The Hell is About to Break
By A Khokar • Jan 25th, 2009 • Category: Politics, Worth A Second Look • 27 Comments
The provocative drone attacks of U.S Special Forces in FATA area are on as ever. Most of the Pakistanis had a hope that probably with the incoming of new U.S. administration headed by President Barack Hussien Obama; the overall situation in Afghanistan and Pakistan may take a different turn. But another drone missile attack on Friday on Pakistani territory has totally dashed all such hopes of any change in U.S. policies on our western borders.
The analysts say that biggest mistake Obama could make as president is to assume that American values or conduct are somehow superior to those of other countries, or that U.S. allies have greater rights than other countries. In other words, persisting in Bush like foreign policy agenda that combines arrogance, ignorance and ordnance in a deadly combination would be his worst mistake.
In last one year alone, some two dozen drones’ attacks were carried out in FATA. This is a clear violation of Pakistan’s sovereignty of an ally. Hundreds of innocent men women and children are massacred by drone attacks and their houses and other properties destroyed. On every drone attack the present Pakistan government is always seen stun and prefer to remain mum on the incident. They usually resort to some verbal rhetoric of a condemnation statement which shamelessly gives an impression that it is being done with their nod or a wink. This playing down tactics has proved to be counter productive by any standards. Present day Pakistan government has miserabily failed in protecting the lives and honour of its citizens.
Surely the drone attacks on Pakistan may not stop till such time that Pakistan Armed Forces retaliate to bring the predators down every time that Pakistan’s air spaces are violated or the local Fata people may lay hand on some shoulder fired stinger type anti aircraft missiles to take care of these attacks as well as the drones launching stations in Afghanistan are raided. In any such retaliation, it will amount to Pakistanis as whole being hostile and at war against the west.
Presently drones attacks are being conducted on the pretext that some local affiliates are offering sanctuaries to the Al-Qaeda fugitives in FATA. In case, the FATA victims choose their action at their own and openly raise arms; surely they would be seen as the terrorists liable to receive more fierce beatings. Any such action amounts to declaring the entire FATA area a terrorist den, which is the prime aim of this whole U.S. exercise in order to develop their pretext further to move in to Pakistani territory.
It is the paradox that Pakistan finds itself in. It is lose-lose situation for Pakistan at both the ends. But enough is enough and looks like that a hell is about to break in Pakistan on the western borders as well as in Islamabad.
Habib jalib comes to mind:
Qatil kahaan badaltey hain Faqat Chehray badaltay hain
Ajab hey apna saffar keh Fasley bhi saath chaltey hain
I will try to translate to convey Jalib’s message;
[My killers; they don’t change. Only their faces and flags are changed.
What a journey of mine? there is no move forward. My all the traversed spans and miles stones also travel with me]
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Hmmn….
Obama can’t be expected to pander to liberals for the next four years. But the decision to double down in Afghanistan carries considerable risk. Like the economy, it is a huge problem. But even the economy can be expected to bounce back sometime in the next few years. If Afghanistan turns into Obama’s Iraq, he may miss the support of the anti-war left, which, it’s worth remembering, helped propel him past Hillary Clinton not so very long ago.
While some republicans can pretend outrage at this point and some democrats say BHO is ‘protecting America’, and ‘doing what he promised to do’ the fact is that this isn’t the path to peace.
I personally believe that the ‘actionable intelligence’ was faked, and innocent lives lost, just to entangle the President in an unwinnable war.
So why ARE you in Afghanistan, Mr. President? If you say it’s because of OBL or AQ or the Taliban, then I suggest you rethink your policy, and keep your promise to ‘first engage in diplomacy with anyone, anywhere, without conditions’.
I am really worried for our country. Anyone that just listens to Obama speeches on TV will think he is great. However, you have to dig and see how false his words are:
When Obama was running for president he said he would not allow lobbyist to work for his government.
Then he appointed lobbyist to his cabinet.
On his first week in office he signs laws to prevent lobbyist to work for the government. Giving a very righteous speech about how wrong it is to have lobbyist work for government.
Is he giong to ask all the lobbyist he has appointed to step down?………..NO!!! Instead he is going to get a waiver to break the rules he just made.
It seems the rules he makes apply to everyone, other than himself.
Bush’s War is definitely now Obama’s War. Obama has to bring change to FATA.
