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The magic of an Afghan SIM in Kurram

By Ifthikar Firdous

July 08, 2010

Although you are in Pakistani territory, only a SIM from Afghanistan can solve your problem.

KHURRAM AGENCY: As a glance at one's cell-phone in Kurram Agency shows 'no signals', you rush to the landline and the 'zero' on the dial gives a tone 'engaged'. After dialling several times you discover that it just won't dial out.

When suddenly the cell-phone of the person close to you beeps, you look in amazement and inquire "how come my cell-phone does not function here? Are you using a satellite phone?" The query sounds obnoxious because a satellite phone costs a fortune.

The man chortles, saying "although you are in Pakistani territory, only a SIM from Afghanistan can solve your problem". One does not have to be a genius to decipher the sarcasm behind the statement.

Azmat Alizai, a local journalist from Parachinar pointing towards the boundary of Afghanistan, visible behind the Safed Koh Mountain, says "there is only one tower for 'Mobile' service, on top of that mountain. The telephone exchange does not give access to non-local calls and cell-phones are just a dream of the past after the military operation".

Communication of the region mirrors the life of the local people. After having been cut off from Pakistan for almost three years the trade and commerce in the area has been severely affected. "After the Shia-Sunni clashes the only road that connects Kurram with the rest of the country was closed, the people had to travel via Afghanistan to reach their own country," says a security official during a briefing.

"It took a number of jirgas between both the parties to settle the dispute and now we can escort a convoy once a week to carry rations and other supplies into the area," he elaborates.

The Traders Union of Upper Kurram is anxious to meet journalists after the briefing who can tell their woes to the world. Syed Nijaat Hussain, a member of the union, says, "The road was blocked for three years almost. We had to travel through Miranshah-Khost-Gardez and back to Parachinar to bring back food supplies. A wheat flour bag cost Rs11,000 while that of sugar, Rs4,000." He praises the security forces for allowing a convoy once a week but adds that he has to pay a heavy amount as 'mahsoolat' meaning taxes to the political administration, sometimes amounting to upwards of Rs10,000 per truck.

Officials recall that a security alarm rang in the agency for the first time during the Afghan war of the 80s. "A large number of Afghan refugees were settled here in camps," says an officer. In the post-9/11 era when the bombardment in Tora Bora – a famous chapter in the siege of Afghanistan – took place, a number of al Qaeda and Taliban militants took refuge in the area. Some were apprehended, some escaped but the situation could not be normalised completely since.

The situation of Kurram Agency is emblematic of how the fire from Afghanistan engulfed Pakistan's soil and how the Taliban re-emerged as the Tehreek-i-Taliban Pakistan.

The people of the area cannot be termed contented, but nevertheless are coping with the situation. Shaukat Ali, a resident of Kurram, when asked whether he could travel freely, replied, rhetorically, "if the road was so safe to travel why would you journalists be travelling by helicopter?"

Published in The Express Tribune, July 8^th, 2010.

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Wednesday, July 7, 2010

80 percent area in Kurram Agency cleared from militants-Col Touseef

80 percent area in Kurram Agency cleared from militants-Col Touseef
PARACHINAR, July 6 (APP): Commander Incharge Kurram Militia, Col Touseef Akhtar Tuesday claimed that 80 percent of Kurram Agency has been purged from militants while remaining area would also be cleared from the miscreants very soon. He said this while talking with a group of newsmen air flown by FC to Parachinar, headquarters of Kurram Agency. Briefing the newsmen about the military operation in the area, Col Touseef said Kurram Agency was divided into three zones and the brave officials of para military force forced the militants to escape from the area. He said the militants had made the life of Kurram dwellers very miserable and innocent people were killed without any reason. The militants, he continued, had closed Tall-Parachinar road as a result of which supply of essential items including food and medicine to the agency was very nominal. In few areas, he added, fifty kg bag of wheat flour was sold at a rate of Rs. 7000 to Rs. 8000 because of the acute scarcity of the commodity. Similarly, he added, due to shortage of wheat several people died because they were not able to get proper treatment. The Kurram Militia, he continued, has made a resolve of combating with militants and purging the area from them. Due to firm resolve of the armed forces, the agency was not only cleared from miscreants, but the 89 kilometer Tall-Parachinar road were reopened after a gap of three years, he added. Col Touseef informed newsmen that force have also took control of Pak-Afghan border area. The sectarian strife in the agency was also resolved to a greater extend by holding Peace Jirga, he added. He said in Upper Kurram, the Doogar area was cleared from militants within a fortnight. The area was in control of militants from the last two years. In Doogar, he continued, the militants had established training camps and were holding drugs business. The Doogar operation was completed on December 12, 2009 in which 18 officials embraced martyrdom and 47 were injured. While 96 militants were killed. He informed that a wanted Taliban leader, Mullah Toofan also belonged to this area who was also killed in the operation. He said the militants had spread terror in the region and made the life of people miserable by carrying out kidnapping and killing. However, the brave action taken by armed forces has broke their back and successfully cleared the area from miscreants. APP/ Hamid

