Shootout with Liberty
I am really upset today. An sms from my nephew asking me about the updates on the shoot out at Liberty did not raise any alarms for me until I switched on the tele. It was as if my sleepy eyes were dreaming. The time taken from reading the sms to switching the television on maybe a minute and in that minute, I had thought only that there must be a dispute between two rival groups or some political procession being fired on by the police. But the news channels were all showing something which resemebeled to the seige in Mumbai. It certainly seemed like watching the next episode of the Mumbai drama. Men with same outfits, same kind of bag packs, simillar manovering and exactly the same motive.
The news that hurt me the most was the attack on the Sri Lankan team. We Pakistani’s are used to attacks (I know, so are the Lankans) ever since that nuisance of War on Terror started but why had it to be an attack on the visiting Sri Lankan team? I am a big fan of Sangakara and Murli and it pained me to know that they were also injured although slightly and were completely out of danger.
The Pakistani government has a lot of explaining to do and just an inquiry into the matter will not work, neither the Governor’s early wake up and visit to the scene. We need to know why were the visitors attacked and what were our security forces doing? Was this the protocol that had been promised to them? The shootout lasted about an hour and the Gulberg Police Station is JUST a minute walk away from the scene!
Liberty is one of the most famous areas of hanging out for the Lahori people and the tourists. It is also the commercial hub of the city and main attraction for the youth to fill their spare time for some pleasure. The roundabout where the shoot out occurred is the busiest at morning hours due to school and office locations in the area. Picture this: You have LGS, Lords International School, Gulberg College for women, Pace, Hafeez Center, City Center, Al-Fateh shopping center AND 12 armed and dangerous men going wild with their guns.
The news channels showed footage of the scene being taken by some eye witness probably from the Coca Cola building or the CNBC office, where the terrorists are shown roaming around and shooting at will. Two of these terrorists also duck behind the Bank Al-Falah sign installed at the round about (the round about had been designed and maintained by Bank Al-Falah) like in any action movie before shooting again at their targets. Another couple of terrorists were walking around the bus stand carrying heavy weapons. It was hard to compare if the scenes were from Baghdad or Lahore. I must have crossed that round about a million times but never in my wildest dreams could have I thought of this to happen. Not in Liberty! (I will upload some pictures of the area soon to make better understand of the place and the scene.)
To top it all, those scum’s easily managed to escape from the scene littering the place with hand grenades, rocket launchers, kalashankovs and pistols. Some hand grenades and pistols were found outside Al-Fateh shopping center. This means that the terrorists must have made it towards the Gulberg Park and on to either Cavalry, Firdous Market or Mecca Town or maybe back to Kalma Chowk even. Some of them were reported to have headed towards Model Town which is also a possibility.
1 Km to civil war
Pakistan nation witnessed yet again a terrorist attack on its soil. This time, it was the Marriot hotel in Islamabad which left over 50 dead and 100’s injured. The intensity of the blast was so huge that the spot where it occurred made a 25 feet hole and shattered all the windows in a 2 kilometer radius. This was just a blast among the many series that have been taking place, but this blast had some remarkable and important questions being asked.
Marriot hotel is not more than 1 kilometer from the Prime Minister’s house, the Presidency, the Parliament, the Supreme Court and the Secretariat. Therefore, this blast was an alarm sent to all those concerned that we are heading towards a dead end. The security in the capital was said to be of high level, keeping in view that the President was to address the parliament after a gap of over 7 years. The city saw all the political newsmakers under one roof at the parliament building and just when the blast occurred, the Prime Minister was having his private party with all political, army and bureaucracy invited. That is when a truck laden with 1000 kg of explosive enters the capital and rams itself into the Marriot just 1 kilometer away from the symbol of the government’s writ.
The Prime Minister said that the target was the Prime Minister house and the Parliament while his advisor to the interior Rehman Malik said that the target was the Marriot itself. This showed the confusion and unstable position the government was in after the deadly blasts. It is rumored that Rehman Malik shouted “On the floor everyone” at the Prime Ministers ifftar party soon after the blast impact was felt, shattering the windows.