While U.S. and NATO forces have the right to respond to threats on its combat forces based in Afghanistan, policymakers must recognize that the fallout from U.S. missile strikes prove tactically problematic for three reasons. First, missile strikes undermine the authority of sitting Pakistani leaders. The August 19th resignation of former army general Pervez Musharraf demonstrated how the burden of assuming a pro-American stance can prove a political liability for “war on terror” allies. Aligning with pro-U.S. policies is one reason why Asif Ali Zardari, Pakistan’s new president, is reviled by many of his countrymen, while opposition leader Nawaz Sharif, who has been openly critical of U.S. actions across the border in Afghanistan, has seen his popularity soar.
A second reason to be skeptical of relying almost exclusively on missile strikes is that they encourage FATA’s militants to lash out against their closer enemy, Pakistan, causing disastrous ripple effects that further damage the already weakened country. Suicide bombers are striking Pakistan’s large urban centers with increasing frequency and are signals of the spreading insurgency engulfing the Islamic Republic.
According to the investigation, conducted by U.S. Central Command, the civilian death toll in the Aug. 22 strike on the village of Azizabad was far lower than the 90 claimed by the United Nations and the Afghan government. Their assertions are questioned in the report, which argues that they “lack independent evidence” to support the higher death toll.
Both the first and the latest U.S. investigations conclude that the attack was a “valid military action,” military officials said.
“This was a legitimate target,” said a senior military official. “There is no culpability.”
“We are deeply saddened at the loss of innocent life in Azizabad,” Army Lt. Gen. Martin Dempsey, the acting head of Central Command, said in a statement. “We go to great lengths to avoid civilian casualties in Afghanistan in all our operations, but as we have seen all too often, this ruthless enemy routinely surround themselves with innocents.”
Army Gen. David D. McKiernan, the U.S. commander in Afghanistan, asked for the new investigation after a grainy cellphone video seemed to show a much higher civilian death toll than military officials had acknowledged.
Air Force Brig. Gen. Michael W. Callan, who led the new investigation, found that charges that U.S. or Afghan forces had violated the rules of engagement were “unsubstantiated.”
The report concludes that of the 33 civilians killed, eight were men, three were women, and 12 were children, based on videos from the aftermath of the fighting. Ten others were not identified.
So there is ”no culpability”, but there is, incidentally, this mother of all natural gas pipelines in the works:
http://www.aprodex.com/pipeline-opens-new-front-in-afghan-war-1028-n.aspx
To prepare for proposed construction in 2010, the Afghan government has reportedly given assurances it will clear the route of land mines, and make the path free of Taliban influence.
In a report to be released today, energy economist John Foster says the pipeline is part of a wider struggle by the United States to counter the influence of Russia and Iran over energy trade in the region.
The so-called Turkmenistan-Afghanistan-Pakistan-India pipeline has strong support from Washington because the U.S. government is eager to block a competing pipeline that would bring gas to Pakistan and India from Iran.
The TAPI pipeline would also diminish Russia’s dominance of Central Asian energy exports.
http://www.theglobeandmail.com/servlet/story/RTGAM.20080730.wmackay0730/BNStory/National/home
Defence Minister Peter MacKay insisted Wednesday that Canadian troops are not in Afghanistan to guard a new natural gas pipeline being built through the southern part of the country.
Mr. MacKay told a Halifax radio talk show that Canada has to let Afghanistan map its own future.
He said fears that Canadian troops may end up paying a hefty price to protect the U.S.-backed project from insurgents are unfounded.
Seeing the phrase ”dominance of Central Asian energy exports” brings to mind the author of The Grand Chessboard, one Zbigniew Brzezinski. In that bold but seldom-cited 1997 apology for 21st century American empire Brzezinski writes:
“Never before has a populist democracy attained international supremacy. But the pursuit of power is not a goal that commands popular passion, except in conditions of a sudden threat or challenge to the public’s sense of domestic well-being. The economic self-denial (that is, defense spending) and the human sacrifice (casualties, even among professional soldiers) required in the effort are uncongenial to democratic instincts. Democracy is inimical to imperial mobilization.” (p.35)
“Moreover, as America becomes an increasingly multi-cultural society, it may find it more difficult to fashion a consensus on foreign policy issues, except in the circumstance of a truly massive and widely perceived direct external threat.” (p. 211)
“The momentum of Asia’s economic development is already generating massive pressures for the exploration and exploitation of new sources of energy and the Central Asian region and the Caspian Sea basin are known to contain reserves of natural gas and oil that dwarf those of Kuwait, the Gulf of Mexico, or the North Sea.” (p.125)
And how has Dr. Brzezinski recently busied himself? He is a “top foreign policy adviser” to Barack Obama.
http://www.nysun.com/national/despite-criticism-obama-stands-by-adviser/62534/
If Barack H. Obama administration simply increases attacks from pilotless drones in the tribal region of FATA, it will only push more wavering tribes further into the Taliban camp. In order to quash militancy, Obama has to change the strategy.
