The CID takes the lead in hunting down terrorists in Karachi. Earlier this week, the agency arrested six members of Lashkar-e-Jhangvi, an al-Qaida linked group blamed for several high profile attacks in recent years. The suspects were presented before a court earlier Thursday.

By Shakil Adil (CP)
http://www.google.com/hostednews/canadianpress/article/ALeqM5jvMGvHjRc2kySRc8-md8Qw3rbJ8A?docId=5100464

The CID is the section of the Pakistani police that investigates militancy, sectarian violence and organised crime.

Reports suggested arrested militants from the Deobandi sectarian group Lashkar-e-Jhangvi were being held in the building.

The CID is also investigating a Taliban suicide attack on the largest Sufi shrine in Karachi last month, in which eight people died.

http://www.guardian.co.uk/world/2010/nov/11/pakistan-bomb-explosion-karachi

Our correspondent adds that the latest attack comes a day after the same unit arrested several wanted militants in the city, said to belong to Lashkar-e-Jhangvi – Pakistan’s most dangerous militant group.

The group, which is closely linked to al-Qaeda, has been involved in a string of high profile attacks across the country.

Mohammad Aslam Khan, of the CID, told the BBC that he believed the arrested men were planning to carry out bombings on Shia processions in the city.

http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/world-south-asia-11737402

Taliban-ISI alliance

http://criticalppp.com/archives/tag/taliban-isi-alliance

ISI and Jihadi terrorist: rishta bara purana hai

Ex-Army Chief speaks in support militants:

No rush against anti-India militants: Musharraf

Former president Pervez Musharraf called for a more gradual approach against Islamic militants such as Lashkar-e-Taiba, saying they enjoyed sympathy for fighting India.
The United States and India have urged Pakistan to rein in movements such as Lashkar-e-Taiba, or “The Army of the Pure,” which is blamed for planning the bloody siege of Mumbai that killed 166 people two years ago.
“You can’t rock the boat so much that the boat capsizes,” Musharraf, who is attempting a political comeback, said at the Atlantic Council think-tank in Washington.
“While these things have to be done, allow piecemeal, gradual action through a well thought-out strategy which does not disturb the entire law and order situation in Pakistan,” Musharraf said.
Musharraf acknowledged that Lashkar-e-Taiba and like-minded groups such as Jaish-e-Mohammad were “involved in terrorism in Pakistan” but said they have been “very popular” for fighting Indian rule in divided Kashmir.
“Since they were going to Kashmir and fighting the Indian army, it went along with the psyche of the people of Pakistan — with everyone,” Musharraf said.
Musharraf said the Jamaat-ud-Dawa, a wing of Lashkar-e-Taiba, “did an excellent job” in relief operations following major floods this year and “the best work” in the wake of the 2005 earthquake on the Pakistani side of Kashmir.

http://tribune.com.pk/story/75585/no-rush-against-anti-india-militants-musharraf/

TTP schools train militants in Karachi
By Amna Nasir Jamal
For CentralAsiaOnline.com
2010-11-09

Para-military troops patrolling Karachi’s Sohrab Goth area February 11 encounter tyres set alight by ethnic Pashtuns to disrupt traffic during a strike. Authorities accuse madrassas in the area of training militants. [Reuters]

KARACHI – A would-be suicide bomber told interrogators that the Tehreek-e-Taliban Pakistan (TTP) has established “schools” on the outskirts of Karachi, police said. Police arrested Mohammad Salaam, 16, October 25, along with two alleged accomplices, in connection with a planned attack at Sohrab Goth, Karachi.

“They deliver lectures and sermons in an attempt to allegedly brainwash young men to join their ranks and carry out suicide bombing in the city,” Salaam said of what goes on at the schools. “They want to impose their own brand of shariah in a small pocket of the residential neighbourhood.”

Taliban presence in Karachi

The Karachi link is nothing new, authorities said. Taliban have been using the city as a logistical, financial and travel hub for years. Last year, police noticed a spike in Taliban-orchestrated bank robberies and kidnappings in the city.

The Criminal Investigation Department (CID) in Sindh conducted an operation in Sohrab Goth October 25 and arrested two suspected militants, Sher Rehman and Zainullah (aka Bilal or Zank).

The police seized various weapons from them.

Three others, Omer Farooq, Gul Zareen and Zahir Shah, escaped during a gun battle.

Rehman is a close associate of TTP leaders Hakimullah Mehsud and Qari Hussain, police said. They also hold him responsible for brainwashing innocent children for suicide bombings.

Salaam, would-be suicide bomber

Salaam was studying in Class IX at a school in Sohrab Goth.

