." "Take care, sir," cried Sancho. "Those over there are not giants but windmills. Those things that seem to be their arms are sails which, when they are whirled around by the wind, turn the millstone." —Part 1, Chapter VIII. Of the valourous Don Quixote's success in the dreadful and never before imagined Adventure of the Windmills, with other events worthy of happy record. REFERENCE: Don Quixote http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Don_Quixote

In his essay ‘Politics and the English Language’, George Orwell warns us against words and phrases drained of all meaning, words that can mean whatever the powerful want it to mean. One such term gaining in currency is ‘national interest’. Government spin doctors (and their stenographers in the media) routinely conflate national interest with people’s interest. But ‘national interest’ is very different from the people’s interest. ‘National interest’ concerns a nation-state’s ability to wage war. Whatever enhances this ability is considered to be in the national interest; whatever threatens it is against the national interest. The most transparent expression of this principle is seen in the ruling classes’ obsession with ‘national security’. The people’s interest, on the other hand, is always issue-specific. It is rooted in local geography, history, and community, while ‘national interest’ is tied to abstractions such as ‘development’ or ‘reform’ or ‘security’. The people’s interest might find a voice in democratic platforms, such as a movement or a party, while national interest is ‘protected’ through the executive and repressive arms of the state – the PMO, the police, etc. And where the people’s interest comes in conflict with ‘national interest’, the former will be booted out, democracy be damned. REFERENCE: Beware of those who speak of ‘national interest’ G Sampath | Agency: DNA | Saturday, October 6, 2012 http://www.dnaindia.com/analysis/column_beware-of-those-who-speak-of-national-interest_1749358

Major (R) Aamir in Jirga - 1 (GEO TV Sept 2009)


Major (R) Aamir in Jirga - 1 (GEO TV Sept 2009) by SalimJanMazari

Interview: "Intelligence agencies are well-equipped to tackle subversive politics" By Aoun Sahi TNS: If so, how do you explain your role in Operation Midnight Jackal?

 IA: The use of word operation for this small incident is a highly trumpeted drama. In this incident my involvement revolved round the blind trust and one sided loyalty that I accorded to my two seniormost superiors General Aslam Beg and Hameed Gul. I was called by Aslam Beg the then COAS and told that the policies of this government regarding nuclear programme, Afghan Policy and interference in the matters of army were creating problems for the country and sought my help in the matter. These two gentlemen, Beg and Gul, were the controlling figures of Midnight Jackal while federal defence secretary Ijlal Haider Zaidi was assisting them. Hamid Gul was serving as corps commander Multan at the time but he used to visit Rawalpindi every week without GHQ permission. There he used to see Ijlal Haider Zaidi regularly while Major Amir and I were also asked to often meet.

 Malik Mumtaz, a grade 17 officer of military engineering service and a friend of Major Amir was the central villain of this incident. After this incident, he landed in India with the help of RAW and from there in London. During the second government of PPP he came back. He should have been convicted under the Army Act. Instead he was elevated to grade 18 and posted in FIA and later he interrogated me and blamed me for distributing millions of rupees among journalists. I want to tell you that during my 15 years long intelligence career, I have never given money to any journalist except one and that was only Rs5,000 and that too was sanctioned by DG ISI; at that time I was not allowed to give more than Rs500 without prior permission of DG ISI. I was also charged with corruption and mainly because when I was director IB, one day Rs15 million were transferred to its account and by the evening same day I used this sum. During investigation FIA people asked about this amount but I refused to tell them the truth because I used this money to safeguard the national interest of Pakistan. Later I also refused to disclose details about this amount in lower court. But in the High Court I did give the details to an honourable judge (Mr Rashid Aziz) in camera and he released me from the case. REFERENCE: Interview: "Intelligence agencies are well-equipped to tackle subversive politics" By Aoun Sahi http://jang.com.pk/thenews/aug2009-weekly/nos-02-08-2009/dia.htm#5

Major (R) Aamir in Jirga - 2 (GEO TV Sept 2009)



Major (R) Aamir in Jirga - 2 (GEO TV Sept 2009) by SalimJanMazari

DAWN 2006: Osama offered to buy votes for Nawaz: Qazi March 19, 2006 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 Sunday Safar 18, 1427 http://archives.dawn.com/2006/03/19/top10.htm

Extremists Nurtured for Short-Term Goals: Swat Deputy Commissioner Muhammad Javed, also provided possible support to the TNSM. President Zardari stated, therefore, that weakness of civil bureaucracy had resulted in the emergence of militants and militancy. Major Amir worked as a catalyst to promote the TNSM in Malakand Division through his father’s seminary in Panjpir which was then run by his brother Maulana Muhammad Tayyib. The JUI (F-group) Vice President, Aziz ur Rehman stated: “the absconder Major Amir is running the law and order situation in Malakand at the behest of Nawaz Sharif.” REFERENCE: Extremists Nurtured for Short-Term Goals - Tehreek-i-Nifaz-i-Shariat-i-Muhammadi in Malakand Division (Khyber Pakhtunkhwa): A Case Study of the Process of “State Inversion” BY Navid Iqbal Khan http://www.nihcr.edu.pk/Latest_English_Journal/6.%20Tehreek-e-Nifaz-e-Shariat-e-%20Muhammadi,%20Navid%20iqbal.pdf


