AHRC’s statement on Babusar massacre: Once again, men in military uniforms kill Shia Muslims in Pakistan
PAKISTAN: Once again, men in military uniforms kill Shia Muslims
Saturday, 18 August 2012,
Press Release: Asian Human Rights Commission
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
AHRC-STM-165-2012
PAKISTAN: Men in uniforms of the armed forces went on a rampage of sectarian violence attacking and killing Shia Muslims who make up the second largest Muslim sect after the Sunnis. According to the reports from Gilgit-Baltistan, the northern district of Kohistan, where sizeable numbers of Shia Muslims reside, on three different occasions this year, members of the Shia sect were dragged out of passenger buses, asked to show identity cards and after confirming they were from Shia sect they were put in the line and killed.
On the same day (August 16) when Shias were massacred in Mansehra district, in a pre-dawn attack around a dozen persons in uniform entered the well-guarded air base of the Pakistan Air Force at Kamra, 50 kilometers from Islamabad, the capital of the country. They remained there for some time and damaged one of the surveillance aircraft; used rocket propelled grenades and killed two officers. This is the fourth attack since 2007 and it is believed that terrorists are attempting to steal the nuclear assets which are stored there.
It is interesting to note that in the attacks on the General Headquarters of the Pakistan Army in Rawalpindi, the naval base in Karachi, the headquarters of the intelligence agencies and several attacks on air force bases not one person has been held responsible. In fact, it has been revealed that persons employed on the bases worked in collusion with the attackers. The armed forces are attempting to hide the fact that their own men are involved in these attacks and it is evident that militancy has seeped into their ranks. This is one reason why killings and violence against religious minorities are never fully investigated as they are being carried out by serving soldiers.
There is very obviously a nexus between the perpetrators of these incidents, the armed forced and the criminals released earlier on the instructions of the judiciary. It is too much of a coincidence that the killers are in possession on military uniforms and weapons. High ranking military officers are trying to place the blame on the judiciary for releasing these men, however, it cannot be denied that they are receiving assistance from the military, even if it is only in turning a blind eye to the killings that take place in close proximity to army check posts.
The Pakistan judiciary, particularly the Chief Justice of the Supreme Court, who is very famous for taking Sou Moto action on the petty issues, is being held responsible by the Shia religious groups, (30 percent of the population), that the judiciary is responsible for releasing all the terrorists who were involved in the killings of Shia members. General Pasha, former chief of the notorious intelligence agency, the ISI, has also blamed the judiciary during the briefing at Parliament, that 992 terrorist were released by the courts who had been arrested by the law enforcement agencies after a great deal of hard effort. Another accusation by the Shia leaders is that in 2010, the Chief Justice visited the Karachi jail during the evening and had 28 terrorist released and it is those people who were involved in the killings.
In the recent incident of August 16, in the early morning, the four buses, carrying passengers from Gilgit to Rawalpindi, a city of Punjab, were halted by around 50 men in military uniform who placed heavy stones and wooden logs on the main road at Babusar Top in Kaghan valley, Mansehra district. All the passengers were asked to alight from the busses and show their national identity cards, after identifying 25 persons as Shia Muslims they were instructed to stay at the side of the road. Their hands were tied and more than a dozen assailants opened fire at them. After the shooting they marched away in military style shouting Allah ho Akbar.
Earlier on February 28, 2012, gunmen in military fatigues hauled the passengers from a bus and in the same fashion killed them on the road side after checking their national identity cards. The passengers were travelling from Rawalpindi to Gilgit, the northern district of Kohistan.
On April 3, a mob dragged nine Shia Muslims from buses and shot them dead in close proximity to a military check post that was fully manned. There was no response from the soldiers.
People from the Hazara community of Balochistan belong to the Shia community and on many occasions have been massacred near military check posts.
