Current Projects
Security, border management, media, and refugees dominate first Pak-Afghan dialogue facilitated by CRSS/WPSO
An expanded commitment to peace and security in the region, the role of media in fostering this goal, border management, and refugees were the top items on the agenda of the first meeting of the second phase of Beyond Boundaries, a Track I.5/II dialogue series undertaken by the Center for Research and Security Studies (CRSS) in partnership with Afghan counterpart Women Peace and Security Organization (WPSO). The series brings together from both countries prominent journalists, civil society activists, former diplomats, parliamentarians, academicians, former members of law enforcement and scholars as part of the Pakistan-Afghanistan Joint Committee (PAJC) for Beyond Boundaries phase II. The Pakistani contingent comprised Dr. Shoaib Suddle, Maj. Gen. (retd) Ejaz Awan, Ambassador Mian Sanaullah, Muhammad Tahir, and MNA Shazia Marri, while the Afghan delegation comprised Sayed Ishaq Gailani, Mozammil Shinwari, Wazhma Frogh, Palwasha Hassan, Ketabullah Khpolwak Sapai, and Elay Ershad. The workshop was chaired by Dr. Rasul Baksh Rais. Speaking at the session, Elay Ershad, Member of the Oolasi Jirga (lower house of parliament) said every Pakistani and Afghan one is part of a puzzle which will be complete only if all of us work together. She said that members of media and the civil society should not resonate their respective government’s positions. We should come out of that mindset and propose our own independent thinking. Dr. Rasul Baksh Rais, eminent professor at LUMS, said that initiatives such as Beyond Boundaries are extremely important in a difficult geo-political environment and in view of the complicated bilateral relations. Governments usually lack vision, courage, and readiness for change and therefore it is the job of independent thinkers and think tanks to redirect the bilateral relationship. Syed Ishaq Gailani, a former MP and presidential candidate, bemoaned the latest visa restrictions such as no permission for entry into Cantonment areas as well...
Our Generals failed in Afghanistan
The United States military failed America in Afghanistan. It wasn’t a tactical failure. It was a failure of leadership. The ascent of David Petraeus and the Army’s rediscovery of counterinsurgency doctrine led many to believe that the military had dramatically adapted itself for the wars in Iraq and Afghanistan. Unfortunately the transformation was only skin deep. Petraeus was a myth, and the intellectual father of the Army only in the eyes of the national media. The institutional inertia of the military bureaucracy never caught up with the press releases. The result was a never-ending series of public pronouncements by senior leaders about the importance of counterinsurgency, accompanied by a continuation of Cold War-era personnel and rotation policies that explicitly short-changed the effort. Upon taking command in Afghanistan in 2009, General Stanley McChrystal made the rounds of his subordinate units and asked each of us, “What would you do differently if you had to stay until we won?” At the time I was in charge of operations for a brigade in the middle of tough fight in eastern Afghanistan. It was absolutely the right question, but in retrospect it was also a trick question. The answer was to get the right people into the fight, keep them there long enough to develop an understanding of the environment, and hold them accountable for progress, but that was not something the military was interested in doing. Instead, we stuck with a policy that rotated leaders through the country like tourists. Taking the lessons of unit cohesion from Vietnam, the military has followed a policy in Afghanistan where entire units rotate in and out of country every seven, nine, or 12 months. This model, more than the policy of individual rotation in Vietnam, ensures both tactical proficiency and unit cohesion at the soldier level. But it also is completely ill-suited for a counterinsurgency campaign. It makes sense to limit the time soldiers spend conducting tactical...
GHQ Attack Planner Killed In Tank IBO
One of the planners of a brazen terrorist assault on the military headquarters was killed in an intelligence-based operation in a southern district of Khyber-Pakhtunkhwa on Wednesday. Ten terrorists, donning military fatigues, attacked the General Headquarters in Rawalpindi on Oct 10, 2009. An hour-long siege ensued that left over a dozen people, including nine soldiers, dead. A Peshawar-based senior security official confirmed to The Express Tribune that Akbar Ali, aka Badi, was killed in an IBO in Gomal area on the fringes of Tank district and South Waziristan Agency. The area, also called Gomal Darra, stretches to Afghanistan. “Security forces surrounded a compound where Akbar Ali was present along with other militants. They were asked to surrender, but instead of turning themselves in they opened fire on security forces,” the security official said. “In the ensuing gunfight, Akbar Ali was killed.” Akbar Ali was one of the top commanders of the Shura-e-Mujahideen Waziristan and had expertise in training suicide bombers, security officials said. He was also involved in several attacks on security forces and installations. Akbar Ali was part of the terrorist team that had mounted the GHQ attack. He was a close aide of Qari Hussain, the main trainers of suicide bombers in the country. Security officials believe he was also involved in kidnapping engineers from Gomal Zam dam, killing of peace committee elders in Tank as well several other sectarian attacks in the country. This article originally appeared in The Express Tribune 20, 2016. Original link. Disclaimer: Views expressed in the article are not necessarily supported by CRSS.