The blast, with TNT and RDX used in huge quantities has left the nation wondering – How close are we to a civil war if we are not there yet?
1st anniversary of the Red Massacre
Operation silence
1 year ago, the “President” of Pakistan gave a signal to the security forces to execute what was termed to be “Operation Silence” which was carried out on the students of the Lal Masjid. The siege of the mosque was already put in place weeks earlier trying to strangle all possibilities of retaliation from the people holed up inside the mosque. With all of Pakistan watching in distress, the SSG (Special Service Group) under orders from President General Musharraf, himself a commando, who was personally guiding the operation, issued orders for final assault rejecting a compromise formula evolved earlier by Shujaat and ulema during talks with Ghazi.
This led to a 14 hour of heavy fighting, with the army pounding the place with all artillery available and the students giving a tough resistance in their last stand to what they termed as a tyrant, arrogant and un-Islamic system of governance. The government had claimed that there were foreign elements inside the mosque with heavy weapons, but Molana Abdul Rasheed Ghazi refuted the claim saying that there were only students inside the complex and they had only 14 licensed Kalashanakov’s to protect them. Last minute negotiations which were reaching a point of understanding between the administration and the people inside the Lal Masjid were suddenly stopped on the orders from the Presidency and the operation was given a go ahead signal, crushing any hopes of a peaceful end to the crisis.
These are the weapons the government so much feared
14 hours later, the army entered the complex which was burned and riddled with bullets but failed to find any foreign elements or heavy weapons as claimed earlier to show to the media to justify their action. The then Prime Minister, Shokat Aziz in a press conference termed the operation as “successful” while he went to eat ice cream with his family. The minister for religious affairs Ijaz Ul Haq, son of the former dictator Zia Ul Haq came on the media just to shed tears and show his helplessness against the brutality of his government and their master.
How many of the students died that day still remains a mystery which can only be uncovered once there is an independent trial on the issue.
Tribute
The Lal Masjid administration with thousands of participants from all over Pakistan paid rich tributes to the fallen “hero’s” of Operation Silence while convening a Shohida Conference at the very place the massacre took place exactly 1 year earlier. The government keeping the operation name in mind stayed silent. They did not bother to pay any tribute to the army jawans who had also fallen that day maybe knowing that it was not worth mentioning. But, the Pakistani nation pays tribute to them also and although they were forced to act by a man that has his own philosophies and can teach you on all life matters better than any other person alive or dead. Yes, he is our “President” – the all knowing man – General (Rtd.) Pervaiz Musharraf.
Let us pay tribute to the men who fell on that day from both sides as the “grand mufti” declared them both as martyrs.
The officer and jawans of the Pakistan Army’s Special Services Group,who were killed during active combat at the Lal Masjid- Jamia Hafsa compound. (1st Row L-R) Capt Salman Farooq Lodhi, Lance Naik Afsar Sayab, Naik Mohammad Saddique and Sepoy Mohammad Johar Naseem. (2nd Row L-R) Subedar Mohammad Inayat Sahi, Havaldar Mohammad Khan, Sepoy Mohammad Naseer and Sepoy Mohammad Khalid Khokar
May ALLAH forgive them all and accept their martyrdom.
Why it is important to impeach the President
He should have to answer for the massacre at the Lal Masjid and should be made an example for the future generations to follow. It is important that the nation takes him to trial for the atrocities committed against his own people, just like Saddam Hussain. His use of chemical weapons and naked aggression against his people should not and will not be forgotten. He has not only brought the country on the brink of a civil war but has also endangered the very existence of Pakistan just to stay in power and please his masters. This story was repeated many years ago in Iraq by another dictator and today the same is done in Pakistan. He preaches the west to look into the reasons for extremism but never follows his own advice. He is not only a danger for the federation but also for the reputation of the army that has nosedived ever since he started to have “revelations” about making Pakistan according to his likings.
A thought to reflect upon for the President
(Inside the Lal Masjid)
No Pakistani would advocate extremist views from both sides, but they would also not approve of the policy being adopted by the government.