Please see the following links for further information:
http://www.humanrights.asia/news/ahrc-news/AHRC-STM-038-2012
http://www.humanrights.asia/news/ahrc-news/AHRC-STM-124-2011
http://www.humanrights.asia/news/ahrc-news/AHRC-STM-136-2012
http://www.humanrights.asia/news/forwarded-news/AHRC-FOL-015-2011
http://www.humanrights.asia/news/forwarded-news/AHRC-FAT-008-2012
One of the amazing things to come out of these killing is that the blame is always placed on the Taliban Pakistan or Lashkar-e-Jhangvi and Sipah-e-Sahaba (banned Islamic militant organizations). It is believed that the intelligence agencies issue such statements in an attempt to cover up the crimes of their men who are very much close to the Taliban and other banned militant organizations. These agencies are in turn very much involved, along with the armed forces, in the politics of the country and in maligning the civilian representatives for putting the country on the road to democratic norms.
There is a very real need for the parliament to ensure that there is complete transparency in the affairs of the military. Their budgeting allocations, disciplinary proceedings and investigations into the criminal activities of their own personnel must be brought out into the open. The hierarchy of the armed forces must be made responsible for the actions of the officers and rank and file under them. Command responsibility must be a high priority and it is only the government that can ensure this. If the military hierarchy consider themselves above the government then the time is ripe for another military take over.
The Chief Justice of Pakistan is keen on taking sou moto action in cases that are relatively minor. He should now use this judicial action against the involvement of persons from the armed forces in militancy, killing and sectarian violence. Pakistan cannot afford another period of military rule and it is only the parliament and the Supreme Court that can ensure that this does not happen by bringing the military into line.
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Video: Bus going from Rawlapindi to Astor (Gilgit-Baltistan) attacked near Babusar Pass by ASWJ-Taliban terrorists
HRCP slams killings at Babusar
Saturday, August 18, 2012
LAHORE: The Human Rights Commission of Pakistan (HRCP) has strongly condemned Thursday’s killing of 25 Shia Muslims pulled out of buses headed for Gilgit Baltistan, as well as target killing of three Shias in Quetta, demanded that the authorities explain why the killers roamed free and how the government planned to ensure security for the citizens targeted because of their religious belief.
The commission in a statement said: “The HRCP is appalled that terrorists have once again succeeded in targeting without any difficulty Shia Muslims on their way to Gilgit Baltistan. Thursday’s attack was similar to the one carried out in Kohistan in February in more than one respect. Again buses were stopped on a main road by men in military uniforms, Shia passengers were separated from the rest and executed. Many transporters had started using the Mansehra-Naran-Jalkhad route instead of the Karakoram Highway after the February killings, from which the region had yet to recover. Thursday’s attack occurred on this changed route. Other than claims of responsibility made by Taliban or other bands of extremist militants, the authorities appear to be clueless about who the attackers were or how to stop them.”
The killing of three men belonging to Quetta’s Hazara Shia community on Thursday further underlined the hazards that Shia Muslims face in Pakistan, the HRCP said. Such targeted killing of people because of their religious beliefs was unfortunately no longer an anomaly in Pakistan.
http://www.thenews.com.pk/Todays-News-2-127120-HRCP-slams-killings-at-Babusar
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HRCP raps Shia killings, seeks arrest of culprits
LAHORE, Aug 17: The Human Rights Commission of Pakistan has condemned Thursday’s killing of Shia Muslims after being pulled out of buses headed for Gilgit-Baltistan, as well as of three Shias in Quetta and asked the authorities to explain why the killers roamed free and how security for those being targeted because of their religious beliefs would be ensured.
The commission said in a statement: “Thursday’s attack was similar to the one carried out in Kohistan in February in more than one respect. Again buses were stopped on a main road by men in military uniform, Shia passengers were separated from the rest and executed.”
It deplored that other than the claims of responsibility for the killings made by Taliban or other bands of extremist militants, the authorities appeared to be clueless about who the attackers were or how to stop them.
Killing of three men belonging to Quetta’s long suffering Hazara Shia community on Thursday further underlined the hazards that Shia Muslims face in Pakistan.