The demolition of the temples in Buner was initiated by Maulana Dua Noor, a cleric who belonged to the Panjpiri sect of Wahabism. After the death of Maulana Muhammad Tahir, his son Maulana Tayyab became the chief of this organization who also manages a huge religious seminary in the town of Panjpir. Muhammad Amir, another brother of Maulana Tayyab was a major in Pakistan Army and worked for Inter Services Intelligence (ISI), the country’s spy agency in 1980s. Major Amir allegedly conspired and collaborated with others to topple the democratically elected government of the then Prime Minister Benazir Bhutto in 1989. Major Amir, the ISI officer, was deeply involved in Operation Midnight Jackal, intended to remove Benazir Bhutto from the prime minister position through a no confidence vote in parliament. Funds for buying votes were allegedly provided by Osama Bin Laden. REFERENCE: Swat Valley- The Metamorphosis By Khushal Khan http://www.tribalanalysiscenter.com/PDF-TAC/Swat%20Valley-Metamorphosis.pdf


The Swat conflict was also deeply influenced by the Panjpirs of Swabi district, adjacent to the Malakand division of NWFP. The Panjpirs follow a localized version of Saudi Wahhabism that was introduced in Pakistan by Maulana Tahir, father of Major Amir, an Inter-Services Intelligence operative who allegedly helped topple Benazir Bhutto’s first government. The madrassa at Panjpir, administered by Maulana Tayyab, Major Amir’s brother, is associated with a who’s who of Pakistan’s extremist leaders, including TNSM chief Sufi Muhammad, Bajaur Taliban commander Maulvi Faqir Muhammad, and the Khyber agency’s notorious militant leader Mangal Bagh. TNSM military chief Fazlullah also adhered to the Panjpir group. This madrassa was an important recruitment camp that also performed the role of a think tank for strategic planning during the Afghan war of the 1980s. REFERENCE: Counterterrorism Strategy Initiative Policy Paper Inside Pakistan’s North-West Frontier Province The Political Landscape of the Insurgency Hassan Abbas, April 2010 http://counterterrorism.newamerica.net/sites/newamerica.net/files/policydocs/abbas_0.pdf


In addition, the ideological rigor of the Bajauri militants is explained by the fact that most of the clerics hailing from the Agency are educated at Madaris run by Ishaat-ulTawheed, including TTP leader Faqir Mohammed. The organization is modeled around the madrassa founded by Maulana Mohammed Tahir Panjpir, in Panjpir, Swabi District, NWFP. The Panjpiris are linked to the Jemaat-e-Ulema Islam (JUI), both Sami ul Haq and Fazlur Rehman groups, and are close to the Ahl-e-Hadith ideology. The Panjpiri madaris network was a crucial influence for the Taliban movement in the Pak-Afghan region. Faqir Mohammed perfectly epitomizes the type of leader favoured by the Panjpiris, a dual Amir that leads both from the religious and the military point of view, in orchestrated continuity with paradigmatic figures such as Mullah Mohammed Omar and the early Sufi Mohammed, for example. REFERENCE: The Tehrik-e-Taliban Pakistan: The Bajaur Case - NEFA Senior Investigator Claudio Franco July 2009 http://www.fondazionecdf.it/var/upload/file/992-02.pdf


But Azzam was also reviled, and feared, for his power to inspire others to share his dedication to jihad. There were no less than five assassination attempts on Azzam in the months leading up to his death, says Hutaifa, and countless threats. In the teeming, faction-ridden streets of Peshawar, they could have been launched by one group or several. "Who didn't want to kill Azzam?" asks journalist Ismail, who worked with Azzam and covered the anti-Soviet resistance throughout the 1980s. He counts the possibilities on his fingers: "There was the KGB and KHAD [the intelligence service of the communist government in Afghanistan] because he was a powerful leader in the jihad. Israel and Mossad, because he helped found Hamas. The [Pakistan] government of Benazir Bhutto, which came to know that he helped instigate a no-confidence vote against her in Parliament." There were the Americans, because Azzam objected to their efforts to reconcile the mujahedin with the Afghan government after the Soviets left; Shi'ite elements in Iran who saw him as chief of the Sunnis; Gulbuddin Hekmatyar, a powerful Afghan warlord who resented Azzam's support of a rival; and other Arabs, who were concerned about his growing power. "The only person I can say for a fact didn't kill him is myself, because I was getting married in Jordan that day," says Ismail. REFERENCE: TIME's Annual Journey: 1989 - Who Killed Abdullah Azzam? By Aryn Baker / PeshawarThursday, June 18, 2009 http://www.time.com/time/specials/packages/article/0,28804,1902809_1902810_1905173,00.html

Major (R) Aamir in Jirga - 3 (GEO TV Sept 2009)



