Pakistan: Extremism within the ranks

Much secrecy shrouds the foiled militant attack targeting the navy’s dockyard in Karachi.

Though the attack occurred on Saturday, the maritime force released only sketchy details about the incident on Monday.

But while there was no official word on who the ‘miscreants’ — as the navy described the assailants — were, the banned TTP’s spokesman, Shahidullah Shahid, said on Tuesday that his outfit was responsible for the assault with “support from inside” the navy.

At the other end, security officials say that Al Qaeda carried out the attack — again with help from within the naval force.

Regardless of which militant group targeted the naval facility, if claims of insider help are correct, it would reinforce the view that weeding out militant sympathisers within the armed forces is as daunting a task as eliminating battle-hardened terrorist groups.

Unfortunately, there are a number of cases where those with links to the armed forces have been involved in attacks targeting the military.

For example, former army medic ‘Dr’ Usman was said to be one of the main planners in the 2009 militant assault on GHQ.

Also, dreaded militant Adnan Rasheed, known for various terrorist exploits, including a failed attempt on Pervez Musharraf’s life, was a former air force man before he turned his guns on the state.

Even in the navy’s case it was reported that information from within the service was provided to those involved in the 2011 Mehran base raid.

So concerns of insider links are valid, as such attacks bear out. With the army conducting a counterterrorism operation in North Waziristan, the military is especially in the cross hairs of militants of all stripes.

Yet, there has been little focus on de-radicalisation efforts within the services.

The increased use of religious language and symbolism in the forces began during the Zia era; however, today the problem has morphed into something far more complicated — and dangerous.

The foremost challenge is to conduct a thorough internal audit of the armed forces to identify any personnel with links to terrorist groups. If such connections are established, firm disciplinary action is required.

The second — and admittedly more challenging — step is to initiate a long-term de-radicalisation process within the forces.

While the military’s top brass — including the serving army chief — has spoken about the threat posed by extremism in general terms, very little has come out, at least publicly, about extremist sympathies or trends within the ranks.

The forces will need to candidly assess the situation and understand where the problem lies and thereafter initiate a process to counter the extremist narrative.

This will not be easy as for decades both society and the forces have been influenced by ultra-conservative trends.

But unless remedial steps are taken soon, the presence of extremist sympathisers within the military will only increase, creating a complex new security crisis for Pakistan.