The HRCP said killings because of people’s religious beliefs was unfortunately no longer an anomaly in Pakistan. Those keen on creating new minorities in Pakistan had made sure of that, it added.
However, the HRCP said, it had no hesitation in stating that the terrorists managed to strike on Thursday only because those behind earlier target killings in Kohistan and Quetta had not been tracked down.
“The killings are doubtless the work of those who want to destroy Pakistan, but a failure to nab and punish the killers is also contributing to the same end. The attack on Kamra airbase the same day (Thursday) provided evidence, if further evidence was needed, that Taliban were nobody’s friends and those who had created this monster had taken Pakistan down the road to annihilation.
The authorities owe an explanation to the people for their inability to crack down on sectarian killers and for the most flagrant failure in protecting the lives of citizens. The HRCP would very much like to know what words of solace and reassurance the government can offer to the families of the victims and members of a community that is increasingly certain that terrorists get support from within the security agencies. To them that could be the only explanation why the killers could not be apprehended
and disappear into thin air even in areas with only one road in and one out.
They must tell the people what steps the government has taken to end impunity for the killers and ensure security for Shia Muslims, including those in Quetta and the citizens traveling to and from Gilgit-Baltistan.”
http://dawn.com/2012/08/18/hrcp-raps-shia-killings-seeks-arrest-of-culprits/
UN chief condemns sectarian attack in north-western Pakistan
UNITED NATIONS, Aug 17 (APP): UN Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon strongly condemned a deadly sectarian attack in north-western Pakistan Thursday,which reportedly left more than 20 people dead, according to his spokesperson.According to media reports, armed men ambushed three buses near the city of Gilgit on Thursday, forced passengers off the vehicles and then shot 22 Shia Muslims. Some reports note that Pakistani Taliban militants have claimed responsibility for the attack.The Secretary-General expresses his outrage over such deliberate attacks on people due to their religious beliefs in Pakistan, the secretary-general’s spokesperson said. He extends his heartfelt condolences to the families of the victims and to the Government and people of Pakistan.
http://app.com.pk/en_/index.php?option=com_content&task=view&id=205361&Itemid=2
France condemns sectarian attacks in Pakistan
http://www.kuna.net.kw/ArticlePrintPage.aspx?id=2258172&language=en
Civil society condemns target killing of 22 people
Our correspondent
Saturday, August 18, 2012
From Print Edition
13 4 0 0
Islamabad
Civil society activists gathered in front of National Press Club to condemn the target killing of 22 innocent people because of their religious faith when they were on their way to Gilgit-Baltistan.
The protestors chanted slogans against the target killing on the basis of religion and sect and demanded the government to provide protection to Shia community.
They urged the government to immediately arrest the perpetrators or otherwise resign. They said that hundreds of people belonging to Gilgit-Baltistan are forced to spend Eid in Islamabad as they do not feel secure to travel on the only road leading to their native areas.
They said that the alarming rise in the trend of sectarianism in general and targeted sectarian violence against Shia community in Gilgit-Baltistan and Balochistan in particular is a matter of grave concern for all conscientious citizens of Pakistan and pointed out that the failure of government to provide protection to religious minorities instils a huge sense of insecurity among the people across the country.
“We have constantly been protesting on these crimes against humanity and have been demanding the government to take stern action against the perpetrators involved in committing these heinous acts. To our utter disappointment nothing substantive has been done so far by the government to stop the violence which is pushing the country towards a civil war situation,” said human rights activist Farzana Bari.
She blamed the establishment for such incidents and said that the government has always announced enquiry committees after such incidents but no such committee had been able to provide relief to victims and their families.
“This is the fundamental responsibility of the government to establish the rule of law in the country and provide protection and safety to all its citizens irrespective of their cast, creed, gender, class and ethnicity,” she said adding that she feels ashamed to be the citizen of country where crimes against humanity are committed on daily basis with such impunity.
