ISI BEHIND ATTACKS ON NATO FORCES IN AFGHANISTAN

Pakistan’s ISI intelligence agency provides funding, training and sanctuary to the Taliban in Afghanistan, according to a study which claimed to have the strongest evidence yet of their links.

However the report for the London School of Economics (LSE) was on Sunday dismissed by the Pakistani military as “malicious and baseless”.

The LSE study, based on interviews with nine Taliban field commanders in Afghanistan between February and May this year, claims their relationship goes far beyond what is currently known.




“Although the Taliban has a strong endogenous impetus, according to Taliban commanders the ISI orchestrates, sustains and strongly influences the movement,” wrote author Matt Waldman, a fellow at Harvard University.

“They say it gives sanctuary to both Taliban and Haqqani groups, and provides huge support in terms of training, funding, munitions, and supplies. In their words, this is ‘as clear as the sun in the sky’.”

Waldman said the ISI appears to exert “significant influence” on strategic decision-making and field operations of the Taliban and controls the most violent insurgent units, some of which appear to be based in Pakistan.

Insurgent commanders claimed the ISI was even officially represented, as participants or observers, on the Taliban supreme leadership council, he said.

The report also alleges that Pakistani President Asif Ali Zardari himself had assured captive, senior Taliban leaders that they were “our people” and had his backing. He had apparently authorised some to be released from prison.

It concludes that efforts by the Afghan government and NATO-led forces to end the insurgency in Afghanistan will only be possible with Pakistani support.



The report drew an angry reaction from the Pakistani military.

“It is a part of a malicious campaign against the Pakistan army and the ISI,” Pakistan army spokesman Major General Athar Abbas told AFP.

“It is baseless. The sacrifices by Pakistan’s army and the ISI and the casualties in the war on terror speak for themselves,” he said. “We have a series of questions on the credibility of the report.”

AMERICA'S TARGET AFTER OSAMA IS PAKISTAN

It has finally smoked out that rogue hiding in some tiny hole in Pakistan and had him sent to the houris waiting anxiously for him up there in the jihadi hell.

I am for Obama's continuance. May his second term, which is as guaranteed as the dead Osama, prove better for humanity ensuring pluralism, flowering of many faiths and beliefs like fragrances of a million flowers for the good of all, and increase in the happiness index of everyone pursuing noble causes on this planet. These are some of those American values we share. They are intrinsically Indian values too. These are the values that we hoped our leaders, the rulers, will also show, but alas they have ended up protecting the bad and dining with the stone pelters, sending peace missions to the shielder of traitors and terrorists rather than smoking them out.

India being the worst victim of Osama's terror groups, it should have been up to Indian intelligence agencies and operatives to find out Osama's hideout and have him killed. But given the present political dispensation, I am sure even if our men had found him out, the sultans of Delhi would have had him presented as a special guest to get some more votes in the comimg elections.

Osama never represented courage or valour. He was a coward who worked underground, collected a horde of lunatics, instilled in them intense hatred for their adpoted lands and the people who in fact had trusted them, and given them shelter and opportunities to grow and be happy. He could never organize Islamic countries to come together and attack his sworn enemy, the USA, or convince the faithful army commanders and mullahs in Islamabad not to live on the dollar doles of a kafir Washington. Neither could he instill a sense of Islamic brotherhood and solidarity among the various Islamic countries always fighting with one another and still wanting to have good ties (read more dollars) with the USA. You can keep them counting — from the house of Sauds to the generals in Islamabad, the real rulers of Pakistan. Not a single islamic country has been able to show the guts to stand up against the US in a befitting and collective nmanner for what they term the US assault on Islam or on a brother Islamic country. Osama could also never inspire any Islamic society to boycott American goods, or not to travel to America for joy, business or studies. All he could do was to sell hatred and make young Muslims die for a cause none has ever been clear about.