Major (R) Aamir in Jirga - 3 (GEO TV Sept 2009) by SalimJanMazari

2009:  Political wings still exist in ISI: Maj Amir News Desk Tuesday, September 01, 2009  RAWALPINDI: Political wings existed in the past and still exist in the Inter-Services Intelligence (ISI), said Major (retd) Amir, claiming that they worked for the Pakistan People’s Party (PPP) in the Operation Midnight Jackal. He was talking to Dr Shahid Masood in ‘Meray Mutabiq’ programme of Geo TV in which former PPP minister Mukhtar Awan and former Army chief General (retd) Aslam Beg also spoke. When asked about the authenticity of the tape with regard to Operation Midnight Jackal, Major (retd) Amir said it was authentic but if the Intelligence Bureau recorded it, why they could not produce the original cassette in the court. “But despite that I admit that it was my voice and I was doing all that with permission of Gen (retd) Kalloo, who later distanced himself from the same. I did convey details about the operation to personal secretary of Gen (retd) Kalloo,” he said. “But when action was initiated against me, even the near ones left me. The civil court acquitted me but a general dismissed me. The civil court described the case as a fairy tale,” said Major (retd) Amir. Commenting on his views, Mukhtar Awan claimed to have come to know when Hamid Gul was heading the ISI that he (Hamid Gul) was emerging as a threat not only to the government of Benazir Bhutto but even to her life. He said on this he advised the Mohtarma to appoint a retired general as head of the ISI. He said the claim of Major Amir that Gen (retd) Kalloo conducted the Operation Midnight Jackal to save the government of the Mohtarma was wrong. He alleged that Major (retd) Amir was part of the conspiracy whereas Gen (retd) Kalloo did not take part in any plot. Mukhtar Awan said Major (retd) Amir and Brigadier (retd) Imtiaz have been favourites of some persons. He said people like them even fix cameras in coffins and also record conversations in the chamber of the chief justice. On this Major (retd) Amir said the man appointed by their (PPP) government as head of the IB submitted an affidavit in the Supreme Court that he was taping phone calls of judges and one of the cases against the Mohtarma pertained to this. He said he never taped telephone calls of judges. He said Mukhtar Awan is uttering baseless things while the man who conceived the Operation Midnight Jackal has been living in India after dismissal of their government and later had been travelling on the Indian passport. “What the agency would be called if a major stole personal documents of myself and the prime minister from the Prime Minister House?” Mukhtar Awan questioned. “It was your incompetence that you could not guard your documents,” Major (retd) Amir said in response. Participating in the programme, Gen (retd) Aslam Beg said it was not by chance that the PPP and MQM (Muttahida Qaumi Movement) are working together rather it is a synchronisation of their secular thinking and the present set-up is similar to that of 1988 to a great extent. He said he and Benazir struck no deal in 1988. The allegation was untrue and there is no proof in this regard. REFERENCE: Political wings still exist in ISI: Maj Amir News Desk Tuesday, September 01, 2009 http://www.thenews.com.pk/TodaysPrintDetail.aspx?ID=24239&Cat=13&dt=9%2F1%2F2009

2009:  Spy vs spy Shakeel Anjum Friday, August 28, 2009 ISLAMABAD: Brig (retd) Imtiaz Ahmed is an American agent planted by the American agencies mainly to defame the Pakistani intelligence agencies, former director Federal Investigation Agency (FIA) Malik Mumtaz Ahmad said on Thursday. While addressing a press conference, he said after having played a key role in toppling the Benazir government in 1990, Brig Imtiaz was now bent on destabilising the present government. Malik Mumtaz claimed that he had informed the then prime minister Benazir Bhutto through her special secretary (security) of the conspiracy plan ‘Midnight Jackal’ of Brig (retd) Imtiaz and Maj (retd) Amar. She contacted the then Army chief Gen Aslam Baig but he had denied. Malik Mumtaz claimed that Benazir had sent her interior minister Nasirullah Khan Babar to Aslam Baig but the Army chief had again denied the report, asking him to produce evidence about the conspiracy. “He is playing in the hands of American agencies to destabilise the political system,” Malik Mumtaz averred. “He is opposing Mian Nawaz Sharif to get entrance in the PPP camp,” he added. He appealed to the Supreme Court to take suo moto notice against Brig Imtiaz and reopen his corruption cases. He claimed Brig Imtiaz’s “anti-state activities” were creating confusion in the political system. The former FIA chief alleged Brig Imtiaz had collected illegal wealth during his tenure as IB head. Malik said that a corruption case was lodged with the FIA after the brigadierís removal during the Benazir government. However, the FIA did not pursue the case in the court, and, consequently, it was dismissed. Malik said Brig Imtiaz made 27 valuable properties and a heavy account in a bank of London, adding, he got himself freed from the cases by using his influence during the Nawaz government in 1997. The second case of corruption against Brig Imtiaz was registered by the Account Appellate Bureau chairman in 2000, Malik said, adding that the detailed list of his properties was attached with the petition. The properties included three houses and three commercial units in Islamabad as well as foreign exchange bearing certificates to the tune of Rs 20.8 million. He said a court sentenced Brig Imtiaz to eight years rigorous imprisonment with a fine of Rs 7 million, also confiscating his assets. The court disqualified him for ten years for holding any public office or statutory or local authority. But he, taking advantage of the NRO, managed to retake his property. Malik disclosed that before his “retirement at fault” from the Army in 1988, Brig Imtiaz had declared his total asset as a two-kanal plot at the Lahore Cantt Officers Society (Phase-II) and a 2,000-square-yard plot in the Defence Housing Society, Karachi. He questioned how Imtiaz made property worth billions of rupees as IB chief. REFERENCE: Spy vs spy Shakeel Anjum Friday, August 28, 2009 http://www.thenews.com.pk/TodaysPrintDetail.aspx?ID=195414&Cat=2&dt=8%2F28%2F2009