Executive Director Potohar Organization for Development Advocacy (PODA) Samna Nazir urged religious political parties to play their role and issue statements against religious groups involved in sectarian killings. She regretted that no religious party has condemned the brutal killing in Gilgit-Baltistan. She also demanded ban on all groups operating in the name of religion or sectarianism in the country.
Rehana Hashmi from Sisters Trust termed this incident a part of ethnic cleansing going on in this particular area and said that no Muslim can kill innocent and unarmed Muslim brothers especially during the holy month of Ramazan. She regretted that identity cards have become a source of insecurity for the innocent citizens within their own country.
Mustafa Kamal and Kamil Jan from Gilgit-Baltistan Volunteer Movement said that the road to Gilgit is not safe for any one either Sunni or Shia. They urged the Supreme Court of Pakistan to take Sue Moto notice of the brutal killings and said that such incidents depict the failure of the central government in providing security to its citizens. “This is not the first time such incident has happened in this area. The government and highest judiciary has always ignored the issue,” said Mustafa Kamal.
Chairperson International Human Rights Association, London, Barrister Rubab Mehdi Rizwi said that the incident was an open act of terrorism. She said that it is heartbreaking that so many families have to face the tragic death of their loved ones just before Eid.
A statement endorsed by civil society organisations including Movement of Justice, Pattan Development Organisations, Sungi Development Organisation, Rozan, Human Rights Commission of Social Justice and Peace, Women Councillor’s Network, Awami Party Pakistan, Women Action Forum, SPO, Sister’s Trust, Sachet, Labour Qaumi Movement and Shirkat Gah was also shared with the media on this occasion.
The statement appeals to all political forces in the country to speak with one voice without any reservation to condemn religious militant groups involved in fanning sectarianism in the country and killing of innocent people because of their religious belief. It demands ban on all sectarian organisations in the country and urges the government to come up with an affective strategy to defend religious minorities and sects in the country.
The statement notes with disgust that despite claims of some of the banned religious outfits who publicly take the responsibility for these horrific crimes against humanity in Balochistan and Gilgit-Baltistan, no action has been taken against these organisations.
http://www.thenews.com.pk/Todays-News-6-127079-Civil-society-condemns-target-killing-of-22-people
Lanat on Taliban. Should we have dialogue with these beasts?
The Darra Adam Khel faction of the Pakistan Taliban claimed responsibility for the attack on the Shiites, Reuters reported. “We have targeted them because they are enemies of Sunnis and conspire against us,” Mohammed Afridi, a spokesman for the faction, was reported as saying in a telephone interview. “We will continue such attacks in the future.”
http://www.nytimes.com/2012/08/17/world/asia/pakistani-taliban-kill-22-shiites-in-bus-attack.html?_r=1&ref=todayspaper#h%5B%5D
چیف جسٹس دہشتگردوں کو آزاد کررہے ہیں،ایشین ہیومن رائٹس
Posted date: August 21, 2012 In: پاکستان
گزشتہ دنوں رونما ہونے والے سانحہ ببوسر پر ایشین ہیومن رائٹس نے سخت مذمت کی ہے۔ ایشین ہیومن رائٹس کی آفیشل ویب سائٹ میں جاری ہونے والے بیان میں سانحہ ببوسر کی مذمت اور عدلیہ، حکومت سمیت سکیورٹی اداروں پر سخت تنقید کی گئی ہے۔
