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Posts tagged with: RAW

PTI has NO involvement with White Paper against GEO

The recent publication of a white paper of allegations against GEO bears the name of PTI Cyber Force team & PTI indirectly. For starters PTI categorically denies any involvement in this report and believe miscreants are using the party name to help deteriorate the relationships with the media house.

Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf has taken strong objection to GEO issuing a legal notice to Chairman Imran Khan in the program with Mubashir Lucman.

The issue should have been between GEO & ARY or directly with Mubashir Lucman but looping in Mr. Imran Khan in the legal notice who merely responded to the questions posed to him was certainly an attempt to gag the entire talk show which is a decision of the ARY team and Imran Khan has no control over it whatsoever.

The Notice had demanded of the Chairman that he stop the broadcast of his interview of 28th October on ARY channel – as “the language and the conclusive tone” the Chairman allegedly used in the interview “is highly defamatory and unacceptable”!

The Chairman Imran Khan stood by every word of what he said in his interview with Mubashar Lucman for ARY television channel. The Chairman stated categorically that any allegations regarding ANY media house relating to money coming from abroad and allegedly creating links with foreign intelligence agencies must be properly investigated as “it was a very serious matter.” The Chairman reiterated that regardless of which media house was alleged to be involved in any such activity an investigation was in order. Yes the Chairman PTI’s tone was resolute in demanding such an inquiry rather than coming to a conclusion on his own. It is bizarre to accuse a political leader or any citizen of defamation merely because they demand an inquiry into what are serious allegations involving the security of the country.

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This is Not Cricket

Guest blog by Temporal from Baithak Blog

The Sri Lankan cricket team was attacked in Lahore yesterday by terrorists. SSS terms this a “shift”. I think it is a “deterioration” or “escalation” of lawlessness. If Pakistan is to retain its independence this tide will not be curbed easily by a solitary act (like the restoration of the judiciary) nor by the efforts of one individual or one institution. Both Zardari led government and the Army under Kayani have appeared ineffective to stem this.

More pertinent is to view Tuesday’s attack in the context of the peace deals in the Swat Valley and the tribal areas .. Prior to the signing of the deals, the matter of the release of militants who did not belong to the Swat area was raised, that is, non-Pashtun militants… However, after deciding on the level of compensation packages for the families of militants killed or injured by the security forces and other matters related to Swat and the tribal areas, the matter of non-Pashtun militants was deferred and the peace agreements were signed. In effect, non-Pashtun militants have been ignored and the attack in Lahore could be a bloody message to the government that the “Punjabi militants” have the capacity to cripple urban centers at any time and place of their choosing. Syed Saleem Shezad

So what should the ordinary citizen do? Packing up and leaving is NOT an option. Burying their heads in the sand? More prayers to Allah? Joining the orthodox fringe? Or if not joining, then fighting them for their rights?
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Attack in Lahore – Qui Bono [who benefits]

Guest Blog by Azhar Aslam and Shaista Kazmi

Pakistan Cricketers AttackedPakistan is in a classic ‘cry wolf’ situation. Now that the wolf has come one risks shouting about it at the peril of being called paranoid, liar, crazy or conspiracy theorist. But this unfortunate ‘wolf cry’ of the ‘foreign hand’ may have given a room to manoeuvre and protection to the external players and handlers. Fourteen ( or twelve) gunmen attacked Sri Lankan cricket team and their guards in a coordinated, well planned attack and got away (until now). But fool may be the one who thinks this was a senseless attack with the aim of terrorising ordinary Lahorites. So let us just look at the facts and let everyone draw their own conclusion. The attack has raised many questions which are pertinent and of utmost relevance and must be answered in a forensic manner.

Attackers: These observations are made on the basis of TV footage available.

Attackers were young (apparently 14 in number). They were heavily armed, had latest equipment for communication and had enormous firepower. They were wearing trousers and shirts and shalwar and shirts and travelled by rickshaws and car. They were not classic Taliban lookalike. They managed to transport all this heavy weaponry to Liberty. That must have required planning and human resource.

They must have had more accomplices who helped them escape. After they ran off there must have been transport waiting to ferry them away. So the routes and roads must have been well known. Some of the attackers were already positioned in the roundabout itself.

