Author: Wilson John
Publication: The Pioneer
Date: August 27, 2002
Till the other day, US policy-makers
were sounding very coy about Pakistan and its terror siblings. One of them
called Pakistan a stalwart ally. Another hugged and patted General Pervez
Musharraf on his back for his support in the war against terrorism-all
within days of a dastardly attack on a church, a missionary school, a civilian
bus and the US Consulate. Defence Secretary Donald Rumsfeld refused to
believe that his ally was a terrorist harbourer.
Secretary of State Colin Powell
brushed aside irrefutable evidence gathered and presented by India about
his friend's continued assistance to terrorist elements, including America's
Most Wanted, Osama bin Laden. So it is a bit surprising and a whole lot
unnerving to hear the same Mr Rumsfeld dub, seemingly without any provocation,
the Jaish-e-Mohammad as one of the most dangerous terrorist organisations
in the world.
We don't have any quarrels on this
point. We have been telling the world about Jaish the day General Musharraf
engineered the Kandahar hijacking to free Maulana Masood Azhar and Omar
Saeed Sheikh. At least the Americans should not have had any doubts about
the General's double game after the US Special Forces found clear documentary
proof in a safe house vacated by the fleeing Al Qaeda. Though nothing much
is known about the Maulana, a highly inappropriate sobriquet for a terror
instigator, the world today has no doubts about his deputy Omar Sheikh,
awaiting the death penalty for brutally killing the American journalist,
Daniel Pearl, early this year.
It will be a mistake to label Omar
Sheikh merely a killer. He is a terror mastermind. He has meticulously
planned every major terrorist incident in India, including the December
13 attack on Parliament. There is proof of his role in transferring money
to Mohammad Atta, prime accused in the WTC attack. He is also a prodigy
of the Inter-Services Intelligence. The ISI has been utilising his organisational
and planning skills to operate its Kashmir operations. Omar Sheikh is a
key aide of the Maulana and a link between Jaish and the military-intelligence
establishment in Islamabad.
Today, Jaish is a banned organisation
and the Maulana is supposed to be incarcerated in some jail in Pakistan.
The truth is the latter is enjoying state hospitality in some anonymous
but well-appointed state guest house from where he has been quietly and
freely reorganising his terror network. The Maulana has clout. Even the
General has been hard-pressed to put a leash on him. A few days after the
hijack drama at Kandahar, the Maulana organised a press conference at the
Karachi Press Club and openly announced his jihad against the US, Israel
and India. Thereafter, he opened offices across the country, one not very
far from the private residence of the General in Karachi.
His cronies sat at public squares
seeking contributions for jihad. Young men were recruited and sent to training
camps set along the Pakistani-Afghan border by the ISI to train Taliban
fighters. The Maulana flourished under the benign protection of the General
who, under US pressure, persuaded him to sacrifice his deputy, Sheikh,
for the larger cause of jihad. The quid pro quo is clear. For letting Omar
Sheikh go, the the Maulana is promised a more decisive role in a new and
deadlier terrorist network being established in Pakistan. Perhaps Mr Rumsfeld
has an inkling of Jaish emerging as another front for the Al Qaeda.