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Pakistan Conflict Tracker Report – January – April 2013

The first four months of the year 2013, witnessed unprecedented surge in violence across Pakistan. Accompanied by an unusual escalation in attacks on political parties– offices and their candidates in the month of April, the ethno-political violence in Karachi, religio-political terrorism in the northwestern Federally Administered Tribal Areas (FATA) and Khyber Pakhtunkhwa (KP), and nationalist-separatist violence in Balochistan, continued to surge. The deadly wave of target killing in Sindh took over 701 lives. The data that the Centre for Research and Security Studies (CRSS) collected throughopen sources, suggests that some 2674 people lost their lives in 1108 incidents of violence across the country (for details see data sheet). The violent clashes also left 2386 people injured from January to April 2013. A closer look into the casualty figures underlines that the civilians remained the major target of violent actors, with the civilians accounting for about 1542 deaths. Moreover, the data suggests that the militants fighting against the state emerged as the second major target i.e. 856 casualties. Clashes with militants, target-killings or ambushes of military convoys also left 276 security forces– personnel dead, mostly recorded in insurgency infested areas of FATA, Karachi and Balochistan. Furthermore, during the four months under review, as many as 12 CIA operated drone strike were reported in different areas of North Waziristan Agency (FATA), leaving about 71 suspected militants dead. Between March 2012 and February 2013, 51 drone attacks had killed over 351 suspected militants. Meanwhile, continuing their sabotage campaign against state infrastructure, militants blew up 39 state run and private schools in different parts of FATA, Balochistan and KP during the course of four months. As a whole target killing topped as the major cause of deaths. Pie chart II above shows that 45 percent of all the violent incidents were of target killing in nature. Karachi...

Pakistan’s Blasphemy Laws

An Overview Religion has been one of the most sensitive issues for the communities living in the Indian sub-continent. During the British colonial rule, too, India experienced several religious riots which necessitated the enactment of ¿Blasphemy Laws.– It was in fact the absence of an appropriate law to handle blasphemy offenses committed in the written format that led the British India Government to introduce the Blasphemy Law 295-A in 1927.Following the partition of the sub-continent into India and Pakistan in 1947, the latter inherited and retained these laws. The lethal blend of politics and religious extremism was also evident in most of the communal riots and sacrilegious acts (directed at one or the other religion or its followers) that took place before and after the creation of Pakistan. The cause was a few sacrilegious offences committed by one religious community that offended the other community ´ triggering a chain of events that resulted in targeted murders or communal riots. Despite the presence of a legal framework, violence rooted in or flowing from faith continued unabated in Pakistan, whereby conservative religio-political parties faced no systemic hurdle in perpetuating hate-speech and sowing seeds of communal and sectarian hatred. In 1974, the then government led by Zulfiqar Ali Bhutto caved in to pressures by religio-political and declared the minority Ahmadis sect as non-Muslim. Real religiousization of state and its legal framework, however, began under former military dictator General Zia-ul-Haq who enforced controversial regulations he called 'Islamic.' This laid foundations for religious radicalization within the society, precipitated by the US-led anti-Soviet jihad in Afghanistan in the 1980s. Gen Zia also added radical Ahmadi-specific clauses into the blasphemy laws which have often been exploited by religious extremists or even individuals to settle personal feuds, and thus condemning the accused to years of imprisonment and tedious...