Goa Declaration Furthers Case for Our NSG Membership, Says India
BRICS exposed the limitations of India's diplomacy of outrage+ in dealing with the issue of cross-border terrorism, but the government did manage to generate what it sees as a favourable response to India's NSG membership bid Top government sources said it was at India's insistence that the declaration included a paragraph saying nuclear energy was going to play an important role in allowing some BRICS nations to meet their Paris climate change agreement+commitments. "We recognise that nuclear energy will play a significant role for some of the BRICS countries in meeting their 2015 Paris Climate Change Agreement commitments and for reducing global greenhouse gas emissions in the long term," said the declaration. "In this regard, we underline the importance of predictability in accessing technology and finance for expansion of civil nuclear energy capacity which would contribute to the sustainable development of BRICS countries," it added. This, a top government official said, was "exactly the language used by India for entry into the NSG". While the Goa Declaration does not in any way dilute China's position that India can't join NSG as a non-NPT signatory, it does underscore the significance of India's bid before it comes up for reconsideration in a possible NSG meeting next month, said the official. India finally ratified the Paris agreement on Gandhi Jayanti. In June though, after its membership campaign came unstuck at the NSG meeting in Seoul mainly because of opposition from China+ , India had threatened to delay the ratification. "An early positive decision by the NSG would have allowed us to move forward on the Paris agreement," it had said. India is the only BRICS country which is not a member of the 48-nation group. A handful of countries led by China, in what India sees as a delaying tactic, have sought a criteria-based approach in considering membership applications. India instead wants a merit-based approach in considering such applications....
‘Hekmatyar won’t enter Kabul until sanctions lifted’
A senior Hizb-i-Islami Afghanistan (HIA) member on Wednesday said HIA leader Gulbuddin Hekmatyar would not enter Kabul unless all sanctions against his group were removed. Jumma Khan Hamdard, a senior HIA member and former Paktia governor, was addressing a gathering in Gardez, the provincial capital, held in support of the peace process. Besides other HIA members, Habib Rahman Hekmatyar, son of Gulbuddin Hekmatyar, also participated in the meeting. Hamdard said only the first phase of the peace agreement between the Afghan government and the HIA had been implemented and the remaining phases should also be implemented. However, he did not explain the phases, but said the government should follow the agreement and give it a practical shape. The negotiations between the government and the HIA succeeded because they were intra-Afghan, and because no foreigner had participated in the talks, he said. Some steps still needed to be taken for a nationwide stability and talking to Taliban was one of the most important issues the government should pay attention to, he said. Fortunately, he said, the Taliban had recently showed wilingness for negotiations. Differences in the leadership of the government, poor management, private militias and natural resources smuggling were main obstacles to the peace process, Hamdard said. Habib Rahman Hekmatyar said independence of the Afghan government and non-interference of foreigners in Afghanistan had been their only goal during the past 15 years. He said foreigners continued to choose Afghan authorities and the administrative corruption was mostly created by foreigners. The HIA since its foundation wanted an elections-based government system, he said. He believed foreigners sponsored the election processes and elected individuals of their choice. Paktia high peace council head, Mulavi Khaliqdad, called the peace agreement between the Afghan government and the HIA as important and said the agreement would help stabilize...