Major (R) Aamir in Jirga - 4 (GEO TV Sept 2009)



Major (R) Aamir in Jirga - 4 (GEO TV Sept 2009) by SalimJanMazari

2009:  Spy vs spy Usman Manzoor Friday, August 28, 2009 ISLAMABAD: Another former senior officer of the Intelligence Bureau has broken his silence after the recent outbursts of Brig (retd) Imtiaz and has revealed that the former IB director-general had planned to register high treason cases against Benazir Bhutto, Chaudhry Aitzaz Ahsan, Salmaan Taseer and Masood Sharif. Following the recent disclosures of Brig Imtiaz, which have shaken both the Pakistan Muslim League (PML-N) and the Muttahida Qaumi Movement (MQM), Rana Abdul Baqi, who had served under former IB director-general Masood Sharif and retired as senior director, in an exclusive interview with The News, disclosed that Brig Imtiaz wanted to try Benazir Bhutto and three others because they leaked secret tapes to an Indian journalist and got it published in India Today. According to Baqi, the tapes which were leaked contained conversations between MNAs and Brigadier Imtiaz and Major Amir, and also included classified information about training camps of the Army and other strategic security information which may still be classified. The former IB director said: “In 1991 after completing medical leave I reported at the IB headquarters and started waiting for my next posting, as I was previously working as personal staff officer to IB director-general Masood Sharif. One day, Brig Imtiaz called me in his office because he was upset with the episode of Salmaan Taseer, who had conducted a press conference against the architects of ‘Operation Midnight Jackal’ and India Today had also published some extracts of those secret tapes. The brigadier asked me how did Salmaan Taseer get those tapes? “He (Taseer) is an agent of RAW and India Today got those tapes through Taseer.” “Brigadier Imtiaz alleged according to his information Taseer got those tapes through me.” “According to my sources, Masood Sharif and Benazir Bhutto got those tapes from you,” Brig Imtiaz blamed me, adding: “Benazir Bhutto gave those tapes to Taseer.” Imtiaz added apart from Benazir Bhutto and Salmaan Taseer, Aitzaz Ahsan was also present there and in his presence these tapes were handed over to Taseer. “I want to initiate high treason case against these four because they have handed over classified national secrets to India and you (Rana Abdul Baqi) would become approver in the case and you would admit that these secret tapes were handed over to Taseer in your presence. “I told Brig Imtiaz that I do not know Benazir Bhutto, Aitzaz Ahsan and Salmaan Taseer personally and I can not give any sort of false evidence. I was offered promotion by Brig Imtiaz and upon my refusal I was threatened of severe consequences and an inquiry was lodged against me and I was accused of leaking those secret tapes.” “I told Brig Imtiaz that three sets of these tapes were prepared each containing 12 cassettes. One was sent to the Military Intelligence director-general; one to the Prime Minister Secretariat and the third was kept in IB director-general’s office. I don’t know how Taseer got those tapes. 

Brig Imtiaz constituted a committee to discuss my involvement in handing those tapes to Taseer. Brig Imtiaz’s committee comprised Air Commodore Khalilullah Ghauri, Col Bashir Wali, who has remained IB director-general and Major Salim Khan. The committee inquired from me and I gave a ten-page reply on how these tapes were distributed. The Army men took the last copy of these cassettes which was at IB director-general’s office and a receipt was also given of that episode. “The committee exonerated me after getting satisfactory answers. Commodore Khalilur Rehman Ghauri told me Brig Imtiaz wanted to initiate high treason cases against Benazir Bhutto, Aitzaz Ahsan and Masood Sharif. I was asked to be careful as Brig Imtiaz could be dangerous. I only said I will not give any false evidence.” To a question, the former senior IB director disclosed that the then-government did not pay any heed to Brig Imtiaz’s formula of vindicating the opposition. “Even the prime minister was shocked about Imtiaz’s formula,” said Rana Abdul Baqi, adding: “In 1997 Brig Imtiaz once again wanted to play his role but was reminded of the 1991 mistake.” Brigadier Imtiaz, the mastermind of the Operation Midnight Jackal, when contacted termed all the allegations levelled by Rana Abdul Baqi baseless and said he never gave worth to Rana Abdul Baqi. He said Rana Abdul Baqi was sidelined by him when he assumed the charge of Intelligence Bureau. “I never thought of giving any important task to Baqi,” said the brigadier. Brigadier Imtiaz said the Operation Midnight Jackal was kept alive against a person who has served his whole life serving the country. He said he, Major Amir, Malik Mumtaz (a RAW agent according to Brigadier Imtiaz) and two MNAs were discussing the political situation of Pakistan and mentioned that their views were not favourable to the incumbent regime and that the minor incident was termed the Operation Midnight Jackal. Brigadier Imtiaz said politics was, and is, discussed everywhere but that the minor incident has been kept alive till today. He said Nawaz Sharif, Gen Nasir, Masood Sharif and Rana Baqi had taken MNAs in C-130 from the Rawalpindi Cricket stadium to Swat, which was unauthorised but no one had questioned that. REFERENCE: Spy vs spy Usman Manzoor Friday, August 28, 2009 http://www.thenews.com.pk/TodaysPrintDetail.aspx?ID=24160&Cat=13&dt=8%2F28%2F2009