Pakistan's Blasphemy Laws

An Overview Religion has been one of the most sensitive issues for the communities living in the Indian sub-continent. During the British colonial rule, too, India experienced several religious riots which necessitated the enactment of ¿Blasphemy Laws.– It was in fact the absence of an appropriate law to handle blasphemy offenses committed in the written format that led the British India Government to introduce the Blasphemy Law 295-A in 1927.Following the partition of the sub-continent into India and Pakistan in 1947, the latter inherited and retained these laws. The lethal blend of politics and religious extremism was also evident in most of the communal riots and sacrilegious acts (directed at one or the other religion or its followers) that took place before and after the creation of Pakistan. The cause was a few sacrilegious offences committed by one religious community that offended the other community ´ triggering a chain of events that resulted in targeted murders or communal riots. Despite the presence of a legal framework, violence rooted in or flowing from faith continued unabated in Pakistan, whereby conservative religio-political parties faced no systemic hurdle in perpetuating hate-speech and sowing seeds of communal and sectarian hatred. In 1974, the then government led by Zulfiqar Ali Bhutto caved in to pressures by religio-political and declared the minority Ahmadis sect as non-Muslim. Real religiousization of state and its legal framework, however, began under former military dictator General Zia-ul-Haq who enforced controversial regulations he called 'Islamic.' This laid foundations for religious radicalization within the society, precipitated by the US-led anti-Soviet jihad in Afghanistan in the 1980s. Gen Zia also added radical Ahmadi-specific clauses into the blasphemy laws which have often been exploited by religious extremists or even individuals to settle personal feuds, and thus condemning the accused to years of imprisonment and tedious...

Weekly Data Sheet – April 05-11, 2013

Pakistan Conflict Tracker Weekly Report – April 05-11, 2013

The overall wave of violence further increased substantially across Pakistan during the current week. Meanwhile, the spate of ethno-political violence in the economic hub, Karachi, significantly decreased during the week, wherein 17 persons (23 in the last week) were perished. Also, the wave of bomb blasts across the country, spree of target killings and the recovery of mutilated dead bodies-continued to mount death toll during the week. The data collected through10 newspapers that CRSS uses as the source, indicates that as many as 205 persons lost their lives as a result of 55 violent incidents across the country during the reported week (for detailssee data sheet).The violent incidents also left 45 people injured. In contrary to the preceding week, militants were the major target of the ongoing spate of violence across Pakistan during the current week, wherein militants accounted foralmost 68 percent of the total death toll during the course of week. Numerically, 143 militants were killed and five others injured in violent clashes of various kinds across the country. This week the number of fatalities ofsecurity forces and civilians remained the same that is 31. Furthermore, no CIA operated drone strike was carried out during the week. Meanwhile eight sabotage campaigns were carried out by the militants to demolish state infrastructure and undermine stability. Militants blew up railway track and two gas pipelines in Balochistan and Government College and four shops in KP. In a sectarian attack a cleric was killed in KP this week. Moreover, the loss of lives due to target killings decreased by 13 percent, (11 percent of the total dead against last week 24 percent) during the current week. Overall, 35 percent of the total violent attacks wereoftarget killingin nature(seethe pie chart below). Furthermore, data underlines that of the total 19 incidents of target killings; 42 percent took place in Karachi alone, decimating 9 persons (41 percent of the total...

Pakistan Conflict Tracker Monthly Report – March 2013

March witnessed considerable decline in violence across Pakistan. Ethno-political violence in Karachi, religio-terrorism in Federally Administered Tribal Areas (FATA) and Khyber Pakhtunkhwa (KP), and nationalist-separatist violence in Balochistan, meanwhile continued unabated. The deadly wave of target killing in Karachi, started in the last week of March 2012, continue to mount death toll during March. The deadly wave left almost 104 persons dead (due to target killing) during the current month. In total 226 persons perished in Karachi during March in different circumstances. The data collected throughten newspapers that CRSS uses as the source, suggests that some 691 people lost their lives in 330 incidents of violence across the country (for details see data sheet). The violent clashes also left 615 people injured in March. A concise look into the casualty figures underlines that the civilians remained the major target of violent actors, with the civilians accounting major loss of lives as a result of various acts of violence and terror in Pakistan. As noted in pie chart I below, civilians were 64 percent of the total dead in March. The share of the civilian deaths is nearly the same as in the last month, wherein 64 percent of the dead were innocent civilians. As a whole 366 civilians were killed in different circumstances during the month. Moreover, the data suggests that the militants fighting against the state remained the second major target i.e. 28 percent (252) of the total dead. Clashes also left 73 security forces– personnel (eight percent of total deaths) dead and these were mostly recorded in insurgency infested areas of FATA, Karachi and Balochistan. Furthermore, during March, one CIA operated drone strike was reported in different areas of North Waziristan Agency (FATA), leaving two suspected militants dead. Between March 2012 and March 2013, 52 drone attacks have killed almost 353 suspected militants. Meanwhile, continuing their sabotage campaign...