Dr. Aafia Siddique – The rape of humanity
Of the many crimes committed by the “President” of Pakistan, General Pervaiz Musharraf, the disappearance of Pakistani nationals is the most heinous and worth taking him to court. Musharraf himself had confessed in his autobiography “In the line of fire” that he had handed many Pakistani’s to the US. All these people were abducted and handed over to the US without giving them a fair trial in their own country and without having any extradition treaty with the US. And he did receive a price for his services to the US and that too in dollars. So, selling Pakistani’s to other countries is what our President was busy at, making millions apart from the protocol he received within the country.
One such victim of Musharraf’s greed is Dr. Aafia Siddique. The sad story of Dr. Aafia Siddique is as follows:
AAafia Siddiqui has a biology degree from MIT and earned her PhD in cognitive neuroscience from Brandeis University. She like most of the immigrants in the US was “Americanated” and was divorced because her husband wanted their eldest son to attend a madrassa whereas she wanted her children to have “western” education. This alone is evidence enough to prove that Dr. Aafia was in no way an extremist until the FBI painted her as one.
She was on her way to the airport with her 3 children, when she was kidnapped by Musharraf’s henchmen and handed over to the FBI. The FBI had no evidence to prove she had links with Al-Qaeda and their “Most Wanted” list had AAafia as a suspect wanted for questioning only.
After 5 years of torture, rape and ill treatment, Dr. AAafia is said to have lost her senses whom the British journalist Yvonne Ridley dubbed “The Grey Lady of Bagram”
The US and Pakistani authorities had been denying that they had Dr. AAafia in custody since 2003 and then suddenly she appeared in the New York court with charges of firing at the military personnel who had come to investigate her.
Some thought to reflect upon
When Bush claims that “they (the Muslims in general) hate our way of living” he is right. Yes, we (the Muslims in general) hate it when the Americans take so much care of not even hurting the animals and have those so called Animal Rights Organizations, yet they have no remorse or guilt when it comes to these Muslims. So, for Americans hurting animals is far more a serious crime than humiliating and murdering Muslims. This is the American way of living that everyone hates.
When Bush on his last Asia trip accused China of human rights violations was so drunk that he did not forget the crimes he has committed on humanity. The Americans will be active protesting at other countries for their human rights violations and yet keep a blind eye at their own. This hypocrisy is what the Muslims hate. Under what law and in which legality had Dr. AAafia been kidnapped, tortured and raped?
When the Americans accuse Saddam of killing his own people and take all military action to capture and hang him in the name of humanity and on the same lines support other dictators and oppressors who kill their own people and kidnap them.
This is what the Muslims hate and when that hate combines, it becomes the hate against America.
To our President:
How much worth was Dr. Aafia Siddique?
Did you enjoy spending that money?
Imran Khan – The voice of the youth
Imran Khan sent this recorded message to television channels on the day Emergency Plus was imposed in Pakistan from an undisclosed location. Imran Khan is the voice of the youth and has a large following. Although his strength is not reflected in the polls because of poor leadership in his party, yet he is adored and understood by the millions of Pakistanis.
Imran Khan has so far successfully avoided his capture by the brutal and unconstitutional authorities, who have arrested hundreds of civilians protesting for their basic right to be free and under independent law and courts. We Pakistanis pray for his well being and hope he manages to stay free.
Imran Khan, the youth are with you, so is the whole Pakistani nation.
Pakistan – The Conspiracy theory
Yesterday, the Pakistani nation again was grieved over the deaths of over 140 people, when the welcome progression of the former Prime Minister Benazir Bhutto returning home after an 8 year “self imposed” exile was a target of another terrorist attack. She survived.
The electronic media as usual went on to capitalize on the event and had marathons discussing this, that, when, what, where or how. The people watched it live and had to watch it over and over again whether they liked it or not.
This led to the world condemning the attack and concerns were raised on different fronts while fingers were pointed to each other as is the case with our dirty politics. In fact, this dirty politics started from the word go when BB announced her return and pointed out that she was a Prime Minister from “Sindh”. Little did she know she was the Prime Minister of Pakistan. Just the people of Sindh could not elect her as the Prime Minister.