Case of General (R) Faiz Ali Chishti & Major (R) Aamir.

Authority: According to Henri Fayol, "Authority is the right to give orders and the power to exact obedience." According to Mooney and Reily, "Authority is the principle at the root of Organisation and so important that it is impossible to conceive of an Organisation at all unless some person or persons are in a position to require action of others." Responsibility: According to Davis, "Responsibility is an obligation of individual to perform assigned duties to the best of his ability under the direction of his executive leader." In the words of Theo Haimann, "Responsibility is the obligation of a subordinate to perform the duty as required by his superior". McFarland defines responsibility as "the duties and activities assigned to a position or an executive". Accountability: According, to McFarland, "accountability is the obligation of an individual to report formally to his superior about the work he has done to discharge the responsibility." When authority is delegated to a subordinate, the person is accountable to the superior for performance in relation to assigned duties. If the subordinate does a poor job, the superior cannot evade the responsibility by stating that poor performance is the fault of the subordinate. A superior is normally responsible for all actions of groups under his supervision even if there are several layers down in the hierarchy. Simply stated, accountability means that the subordinate should explain the factors responsible for non-performance or lack of performance. Authority, Responsibility and Accountability are Inter-related: They need proper consideration while introducing delegation of authority within an Organisation. In the process of delegation, the superior transfers his duties/responsibilities to his subordinate and also give necessary authority for performing the responsibilities assigned. At the same time, the superior is accountable for the performance of his subordinate. REFERENCE: Authority, Responsibility and Accountability In Management Post : Gaurav Akrani Date : 7/28/2010 12:49:00 AM IST http://kalyan-city.blogspot.com/2010/07/authority-responsibility-and.html

ISLAMABAD, Nov 18: The Pakistan Ex-Servicemen’s Society has asked the media to stop bashing the generals “as a class and the armed forces as an institution”. The society’s president, Lt-Gen (retd) Faiz Ali Chishti, said the generals, who were minister for railways and chairman and managing director of Pakistan Railways when PR land in Lahore was sold to a golf club, should not be treated as army officers because they were not working as generals at the time. He said the media should, however, do its best to expose wrongdoings so that the nation could differentiate between the good and the bad. He said the land was sold to Royal Palm Golf Club by then minister for railways Lt-Gen (retd) Javed Ashraf Qazi and chairman Lt-Gen (retd) Saeeduz Zafar and managing director Maj-Gen (retd) Hassan Butt of the PR. He said the then head of the government, who was required to supervise their work, should be charged for dereliction of duty. A federal audit carried out in 2007 found that the government lost Rs10 billion because of leasing out of 103 acres of railway land at throwaway prices. REFERENCE: Media urged not to criticise institution of armed forces http://dawn.com/2012/11/19/media-urged-not-to-criticise-institution-of-armed-forces/ 

In addition, the ideological rigor of the Bajauri militants is explained by the fact that most of the clerics hailing from the Agency are educated at Madaris run by Ishaat-ulTawheed, including TTP leader Faqir Mohammed. The organization is modeled around the madrassa founded by Maulana Mohammed Tahir Panjpir, in Panjpir, Swabi District, NWFP. The Panjpiris are linked to the Jemaat-e-Ulema Islam (JUI), both Sami ul Haq and Fazlur Rehman groups, and are close to the Ahl-e-Hadith ideology. The Panjpiri madaris network was a crucial influence for the Taliban movement in the Pak-Afghan region. Faqir Mohammed perfectly epitomizes the type of leader favoured by the Panjpiris, a dual Amir that leads both from the religious and the military point of view, in orchestrated continuity with paradigmatic figures such as Mullah Mohammed Omar and the early Sufi Mohammed, for example. REFERENCE: The Tehrik-e-Taliban Pakistan: The Bajaur Case - NEFA Senior Investigator Claudio Franco July 2009  http://humansecuritygateway.com/documents/NEFA_TehrikeTalibanPakistan_BajaurCase.pdf

Major (R) Aamir in Jirga - 1 (GEO TV 18 Nov 2012)

 