رپورٹ میں سانحہ ببوسر سے متعلق کہا گیا ہے کہ فوجی وردی میں ملبوس مُسلح دہشتگردوں نے پاکستان کی دوسری سب سے بڑی قوم شیعہ مسلمانوں پر حملہ کیا جس کےنتیجے میں متعدد شیعہ مسلمان شہید ہوگئے۔ رپورٹ میں یاد دلایا گیا ہے کہ گزشتہ ایک سال میں اس مقام(گلگت) میں اس قسم کی یہ تیسری کاروائی ہے جس میں شیعہ مسلمانوں کو شناخت کرکے شہید کیا گیا۔
رپورٹ میں قابل احترام عدلیہ پر تنقید کرتے ہوئے کہا گیا ہے کہ عدلیہ کے چیف جو کہ معمولی ایشوز پر سوموٹو کے بارے میں کافی مشہور ہیں۔ اُن پر بھی شیعہ مسلمانوں کے قتل عام کی زمہ داری عائد ہوتی ہے۔ رپورٹ میں کہا گیا ہے کہ عدلیہ شیعہ مسلمانوں کے قتل میں ملوث دہشتگردوں کو آزاد کراونے میں ملوث ہیں۔
رپورٹ میں اس بات کی یادہانی کروائی گئی ہے کہ سابق چیف آئی ایس آئی جنرل پاشا بھی کہہ چُکے کہ 922 دہشتگردوں کو ان عدالتوں نے آزاد کردیا جن کو خود قانون نافذ کرنے والے اداروں نے گرفتار کیا تھا۔
رپورٹ میں کہا گیا ہے کہ 16 اگست کی صبح مسافروں کی 4 بس راولپنڈی سے گلگت کی طرف جارہی تھی جس میں 50 سے زائد مسافر سوار تھے۔ اس بس کو فوجی وردی میں ملبوس دہشتگردوں نے ببوسر روڈ کاغان وے مانسہرہ ڈسٹرکٹ کے پاس روکا اور تمام مسافروں کہ شناختی کارڈ چیک کرنے کے بعد صرف شیعہ مسلمانوں کو شناخت کرنے کے بعد اللہ اکبر کہہ کر شہید کردیا۔
رپورٹ میں کہا گیا ہے کہ اس قسم کے واقعات کی زمہ داری تحریک طالبان، لشکر جھنگوی اور سپاہ صحابہ کھلم کھلا قبول کرتی ہیں۔اس کہ باوجود سکیورٹی ایجنسیاں ان دہشتگردوں کو لگام دینے میں ناکام رہی ہیں۔
رپورٹ کہ آخر میں قابل احترام چیف جسٹس کو کہا گیا ہے کہ وہ اس قاتل عام کے خلاف سوموٹو ایکشن لیں۔ شیعہ مسلمانوں کے قتل عام میں ملوث دہشتگردوں کے خلاف قانونی کاروائی کریں۔
http://pakshia.com/ur/shia-killing-pakistan/cheif-justice-is-freeing-terrorists-asian-human-rights/
MPAC Condemns Violence Against Shia in Pakistan
by MPAC
The Muslim Public Affairs Council today condemned the gruesome killings of two dozen Shia Muslims in Pakistan, and called for an end to intrafaith violence and minority persecution in Pakistan.
News agencies report at least one Shia Muslim university student was killed today when a bus carrying him and classmates was bombed in Karachi. Yesterday, at least a dozen Taliban militants pulled more than 20 Shia passengers off of three buses traveling from Rawalpindi to Astore in northern Pakistan and shot them at point blank range.
The victims were mostly young men returning to their villages for Eid ul-Fitr, the Muslim holiday that marks the end of Ramadan and 30 days of fasting. Darra Adam Khel, a faction of Pakistan’s Taliban, claimed responsibility for yesterday’s attack saying that it was because Shia are enemies of Sunnis and conspire against them. Mohammed Afridi, a spokesman for the faction, said they will continue such attacks in the future.
Attacks against Shia are on the rise in Pakistan, particularly in the northern regions. MPAC calls on Islamic scholars of all schools of thought to condemn this cancerous practice of attacks against Shia communities. Scholars and activists, especially in regions spreading anti-Shia rhetoric, must make it clear that there is no room in Islam for murder and violence. The Pakistani government should investigate this growing security concern and make the rights and safety of minorities a priority.
MPAC has continually called for intervention in Pakistan by religious, civic and government authorities as violence against minority religious groups continues to grow. MPAC also issued the Intrafaith Code of Honor in 2007, which calls for respect for all schools of thought within Islam and warns against sectarian divisions.