It started as war against terrorism although it is struggle to control oil and gas resources. In the meantime all the warlords have been able to strengthen themselves and brain wash the locals who lost their families to fight for them in Jihad agains the kufaar. Now these war lords calling themselves mujahideen are doing jihad agains fellow muslims by killing them, blowing them and destroying schools so that these areas can brought back to stone ages.
Any strikes by US are only encouraging the family members of victims of such strikes to join these mujahideens to fight against ‘US’ and any body who supports US. US needs to impose her own agenda on these regions and mujahideen need to understand what islam is?
There was no sign of any terrorism on our western borders. A myth of terror was floated and this bate was consumed by Al-Qaeda. But in the wake of diminishing horizons of U.S. war on terrorism; drones attacks are proving to be instrumental in keeping this war alive.
With every drone attack; the war lore are revived and every death results in multiplying and breeding of new cadres of extremists.
There were no terrorist then but the war on terror is turning every street in FATA into street of extremists. We are caught up in a web of snares spread by our enemy.
We need to re-evaluate our strategies?
Drone attacks on FATA was started 7 or 8 months back……..but taliban was active for years………with pakistan encouraging and nurturing them.
Now chickens are coming home to roost.
@@@@ THE SNAKE THEORY
Suppose you have kept,nurtured and fed a bunch of snakes at home . Those snakes often cross over to your neighbours house and bite them. Similarly many of them started biting many people in the locality.
What will your neighbours and others in the locality do????
Three things
1> Firstly they will politely request you to KILL THE SNAKES .
2> After that…they will seriously warn you TO KILL THE SNAKES.
3> After that, they will COME TO YOUR HOUSE AND KILL THE SNAKES THEMSELVES whether you like it or not??
POINT 3 is happening now.
Best way to stop the attacks is by ACTING AGAINST THE TERRORISTS.
But pakistan will always do it HALF HEARTEDLY……..simply because they wanna regain their STRATEGIC DEPTH in Afghanistan.
@@ Look what MR A KHOKER SAID:
“”"”"”"”"”"”"”"”"”"”"”"”"”‘There was no sign of any terrorism on our western borders. A myth of terror was floated and this bate was consumed by Al-Qaeda.”"”"”"”"”"”"”"”"”"”"”
“no sign of any terrorism”……were taliban NOT terrorists??
“a myth of terror”????……….bin laden hiding in Afghanistan “a myth of terror”??
@ To all my Paki friends
Read the following article. Comments are welcome.
http://desicritics.org/2009/01/25/024338.php
Dear Indian,
# 13
Credit goes to Pakspectator.com to make us available a forum where we are able to discuss and see n pin point the roots of our problems, which are causing and setting our societies to go on a down turn spiral.
Sooner we recognise and help each other to root them out; better it is…!
Sandeep Bansal is another good soul to come up with such good article like: Eliminating Indo-Pak Tensions, published by Desicritic.org
Regards
@incr ………….edible indian
hey this snake theory is good .i like it buddy………..but indian you are suppose to be our neighbour ………………….should i take your version as , its you who is killing snakes in fata and swat,searching snakes behind ,below in schools ,bridges, and places of your likes
Hi Khokar,
Obama has replaced Bush but the NATIONAL INTEREST OF USA REMAINS CONSTANT. Musharaff was clever enough to hide the real alqueada and throwing away some crumbs at USA for 10 Billion.Even today he is demandingMORE DOLLARS for the killing he has done. He says US has rewarded Afghanistan more!!!!!
Now i want to ask you one question if theJihadies who are realy interested in the welfare of Pakistani tribals as you are,
CAN”T THEY LEAVE FOR THEIR HOMELAND IN YEMEN,SAUDI ARABIA OR SOMALIA OR CHECHNYA?
If they have married into locals and have children, why cannot they be offerred some SURRENDER TERMS BY PAKISTAN GOVERNMENT so that a solution is found with honour for them?