Major (R) Aamir in Jirga - 1 (GEO TV 18 Nov 2012) by SalimJanMazari

2007: ‘Establishment doesn’t like public-backed leaders’: LAHORE: Major Amir, the alleged architect of the notorious Operation Midnight Jackal, says Pakistani establishment likes the leaders who are not backed by the public. In an interview with the Geo television on Saturday, Amir said the establishment was against every leader who had people’s mandate behind them. “Pakistani establishment likes leaders like Malik Maraj Khalid, Moeen Qureshi, Sardar Balakh Sher Mazari and current Prime Minister Shaukat Aziz,” he said. Amir said he liked Sharif as a political leader and was a part of his political camp. He said Sharif was more acceptable to the army than Benazir Bhutto. The former Inter Services Intelligence (ISI) officer said the ISI principally acted on the orders of the prime minister. But, he said, in case of lack of coordination between the prime minister and the army chief the agency preferred to seek directives from the army chief. Amir said he acted on the orders of the then ISI chief in the Operation Midnight Jackal, adding that the objective behind this operation was not to remove the Bhutto’s government. “I was court-martialled and removed from the army even though I proved my innocence before the inquiry committee,” he said. He said Jonejo’s government was removed because the US was against it. “The US thought that Jonejo had failed to deliver on Iran,” he said, adding that Mullah Omar was loyal to Pakistan compared to Hamid Karzai. REFERENCE: ‘Establishment doesn’t like public-backed leaders’ Daily Times Monitor Sunday, April 22, 2007 http://www.dailytimes.com.pk/default.asp?page=2007%5C04%5C22%5Cstory_22-4-2007_pg7_19

The Swat conflict was also deeply influenced by the Panjpirs of Swabi district, adjacent to the Malakand division of NWFP. The Panjpirs follow a localized version of Saudi Wahhabism that was introduced in Pakistan by Maulana Tahir, father of Major Amir, an Inter-Services Intelligence operative who allegedly helped topple Benazir Bhutto’s first government. The madrassa at Panjpir, administered by Maulana Tayyab, Major Amir’s brother, is associated with a who’s who of Pakistan’s extremist leaders, including TNSM chief Sufi Muhammad, Bajaur Taliban commander Maulvi Faqir Muhammad, and the Khyber agency’s notorious militant leader Mangal Bagh. TNSM military chief Fazlullah also adhered to the Panjpir group. This madrassa was an important recruitment camp that also performed the role of a think tank for strategic planning during the Afghan war of the 1980s. REFERENCE: Counterterrorism Strategy Initiative Policy Paper Inside Pakistan’s North-West Frontier Province The Political Landscape of the Insurgency Hassan Abbas, April 2010 New America Foundation http://www.humansecuritygateway.com/documents/NAF_InsidePakistansNorthwestFrontierProvince.pdf

 Major (R) Aamir in Jirga - 2 (GEO TV 18 Nov 2012)



Major (R) Aamir in Jirga - 2 (GEO TV 18 Nov 2012) by SalimJanMazari

2009 Taliban influence in bureaucracy By A. Ameer  On April 5, 2009 a battalion of the Taliban militia with heavy weaponry crossed over the hills from Swat to Buner to avowedly supervise the implementation of the Nizam-i-Adl. The local residents of Buner had been resisting the inflow of the Taliban for a long time. The local elders intervened and tried to convince the Taliban to return but the latter opened fire at them, leaving several injured. Later the Taliban captured three policemen and two civilians, and killed them. The local residents, the people of lower Buner and Sultanwas, gathered to move upward to face the Taliban while the people of upper Buner provided reinforcements. Fighting began and in the ensuing gun-battle some 17 members of the Taliban are said to have been killed. The questions on the minds of the local people were why would the Taliban come with heavy weapons if they did not want to control Buner? And why were the Taliban allowed by the commissioner to move from Swat to Buner with heavy weapons? On April 6, a delegation of the TNSM along with the commissioner Malakand Division went to Buner to negotiate with the local elders. They tried to convince the local elders to allow the Taliban to enter the valley. While the delegation engaged the local administration and the elders of Buner, the Taliban started getting reinforcements. In the context of the Taliban expansion to Buner, it is interesting to note the ideological role played by the relatively less known Jamaati Ashaatutoheed WaSunna, the creation of Maulana Tahir Panjpiri, the father of the infamous Major Amir, a well-known IB and ISI operative in the past and allegedly behind the notorious Operation Midnight Jackal. Major Amir, Syed Mohammad Javed (the present commissioner Malakand Division) and Maulana Sufi Mohammad are said to have been quite close since a long time. REFERENCE: Taliban influence in bureaucracy By A. Ameer http://archives.dawn.com/archives/26963

The demolition of the temples in Buner was initiated by Maulana Dua Noor, a cleric who belonged to the Panjpiri sect of Wahabism. After the death of Maulana Muhammad Tahir, his son Maulana Tayyab became the chief of this organization who also manages a huge religious seminary in the town of Panjpir. Muhammad Amir, another brother of Maulana Tayyab was a major in Pakistan Army and worked for Inter Services Intelligence (ISI), the country’s spy agency in 1980s. Major Amir allegedly conspired and collaborated with others to topple the democratically elected government of the then Prime Minister Benazir Bhutto in 1989. Major Amir, the ISI officer, was deeply involved in Operation Midnight Jackal, intended to remove Benazir Bhutto from the prime minister position through a no confidence vote in parliament. Funds for buying votes were allegedly provided by Osama Bin Laden. REFERENCE: Swat Valley - The Metamorphosis By Khushal Khan September 2012 http://www.tribalanalysiscenter.com/PDF-TAC/Swat%20Valley-Metamorphosis.pdf