In 2005, Muslim global leaders signed The Amman Initiative to oppose terrorism and sectarian violence. It is now time to move beyond the rhetoric and demand action.
The Quran condemns this type of intrafaith violence in plain terms:
“Who deliberately slays another believer, his requital shall be hell, therein to abide; and God will condemn him, and will reject him, and will prepare for him awesome suffering.” (4:93)
In the final days of this blessed month, let us pray for the souls of the deceased and pledge to work to uphold the Quranic value of the sacredness of human life, for believers in God and all people.
SEE ALSO:
“Pakistani Taliban Kill 22 Shiites in Bus Attack” (New York Times) http://www.nytimes.com/2012/08/17/world/asia/pakistani-taliban-kill-22-shiites-in-bus-attack.html?_r=2&hp
“Bomb Hits Bus in Pakistan Carrying Shiite Muslim Students, Killing 1” (Washington Post) http://www.washingtonpost.com/world/asia_pacific/taliban-storm-pakistan-air-base-linked-to-nuclear-program-killing-2-in-brazen-assault/2012/08/17/022559b4-e827-11e1-9739-eef99c5fb285_story.html
http://theamericanmuslim.org/tam.php/features/articles/mpac-condemns-violence-against-shia-in-pakistan/0019301
http://www.satp.org/satporgtp/sair/Archives/sair10/1040.htm#assessment1
http://www.satp.org/satporgtp/sair/Archives/sair10/1035.htm#assessment2
Read the articles above and you get the idea of how institutionalized sectarian discrimination and bigotry is in Pak’s administration in G-B, even to the point of rationalizing the violence.
It shouldn’t be shocking any more.
The majority non-Sunni population of Gilgit-Baltistan have been under a Sunni-Deoband hegemony from Islamabad since forever, and of course, since the 80′s, the Wahhabi/Salafi/Deoband/Sunni extremist militants have made life hell.
Considering that a recent Pew research where only 50% of the majority Sunni Pakistanis see their Shia counterparts as Muslims, the future looks bleak for any non-Sunni Muslim or non-Muslim denomination, as extreme right-wing views catch on and go mainstream and Sunni moderates dwindle.
http://blogs.tribune.com.pk/story/13490/g-b-massacre-when-will-pakistan-really-win-independence/#respond-p13490
Excellent Report by AHRC
Good work by MPAC
The United Kashmir People’s Nationsl Party (UKPNP ), has condemned sectarian violence and target killing of the Shia community in the peripheries of Pakistan. It has proved time and again that these people are constant target of the star sponsored terrorism.
PAKISTANIS must BEWARE that historically and presently, Western empires have divided people against each other, blamed the resulting conflict on the people themselves, and thus justified their control over both the people, and the region they occupy. This was the strategy employed in major recent geopolitical conflicts such as the breakup of Yugoslavia and the Rwandan genocide.
In both above captioned cases, Western imperial ambitions were met through exacerbating ethnic rivalries. Providing financial, technical, and military aid and training to various factions; thus, spreading violent conflict, war, and genocide, thus, spread violent conflict, war, and genocide. In both cases, Western, and primarily American strategic interests were met through an increased presence militarily, pushing out other major imperial and powerful rivals, as well as increasing Western access to key economics resources…
Agenda for Pakistan is similar to that applied throughout the broader Middle East Central Asian region. Our enemy’s strategy, supported by covert intelligence operations, consists in triggering ethnic and religious strife, abetting and financing secessionist movements while also weakening the institutions of the central government.
The broader objective is to fracture the Nation State and redraw the borders of Iran, Afghanistan and Pakistan….
However,one thing is for certain that they are not home grown terrorist ! But a mix of some traitorous local rogues and foreign trained and equipped mercenaries/contractors, from across the Afghan border and some already stationed in Pakistan under the diplomatic garb,following their foreign masters agenda to destabilize Pakistan, further.
Innocent, Pakistanis are being killed all over the country and everyone is saddened and condemns these terrorist related attacks.