“I met Zahir Shah last Ramadan at one of these schools/madrassas. He convinced me that Muslims globally are being subjected to brutality,” Salaam told investigators.

The rhetoric includes talk of an afterlife. “As soon as I blow myself up, I will be in heaven and will get eternal peace,” he said.

Salaam told media the TTP threatened to slaughter him if he refused to carry out a suicide attack. After a period of brainwashing, Salaam decided that he was ready to stage an attack.

“I discussed my sentiments with Rauf (another TTP leader), who convinced me to become a suicide bomber. I developed a resolve and had desire to head to Afghanistan to blow myself up at coalition soldiers,” Salaam said.

“I conveyed my wish to Sher Rehman, too, who said he didn’t have any contact person in Afghanistan, so instead of Afghanistan, I should go to South Waziristan, where I would be imparted further training.”

Most meetings with TTP members occurred at night and in secluded places, Salaam said. “Rehman had told me that if I was to disclose my relations with them, they will behead my family and me. After getting caught, however, I have realised that I was engaged in a vice,” he said.

Turning children into live bombs

Terrorists are buying children and turning them into suicide bombers, Interior Minister Rehman Malik said.

A suicide bomber’s parents are paid between US $6,000 and $30,000.

Suicide bombings have become a tragically frequent occurrence in Pakistan.

In 2010, 42 suicide attacks occurred in Pakistan. They killed 1,024 people and injured more than 2,000. In Khyber Pakhtunkwa alone, 23 suicide attacks killed 444 people and injured 710.

At least 5,000 children ages 10 to 17 – with some as young as 7 – have been trained as suicide bombers and more are waiting to strike, according to a report by the Pakistan Institute of Policy Studies.

The TTP runs several “suicide nurseries” in the Federally Administered Tribal Areas where trainers brainwash hundreds of children, Pakistani intelligence sources said. In January 2008, the military discovered a suicide nursery in the Spinkai area of South Waziristan.

From cradle to cell

Police found Salaam being prepared for a suicide attack, Omar Shahid, Senior Superintendent of Police of the CID in Sindh, told Central Asia Online. “He would have carried out an attack within a month or so,” Omar said.

Police received information that some terrorists were hiding near Sohrab Goth and chalking “Jeay Taliban” (long live the Taliban) on walls, Omar said.

“The suspects disclosed during interrogation that they brainwashed Salaam into carrying out a suicide attack,” Omar said. “They also revealed that they have slaughtered one of their accomplices, named Shahid, alias Raangar (on suspicion of being involved with the agencies).”

Police said that a preliminary investigation revealed that the arrested suspects, born near Manghopir, were involved in various crimes. They studied at a private institution in Nusrat Bhutto Colony until middle school, then joined the Jamia Rasheedia madrassa.

“The suspects worked for their associate organisation, Lashker-i-Jhangvi Al-Alami,” Omar said. “Rehman was tasked with visiting Waziristan to receive operational plans, and he would often meet with Qari Hussain, Baitullah Mehsud and other commanders of TTP, including Wahab Mehsud in South Waziristan, to share terror-related information.”

“TTP Commander Miraaj ordered them to expand their network in Sohrab Goth and to commit a terrorist act in Punjab or Khyber Pakhtunkhwa.”

Javed Aziz Khan contributed to this report

http://centralasiaonline.com/cocoon/caii/xhtml/en_GB/features/caii/features/pakistan/2010/11/09/feature-02

SSP’s sectarian killer, two ‘notorious criminals’ arrested

Staff Report

KARACHI: The Chakiwara police Thursday arrested a wanted criminal from Bihar Colony, affiliated with the banned religious outfit Sipah-e-Sahaba Pakistan (SSP) and also recovered an illegal weapon from his possession.

Superintendent of Police (SP) Rana Pervaiz said the accused identified as Abdullah, son of Amanullah, was one of the most wanted criminals involved in numerous heinous crimes including target killings, bank robberies and kidnapping for ransom.

“Abdullah has confessed that on the directives of SSP Lyari in charge Mohammad alias Mama, he killed seven sectarian targets including Abdul Karim Nakshbandi, Qari Habibur Rehman, Dr Badar and Abdul Shakoor while a number of other religious scholars were on his hit list,” the police official said.

Pervaiz said that the Chakiwara police received a tip off that Abdullah was living in a rented house in Lyari and conducted a raid to arrest him, while recovering an illegal TT pistol. The police have registered FIR (288/10) under section 288/10 against Abdullah and initiated further investigation.

He informed that the Sindh police had recommended to the Home Department to announce Rs 500,000 head money for his arrest but the department denied it.

Two ‘criminals’ arrested: The Anti-Violent Crime Cell (AVCC) on Thursday claimed to have arrested two ‘notorious criminals’ from Saeedabad and recovered an illegal weapon.