Major (R) Aamir in Jirga - 3 (GEO TV 18 Nov 2012)



Major (R) Aamir in Jirga - 3 (GEO TV 18 Nov 2012) by SalimJanMazari

Maulana Sufi Muhammad: An Enigma: The seventy five years old Maulana Sufi Muhammad belongs to Maidan, a small town in Lower Dir. He received his religious education from the father of Major Amir, Sheikh-ul-Quran Maulana Tahir at Panjpir in district Swabi (Khyber Pakhtunkhwa). He then started a religious seminary in his own native town Maidan, Lower Dir. He was also a strong member of the JI (Jammat-i-Islami) till 1989. He was elected District Council Member twice from district Dir. During Afhgan Jihad Sufi Muhammad supported Hikmatyar’s Hizb-i-Islami financially and through man power In 1989, Maulana Sufi Muhammad dissociated himself from the JI and laid the foundation of Tehreek-i-Nifaz-i-Shariat-iMuhammadi on 28 June, 1989 in Maidan, Lower Dir. Sufi Muhammad, however, restricted activities of the TNSM to the Malakand Division (now comprising the districts of Upper Dir, Lower Dir, Chitral, Malakand, Swat, Buner and Shangla), the Kohistan district of Hazara Division and Bajaur Agency. After gaining support for the movement, he demanded the enforcement of the Shariah in these areas. In 1991, he camped at Temergarah (now district headquarter of Lower Dir), along with hundreds of his supporters demanding the enforcement of Shariat in Malakand. He then called off his agitation when Chief Minister Mir Afzal Khan’s government assured him that his demands would be fulfilled. In February 1994, the Supreme Court of Pakistan upheld the judgment of the Peshawar High Court and declared some provisions of the PATA Regulations in violation of the articles 8 and 25 of the Constitution of Islamic Republic of Pakistan. As this decision of the apex court deprived the executive authorities of a chunk of their judicial powers, they supported activities of the TNSM tacitly. With this decision of the Supreme Court Maulana Sufi Muhammad also gained confidence and financial support from these local Khans, Maliks and the executive authorities. In May, 1994 the Chief of the TNSM, Sufi Muhammad called off his weeklong protest campaign against the government after he was handed over a copy of the Ordinance signed by the acting Governor Khurshid Ali Khan, envisaging the extension of Islamic laws to the whole of Malakand Division with immediate effect. In November 1994, followers of Sufi Muhammad, launched an armed campaign for their demand and took control of many government installations in Swat District. Sufi Muhammad campaign forced the then PPP-led government to promulgate the Nifaz-e-Nizam-eShariah Regulation 1994 in the Provincially Administered Tribal Areas. Hence (Khyber Pakhtunkhwa Regulation II of 1994) was promulgated. Not satisfied with the legislation, Sufi Muhammad continued to hold demonstrations. Subsequently, another Regulation called the “Shari-Nizam-e-Adal Regulation, 1999”, (Khyber Pakhtunkhwa Regulation I of 1999) was promulgated. After 9/11, when American President ordered attack on Afghanistan to topple Taliban government, Sufi Muhammad again made headlines when he left for Afghanistan followed by his supporters to support the Afghan Taliban in the war against the US. Swat Deputy Commissioner Muhammad Javed, also provided possible support to the TNSM. President Zardari stated, therefore, that weakness of civil bureaucracy had resulted in the emergence of militants and militancy. Major Amir worked as a catalyst to promote the TNSM in Malakand Division through his father’s seminary in Panjpir which was then run by his brother Maulana Muhammad Tayyib. The JUI (F-group) Vice President, Aziz ur Rehman stated: “the absconder Major Amir is running the law and order situation in Malakand at the behest of Nawaz Sharif.” REFERENCE: Tehreek-i-Nifaz-i-Shariat-i-Muhammadi in Malakand Division (Khyber Pakhtunkhwa): A Case Study of the Process of “State Inversion”by Navid Iqbal Khan http://www.nihcr.edu.pk/Latest_English_Journal/6.%20Tehreek-e-Nifaz-e-Shariat-e-%20Muhammadi,%20Navid%20iqbal.pdf

General (R) Mirza Aslam Beg Misbehaves & Attacks Journalist Azaz Syed

The history of this much abused country is being churned to let the scum rise to the top. And what nuggets of filth are floating up -- military-made political parties, midnight jackals, cash for elections, Karachi operations, agency this and agency that. Is this the Pakistani version of a truth and reconciliation commission? The 'truth' being dished out has more slants than a right-angle triangle and it is certainly not leading to any reconciliation. The million-dollar question is where all these worms crawled out of? Have they rolled down the presidency, as the Pakistan Muslim League-Nawaz (PML-N) alleges or have they emerged from the irritable bowel of an over-active nine zero? Whoever has unleashed them has no care for the ascetic discipline of the holy month because they make for a juicy and spicy fare. It is easy to choke on Brigadier Billa because he is truly unsavoury. But let us admit to a secret vice; he has stories to tell. And stories are interesting even if they come from the mouth of someone you would ideally like to see begging for mercy, hanging upside down a pole. The question of the month though is -- and it has been asked often enough -- let he who is without sin cast the first stone. I don't see a mad rush for the quarries and the reason is simple. The elite of this country has much to seek forgiveness for. We are all sinners literally and metaphorically. The politicians top the list because they flaunt their sins publicly or maybe we scrutinise them more fearlessly. They are vulnerable because their passion for fame and fortune makes them impatient. 