Category: NATIONAL

Date:2010-07-06

Source: http://www.app.com.pk/en_/index.php?option=com_content&task=blogcategory&id=14&Itemid=38

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source:http://www.dawn.com/wps/wcm/connect/dawn-content-library/dawn/news/pakistan/44-eighty-per-cent-of-kurram-cleared-of-militants-says-army-fa-01

Eighty per cent of Kurram cleared of militants: army(dawn news)

Eighty per cent of Kurram cleared of militants: army

Tuesday, 06 Jul, 2010

Different militant hideouts were also wiped out during the operation. – File Photo

PESHAWAR: Eighty per cent of the Kurram tribal region has been cleared of militants and the military operation in the area is still underway, Commandant Col. Tauseef Akhtar said on Tuesday.

Briefing local and international press at Parachinar, Col. Akhtar said that the convoy traffic had been restored on the Parachinar road however local traffic will only be opened once conditions normalise.

Eighteen security personnel have died whereas more than 200 militants have been killed since the military operation started in September 2009, Col. Akhtar said.

Different militant hideouts were also wiped out during the operation.

During the briefing, local residents requested the security personnel to ensure implementation of measures agreed upon by tribal elders in Murree in May 2008. –

DawnNews

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Kurram Agency almost cleared of terrorists’(sama)

'Kurram Agency almost cleared of terrorists'

Upadated on: 06 Jul 10

Staff Report

KURRAM AGENCY: Eighty percent of Kurram Agency has been cleared of terrorists after the operation and Tal-Para Chinar road has been opened for traffic, said Commandant Kurram Militia Colonel Tausif while briefing the media Tuesday.

He said that 18 security officials were martyred in the operation and 46 others were injured.

Citizens were facing a lot of problems due to closing of Tal-Para Chinar Road for a long time. It has been opened now and the passengers are being given all facilities.

He further said that there are certain hideouts of the terrorists still present in Kurram Agency and action is being taken to alleviate them too.

Also, illegal immigration on the Pak-Afghan border has been completely stopped. SAMAA

source: http://www.samaa.tv/News22328-Kurram_Agency_almost_cleared_of_terrorists.aspx

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Normalcy returning to scenic Kurram Agency

By Iftikhar Firdous

July 07, 2010

Paramilitary soldiers patrol in a cave at a complex dug into rocky mountains which was used by Taliban militants in Kurram Agency. PHOTO:...

KHURRAM AGENCY: Fumes of narcotics seized by paramilitary forces in the Kurram tribal region could lull a man's senses from quite a distance. Sacks full of hashish worth Rs30 million were only a small part of the multi-billion dollar narco- business carried out by the militants to fund their heinous agenda.

Drugs, weapons and suicide jackets were displayed on white flashy table cloths as Colonel Tauseef Akhtar of the paramilitary Frontier Corps claimed that "Upper Kurram Agency has been cleared of miscreants while the Thall-Parachinar-Sadda highway has been reopened for traffic after a span of more than two and a half years."

Kurram Agency has been ravaged by sectarian violence for years but another force emerged, cashing in on the Shia-Sunni schism — the Taliban aided by al Qaeda.

"Hakimullah Mehsud's presence was quite frequent," Colonel Akhtar told a select group of journalists while travelling towards the Doggar area of Central Kurram, which he said "might still be harbouring militants."