OIC Fms Condemn Indian Atrocities in IHK
Council of Foreign Ministers of OIC adopts strongly worded resolution on the situation in IoK, condemns India in strongest possible terms for their atrocities on Kashmiris in IoK. OIC Foreign Ministers met in Tashkent on 18-19 October for the43rd Session and adopted a very strong resolution on the grave human rights situation in Indian Occupied Kashmir. While upholding Kashmiris' right to self-determination in accordance with the relevant UN Security Council Resolutions, they reaffirmed OIC countries' unwavering support to the just cause of Kashmiri people, expressed deep concern and condemned in strongest possible terms the unabated killing of defenceless Kashmiris in IoK. The Foreign Ministers noted demonstrations by unarmed Kashmiris, despite curfew, in the wake of Burhan Wani's extrajudicial killing as referendum against India. The Foreign Ministers condemned India for illegal detention of Kashmiris, incarceration of Hurriyat Leaders in torturous conditions, and brutal killings of Kashmiris including children. They also condemned the Handwara episode of forced detention of a minor girl and sexual assault on her by Indian police. The Foreign Ministers once again rejected Indian attempts to equate the indigenous freedom movement of Kashmiris in IoK with terrorism. They paid rich tribute to the Kashmiris for the heroic struggle for their inalienable right to self-determination. They also expressed deep concern at Indian attempts to bring demographic changes in IoK by establishing colonies, forced conversions, and permanent settlement of non-Kashmiris in IoK. They rejected the sham elections under duress as substitute of exercise of the right of self-determination of the people of Jammu & Kashmir. The OIC Foreign Ministers denounced India's refusal to allow OIC Fact-finding Mission to IoK and called for a free and impartial inquiry into the 6,000 unmarked mass graves in IoK discovered in 2009, and bring the perpetrators of the genocide to justice.-PR...
Custodian of The Two Holy Mosques Receives Executive President Of Afghanistan
Custodian of the Two Holy Mosques King Salman bin Abdulaziz received the Executive President of Islamic Republic of Afghanistan Abdullah Abdullah and his accompanying delegation, at al-Yamama Palace in Riyadh. King Salman and President Abdullah reviewed means to enhance bilateral relations and cooperation between the two countries. They also discussed the latest developments at regional and international arenas. At the outset of the reception, the Custodian of the Two Holy Mosques welcomed the Executive President of the Islamic Republic of Afghanistan and the accompanying delegation in the Kingdom, while President Abdullah expressed his happiness to visit the Kingdom and meet with the Custodian of the Two Holy Mosques. The audience and talks were attended by Prince Faisal bin Bandar bin Abdulaziz, Governor of Riyadh region; Prince Mansour bin Miteb bin Abdulaziz, Minister of State, Cabinet’s Member and Advisor to the Custodian of the Two Holy Mosques; Prince Miteb bin Abdullah bin Abdulaziz, Minister of National Guard; Crown Prince Mohammed bin Naif bin Abdulaziz, Deputy Premier and Minister of Interior; Minister of State and Cabinet’s Member Musaed bin Mohammed Al-Aiban; Minister of Finance Ibrahim bin Abdulaziz Al-Assaf; Minister of State, Cabinet’s Member and Acting Minister of Culture and Information Essam bin Saad bin Said; Minister of State for Foreign Affairs Nizar Madani and Saudi Ambassador to the Islamic Republic of Afghanistan Misfer bin Abdurrahman Al-Ghasib. From the Afghan side, the talks were attended by a number of Ministers and officials accompanying the Executive President. Saudi Arabia has called on the Taliban to show their intentions for peace in Afghanistan and to stop terrorist activities. Salman bin Abdulaziz Al Saud King of Saudi Arabia, during the meeting with Abdullah Abdullah the National Unity Government's Chief Executive, stated that Saudi Arabia will support and back Afghanistan to maintain peace. Jawed Faisal the CEO's deputy...
CPEC Snags On Solar
One of the more exciting of the CPEC power projects to be undertaken on priority in Pakistan was the giant solar park to be built in Bahawalpur. It was part of the Quaid-i-Azam Solar Park and was part of what they call the ‘early harvest’ projects, meaning the first to come online. The first MoU for the project was signed in August 2013 between the governments of China and Punjab. The provincial government owned the project, and in the first solar power plant that was inaugurated under it, the provincial government was also a joint venture partner with a Chinese contractor. Later in July 2014, another MoU was signed between the government of Punjab and private Chinese developer that expressed an interest in setting up a 900MW solar plant in the same park. This MoU was signed in the presence of the prime minister in Beijing. And then the problems began. Their first application for a generation licence was rejected by Nepra. Things moved fast initially, due to interest in the project at the top. The Project Commitment Agreement was signed a week later, again witnessed by the prime minister and both sides agreed to a tariff of Rs14 per unit outside of taxes, along with the timeline. In August it was placed on the early harvest list and prequalification documents were submitted, and a letter of interest from the Punjab Power Development Board was issued in September. On Jan 22, 2015, the power regulator and tariff setting body Nepra announced a revised upfront tariff for solar projects at Rs14 per unit for the first 10 years of operation, and this tariff was notified in the official gazette on July 1, 2015, with the stipulation that this offer would be valid for a period of six months, until December 2015. The project sponsors applied for a generation licence under this tariff regime. Meanwhile, land allotment had already been done in April, for the first batch of 300MW worth of solar power, and in May, the second batch of 600MW also received its allotment. In...