General (R) Mirza Aslam Beg Misbehaves & Attacks Journalist Azaz Syed (Dawn News)

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=LsaN2LriLeU

General Aslam Beg Lies Again in Daily Ummat dated 31 March 2012 http://ummat.com.pk/story/2012/03/31/2423/

It is not a pleasure they want to defer and end up becoming easy targets for manipulators. The Hameed Guls and the Billas of this world thrive in this milieu. They have guns and cash. While the politicians are more visible, their sins in the larger scheme of things are relatively innocent. They make money and are unprincipled but their impact on the nation is more through happenstance than design. The sins of some people in the military have been more sinister, more egregious and more damaging to the nation. It is they who need to be exposed. In my reading of post-Zia history, there is no greater sinner than Aslam Beg. By his actions after Zia's death and indeed throughout his tenure of office, he caused great harm to this nation. He did not let democracy settle, manipulated parties and politicians and corrupted them, brought governments down, indeed did everything he possibly could to create circumstances for his ascent to power. He failed but in the process, he hurt us badly. It is easy to blame Ghulam Ishaq Khan (GIK) because he had his share of sins but without Aslam Beg goading him on, much of what GIK did would not have happened. It was Beg who asked Hameed Gul to form the Islami Jamhoori Ittehad (IJI) and stop Benazir and the Pakistan People's Party (PPP) from coming to power. When he could not stop it, it was he who led the media and dirty-tricks campaign to undermine it and bring it down. Let us keep our biases aside for a minute, ladies and gentlemen. Whether we like Benazir Bhutto is not the issue here and more importantly, let us suspend our knowledge of what she did later. However, in 1988 she was not only the most popular leader in Pakistan but an international celebrity. She was an Aung San Suu Kyi like figure whose father had been murdered and who had suffered much hardship. There was not a hint of the taints that later followed her.

If Beg and his cohorts had been patriots, they would not have formed the IJI to stop her. Afterwards when she still made it to power, they would have seen her as an asset to Pakistan. They should have gone to her and said "Madam, you are inexperienced but we will help you run the government. Your international image is a great plus for the country and we want you to repair the damage to our global reputation after Zia's draconian dictatorship." They did nothing of the sort. They started to sully her image and taint her reputation from day one. She indeed had her faults and made their task easier but she should have been guided. Instead, they launched operation midnight jackal, engineered a no-confidence move against her, got the MQM to take on the PPP in the streets of Karachi, thwarted the Pucca Qilla operation, which was leading to the capture of a huge cache arms stored by terrorists in Hyderabad, and then prevailed upon GIK to dismiss her government. This not only hurt Pakistan but derailed democracy. Had a single civilian government completed its tenure and transfer of power taken place through constitutionally scheduled elections, we would have been on our way. But Beg would not allow this. It was not without purpose. His plan was to first destroy the reputation of Benazir, bring her government down, and then do the same to Nawaz Sharif. Once all politicians had been damaged, he thought, his ascent to power would become easy.

Consider this. After the Benazir government had been dismissed in 1990, he distributed money and did everything to make an IJI government come into power. Yet no sooner had Nawaz Sharif taken over, he was conspiring against him. I know this personally because I saw it happen before my eyes. Nawaz Sharif had taken over in perhaps October or November and by December, officers of military intelligence were making contact with the PPP to instigate it against the government. Not only that, Beg deliberately started to undermine Nawaz by taking a position different from that of the government during the First Gulf War. His agents, largely serving military officers but also some of his friends, principally one Lahore-based businessman, started to goad the PPP to take on the Nawaz Sharif government through street power. The purpose was to create enough trouble to make it possible for Beg to take over. Fortunately, for us, his time ran out and Ghulam Ishaq Khan trumped him by appointing a new army chief, two months before his term of office was to end. This was unprecedented and the only reason it was done was to make him a lame duck and thwart his ambition for power. Beg left with much regret but a legacy of bitterness was created that tainted the entire decade of the 90s. Democracy could not settle after that. Benazir and the PPP eventually managed to bring Nawaz Sharif down through Ghulam Ishaq Khan and PML N paid the compliment back by launching various movements during Benazir's second term in office. It then supported Farooq Leghari in the sacking of the second PPP government. This merry-go-round continued until Musharraf threw the whole lot out in 1999. End of democracy phase one. A new phase has started. What will this bring? Email: shafqatmd@gmail.com How Aslam Beg damaged a nation Shafqat Mahmood Friday, September 04, 2009 http://www.thenews.com.pk/TodaysPrintDetail.aspx?ID=196480&Cat=9&dt=9/3/2009