Pakistan/Terrorism: Tehreek-e-Taleban chief is probably alive

Pakistan's Inter Services Intelligence (ISI) agency claimed on Thursday that Hakimullah Mehsud, the Tehreek-e-Taleban Pakistan (TTP) chief who was believed to have been killed in a US drone attack in January, is alive. An ISI official added that Hakimullah was wounded in the South Waziristan attack, but survived.

The revelation contradicts claims made by the US and Pakistani officials, including Interior Minister Rehman Malik, who then had asserted Mehsud's death. However, no hard evidence was available to confirm the claim till date.

The doubts over the credibility of Mehsud’s death intensified after Mehsud reportedly contacted the BBC office in January to clarify the rumours of his murder. A video footage of Mehsud also surface soon afterwards, but it was not confirmed whether it was made after his alleged death. The TTP has been consistently denying that Mehsud was killed in the strike, but also declined to prove otherwise, saying it would compromise his safety.

Pakistan/Terrorism: 5 policemen killed in suicide bombing attack

Five policemen were killed early Wednesday when a suicide bomber rammed his explosive-laden vehicle into a check post in Pir Bala, a village on the outskirts of Peshawar.

Confirming the report, Police Chief Liaquat Ali declared that 11 people, including a woman and a cleric, were also injured in the blast that damaged a nearby house and a mosque. "Two policemen (among the injured) are in a critical condition," he said. It has been reported that those who were killed were inside the small, mud-build check post on routine duty.

Peshawar, where major markets and regional headquarters for government and security forces are located, has witnessed several terrorist attacks in the past.

Tehreek-e-Taleban Pakistan (TTP) in the meantime has claimed responsibility for the attack. "It's a reaction to the operations carried out by the army from Khyber to Waziristan," TTP spokesman Azam Tariq said. Pakistani security forces are indeed battling TTP and Afghani Al-Qaeda terrorists almost every day in the tribal belt along the Afghan-Pakistani border.

Pakistan/India/Security: Indian diplomat spying for ISI arrested

Madhuri Gupta, an Indian diplomat who works in the Indian embassy in Islamabad has been arrested on the charges of spying for Pakistan's Inter Services Intelligence (ISI) spy agency, media reports said Tuesday. The Press Trust of India (PTI) news agency said Gupta was a second secretary of the embassy and worked in the press and information section.

India's Intelligence Bureau had reportedly collected credible information about her activities, following which the authorities in New Delhi summoned her back on the pretext of discussions at the South Asian Association for Regional Cooperation (SAARC) summit in Bhutan. There was no immediate comment from Pakistani authorities.

Meanwhile, Pakistani official sources said their security forces have killed at least 13 suspected terrorists in the Orakzai tribal region of the North West Frontier Province, bordering Afghanistan. Local official Jahanzeb Khan declared that eight terrorists were killed in a gun battle at a checkpoint in the Bezod area of Orakzai. Five more terrorists were killed later today in an airstrike in the Kasha area.

Pakistan/Terrorism: Taleban executed four men accused of being US spies

Four men, accused of being US spies, were brutally executed on Friday by the Pakistani Taleban in the town of Mir Ali in North Waziristan. It has been reported that one of the killed was decapitated, while the others' hands were severed and throats slit. The terrorists also left a warning note along with the dead bodies, telling people to learn from the fate of those who spy for Washington. As a repercussion of the incident, security forces have imposed curfew in Mirali and the surrounding areas.

Meanwhile on Thursday, 26 suspected Taleban terrorists and two soldiers were killed in a clash in the Mishti Mela village of Orakzai, a northwest tribal region. A statement from the paramilitary Frontier Corps also declared that two solders received injuries while battling the terrorists.

Earlier in the day, Taleban terrorists attacked security forces in the Kabal town of Swat valley. Four terrorists were killed when the troops returned fire.

Pakistan/Terrorism: pro-Taleban group threatens to kill hostages

The pro-Taleban Asian Tigers group has threatened to kill three hostages, including a British journalist, if Islamabad failed to release top Afghan-Taleban leaders Mullah Abdul Ghani Baradar, Mullah Mansoor Dadullah and Maulavi Kabir within ten days.

The threat was made through an e-mail that accompanied a video footage of two hostages – human rights activist Khalid Khawaja and British journalist Asad Quereshi. Khawaja, Quereshi and former ISI officials Colonel Imam a.k.a Sultan Amir Tararb were abducted last month in North Waziristan.

“Khalid Khawaja and Colonel Imam are in Taliban custody. They are enemies of Islam and Muslims. We demand the release of all Taliban leaders and other mujahadeen”, the message said. The group has in addition demanded $10 million for Quereshi and warned he would be killed if the ransom was not paid within a week.