The terrain is difficult. The infamous Tora Bora mountains can be seen silhouetted against the mountains. "Doggar is situated on the confluence of borders of Orakzai and North Waziristan agencies. Peace in Kurram is directly linked with peace in its neighbouring agencies.
"It took a number of lives to secure this region," a security official told The Express Tribune. However, the area hasn't been completely cleared yet as it's difficult to get to every nook and corner of this agency.

According to official statistics, there are around 150 militants of the Mehdi Militia in Sharku Land, 300 TTP militants in Dogar and about 50 local miscreants in the Pistwana area. These groups were aided by "foreign countries", officials said without elaborating.

As we travelled on the bumpy track towards the Lower Kurram area, the condition of road started deteriorating. Our vehicles, escorted by around 50 paramilitary troops, stopped at the end of the road in a ravine. We found ourselves in front of cave-like structures in the mountain. The place is known as Sheesho. Ironically – the area is supplied with electricity.

"It's a training camp from the era of the Afghan war, which was taken over by the Taliban," a security officer said. "It was used as a training centre and the caves are almost 500 feet long."

Stock of food items, exercise machines, rusted handcuffs and ropes were lying on the mouth of the tunnels. "These things along with the ICRC hospital (turned into a human abattoir) were used as torture cells by militants where abductees were kept or killed," a local resident told The Express Tribune on condition of anonymity. "More than 100 militants lived here, after we bombarded the area, some two dozen were killed while the rest escaped," said Wing Commander Sajjad. "We found only one body. They never leave behind their dead," he explained.

Officials say 18 security officials lost their lives, while 46 were injured. Around 96 militants were also killed during the operation, codenamed Khwakh Ba De Sham, meaning "I'll Teach You a Lesson." "However, maintaining law and order is a continuous process," said Col Akhtar, pointing towards the Orakzai Agency. "This post of Ghlo Ghundair has been attacked several times, most recently a week ago, therefore it will take some time to restore complete peace in the region," he said.

Published in The Express Tribune, July 7^th, 2010.
Source:http://tribune.com.pk/story/26175/normalcy-returning-to-scenic-kurram-agency/

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80pc area of Kurram Agency cleared: official(the news)

80pc area of Kurram Agency cleared: official

Wednesday, July 07, 2010
PARACHINAR: Commander In-charge Kurram Militia Col Touseef Akhtar on Tuesday claimed that 80 per cent of Kurram Agency has been purged of militants while remaining area would also be cleared very soon.

He stated this while talking to a group of journalists flown by FC to Parachinar, headquarters of Kurram Agency.Briefing the reporters about the military operation in the area, Col Touseef said that Kurram Agency was divided into three zones and the brave personnel of paramilitary forced the militants to escape from the area. He said the militants had made the life of Kurram residents miserable and innocent people were killed without any reason.

The militants, he said, had closed Tall-Parachinar Road as a result of which supply of essential items, including food and medicines, to the agency was very nominal. In few areas, he added, 50-kg bag of wheat flour was sold at a rate of Rs7,000 to Rs8,000 because of the acute scarcity of the commodity. Similarly, he added, due to shortage of wheat several people died because they were unable to get proper treatment.

The Kurram Militia, the official said, has resolved to fight militants and purge the area of them. Due to firm resolve of the armed forces, he said, the agency was not only cleared of miscreants but the 89-kilometre Tall-Parachinar Road was reopened after a period of three years.

Col Touseef said that forces also took control of Pak-Afghan border area. He said the sectarian strife in the agency was also resolved to a greater extent by holding peace jirga. He said in Upper Kurram, the Doogar area was cleared of militants within a fortnight. The area was in control of militants for the last two years. In Doogar, he said, the militants had established training camps and were running drug business. The Doogar operation was completed on December 12 last year in which 18 officials embraced martyrdom and 47 were injured while 96 militants were killed.

