Why Pakistan's Old Jihadis Pose New Threat - at Home and in Afghanistan, The Christian Science Monitor, 6 December 2009
EXCERPT: "In recent years, Pakistan has aimed its antiterror offensives at the Taliban network operating in the remote northwestern tribal districts, a largely ethnic Pashtun movement in an area that has long resisted state rule. But another militant threat is rearing its head in Punjab, Pakistan's most populous province and its heartland; home to the country's capital, cultural hub, and military headquarters. Once-dormant Punjabi jihadists like Dilawar are beginning to link up with the Taliban, supplying manpower in battles in the northwest but also bringing the fight to Pakistan's center by carrying out attacks on their home turf. Some 5,000 former Punjabi fighters have returned to combat as part of what is being called the 'Punjabi Taliban,' according to Hassan Abbas, a fellow at the Asia Society in New York. More young men could join, spurred by radical madrasas, or religious schools, that dot the province, advocating jihad. Pakistan's government has shown reluctance to crack down on these militants, many of whom were trained by the state to fight proxy wars in Kashmir and Afghanistan. But militants are not showing the same restraint for their onetime backers, as evidenced by a slew of attacks in Pakistan this year."
Read the full story.
Related articles:
Pakistan bars foreign reports in South Punjab [blog], The Long War Journal, 6 December 2009
Punjabi Taliban threat growing, The Washington Times, 21 October 2009
Raid reveals Taliban's Punjab links, Al Jazeera, 13 October 2009
Pakistan army facing threat from Punjabi, al-Qaeda and Taliban militants, The Guardian, 12 October 2009
Taliban wages war on police in its new front in Pakistan, The Wall Street Journal, 28 May 2009
United militants threaten Pakistan’s populous heart , The New York Times, 13 April 2009
Related posts:
Pakistan spy agency office attacked, 8 December 2009
Lashkar-e-Taiba poised to strike again, 2 December 2009
Taliban taps Punjab heartland for recruits, 17 November 2009