Meanwhile on Wednesday, a remote-controlled bomb exploded in the Bili Tang area of Kohat district, northwest Khyber-Pakhtunkhwa province. No casualties have been reported in the incident, but some vehicles received partial damages.

Pakistan/Terrorism: 23 killed in two separate blasts

At least 23 people were killed in two bomb blasts in the Pakistani city of Peshawar late on Monday. A suicide bomber detonated his explosives in the city's popular Qissa Khawani (Storytellers' market), soon after a public rally, killing 22 people and injuring more than 30 others. According to the police, the target seemed to be security officials watching over the demonstration held by the Jamat-e-Islami party, a pro-Taleban group, against regular power cuts in the city. A senior police official, his guards and other rally leaders were reportedly among those killed.

A few hours earlier, a young boy was killed and at least 10 others were injured in another terrorist bombing attack outside a school run by a police welfare foundation.

Taleban and Al-Qaeda terrorists often target schools and other similar institutions including mosques and markets. Two bombing attacks over the weekend killed about 50 people in the Kohat tribal region. The victims were mostly refugees queuing for food and other supplies.

Pakistan/Terrorism: At least seven killed in Quetta bomb blast

At least seven people, including a journalist have been killed and 10 others wounded when a suicide bomber blew himself up near a hospital emergency in Quetta where large number of Shia Muslims gathered on Friday to mourn a murdered bank manager, officials and media reported.

Reportedly, the explosions took place about 10:15 a.m. local time and were followed by series of gunshots. Among the seven dead was Malik Arif, a cameraman working for Pakistan's Samaa TV.

 No group has claimed responsibility for the attack so far.

Pakistan/United States/Terrorism: US missiles killed four terrorists in North Waziristan

Intelligence officials and media reported that at least four suspected terrorists have been killed when a US drone missiles hit a vehicle and a terrorist compound in Pakistan's North Waziristan region on Friday.

According to officials, the attack took place in Tolkhel village in the suburbs of Miranshah, the main town in the restive North Waziristan tribal district bordering Afghanistan. The personalities of the killed terrorists have not been identified yet.

On Wednesday, another four suspected Taleban fighters were killed in a US drone attack in Dattakhel village, 20 km west of Miranshah.

Pakistan/Civil unrest: 16 killed in Abbottabad violence

At least 16 people have been killed and over 300 wounded in  Abbottabad in north-western Pakistan during protests against a parliamentary proposal to change the name of the North West Frontier Province (NWFP), to Khyber-Pakhtoonkhwa, officials and media reported on Wednesday.

Reportedly, the riots erupted on Monday and continued till Tuesday, as thousands of people took to the streets of the city of Abbottabad. According to security officials, police fired tear gas and rubber bullets into the crowd after protesters attacked two police stations and torched several vehicles. Protesters said police shot and killed at least eight people during the clashes.

Meanwhile, the district administration has declared emergency across Abbottabad as violent protests have started spreading to other districts like Mansehra, Haripur and Hawelian. There were reports of fresh violence in Hazara region on Wednesday.

Omar Ayub Khan, the leader of the opposition Pakistan Muslim League Qaid-i-Azam group (PML-Q), stated that the name Khyber Pakhtunkhwa does not offer anything for the province's Hazaras. On the contrary, proponents say the bill is designed to strengthen parliamentary democracy and give greater power to the provinces.

Pakistan/United States/Terrorism: US drone strike killed four terrorists in North Waziristan

Intelligence officials and media reported that at least four suspected Taleban fighters were killed and three others wounded when US drone fired two missiles at a vehicle carrying Taleban fighters in Pakistan's North Waziristan region on Wednesday.

According to officials, the attack took place in Dattakhel village, 20 km west of Miranshah, the main town of the region, near the Afghan border,  traditional hideout for Al-Qaeda and Taleban fighters. The personalities of the wounded and killed terrorists are yet to be ascertained.

Earlier on Monday, US drone attack killed at least five suspected Taleban fighters in a compound owned by a prominent Taleban commander Tariq Khan in Boya village, in North Waziristan region.

Pakistan/United States/Terrorism: US strike kills five Taleban fighters in North Waziristan

Officials and media reported that at least five suspected Taleban fighters have been killed and two others wounded when US drone fired two missiles in a Taleban position in the restive North Waziristan late Monday night.

Reportedly, US-operated unmanned Predator aircraft targeted a compound owned by a prominent Taleban commander Tariq Khan in Boya village, located 20 kilometres away from Miramshah, the main town of North Waziristan.

Last Monday, fierce gun battle between suspected terrorists and government forces left at least 41 terrorists killed in Pakistan's Orakzai tribal agency. The gun battle erupted when around 100 terrorists armed with rockets and weapons attacked two checkpoints in the villages of Shireen Dara and Sangrana in Lower Orakzai.