Afghan Troops Causing More Civilian Casualties, U.N. Says
Afghan civilians are paying the price for increased fighting in populated areas around the country, the United Nations reported on Wednesday, with government troops responsible for a growing share of civilian casualties. At least 2,562 civilians died and another 5,835 were wounded in the conflict in Afghanistan in the first nine months of this year, U.N. officials said. A similar number of civilian casualties occurred in the same period in 2015, indicating rates may be levelling off at near-record levels after steadily increasing since the U.N. began monitoring them in 2009. Ground fighting between pro-government forces and Islamic militants caused nearly 40 percent of all the casualties. Children have been particularly hard hit by the fighting, with 639 young people killed and 1,822 wounded, for an increase of 15 percent over last year. The Taliban and a handful of smaller groups have been fighting to topple the Western-backed government, 15 years after the Taliban lost power in a U.S.-led military operation. "Increased fighting in densely populated areas makes it imperative for parties to take immediate steps to ensure all feasible precautions are being taken to spare civilians from harm," Tadamichi Yamamoto, the U.N.'s Special Representative for Afghanistan, said in a statement. Casualties caused by pro-government forces rose 42 percent compared to last year, with 623 deaths and 1,274 injured, U.N. investigators reported. That includes a spike of 72 percent in casualties from air strikes by the Afghan air force and its international allies. At least 133 people were killed and 159 were injured in air strikes, with two-thirds of those casualties attributed to the Afghan air force, the U.N. said. The Taliban and other militant groups still accounted for more than 60 percent of the overall casualties, with 1,569 civilian deaths and 3,574 injured, the report showed. The U.N. condemned anti-government attacks that have directly targeted civilians, including a...
With An Active Cell in Kabul, ISKP Tries To Bring Sectarianism To The Afghan War
With its publically claimed attack on Afghan Shia mourners in Kabul on the eve of Ashura, the Islamic State Khorasan Province (ISKP) was clearly attempting to add a toxic sectarianism to the Afghan conflict. The attack, which killed 19 people, followed two other ISKP attacks, on a political demonstration by (largely Shia) Hazaras in July in which 80 people were killed and on a security convoy of the Canadian embassy that killed 14 Nepalese guards, in June. In the wake of these attacks, AAN’s Borhan Osman assesses both ISKP’s strength and operational capacity in Kabul and its desire to ferment sectarianism. On the evening of 11 October 2016, at least two attackers wearing police uniforms and equipped with grenades and machine guns opened fire on Ashura mourners in Kabul’s Kart-e Sakhi shrine, the most popular gathering place in Kabul for mourners marking Muharram, the martyrdom of Imam Hussein. The second attacker, who apparently fled the shrine after joining the first attacker in shooting, fought the security forces in a nearby (Sunni) mosque in Kart-e Chahar. There were no casualties to civilians here as the mosque was not being used, at the time. Witnesses said the attackers in Karta-e Sakhi “indiscriminately shot everyone they faced. They wouldn’t even spare women and children.” The interior ministry said the second attacker was killed in the firefight early in the morning of 12 October 2016. Initial reports had suggested there were several attackers who entered the crowd in Karta-e Sakhi, and that they were holding hostage some of the mourners, but those accounts were never confirmed with any solid detail. The ministry put the number of the dead at 16 and the wounded at 54. They included children and women. UNAMA, condemning the attack, said 19 people had been killed and dozens wounded. Also on 12 October, the actual day of Ashura, an explosion, again targeting Shia mourners in the usually relatively safe province of Balkh, killed 14 people and wounded...
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I am also a member of National Assembly’s Standing Committee on Information and Broadcasting. Recently, we held a meeting with the Director General of Radio Pakistan and we told them to initiate such local programs (like Constituency Hour) in regional languages to educate and inform people. Even Indian Radio can be heard in FATA which is being used for propaganda purposes and must be closed. Therefore, we should launch some standard and quality programs like CRSS that will change the taste of the listeners.