Karachi: Growing presence of Taliban worries DHA, its residents

The Express Tribune

With anti-vehicle barricades placed around the narrow streets, 10 private security guards along with police personnel keep a vigil on all moving vehicles and passers-by. This is the residential locality of Defence Housing Authority’s Phase II, where Awami National Party (ANP) Sindh President Shahi Syed feels unsafe due to the growing presence of Taliban militants. Syed recently shifted to the DHA due to security concerns but he feels that the Taliban are penetrating in different areas with the help of like-minded people. “The area is not safe anymore as most of the Taliban leadership is residing in the same vicinity and hiding in big houses to dodge the eyes of law-enforcement agencies,” he said, adding that only last month, the law-enforcement agencies seized a motorcycle laden with 16 kilogrammes of explosive from the area. “Can anyone say the DHA is a peaceful area anymore?” According to DHA officials, there are 42 mosques in the area out of which five are governed by the authority and 11 by local committees. The remaining 28 mosques, however, are not being monitored by any authority. The official also disclosed that most of the mosques were being used for residential purposes, saying that a notification was sent to the mosques asking them not to allow people to live on the premises. In September 2002, top five Al-Qaeda fugitives were arrested from the same locality, backing the theory that militants have managed to develop deep roots in various parts of the city, including the DHA.

With anti-vehicle barricades placed around the narrow streets, 10 private security guards along with police personnel keep a vigil on all moving vehicles and passers-by.

This is the residential locality of Defence Housing Authority’s Phase II, where Awami National Party (ANP) Sindh President Shahi Syed feels unsafe due to the growing presence of Taliban militants. Syed recently shifted to the DHA due to security concerns but he feels that the Taliban are penetrating in different areas with the help of like-minded people.

“The area is not safe anymore as most of the Taliban leadership is residing in the same vicinity and hiding in big houses to dodge the eyes of law-enforcement agencies,” he said, adding that only last month, the law-enforcement agencies seized a motorcycle laden with 16 kilogrammes of explosive from the area. “Can anyone say the DHA is a peaceful area anymore?”

According to DHA officials, there are 42 mosques in the area out of which five are governed by the authority and 11 by local committees. The remaining 28 mosques, however, are not being monitored by any authority. The official also disclosed that most of the mosques were being used for residential purposes, saying that a notification was sent to the mosques asking them not to allow people to live on the premises. In September 2002, top five Al-Qaeda fugitives were arrested from the same locality, backing the theory that militants have managed to develop deep roots in various parts of the city, including the DHA.

DHA steps up

In order to counter potential threats of law and order and growing militancy, the DHA has stepped up and conducted a survey to record the details of residential and commercial units. A DHA press release stated that the registration process aims to maintain a database to help improve the overall security in the area.

The housing and commercial units in the DHA will be registered along with the essential details of their owners, occupants and servants or employees working/residing in these units. Foreign embassies in the area will also be required to furnish details of their employees, said the press release. An inside source of the DHA, however, said that the drive had come to a stop as certain residents and community representatives were not cooperating with the security team.

AEC chief SSP Chaudhry Aslam did not rule out the possibility of the presence of Taliban militants in DHA. “The security forces have also increased vigilance with the help of the DHA officials and arrested some criminals, including militants and members of Lyari gang war,” he said while talking to The Express Tribune. “The targeted operations in Karachi have also forced criminals to shift their hideouts to the DHA.” The SSP, however, gave assurance that the law enforcers would not let anyone sabotage the peaceful environment of the DHA.