Afrah Jamal

First Published in Daily Times / 22 Sep 2012 By Afrah Jamal Nothing works. Major cities have been sealed and an angry mob rules the streets. Scenes from Pakistan on September 21, 2012 have a distinctly dystopian flavour. TV cameras cut to newsrooms happily discussing the need for peaceful protests as sweet sounding hymns play in the background and then cut back to the mob going berserk. Someone picked the wrong soundtrack for the occasion. Pakistan, badly battered by terrorism and in an economic bind, doubled as a set for some war zone on the eve of the ‘Love Your Prophet Day’. The sight of rampaging protestors including representatives from banned outfits closing on Islamabad’s Red Zone on Thursday evening was surreal. The army was summoned to safeguard the diplomatic enclave. The military was placed on high alert. And as the nation braced for yet another day of officially sanctioned protests, the mobile networks were shut down. No one really knows why . A BBC anchor watchi...

(Published in SHE Magazine June 2011) 7 years ago, Tim McGirk of TIME wondered if ISI could help find Bin Laden. In a way they did. Pakistan’s decision to share a critical piece of information sealed Osama bin Laden’s fate. But the hand that dealt the fatal blow was American. The Inter-Services Intelligence – (ISI), never popular to begin with, has seen its credibility plummet since 2nd May 2011. Other services have come into their share of criticism but trying to ascertain Pakistan’s top spy agency’s role in this fiasco can be a daunting challenge. In one day they were checkmated by an ally, became suspects in a crime, forced to be spectators of their own show and put on public trial. Over the years, visiting American scholars have expressed incredulity at ISI’s inability to locate bin Laden given the agencies reach (deep) and reputation (fearsome). While they may be convinced in their minds of ISI’s duplicity, its head, Lieutenant General Shuja Pasha has pleaded guilty to a le...

I've already acknowledged the bravery of our men in 'You Can't Handle The Truth'.... First Published in Daily Times / Saturday, June 04, 2011 Some new information surfaced immediately after I hit the send button on my first piece ‘You Can’t Handle The Truth?’ (Daily Times, May 30, 2011) — information that casts new light on the events of May 22, 2011 when an indeterminate number of men stormed a naval airbase and targeted its prized assets. I say indeterminate because none of the officials seem to agree on a number. This new information holds answers to some key questions — motive (why target the Navy?), the mystery surrounding the downgraded number of attackers (not 12) and determining who was really responsible for security on that fateful day when a surgical strike paralysed an entire base. Incidentally, it could be a brief extension of the same light the slain journalist, Saleem Shahzad , was trying to shine on the PNS Mehran tragedy. A recent headline, ‘...

( Sequel coming NEXT hopefully) Published in Daily Times / Monday, May 30, 2011 The guard is on edge. He sits up warily as a small car pulls up by the PAF Museum. But it is just some good Samaritans who hesitantly walk over to the stone slab to deposit a bouquet. The tribute is for the martyrs of the PNS Mehran tragedy who have given their lives protecting their base just a few hours earlier. The onlookers are moved. A media man leaps up with his camera. This little show of solidarity came at a time when the Pakistani nation needs major reassurances. A handful of men who can storm a major naval aviation base, take out its main surveillance capability, inflict heavy casualties and hold up the entire garrison for more than 16 hours not only challenge the military’s omnipotent status, they play havoc with its image. While this is not the first attack on Pakistan’s armed forces, it is the first of its kind. There is a wave of sympathy for the fallen, buried under an avalanche of ...

Thanks to Liberty Books for the review copy Published in DAILY TIMES (15 MAY 2010) under the heading: Anatomy of a crisis Reviewed by: Afrah Jamal Post-2001, Pakistan is braced for impact, trying to keep its strategic interests from getting tangled up with other agendas. Yet, the country is not a first-time entrant in the game of power. It came out of the Soviet-Afghan adventure with its wits intact, and went on a (mis)adventure in Afghanistan aiming to gain strategic depth immediately afterwards, with carefully cultivated ‘assets’ and quietly managed sideshows with the leftover jihadists in Kashmir, to the dismay of many. Accepting the lead role of an impartial observer in the second round of regional power games has brought it some unwanted attention from extremist quarters and left it shaken to the core. Allies may be footing the bill for this performance but ordinary Pakistanis are paying the price. It has been an unseasonably busy few years, what with keeping terror at ...

