Lashkar-e-Taiba
commander in Iraq? information is emerging that the Pakistan-based
terrorist organization may have set up a full-blown unit
for suicide squad operations against the Western forces.
Up to 2,000 men, mainly between the ages of 18 and 25,
are believed to have signed up for the Lashkar-e-Taiba's
armed operations in Iraq. Most come from towns in the
Pakistani province of Punjab, where the Lashkar-e-Taiba's
over ground political patron organization, the Jamaat-ud
-Dawa, wields considerable influence.
Most Lashkar suicide squad volunteers
come from the ranks of seminary students at Muridke, the
Jamaat-ud -Dawa's main center. However, some have also
been raised from the Binori Town seminary in Karachi,
which used to be run by the fundamentalist cleric, Mufti
Nizamuddin Shamzai, until he was assassinated.
At a recent meeting, the Lashkar-e-Taiba's overall head,
Hafiz Mohammad Saeed, told followers that "Islam
is in grave danger, and the Mujahideen are fighting to
keep its glory. They are fighting the forces of evil in
Iraq in extremely difficult circumstances. We should send
Mujahideen from Pakistan to help them."
Dr. Saeed's comments were made at a private
meeting in the Jamia al-Qudsia mosque in Lahore late last
month. Sources close to him told The Hindu that the Lashkar
hoped to be able to send at least some suicide squad members
to Iraq overland through the porous Iran-Pakistan border.
In April a key Lashkar commander, Danish
Ahmad, had been held by allied troops in Iraq. Ahmad played
a central role in the organization's operations in Jammu
and Kashmir from at least 1999, operating under the nom
de guerre of Abdul Rehman al-Dakhil.
Ahmad was first held by British forces
in the southern city of Basra, and has since been interrogated
by Central Intelligence Agency personnel. Western intelligence
experts initially dismissed Ahmad's initiative in Iraq
as a one-off enterprise, but the new information emanating
from Pakistan may force a re-think.
Interestingly, Ahmad may have trained
many of the men now being prepared for combat in Iraq.
Islam-ud-Din, a Lashkar operative arrested in 1999, told
Indian intelligence that Ahmad had trained hundreds of
cadre at the Lashkar's Maskar Abu Bashir camp in the use
of arms and explosives.
In 1999, the Karachi-based newspaper,
Dawn, quoted Lashkar spokesperson Ghulamullah Azad as
saying that Ahmad had led "dozens of fresh fighters
of our outfit [who] have reached the Kargil sector to
continue the jihad."
While the Lashkar-e-Taiba has historically
backed sectarian violence against Pakistan's Shia minority,
Dr. Saeed attempted to break with the past at the recent
meeting.
"America has failed to divide Shia
and Sunni Muslims despite masterminding sectarian violence
in Pakistan," he told followers. "America is
now bending over backwards to foment a Shia-Sunni divide
in Iraq. But we should not forget that Muqtada al-Sadr
is a hero of Islam. Forget that he is a Shia. He is a
great Mujahid because he is fighting the worst devil on
earth, that is, America. It is our religious duty to support
him," Dr. Saeed told the gathering.
Dr. Saeed's tone on events in Iraq has
intrigued observers, given his historically comfortable
relationship with the military and intelligence establishments
in Pakistan.
"The US and Britain are raping our
mothers and sisters," the Jamaat-ud -Dawa leader
said. "In this situation jihad becomes mandatory
against them. The Mujahideen are our last hope. If they
are not supported today, then tomorrow, Islam will be
erased from the map of the world."
Referring to possible Pakistani troop
commitments in Iraq, Dr. Saeed said that he would support
President Pervez Musharraf "if he sends troops to
Iraq to fight against the US and Britain. If he sends
them to support the US, then we will spearhead a countrywide
campaign against him."
Despite its venomous polemic against General
Musharraf, and its presence on a Pakistani Government
terrorism watch-list, the Jamaat-ud -Dawa has enjoyed
considerable freedom to raise funds and recruit cadre
in recent months.
General Musharraf declared the Lashkar-e-Taiba
a terrorist outfit on January 13, 2002 following the attack
on the Indian Parliament on December 13, 2001. The Jamaat-ud
-Dawa, however, escaped censure by changing its name,
which was earlier the Markaz Dawa wal'Irshad.
If Dr. Saeed's claims to have prepared
two brigade-strength forces for Iraq are true - or even
close to the true scale of recruitment - there could be
serious trouble ahead for the beleaguered Western forces
in Iraq. His organization was among the pioneers in the
use of suicide bombings in Kashmir, which started in 1999.
The Lashkar-e-Taiba claims to have orchestrated
around 200 suicide attacks between 1999 and 2002. Although
India has been pushing for greater restrictions on the
activities of Jihadi groups, Pakistan has been reluctant
to go beyond curbing cross-border infiltration, for fear
of provoking a backlash from the Islamist Right.