DSP Amir Hameed said the arrested suspects identified as Abdul Majeed, son of Khan Mohammad, and Ali Raza were involved in various crimes including kidnapping for ransom, thefts, robberies and murders.

The police have registered case (215/2008) under section 365 against them.

http://www.dailytimes.com.pk/default.asp?page=2010\10\29\story_29-10-2010_pg12_7

The Pakistani Taliban (T.T.P.) has told a local TV network here that the presidency or Bilawal House (Karachi residence of assassinated Pakistani P.M. Benazir Bhutto) are their next potential targets.

This has to be viewed with some skepticism.

Strategically, it does not make sense to name your target – especially in a country like Pakistan which has a large security aparatus. Attacks that were successful in the past were never previously announced – particularly when they attacked the Army headquarters last year.

Additionally, protection around the president is permanently so tight, and with Bilawal House being such sacred ground, it would be difficult to launch an effective strike.

One caveat is that elements within the Pakistani security service tacitly supports the T.T.P.. Power in Pakistan lies not with the politicians but the Inter-Services Intelligence agency (a kind of combined C.I.A. & F.I.B.).
Karachians are still picking up the pieces from last night’s bombing. While the Taliban may be claiming responsibility our sources still say this plain grandstanding. Intel is that it was Laskhar e Jhangvi, the anti-Shia’a terror group who executed Wall Street Journal’s Daniel Pearl in 2002. Six captured members stood before a court Thursday after being held at the police HQ that was bombed.

The security apparatus here would prefer the Taliban took all the attention as crediting LeJ would only help elevate its standing from that of a small, disparate group to a more fearsome threat.

Read more: http://liveshots.blogs.foxnews.com/2010/11/12/taliban-says-pakistan-presidency-is-next-target/#ixzz153wMWnnh

Karachi blast highlights dangers for investigator (Reuters)

12 November 2010, KARACHI – Staring blankly at what used to be his office, the plain-clothed police investigator recalled how he had worked long hours there trying to track down some of Pakistan’s most dangerous militants.
The office was flattened in a suspected Pakistani Taliban suicide car bombing on Thursday at the compound of the Crime Investigation Department (CID), which focuses on apprehending militants who are bent on toppling Pakistan’s US-backed government.

“I arrested members of the Lashkar-e-Jhangvi (LeJ),” said the investigator, who looked lost, his AK-47 assault rifle slung over his shoulder.

LeJ is one of Pakistan’s most violent anti-Shia groups and part of an al Qaeda-linked nexus of militants. They include the Pakistani Taliban, which claimed responsibility for the attack, which killed 15 people and wounded 100, and threatened more bloodshed.

The explosion left a crater about 40 feet (12 metres) across and 12 feet (four metres) deep in front of the gutted building in Pakistan’s financial capital and biggest city, where senior militants were held and interrogated.

The police investigator pointed out one of the rooms which held militants. It was reduced to broken concrete slabs and twisted metal.

Parts of nearby buildings collapsed in the attack, which took place metres from the provincial chief minister’s house in a central district known as the “red zone” because of its high security status. The US Consulate and five-star hotels are nearby.

A security guard knelt in the rubble and sifted through a pile of bullet casings. Police said the militants first opened fire, as they sometimes do during such attacks.

Official documents were strewn across the rubble.

Security officers and rescue workers tried to steady themselves over shaky chunks of cement as they searched furiously for possible survivors. A pair of sandals raised hope, but to no avail.

A few feet away a group of security officers grunted as they pushed away a huge block of cement. Hopeful they had found a survivor.

But a few minutes later the body of a paramilitary soldier, his face covered in dust, was carried away on a stretcher.

http://www.khaleejtimes.com/DisplayArticle08.asp?xfile=data/international/2010/November/international_November583.xml&section=international

Investigators probing the attack on the Crime Investigation Department (CID) centre in Karachi on Thursday have said that recently-nabbed Lashkar-e-Jhangvi (LeJ) militants had been threatening the Sindh police’s main investigating agency with dire consequences.
‘You either kill us or let us go’ was their demand.
While Federal Interior Minister Rehman Malik appeared sure about the involvement of the LeJ, a senior police officer disagreed with the conclusion and said he was betting his ‘smart money’ on the TTP for being solely responsible for the deadly attack.
Investigators are now facing a daunting challenge in un raveling the sequence of events because the crime scene has been trampled over and key CCTV footage of the attack remains missing.
Meanwhile, SSP Fayyaz Khan released two sketches of suspected militants involved in the attack on the CID centre.
Click here for a detailed story
Published in The Express Tribune, November 13th, 2010.

http://tribune.com.pk/story/76733/karachi-blast-the-search-begins/

Smart money on the TTP but LeJ strongly suspected
Salman Siddiqui
4 hours ago

Lashkar-i-Jhangvi militants had been threatening the CID with dire consequences from the day six of their men were apprehended. PHOTO: ATHAR KHAN/EXPRESS

KARACHI: Security forces are hunting militants belonging to the Tehrik-e-Taliban Pakistan (TTP) and Lashkar-e-Jhangvi (LeJ) for their involvement in the deadly attack on the main operational headquarters of the Sindh Police’s Crime Investigation Department (CID).