Thanks to Liberty Books for the review copy Thanks to Imtiaz Gul for Reposting the Review on his Webpage Published in Daily Times /March 13, 2010 Reviewed by : Afrah Jamal An updated/revised version of this book that includes data from March 2009-2010 will be available from June 2010 under the new title of "The Most Dangerous Place - Pakistan's lawless frontier. " Today, the landscape has been transformed into a hunting ground as the showdown between the military and militants gets underway and retaliatory strikes against the public intensify . While attempting to curb insurgency within its borders, Pakistan’s security forces have been accused of stage-managing militant outfits that once served as counterweights against traditional enemies. Never disarmed, and left unguided, these heat-seeking entities latched on to a new target . Ever since the region tested positive for militancy post-9/11, there has been a lack of consensus regarding, well, just about ev...

PUBLISHED IN Daily Times 30 Jan 2010 Author: Naeem Salik REVIEWED BY Afrah Jamal Published under the Title: NUCLEAR PAKISTAN – SETTING THE RECORD STRAIGHT - AGAIN Going Nuclear is a lifestyle choice. For the original 5, it was a vital symbol of power. For Pakistan, it is a necessary evil. With 3 nuclear powers in the region, Pakistan is the only one that gives the world sleepless nights. As their least favourite (aspiring) club member, Pakistan is used to being eyed with suspicion and treated with disdain. Naeem Salik believes that current debates on Pakistan’s nuclear stance are speculative at best and slanderous at worst. But since studies from Pakistan are rare, it is not always easy to counteract the negative propaganda and/or hysterical fear mongering. As world leaders eye Pakistan with increasing wariness, it would be useful to hear out the man once in-charge of the conception & development of a nuclear command & control system along with ‘contours’ of Pakistan’s n...

PUBLISHED IN PAKISTAN OBSERVER JUNE 17, 2007 Arguably, major shifts in both perception & priorities can be attributed to significant upheavals in the global and political dynamics, arising, partially from the vestiges of the Cold War, threatened exclusivity of the nuclear club(to the dismay of 5) and absolutely from actions of 9/11. The emergence of the Asian continent as a globally predominant security concern merits the exploration of its complex, long drawn out regional conflicts while identifying the security/cooperative challenges, the neglect of which will jeopardize global stability given the fragility of a nuclear setting on hostile territory. And this is what ‘Asia-Search for Security & Cooperation’ aims to do. Maj. General (R) Jamshed Ayaz Khan is an authority on matters pertaining to regional and International affairs being the head of Institute of Regional Studies(Islamabad) and his second book ‘Asia-Search for Security & Cooperation’ is, in fact, a com...

Author: Zahid Hussain PUBLISHED IN THE POST JUNE 14, 2007 Reviewed by: Afrah Jamal Frontline Pakistan: the struggle with militant Islam goes for the jugular with an insiders look at a deformed culture borne of a dated ideology, fueled by vested interest and driven by intolerance; and a nation’s complicity. Not surprisingly, the legitimacy granted jihadists by ISI-CIA ran out soon, as did the sympathy for their jihadist actions formally perceived as heroic. Once used to counter the threat of communism, the rapid shift in their objectives that placed Pakistan’s national interest on a collision course with its security rendered them an anachronism. This led to a parting of ways with the ISI; consequently, the deadliness of operations and depth of penetration in society seen in the context of 9/11 forever breached the line between liberators and terrorists. Veteran journalist Zahid Hussain, Pakistani correspondent for the "Times of London", "The Wall Street Journ...