The officer said that a wanted Taliban leader, Mullah Toofan, also belonged to this area and was killed in the operation. He said the militants had spread terror in the region and made the life of people miserable by carrying out kidnapping and killing. The brave action taken by armed forces, however, dealt a severe blow to them and the area was successfully cleared.

source: http://www.thenews.com.pk/daily_detail.asp?id=249311

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source: http://www.dailytimes.com.pk/default.asp?page=2010\07\07\story_7-7-2010_pg7_12

‘80pc of Kurram Agency cleared of terrorists’

'80pc of Kurram Agency cleared of terrorists'

* Kurram Militia commander in-charge says 89-km Tall-Parachinar Road reopened after three years
* Swat commanders say establishment of Swat cantonment to be announced in 2-3 months

PARACHINAR/SWAT: Around 80 percent of the Kurram Agency has been cleared of the Taliban and the remaining parts of the agency will also be cleared soon, Kurram Militia Commander In-charge Colonel Touseef Akhtar said on Tuesday.

Talking to reporters, Touseef said the Kurram Agency was divided into three zones and the brave personnel of the paramilitary forced had forced the Taliban to flee from the area.

The militants, he said, had closed the Tall-Parachinar Road as a result of which the supply of essential items – including food and medicine – to the agency had been very nominal. In a few areas, he added, a 50 kilogramme bag of flour was sold at a rate of Rs 7,000 to Rs. 8,000 because of the scarcity of the commodity.

Reopened: Due to the firm resolve of the armed forces, the 89-kilometre-long Tall-Parachinar Road had been reopened after a period of three years, he said.

Touseef informed reporters that the security forces had also gained control of the Pak-Afghan border area.

The sectarian strife in the agency had also been reduced to a great extent by holding the peace jirga, he said.

The Doogar area in Upper Kurram, which had been under the militant's control for the last couple of years, was cleared by the troops within a fortnight, Touseef said. In Doogar, he continued, the militants had established training camps and were also trafficking drugs. The Doogar operation was completed on December 12, 2009, in which 18 troopers embraced martyrdom and 47 were injured, while 96 Taliban were killed, he added.

Mullah Toofan, a wanted Taliban leader who belonged to the area, was also killed in the operation, Touseef said.

Cantonment: Separately, talking to a team of reporters from the Peshawar Press Club, Swat operation commanders Colonel Bilal and Colonel Tabish said that the formal announcement about establishing the cantonment in Swat would be made in two to three months time.

The commander said that land for the proposed cantonment had been identified and construction work would start once the necessary formalities are completed. app

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Friday, June 25, 2010

Tribal disputes in Kurram

By Farhat Taj

June 06, 2010

Farhat Taj is currently writing a book, Taliban and Anti-Taliban. (farhat.taj@tribune.com.pk)

In an unusual move in May 2010 the Commandant of the Kurram Scouts convened a tribal jirga of both Sunni and Shia tribal leaders to repatriate displaced families to their native areas and to implement the Murree agreement signed in November 2008. The agreement asks for armed tribal groups to vacate their positions, the repatriation of IDPs and supply of food and medicine to the affected areas. The government has failed to implement the agreement and people of Kurram continue to suffer in violence.

Now, the commandant has initiated a move to make peace in the area. But tribal leaders have serious reservations over the move. The commandant never consulted the political agent of the agency and he has no legal authority to convene such a jirga although he insists he has been 'given' authority to do so. He invited controversial non-locals to the jirga, such as Javed Ibrahim Paracha who is not from Fata but from Kohat and is known to harbour sectarian views and is considered close to militants. The Shia tribesmen hold him responsible for the sufferings in the area and accuse him of sheltering al Qaeda elements. The Sunnis consider him an intruder who poisons their relationship with their Shia compatriots for his
vested interests.

The commandant offered that 200 Sunni IDP families from Parachinar be accommodated in the Akhtar Academy building. Sunni tribal leaders asked the commandant to accommodate them in an area in Parachinar since the city was said to be under the federal government's writ. The commandant disagreed and threatened to take requisite action against those tribal leaders who would not comply. The Sunni tribal leaders said that it was in the presence of the former commandant that many of their people were killed and the rest displaced from their homes, so it was hard for them to trust the current one. They also felt that the commandant was putting them in an awkward situation. Once back in Parachinar they would be vulnerable to heavily armed sectarian groups. This would provide an excuse to the military to start operations in Parachinar. The commandant had offered a plan to rehabilitate the Turi Bangash in Sadda Town in Kurram on their properties — the Turi were pushed out of their properties because of sectarian fighting way back in the 1980s. The commandant had tried to construct gates on roads leading to villages. The local Shia tribesmen demonstrated against the construction and under public pressure the commandant abandoned the plan.