Although top officials solving the case were keeping all cards close to their chest, trying their best to hide any clues that they may have found, background interviews reveal that daunting challenges lie ahead for the security forces.

At least four units are leading the investigations, including two teams of the CID, the capital city police’s Special Investigation Unit (SIU) and the Federal Investigation Agency’s Special Investigation Group. Intelligence agencies are assisting.

Even while Federal Interior Minister Rehman Malik appeared cocksure about the involvement of the LeJ, one of the four CID Senior Superintendents of Police disagreed with the conclusion and said he would keep all options open. He said that he was betting his ‘smart money’ on the TTP for being solely responsible for the deadly attack.

Also, the LeJ and TTP are not the only militant groups that are known to have a history of attacking state targets such as the police. Karachi-based Jundullah, which remains to date active in the city under a new leadership, could also have staged the attack. But, one investigator pointed out that ever since the two top tiers of Jundullah have been put behind bars, it has remained under the radar.

DSP Usman Asghar was surveying the blast site on Friday afternoon along with two other officers in civvies. “That used to be my office,” he said, pointing towards a pile of rubble right in front of the huge crater. Asghar, who had been working with CID for the last eight years, was posted to the SIU just a day before the attack.

This officer is known for catching the notorious Harkatul Mujahideen al Almi militant Kamran Atif in 2007 – the man who made an assassination attempt on president Musharraf in 2007. According to Asghar, his unit had found clues in the current case and was chasing some leads. “The challenge is to trace and catch the local handlers of the group that claims to have carried out the attack,” he said, referring to the TTP.

One possibility being closely examined is the link of the CID’s arrest of six LeJ militants and one TTP militant made a day before the attack. SI Ali Shah [not his real name] said that the LeJ militants were produced before the sessions court earlier in the day. “Even though we are told to keep a close watch when we take militants to court, an unidentified man managed to speak with them there,” Shah said, adding that the militants were taken to CID centre late in the afternoon.

The LeJ militants had been threatening them with dire consequences from the day they were apprehended, said Shah, who belongs to the CID squad’s commando unit. “You either kill us or let us go” was their demand.

However, an hour before the attack, the LeJ militants were moved to SSP Chaudhry Aslam’s unit in Saddar’s Garden area. A senior police officer close to Aslam did not confirm or deny this. He said that “the attack had nothing to do with LeJ militants. This was an attack on the CID because the CID has been active against extremists.”

Meanwhile, the FIA’s forensics unit led by SIG Sindh’s chief Azad Khan carried on with their crime scene analysis. Each member of the 10-man team collected metal fragments and residue swabs on cotton balls from the site, the spread of which, according to Khan, is more than 600 meters.

“The biggest problem I’m facing is that the crime has been compromised because so many people and even bulldozers have been over important pieces of evidence,” Khan said, adding that it could take several days before his team can complete the survey.

The samples collected from the site were being to sent to a forensics lab in Islamabad from where they’ll be able to determine the type of explosives used. “This will also help identify the possible groups behind the attack as different militant groups have different blast signatures,” he said.

His team is also trying to determine the sequence of events. When asked why since CCTV cameras were supposedly in place at the facility, he did not respond directly and said, “if it was available we wouldn’t have done it.” The CCTV footage at the station was reportedly not functioning when the attack took place and the only ones available are those that were at the corner of the streets on other nearby buildings.

IG Sindh Babar Khattak also visited the site and said that according to experts, the weight of the explosives was 500kgs.

Body parts continued to be discovered from the crime scene. Pieces of an unknown person’s head were discovered on top of the State Life building nearby. Khattak said the DNA sampling would be done to determine whether it belonged to the bomber or one of the personnel.

The CDGK’s Urban Search and Rescue Team pulled out two bodies late Thursday night. They used four dogs in the operation, whose names are Charlie, Senator, Saaghir and Queen. The dogs were provided by a Pakistan Army unit in Rawalpindi, said Naeem Yusuf, the search team’s leader.

Published in The Express Tribune, November 13th, 2010.

http://tribune.com.pk/story/76600/smart-money-on-the-ttp-but-lej-strongly-suspected/