United States/Pakistan/Security: New York subway plotter arrested

Law enforcement officials stated on Monday that a fourth suspect has been detained in Pakistan in connection with a disrupted plot to detonate bombs on the New York City subways.

According to media report, the suspect's name has not been disclosed yet and could soon be extradited to the United States and charged in Brooklyn. There were no immediate confirmation about the report from the FBI and federal prosecutors.

The main suspect in the foiled terror plot, Najibullah Zazi, who pleaded guilty in February, has been cooperating with investigators. The other suspects Zarein Ahmedzay and Adis Medunjanin have been arrested in January and pleaded not guilty in February.

Zazi, a Colorado airport van driver, was apprehended on September 20 last year after returning from New York to his home in Colorado. He had planned on carrying out the attack on September 14, 15, or 16 using chemicals derived from beauty products.

Pakistan/Terrorism:  41 terrorists, 2 soldiers killed in Orakzai Agency

Fierce gun battle between insurgents and government forces left at least 41 terrorists killed in Pakistan's Orakzai tribal agency on early Monday, security officials said. The clash also left two soldiers dead.

According to officials, the gun battle erupted when around 100 terrorists armed with rockets and weapons attacked two checkpoints in the villages of Shireen Dara and Sangrana in Lower Orakzai. Three soldiers were also wounded in the fighting which lasted for nearly two hours.

Pakistani Intelligence officials stated that soon after the gun battle was ended, authorities found the bodies of 15 dead insurgents around the two checkpoints. The terrorists removed the bodies of at least 26 others who were killed during the fighting.

Earlier on Sunday, government fighter planes destroyed three terrorist hide-outs in Sangram village in Orakzai, killing 10 suspected terrorists. According to official records, more than 300 terrorists have been eliminated in the last three weeks operation in Orakzai Agency.

 

Pakistan/Terrorism: Pakistani troops kill 18 terrorists in Orakzai clash

Pakistani troops gunned down at least 18 suspected Tehreek-e-Taleban Pakistan (TTP) terrorists during a gun battle in the restive Orakzai tribal region on Thursday night, security officials said.

Colonel Tahair Ikram of the Frontier Corps, stated that the terrorists launched a midnight attack in Orakzai’s Bezoti area in a bid to recapture a camp lost to security forces two days ago. "Over 100 terrorists from Orakzai and the neighbouring Khyber region attacked security forces around midnight, triggering a firelight that continued for hours", he said.

According to military officials, three soldiers were injured while four terrorists, wounded during the fighting, had been captured. Government troops also recovered the bodies of the slain terrorists. It has been reported that the terrorists who managed to escape, beheaded the bodies of four of their accomplices and took away their heads so that the authorities could not identify them.

The Pakistani army claims that more than 200 terrorists have been killed in Orakzai since an operation was launched last month to flush terrorists out of the region, which was a stronghold of TTP chief Hakeemullah Mehsud who is widely believed to have been killed in a US drone strike in North Waziristan last January.

Pakistan/Afghanistan/Terrorism: Taleban release Greek hostage; release video of captured US soldier

Pakistani officials announced on Thursday that the Afghan Taleban had freed Athanassios Lerounis, a Greek aid worker, unharmed after kidnapping him seven months ago in northwest Pakistan near the border with Afghanistan.

According to Rahmatullah Wazir, top administrative official in Pakistan’s Chitral valley, local elders from Chitral had been negotiating with the kidnappers, who held Lerounis in the neighbouring Afghan province of Nuristan. “He is with us. He is safe. It was a difficult task but our intelligence agencies did this job”, Wazir said. Lerounis had been working among the ethnic Kalash in the mountains of Chitral when he was kidnapped on September 7 2009.

Initially the kidnappers had demanded a ransom and that Pakistan release three detained Afghan Taleban leaders. However, officials, said none of their demands had been met and that Lerounis had been released unconditionally. There was no immediate comment available from the Greek embassy in Islamabad.

Meanwhile, the Taleban on Wednesday released a video footage of a man identified as Pfc. Bowe Bergdahl, an American soldier captured in Afghanistan last June. In the video the man pleaded for his freedom. However, there were no immediate comments available from US officials.

Pakistan/Afghanistan/Terrorism: Taleban bomb NATO tanker in Khyber, eight injured

At least eight people were wounded when suspected Taleban fighters on Wednesday bombed a tanker carrying fuel to NATO forces in Afghanistan, officials said.

Local administration chief Shafeerullah Wazir said a bomb planted on the truck by the terrorists exploded near the Michni checkpoint in Khyber Agency, in Pakistan’s Federal Administered Tribal Areas (FATA). “The bomb was attached to the tanker with a magnet”, Wazir said, adding that a nearby van was caught in the fireball and eight passengers were wounded.

Taleban spokesman Azam Tariq claimed responsibility for the attack, saying it was “a revenge attack” for the “US drone war against Taleban and Al-Qaeda fighters” and threatened to carry out more attacks.