Dear Dr Raza Haider,
# 11 Reference incredible Indian and snakes.
The man claims that he is incredible Indian yet he is far from the facts that India is often called the land of snakes and is steeped in tradition regarding snakes. Being a credible Indian, I do not know which snake he is referring to in his comments and why he is so allergic to snakes. In India snakes are worshipped as gods even today with many women pouring milk on snake pits (despite snakes’ aversion for milk). The cobra is seen on the neck of Shiva and Vishnu is depicted often as sleeping on a seven-headed snake or within the coils of a serpent. There are also several temples in India solely for cobras sometimes called Nagraj (King of Snakes) and it is believed that snakes are symbols of fertility. There is a Hindu festival called Nag Panchami each year on which day snakes are venerated and prayed to. But it looks that probably he is not from the Hindu creed of India.
In all the idolater societies the snake occupies a primary role. Pharaoh of ancient Egypt had the Nile cobra adorning the crown. It was worshipped as one of the gods and as in Indian rural areas even today was also used for sinister purposes: murder of an adversary and ritual suicide etc etc.
Any how Indo-Pak continent is infested with snakes of all types and we may find them pestering us from each nook and corner. When they go cruel and wild you need not to run to Iraq [legendry phrases] to look for some curative medicine. Only you need to restrict them to their pit traps and crush them or a snake charmer may be employed to humble them.
Snake is also used as a well known symbol in the Medical fields Snakes symbolize pharmacy and denoting of medicine also.
Dear All,
There are three main elements symbolizing the act of terror in the on going war against terrorism and supposedly they are running around along the western border of Pakistan with Afghanistan for the sake of their Jihadi movement.
As per Media these groups are namely:
• Al –Qaeda and its command members
• The Taliban fighting for their freedom in Afghanistan and occasionally using the remote and un accessible area in FATA as their sanctuaries, etc.
• The fake Taliban; Tehrik e Taliban Pakistan (TTP) raised by CIA+ RAW mainly in Swat, Bajur area with the aim to challenge the writ of Pak government and destabilize Pakistan by suicidal bomb blast and killings.
Primarily as per their declarations; all these groups are fighting the oppressive presence of US and her Allies in Afghanistan and want to make it sure that US onslaught found creeping toward their fortress of Islam– Pakistan is positively checked and effectively harnessed.
There is a litmus test of geniality of their declared above cause:
• Why should they indulge in any actions which render Pakistan a destabilized and a bankrupt country?
• The mayhem and anarchy spread by them has caused a colossal flight of capital away from Pakistan. All the investment which could have brought the prosperity, peace and plenty in Pakistan are found withdrawn adding misery to daily life of masses.
• Supposedly they operate in Afghanistan and allegedly their bases and sanctuaries in Pakistan are being targeted by drones attack: Have they carried out any such action which may result in stopping the drone attack? May these be the subversive attacks or raids on the Drone air strips along FATA area in Afghanistan or their any diplomatic moves that they made made for the needful?
The answer for all the above is BIG NO. And the BIG QUESTION arises: Are these stooges working for Pakistan or against it?
@Khokar
Thank you khokar ! now i know every thing about these Indians …………snakes. Regards
Dear A Khoker,
As usual, u are really good with sarcasm.
As per comment 18,you said:-
“”"”"”"”"”"”"”‘Are these stooges working for Pakistan or against it?”"”"”"”"”"”"””
They are working NEITHER for Pakistan NOR against it.
They are working on their ISLAMIST AGENDA.
They wanna establish a HARDCORE ISLAMIST RULE in Pakistan….that’s their ultimate objective.
Sadly ISI and Pak army is helping them by NOT acting against them.
@@ A COUNTER QUESTION
You said:-
“”"”"”"”"”The fake Taliban; Tehrik e Taliban Pakistan (TTP) raised by CIA+ RAW mainly in Swat, Bajur area with the aim to challenge the writ of Pak government and destabilize Pakistan by suicidal bomb blast and killings.”"”"”"”"”"”"”"”"”
1> What was ISI and Pak army doing when the militants were GAINING STRENGTH in Swat, Bajur???? Surely , Taliban’s HUGE influence in SWAT,BAJUR was NOT built in a few weeks.
2> Dont you guys think that it is simple INCREDIBLE that as per your opinion RAW+CIA were infiltrating TTP in swat,bajur and pakistani armed forces and ISI allowed it OR had no knowledge about it.????
Kindly please answer.
My answer is simple . its a typical case of “CHICKENS COMING HOME TO ROOST”
Pakistan created FRANKENSTEIN MONSTER CALLED “TALIBAN”………..and now simply suffering the consequences.