PUBLISHED IN THE POST AS Swat deal: a hostile takeover? SEP 22, 2008 When a house came under rocket attack in Peshawar cantonment on 19th May, the incident went without serious comment because after all, these acts are commonplace enough in 2008. What made it significant for me was that the very house had once been my home. That would be the year when Soviets had all but withdrawn from Afghanistan and the only close call then had been an airspace incursion from the Afghan side of the border . But, what happened in the confrontation between the fearless Afghan pilot and military officials present that day is no where as alarming as what happened 19 years later with the fearsome pro-Taliban and the State officials elected today . A peace treaty in war torn Swat has a nice ring to it. Does a pacification strategy towards militancy mean that a country which stood up to Communism capitulated to Fascism? Not so, say government officials who hasten to draw a distinction between peace lovi...

PUBLISHED IN THE POST JUN 07, 2007 As early warning signs of potential unrest preceded the proposed Karachi rallies of 12th May 2007, the consequences of a newly acquired affliction with the rally-syndrome became glaringly obvious on 12th May 2007. Granted that the mayhem witnessed in Karachi or the tragic conclusion of a rally in Charsadda is more of an exception than the norm, given the post 9/11 scenario, the old adage of safety in numbers no longer applies. Besides, the inconvenience faced by the people makes the concept irksome while its management makes the process dated. Notwithstanding the constitutional right of citizens to hold demonstrations or address congregations, places like Islamabad end up being sealed, Karachi is left in an appalling political mess and NWFP has to deal with the tragedy of Charsadda. Polls will find that people like us are not in favor of rallies; and judging from the way they can end up, it is fairly easy to see why. There is an inherent flaw in ...

PUBLISHED IN THE POST JAN 24, 2008? The good news; terrorists are on the run in Swat . The bad news? See the good news . Does achieving the military objective signal an end of terrorism? Or just imply a break in a long winded terror campaign . The latter seems more probable, considering 2 suicide attacks which were only 3 days apart in Swat and Lahore in the first 10 days of 2008 and terror that struck Karachi 5 days afterwards. Which is why reports of successful operations in Swat meant to foster long term stability, at least in that particular region, fail to raise hopes about the short term security in the rest of Pakistan. Especially when certain cities have once again been placed on high alert after intelligence indicated the entry of more potential bombers. The January 17, 2008 attack on Peshawar demonstrates the accuracy of this intelligence without altering our growing susceptibility to terror. Interior Minister Hamid Nawaz wants citizens to cooperate with police ...

PUBLISHED IN THE POST JULY 18, 2007 AS OPERATION SILENCE - THE AFTERMATH No crystal ball was needed to predict that violent or peaceful, the end would come for the anti-State movement initiated from the Islamabad mosque. It was also very apparent that all the patience in the world or negotiations for that matter will not prevent many from affixing the label of ‘Brute’ on the State. Barely had the operation ended the critique began. The fact that such negotiations could have lasted for 51 days without any positive outcome, like the Waco Texas incident of 1993, suddenly became inconsequential; as did the rescue of some 1350 people. The collateral damage however brought the clerical group on the streets. It was between the gun and the gallows for the identified militants in any case. The State will argue that it proceeded with extreme caution and much has been said about their delaying tactics but suddenly, and not surprisingly, the fortitude of 6 months has become an ineffective tru...

PUBLISHED IN THE POST AUG 04, 2007 The last thing I expected on 27 July 2007 was to be blindsided with, what appeared to be a reenactment of events witnessed earlier in the month in Pakistan’s Capitol. The place was the same and so were some of the key players . The Islamabad mosque reopened for Friday prayers amid adequate security measures but its abrupt descent into chaos proved how naïve we all were to think that former anarchists had been tamed or their belligerent mood mellowed with time . The security gates could only check for fissile material and not the threat posed by the former students, ex-detainees and sympathizers associated with the Mosque and seminary. Like a rerun of a bad film, the radicals demanded that the surviving rebel Maulana conduct Friday prayers and the denial of this demand rapidly led to civil unrest once more. Labeled simply as activists, they are in reality ‘activated’, a legacy of the two brothers. The police, possibly afraid of provoking further di...