These attacks are being committed to harm Pakistan by painting them as a sectarian strife and ethnic hatred.
Please try to understand our enemy’s are trying everything to malign Pakistan.They are playing up discrimination of minority issues.For instance some months back a few Doctors,who happened to be Hindus, were murdered over a dispute over some prostitutes in the interior of Sindh.The media yellow journalism,headlines read that Hindu doctors killed without assigning the main cause of being killed.This was a attempt to highlight discrimination and paint as such .
The ones who are conspiring against Pakistan are the ones behind these cowards indulging in such inhuman acts
The question is if these are sectarian killing acts then who and why killed the rest of the 40,000 innocent Pakistani men,women and children all over Pakistan?
Those killed were inclusive of all ethnic and sectarian people of Pakistan ?Who is attacking the most sensitive Military institution and killing by beheading our soldiers?. These are terrorist related acts and are being committed by anti-Pakistan elements of mix,I have already stated above.We have to stay united during these testing time’s and avoid falling into the trap being laid out to divide us,by pitting one against the other,through False Flag issues.
As regard the report of these so-called human rights organization.All are tools in the hands of those foreign country’s which fund them.Kindly read this disclosure about the true face of the Amnesty International(AI)
Excerpt: “rom Amnesty International USA’s website, “Free Pussy Riot.” “Help Amnesty International send a truckload of balaclavas to Putin.” This childish stunt smacks of US State Department-funded Gene Sharp antics – and meshes directly with the US S
tate Department’s goal of undermining the Russian government via its troupe of US-funded “opposition activists” including “Pussy Riot.” That Amnesty is supporting the US State Department’s agenda should be no surprise, it is run literally by the US State Department’s Deputy Assistant Secretary for International Organizations, Suzanne Nossel.
http://www.infowars.com/amnesty-international-is-us-state-department-propaganda/
Militants in military uniforms
September 09, 2012 | 0
It has been reported in the media that terrorists are using military uniform for gaining access to and attacking their targets. There are many examples of militants, dressed in security forces’ uniforms, easing their way into military installations by deceiving the outer security cordons. Recently, the Shia passengers in Mansehra were shot dead by terrorists in commando uniforms. In a similar attack on passenger buses which took place in Kohistan in February this year, the gunmen were again wearing military uniforms, as were the militants who attacked the GHQs in Rawalpindi in October 2009. Similarly, the militants who attacked the PNS Mehran Base in May 2011 and the PAF Base Minhas in Kamra in August this year reportedly took advantage of military uniforms to gain access to their targets. If my memory serves right, I remember that after the GHQs attack it was decided to shut down all the shops selling different items of military uniforms in the local market to stop unauthorised persons from purchasing these items. But this decision was never fully implemented. As a result, there still are a number of shops in the country supplying uniforms and accessories – which include rank badges, unit shoulder signs, caps, cap badges, arm bands, belts, boots, stitched uniforms and cloth for any type of uniform – of the army, navy, Rangers, Coast Guards and police. It must be noted here that no item of the PAF uniform is allowed to be sold in markets. New uniforms/accessories are issued to PAF personnel only after their uniform items are rendered unserviceable. The PAF personnel have to return these unserviceable items which are torn into small pieces and converted into cleaning rags. Hence, there are no chances of misusing any item of the PAF uniform. General Kayani must take serious notice of this security lapse on the part of the authorities concerned in the armed forces. Sqn-Ldr (r) S Ausaf Husain, Karachi, September 8.
http://www.nation.com.pk/pakistan-news-newspaper-daily-english-online/letters/09-Sep-2012/militants-in-military-uniforms
AHRC’s statement on Babusar massacre: Once again, men in military uniforms kill Shia Muslims in Pakistan Abercrombie and Fitch Boxers http://www.abercrombiecanada.ca/abercrombie-and-fitch-boxers-c-983 AHRC’s statement on Babusar massacre: Once again, men in military uniforms kill Shia Muslims in Pakistan