For escape there must have been at least seven rickshaws (unlikely), 3-4 cars or couple or mini vans or a mixture of these (to carry 14 people unless some of them walked to escape in the ensuing chaos). This means there were at least 3 to 8 other people involved. This brings a group total to about twenty.
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Secret Investigative report emerges [22nd Jan] showing threat to Sri Lanka team

CID report on Sri Lanka - Page 2A secret investigative report has just surfaced prepared by the Additional Inspector General of the Crime Investigation Division, Punjab on 22nd January 2009 outlining the potential threat to the Sri Lankan team. It outlines very briefly the following four points

  1. It has reliably been learnt that “RAW” (Indian Intelligence Agency) has assigned its agents the task to target Sri Lankan Cricket Team during its current visit to Lahore, especially while traveling between the hotel and stadium or at the hotel during their stay
  2. It is evident that RAW intends to show Pakistan as a security risk state for sports events particularly when European and India teams have already postponed their proposed visits considering it a high security risk to visit Pakistan.
  3. RAW has also collected photographs of leaders of Jamaat-ud-Daawa (Proscribed) and its establishment to target them
  4. Extreme vigilance and heightened security arrangements indicated

The report may now all seem inconsequential considering the damage has already been done, but it just goes to show that despite all the warnings there still was a massive security lapse blame for which in my opinion must lie squarely upon the Governor of Punjab, Salman Taaseer who very recently bull dozed a governors rule in the province replacing Shahbaz Sharif. This political shuffle resulted in a sudden administrative upheaval & police postings, which may have potentially be the primary cause for this disaster.

Critics may even shrug aside this report as a finger pointing session towards RAW, but that too should not shroud our mind the plan simple fact is that the Police knew of the looming threat and if they were at all serious in doing their job this would never have happened. The extremist element will exploit any situation and today marks yet another lapse for the umpteenth time, further tarnishing the image of Pakistan, maybe forever

According to NewsEye at DawnNews the Pakistan Cricket Board had promised the visiting team Presidential security, but it has not been provided despite these looming threats by RAW.
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My internal conflicts

Guest Blog by Amer Nazir

I hurried towards the train station to catch the 7:51. I was dressed well – in my Canali suit and my Hugo Boss overcoat. At the entrance to the station, I saw two people handing out leaflets. The one on the right was Susan Krammer, the local Liberal Democrat MP.

She paused when she saw me… and I saw her struggle for a moment though she did hide it well… ‘And how are you?’ she asked as if she had placed me at once without any effort at all on her part… ‘I am well,’ I replied, with my eye towards the approaching train that I did not want to miss… ‘Mrs Krammer,’ I continued hastily, ‘I will never forget your kindness…!’ ‘That’s what we are here for,’ she replied, ‘you know where to reach us if there is anything we can do for you in future as well…’

I bowed, said my goodbye and ran towards the train – but she called after me…’By the way, you look terrific,’ she said. I turned around and saw that she was beaming – there was pride in her eyes…

Once on the train, I thought of her. I could imagine her being a bit indulgent this morning. An indulgence well deserved. I imagined her telling her assistant right at this moment in a hushed tone that I was an ex-asylum seeker – perhaps just to motivate the young man about the moral significance of their job…

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Some Questions over a Lead Story in The Nation

Guest Blog by temporal who blogs at Baithak

Look at this lead story from the Nation. [also quoted below] – Arrested militants name RAW for funding 680m through Afghan secret agency

  • Where are the credits? Who wrote this story?
  • What are the sources of this story?
  • Is this a scoop or a “leaked” story
  • Does it smack of lifafa journalism?

More questions:

  • If this story is true, how could the GoP handle it better?
  • Should the three persons named be charged and tried in an open court?
  • Media be given free and unbridled access to cover the trial?
  • – to interview the three?

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Terrorism in Islamabad – Pakistanis Stand up and Say NO

Islamabad today was rocked by a massive explosion outside Hotel Marriott, as I write this post it still is burning and death toll continues to rise hovering around 34 dead & 170 injured in blast. The overall speculations can blame this attack on any of the terrorist organizations, some find a way to out the finger on the Taliban uprising, some find a way to blame the simmering political unrest while some feel the Indian spy agency RAW might have hand in all this. Whatever be the case Pakistan has suffered.

It is my analysis that the Indian spy agency RAW is the most likely to have a hand in this blast more in retaliation to the recent blasts in India. To make a killing blow on the eve of President Zardari speech to the joint session is a brilliant ploy to over shadow Zardari’s new making comments

What can we do !!! Simply sitting at home, writing emails & sending SMS’s will achieve nothing and the terrorists will run our country to the ground. If you believe in Pakistan we need to join hands and say STOP TO TERRORISM, mind you this STOP means a full out right condemnation against Talibans, against the American raids on Pakistan and our local armed uprising.

We have to join hands to help save Pakistan