Earlier on Monday, Taleban fighters armed with petrol bombs and rockets attacked a terminal in northwest Pakistan torched eight tankers carrying to supply fuel to NATO forces in Afghanistan. The terrorists launched the attack at Zakha Khel in the tribal district of Khyber before dawn. There were no casualties in the attack because there were no drivers in the trucks during the time of the attack.

Pakistan/United States/Terrorism: US consulate in Peshawar targeted in attacks

Taleban fighters equipped with guns, grenades and suicide bombs on Monday targeted the US consulate and a political rally in Pakistan's North West Frontier Province (NWFP), killing a total of 46 people.

According to American security sources, five security guards were killed when at least eight terrorists armed with guns and grenades targeted the heavily guarded US consulate in Peshawar. Reportedly, a gun battle erupted after two car bombs exploded at a checkpoint 50 metres from the mission while another car bomb, laden with about 100 kilograms of explosives, went off close to the consulate gate. US officials stated that at least two Pakistani security guards employed by the consulate were killed and a number of others seriously wounded, but that no Americans died.

Tehreek-e-Taleban Pakistan (TTP) spokesman Azam Tariq soon after the attack claimed responsibility, saying it was to avenge a US drone war targeting top militants in Pakistan’s border areas with Afghanistan, and threatened to carry out more attacks on Americans. “We accept the attacks on the American consulate. This is revenge for drone attacks”, Tariq said.

Separately, a suicide bomber attacked a political rally organized by the Pashtun secular-nationalist Awami National Party (ANP) in NWFP’s Lower Dir district, killing at least 41 people and wounding over 80 others. The suicide bomber detonated his explosives as hundreds of people had gathered in Timar Girah, the main city of Lower Dir district.

Pakistan/Terrorism: five schools blown up, eight terrorists killed in Orakzai

Suspected Tehreek-e-Taleban Pakistan (TTP) fighters on Wednesday blew up five schools and a basic health centre in the Utmankhel area of Orakzai agency, local media reported on Thursday.

Reportedly, the terrorists first set fire to five government schools in the Spin Kada, Dhand Garhi and Shalon Talab areas and then blew them up with explosives. Not long thereafter, the terrorists blew up a basic health unit in Karghan. According to the Dawn newspaper, the TTP attackers also burned down 15 houses in the same region.

On Thursday, Pakistani helicopter gun ships attacked several suspected TTP hide-outs in the Orakzai agency, killing at least 13 terrorists. Official sources said five bunkers of the terrorists had been destroyed in the Merobek, Surgul, Sherin Dara and Bezot areas. Several hours later three terrorists were killed after the same helicopter gun ships targeted a vehicle carrying terrorists.

Meanwhile, it was reported that four terrorists had been killed by a roadside bomb, but their leader Noor Jamal however narrowly escaped the explosion. No further details were available on the incident.

Pakistan/Terrorism: Taleban attack checkpoint, kill six Pakistan soldiers in Khyber Agency

At least six Pakistani troops were killed and 15 others wounded when suspected Taleban fighters launched an attack on a checkpoint in the north-western Khyber tribal region on Wednesday.

Security officials reproted that a gunbattle erupted after dozens of terrorists carrying automatic weapons and rocket-propelled grenades (RPG's) attacked a security post near Bara town in Khyber agency. A security official stated that there was one suicide bomber among the attackers who blew himself up during the fighting and killed five soldiers. The attack was repelled by a coutner offensive, killing 25 terrorists and injuring 35.

Meanwhile, Pakistani intelligence officials reported that at least six suspected terrorists were killed by suspected US missiles in the tribal region of North Waziristan on Wednesday.

India/Security: four LeT terrorists, three soldiers killed in Kashmir gunbattle

Three Indian soldiers and four Lashkar-e-Taiba (LeT) terrorists were been killed in gun battle that lasted for 48-hours in India-administered Kashmir's Rajouri district on Wednesday.

According to military officials, the shootout erupted late Tuesday in the southern district of Rajouri, bordering Pakistan, when Indian troops backed by counter-insurgency police launched a search in the Planakanthol-Lambibari forests in the Kandi Bhudal belt where terrorists have taken refuge.

The four slain terrorists have been identified as Abu Zarar, Abu Abdullah, Abu Shoaib, Abu Osama and reportedly are all Pakistani nationals. Police recovered four AK rifles, magazines, grenades, pistols, a satellite phone, a GPS device, geo-satellite maps of Jammu and Kashmir, besides Pakistan-made edible and electronic items were recovered from them.

The killed army soldiers have been identified as Havaldar s. Singh, Naik Sher Khan and Sepoy Ram Prasad. Station House Officer (SHO) of Dharamshal police station Showkat Ali was injured and has been transferredd to a hospital.