The crisis in Kurram and the rest of Fata is beyond the capacity of the local commandants and political agents. Everything they do simply adds to the sufferings. The president of Pakistan should implement the Political Parties Act in the area so that disputes can be resolved through local political leadership. Intelligence agencies must stop using the area as a strategic space for its 'great games'.

Published in the Express Tribune, June 6^th, 2010.

source: http://tribune.com.pk/story/19052/tribal-disputes-in-kurram/

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Ending Kurram’s sectarian strife

Ending Kurram's sectarian strife

By Asad Munir

June 25, 2010

The writer has served as head of the ISI and MI for Khyber-Pakhtunkhwa and Fata (asad.munir@tribune.com.pk)

Kurram Agency was part of Afghanistan until the signing of the Gandamak Treaty on May 26, 1879. As per clause nine of this treaty, the districts of Kurram, Pishin and Sibi, were placed under the protection and administrative control of the British government, but were not permanently severed from the limits of the Afghan kingdom. The revenues of these districts, after deducting the charges of civil administration, were remitted to Afghanistan. In 1893, the Durand line Treaty was signed and Kurram became a part of British India. Kurram's area is 3,380 sq km and population is around 500,000. The main tribes are Turi, Bangash, Mangal and Parachamkani while Orakzai, Massozai, Alisherzai, Zaimusht, Kharotai, Ghalgi, Zadran,Muqbal and Hazara also live there. Kurram is divided into three sub-divisions: upper, lower and central. The first two are administered through the Frontier Crime Regulation, the Kohat Pact and customary law known as 'Turizuna', while central Kurram is administrated indirectly through tribal elders. Kurram and Orakzai are the two areas of Fata where Shia-Sunni strife causes major law and order issues. The sectarian conflict and inter-tribal rivalry are intertwined and a dispute over, say, water between two villages, can spread to the entire area.

In 1982, sectarian violence started in Sadda in lower Kurram. Sixty-eight Shia families were forced to abandon their homes and had to take refuge in Parachinar. The matter was resolved through a jirga in 1990, but the decision has still not been implemented. In April and November 2007, the worst sectarian fighting in Kurram's history took place. The Taliban had infiltrated the Sunni area and raised a local Taliban force. Their commander was under Baitullah Mehsud's direct control. Forty villages were destroyed, and about 2,060 houses were set ablaze. More than 2,300 families were displaced and 95 places of worship were attacked. Land mines were planted in the fields. Snipers from both sects continuously fired on their opponent's villages. The Thall-Parichinar road was closed for Shias, who in retaliation prevented the Sunnis of upper Kurram from travelling on the Parachinar road. The political administration took some steps that defused the situation, but was not a permanent solution. In October 2008, an accord was signed in Murree.The elders and tribal chiefs of the two rivals — the Turi and Mangal tribes — signed a written agreement in the presence of the members of parliament from the Agency for a permanent peace. However, this accord has yet to be implemented. Clearly, this needs to be done.

Adequate force should be placed at the disposal of the political administration. Legislators from the agency should be involved and jirgas should be held to implement the Murree Agreement. The Frontier Corps, Frontier Constabulary and police should be deployed to block routes from North Waziristan, and in Tor Ghar Mamoo up to Hugu, so that the Hangu-Thall-Parachinar road can be made safe for travel. Rehabilitation of IDPs should also be made in phases. As a first step, elders of both sects should engage to settle the displaced Sunnis and Shias of lower Kurram. The decision of resettlement of Shias, displaced from Sadda in 1982, must be implemented through a jirga. Compensation should be paid to all whose property was destroyed during the conflict. Also, properties confiscated during the fighting, should be returned to the real owners through the jirga, comprising of elders from both sects. The crisis in Kurram is not a normal law and order situation. It needs special handling and a focused strategy.

Published in The Express Tribune, June 25^th, 2010.

source: http://tribune.com.pk/story/23495/ending-kurram%E2%80%99s-sectarian-strife/

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