Weekly Data Sheet – March 29 – April 04, 2013

Pakistan Conflict Tracker Weekly Report – March 29 – April 04, 2013

The deadly wave of violence further deescalated across Pakistan during the current week. Meanwhile, the spate of ethno-political violence in the economic hub, Karachi, significantly decreased during the week, wherein 23 persons (29 in the last week) were perished. Also, the wave of bomb blasts across the country, spree of target killings and the recovery of mutilated dead bodies-continued to mount death toll during the week. The data collected through10 newspapers that CRSS uses as the source, indicates that as many as 71 persons lost their lives as a result of 57 violent incidents across the country during the reported week (for detailssee data sheet).The violent incidents also left 90 people injured. In contrary to the preceding weeks, militants were the major target of the ongoing spate of violence across Pakistan during the current week, wherein civilians accounted foralmost 61 percent of the total death toll during the course of week. Numerically, 37 civilians were killed and 41 others injured in violent clashes of various kinds across the country. The week the number of fatalities ofsecurity forces and militants remained the same that is 17. Furthermore, no CIA operated drone strike was carried out during the week. Meanwhile the16 sabotage campaigns were carried out by the militants to demolish state infrastructure and undermine stability. Militants blew up three power pylons five NATO container and a gas pipeline in Balochistan and two government schools, shop, NGO office, transformer, two cellular towers and a grid station in KP. Surprisingly enough no sectarian attack was reported this week. Moreover, the loss of lives due to target killings decreased by 13 percent, (24 percent of the total dead against last week 37 percent) during the current week. Overall, 35 percent of the total violent attacks wereoftarget killingin nature(seethe pie chart below). Furthermore, data underlines that of the total 20 incidents of target killings; 55 percent took place in...

For better or worse

The first three months of 2013 saw an unusual surge in violence across Pakistan. There have been an average 70 incidents of terrorism, violence and unrest every week since January. The average weekly death toll has been round 175 - most of the violence occurring in Karachi, Balochistan, Khyber Pakhtunkhwa and FATA. Various militant groups continue their terror campaigns relentlessly, and there are threats some of them might try to disrupt the coming elections. Intelligence agencies have told the Election Commission of Pakistan that banned outfits such as Jundullah, the amorphous Lashkar-e-Jhangvi (LeJ), and the Waziristan-based Tehrik-e-Taliban Pakistan (TTP) are planning large-scale terrorist attacks in Balochistan, with Nushki and Quetta as their particular targets. High-profile government buildings and security installations are among potential targets. The Balochistan Republican Army also plans to use improvised explosive devices against the government and the Frontier Corps in Dera Bugti, Naseerabad and Jaffarabad, they said. Intelligence officials also believe Usman Saifullah Kurd, a 'commander' of the Balochistan faction of the LeJ, is preparing for sabotage acts in Islamabad and Rawalpindi. In a number of public statements, the TTP has made its intentions of election day terrorism clear. In general, the group says elections and democracy are un-Islamic and wants people to stay away from the process. But it has also identified individuals and political parties it plans to target. In Karachi, the Taliban want to target leaders and members of the MQM, the ANP and the PPP. In the tribal areas, their threat is general. The group set off alarm bells when on the eve of General (r) Pervez Musharraf's return to Pakistan, it threatened to send suicide bombers and snipers to assassinate him. In a video message, Adnan Rasheed, who took part in a previous attempt to assassinate Musharraf, warned: "The mujahideen of Islam have prepared a special squad to send Musharraf...