Instability awaits Kabul once US pulls out, Current affairs, NewAgeIslam.com

Current affairs

Instability awaits Kabul once US pulls out

By Vikram Sood

The declared US objective has been to take out Al Qaeda from Afghanistan so that they do not become a threat to the US and its allies. Yet the Al Qaeda is not in Afghanistan; it is mostly in Pakistan with sanctuaries in Yemen and Afghanistan. It is the Taliban that is mostly in Afghanistan with sanctuaries in Pakistan, so the result is that the US has been fighting an obscurantist section of an ethnic component of Afghanistan whose objective has been to throw the foreigner out and seems to be succeeding. The Taliban now represent, by and large, the Pushtun sentiment in Afghanistan and they are spreading into Kunduz in the north as well. It is possible now that the US will re- evaluate its policy towards Pakistan following the killing of seven CIA operatives inside the CIA camp in Khost; an attack that originated with the Pakistan Taliban. This act highlighted not only the dangers of counter terror operations but also that the level of commitment in the opposition to the US was very high. The US now wants to achieve something in eighteen months what has not been possible in eight years.

http://newageislam.com/instability-awaits-kabul-once-us-pulls-out/current-affairs/d/2339

India should build up its psychological and cyber warfare to thwart terrorism, Islam,Terrorism and Jihad, NewAgeIslam.com

Islam,Terrorism and Jihad

India should build up its psychological and cyber warfare to thwart terrorism

The Covert Option

By VIKRAM SOOD

02 Jan 2009

This time, in Mumbai, the enormity of the ongoing tragedy really hit ‘us’. The debate about the how and why and what to do next has been on for a month now, unlike in the past when bomb blasts and killings were about ‘them’ and handled by the ‘others’. Shaken from the secure comfort of our opulence and tearful of the loss of fancy places to eat, few of us realise that in the year that has gone by, 1,007 civilians and 368 security forces personnel were killed in terrorist-related violence all over the country. There are a few important lessons from this and one can only hope that the extreme anger of November will translate into cold determination for the future.

One has also to be realistic about countering terrorism. Like crime, it will never disappear completely, no matter what laws and agencies we have. It can only be deterred and contained. The Mumbai massacres are undoubtedly a lesson about our vulnerabilities, our huge security gaps, our disjointed reaction, our media hype and our weak response to Pakistan. As a result, we are today seeing the unfortunate spectacle of Pakistan, the obvious suspect in this case and many others that have preceded this, stealing the ground from under us and screaming that Islam and Pakistan are under threat from India. The suspect has changed the rules of the debate and smuggled in Kashmir into the equation.

http://newageislam.com/india-should-build-up-its-psychological-and-cyber-warfare-to-thwart-terrorism/islam,terrorism-and-jihad/d/2373

India can’t simply wait for America to deliver on Pak, War on Terror, NewAgeIsam.com

War on Terror

India can’t simply wait for America to deliver on Pak

By Vikram Sood

Pakistanis once again showed an impeccable sense of timing and disdain. They had just "won" the Swat battle, launched with great fanfare and huge hidden costs just ahead of President Asif Ali Zardari’s visit to Washington. A grateful West, desperate for some success story, then burst into adulatory gestures and found new reasons to ply their ally with even more funds. Saeed’s release was lost in the din of this praise. Besides, the release happily coincided with the visit to Pakistan by Richard Holbrooke, who dismissed the release as an "internal matter" of the Pakistanis. This has been a favourite escape route, used by many previous administrations whenever they wanted to cover up Pakistani transgressions.

In contrast, India’s sense of timing has been appalling. One day after Saeed’s release amid the usual round of angry reactions and sound bites, reports started circulating that India was about to resume the long-suspended dialogue with Pakistan. Everyone knew that pressure by the United States on India had abated only temporarily and that it would resume soon after the elections. It was also generally understood that the dialogue would be resumed after Pakistan had given India some satisfaction on issues relating to terrorism. One does not know who worked out this brilliant spin for the resumption, but it reflects poorly on our sense of timing and tactical wisdom. To say that we are not under anyone’s pressure and yet say the dialogue will resume prior to Hillary Clinton’s visit, so that she does not pressure us, only means we have wilted even before the heat has been turned on. The other reason put forward — that this would hopefully enable Pakistan to rein in its jihadis and prevent another Mumbai-type attack — can only be called supplication by a would-be major power to a failing state.

http://newageislam.com/india-can%E2%80%99t-simply-wait-for-america-to-deliver-on-pak---/war-on-terror/d/1454

Indian Mujahedeen could be a surrogate for any Pakistani Jihadi lashkar, Islam,Terrorism and Jihad, NewAgeIslam.com

Islam,Terrorism and Jihad

Indian Mujahedeen could be a surrogate for any Pakistani Jihadi lashkar

Terrorists innovate, but Govt response is unchanged

By Vikram Sood

Years ago the ISI would have started placing “sleepers” in India as saboteurs and talent- spotters for new recruits. Many of the Pak- sponsored terrorist groups like the Lashkar- e - Tayyaba and Harkat ul Jehadi (Bangladesh) are signatories to Osama bin Laden’s International Islamic Front. HUJI’s contacts with the ISI are well known and so also the fact that Bangladesh has been the conduit for arms and terrorists operating in India. HUJI volunteers have been trained in Pakistan and Afghanistan. There have been reports indicating linkages between SIMI, HUJI, LeT and ISI and this could be a reworking of the Afghan Jehad in another place and another time. The Indian Mujahedeen could be a surrogate for any one of these organisations but nothing can be said until the identity of the leadership is established.

http://newageislam.com/indian-mujahedeen-could-be-a-surrogate-for-any-pakistani-jihadi-lashkar/islam,terrorism-and-jihad/d/746

Terror won’t stop till we fight it like a war, War on Terror, NewAgeIslam.com

War on Terror

Terror won’t stop till we fight it like a war

By Vikram Sood

As yet, there is no evidence about who was responsible for these acts, though as usual various names are afloat. But the fact is that we have brought this upon ourselves. Yes, we are the victims of terrorism from Pakistan. But instead of dealing with it single-mindedly, we sought to appease; Instead of strengthening our investigation and intelligence network, we issued caveats to investigators. Pakistan may or may not be responsible for the current terrorist attacks, but we must take responsibility for allowing a certain mindset to grow and spread unhindered.

People like Osama bin Laden claim that the West, led by the United States and Britain, are the "crusaders" of the modern world who have occupied the "holy land." They and their allies — Israelis, Indians and Russians — must be thrown out. The worst offenders, they claim, are the "apostate" Muslim kingdoms and governments in West Asia. These lands have to be freed through jihad. We hear echoes of these instructions in the Pakistan-Afghanistan border regions of Fata and Swat.

http://newageislam.com/terror-won%E2%80%99t-stop-till-we-fight-it-like-a-war/war-on-terror/d/379