Already, the media again being a tool had spread the word that the Taliban had planned to assassinate her, which the Taliban plainly refuted. The Taliban don’t have the resources to cover Karachi. They are already busy and stretched in Afghanistan. And there are no Taliban in Pakistan. That is a misunderstanding of the West and a reason to suppress the Pakistani nation as the American people are used by their “levels of threat”.
Yes, there are sympathizers of the Taliban in Pakistan and surely the world over. All we need is an impartial consensus on the issue.
So, who would benefit from the assassination of the former Prime Minister Benazir Bhutto?
If I had to answer, I’d plainly state – The People of Pakistan.
Their sweet words are no longer tempting for us. Whether it be the Bhutto’s, the Shariff’s or whoever. They all have their deals to fulfill and damn care about the people.
And if we ponder on who suffered from this tragedy, the collective answer would be Pakistan. We are already being branded as a terrorist state and other forces trying to isolate us. For example, we had a French hitchhiker in Pakistan. He stayed for a week in Lahore and had plans to travel further. Somehow the French embassy in Pakistan came to know of his presences and sent him an email reminding him on how volatile the situation in Pakistan was and it was in his best interest that he got out of this country as soon as possible. “It’s ridiculous” was what Ludovic had to say in reply. He was warmly greeted by the people and he was all praises for the reception he received everywhere he went. But the embassy insisted that he move out. I haven’t heard from him since the past week and hope all is well with him. But certainly it would not be the threat from the Pakistani’s that’s keeping him silent but rather from his own embassy. This is the approach that the foreign countries have and try to implement their policy of isolation. Isolation would only bring in more mistrust and again quoting Ludovic: “The best way to have a positive and constructive dialogue is to have people to people contact”. And I do believe that is the best way to move forward.
Now, even South African cricket team are thinking of cutting short their tour to Pakistan. The worst effect came on the 1st Asian Sports Gala where 35 countries were to participate and now this event is also in jeopardy. What these countries and players don’t understand is that Pakistan is just like any other Asian country. So, a bomb blast in Pakistan is not different from a bomb blast in India. And in the history of Pakistan, no team has ever been the target of any terrorist activity. They need to realize this and not play in the hands of the forces that want to isolate the people of Pakistan.
Yes, Pakistan is having its problems of identification. We are still not sure after 60 years of independence what we achieved it for. And every dictator has his own version to tell about the reason for the creation of Pakistan. So does the present one who seems to be all intelligent, all knowing, all righteous and is of course all powerful. For people like me, Musharraf was a ray of light in the dark phase Pakistan was going thru. But his lust for power has made him no different than the rest. And now we just pray he leaves our lives for good. Pakistani’s hate him for killing his own people. No ruler in the past has done more damage to the federation as he has. All to appease the West and America in particular. He is a liar when he says we are fighting our own war on terrorism. And he will die a liar. There is no need to fight any war with your own people. If he can have deals with those whom he openly blamed for plundering the wealth of Pakistan then why not with others as well. But then, his stay in power would be of no use to the bigger forces. No doubt, he is their puppet and acts just as they want him to. And if there was to be an independent and transparent referendum, I doubt he would even get 5% votes. He can have a reality check if he wants to.
The future of Pakistan politics will be clearly divided into two groups which later on can turn up to be two parties. One’s who are “democratic”, pro-West, willing to fight against “terrorism” and those opposite to these.
PML(Q), PPP and MQM are in the first group as far as I see. The King’s party with Musharraf sharing the crown. As far as these three parties are concerned, they are not democratic in their own system so it is very difficult to imagine they will implement anything called democracy after they come to power again.
The other group will comprise of PML(N), MMA, Tehriek-e-Insaf and the other nationalist parties now known as APDM. Since there are slim chances of any genuine rig-free elections, this group will not have the pleasure of forming a government.
Whatever happens, Pakistan will survive these tyrants as it did in the past. And Pakistan will one day stand for what it believes and the reason why it got it’s independence. And that day is not far when the people of Pakistan will unite against these evil leaders and get rid of them. Till then, ALLAH bless Pakistan!
