The suicide attack near the border at Wagah which killed 60 people, during the daily flag-lowering ceremony, is the most devastating attack in the country since the military operation in North Waziristan was launched. The loss of life, which includes Rangers officials and civilians who were there only to watch the daily parade, shows once again the inhumanity of militants who strive only to cause the most damage possible without caring that they overwhelmingly kill non-combatants. True to this inhumanity, the militants struck in the month of Muharram, so near Ashura, when the qualities of self-sacrifice and courage are stressed and observed. In a moving tribute to the lives lost, the ceremony at the border went on as usual the day after the attack. That the attack was so close to the Wagah border will also serve the already-hawkish Narendra Modi in India, who may surely claim that Pakistan doesn’t make enough effort to prevent the infiltration of militants. The issue of who is responsible for the attack also raises questions about our approach to tackling the scourge of militancy. So far three different groups – Jundallah, Jamaatul Ahrar and the breakaway TTP group led by Mahar Mehsud – have all claimed responsibility. If even one of these groups ultimately turns out to be responsible it casts doubt on our strategy of solely pursuing a military option and that too only against the main TTP. Militant groups in the country have become so diffused and splintered that even destroying one organisation will not end terrorist violence in the country.
It is also worth examining in detail the various groups that have stepped forward to own the attack. Jundallah is mainly based in Balochistan and Karachi and has never before attacked in Punjab. Few believe that it even has the capability to do so and it has, in the past, falsely taken credit for attacks. Jamaatul Ahrar – a local offshoot of the Islamic State – was formed by seven defecting commanders of the TTP and so should, in theory, have the capacity to launch an attack of this nature, with the same being true of the Mahar Mehsud faction of the TTP. None of these groups, however, have had a large presence in Punjab, which has been the domain of Asmatullah Muawiya’s Punjabi Taliban and local groups like the Lashkar-e-Jhangvi. There is a large possibility that whoever planned this attack had help from local elements. The Punjabi Taliban had sworn off attacks in Pakistan in favour of concentrating on Afghanistan and it will be a major development if they have gone back on their word. The other militant groups in Punjab have thrived with patronage from mainstream political groups so their involvement would also be an indictment of our state. No matter who is responsible, the Wagah attack shows that our strategies for destroying militancy need to see a lot of improvement if they are not to end up as a conspicuous failure.
Tuesday, November 4, 2014
Pakistan: Carnage at Wagah
The suicide attack near the border at Wagah which killed 60 people, during the daily flag-lowering ceremony, is the most devastating attack in the country since the military operation in North Waziristan was launched. The loss of life, which includes Rangers officials and civilians who were there only to watch the daily parade, shows once again the inhumanity of militants who strive only to cause the most damage possible without caring that they overwhelmingly kill non-combatants. True to this inhumanity, the militants struck in the month of Muharram, so near Ashura, when the qualities of self-sacrifice and courage are stressed and observed. In a moving tribute to the lives lost, the ceremony at the border went on as usual the day after the attack. That the attack was so close to the Wagah border will also serve the already-hawkish Narendra Modi in India, who may surely claim that Pakistan doesn’t make enough effort to prevent the infiltration of militants. The issue of who is responsible for the attack also raises questions about our approach to tackling the scourge of militancy. So far three different groups – Jundallah, Jamaatul Ahrar and the breakaway TTP group led by Mahar Mehsud – have all claimed responsibility. If even one of these groups ultimately turns out to be responsible it casts doubt on our strategy of solely pursuing a military option and that too only against the main TTP. Militant groups in the country have become so diffused and splintered that even destroying one organisation will not end terrorist violence in the country.
It is also worth examining in detail the various groups that have stepped forward to own the attack. Jundallah is mainly based in Balochistan and Karachi and has never before attacked in Punjab. Few believe that it even has the capability to do so and it has, in the past, falsely taken credit for attacks. Jamaatul Ahrar – a local offshoot of the Islamic State – was formed by seven defecting commanders of the TTP and so should, in theory, have the capacity to launch an attack of this nature, with the same being true of the Mahar Mehsud faction of the TTP. None of these groups, however, have had a large presence in Punjab, which has been the domain of Asmatullah Muawiya’s Punjabi Taliban and local groups like the Lashkar-e-Jhangvi. There is a large possibility that whoever planned this attack had help from local elements. The Punjabi Taliban had sworn off attacks in Pakistan in favour of concentrating on Afghanistan and it will be a major development if they have gone back on their word. The other militant groups in Punjab have thrived with patronage from mainstream political groups so their involvement would also be an indictment of our state. No matter who is responsible, the Wagah attack shows that our strategies for destroying militancy need to see a lot of improvement if they are not to end up as a conspicuous failure.
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