|
As the deadly phenomenon of suicide bombings hit Pakistan in the backdrop of the 9/11 terror attacks, as many as 25 human bombs have blown themselves up across Pakistan since March 2002, killing over 300 people and wounding as many as 600 others. With the avowed aim of purging the land of the pure of the forces of the infidels, the new breed of lethal bombers seeks to strike not only the American and Western interests, but also the Shia minority in Pakistan.
American atrocities against Muslims in Afghanistan and Iraq are supposed to be the main motivation for most of the bombers. None of the 25 suicide bombers belonged to the country's elite class: 16 of them belonged to the lower middle class while the remaining nine came from middle class families. Apart from their jihadi mindset, their anti-American sentiments and their poor family background, another thing they had in common was illiteracy.
A careful study of the life history of the suicide bombers shows that most of the attackers belonged to the splinter groups of jihadi or sectarian organisations launched in the wake of the crackdown on militants after the 9/11 terror attacks. The study shows that nearly every suicide bomber was poor, illiterate, and unemployed. Of the 25 attackers, 15 were aged 15-25, seven 25-30, and the remaining three above 30. And not even one of them was a matriculate. Most of the human bombers were affiliated with several sectarian and militant organizations like Lashkar-e-Jangvi (LeJ), Jaish-e-Mohammad (JeM), Harkatul Mujahideen Al-Alami and Harkat-al Jihad-al Islami.
Smaller and more isolated than their parent organisations, the splinter groups of the jihadi and sectarian outfits reportedly receive financial backing from al Qaeda and its affiliated groups and draw their recruits from the ranks of the poor and enraged. They are recruited for different purposes, with agendas ranging from killing Shia 'kafirs' to liberating the Muslim world from the clutches of the infidels. Interestingly, many of the splinter groups' top leadership fought in Afghanistan, and Jammu & Kashmir.
After 9/11, Pakistan became a key player in the US-led alliance and reversed the previous decade's policy of trying to influence Afghan politics through the Taliban. The policy reversal immediately brought the state into conflict with the jihadi groups active in Afghanistan and Jammu & Kashmir. These groups have for years been mobilized, ideologically motivated and trained in Pakistan, mainly for export in the neighbourhood - particularly to Jammu and Kashmir and to Afghanistan. Thus, the emerging phenomenon of suicide bombings in Pakistan needs to be viewed within the context of Islamabad's alliance with the US and al Qaeda's reach within Pakistan.
The investigators describe three layers of organization behind most suicide attacks carried out against senior government officials in Pakistan. In most of the cases, the mastermind is al Qaeda, which gets in touch through a courier with the leader of a jihadi splinter group who plans the attack. The attacker is often a brainwashed jihadi. In the case of the unsuccessful suicide attacks against General Musharraf in Islamabad in December 2003, the mastermind was Abu Faraj al Libbi, an al Qaeda operative now in custody; the planner was Amjad Farooqi; the slain leader of Lashkar-e-Jhangvi; and the bomber was a local jihadi, Mohammad Jameel.
A scrutiny of the pattern of the suicide attacks in Pakistan would indicate several al Qaeda traits, such as the targeting of Western civilians, absence of immediate claims of responsibility and the quantity of highly explosive material being used. The targets were varied: foreigners, Christians, Shias and the Muslim rulers who are considered pro-US. The data compiled by the investigators shows that the new breed of suicide bombers, which generally is made up of the unemployed and illiterate coming from the poorer strata of society, perceives the US as an aggressor, be it Iraq or Afghanistan. And somehow, they have been led to believe that a suicide attack in the service of Islam against the infidels would gain them victory here and in the hereafter.
The data compiled by the investigators about the life history of the suicide bombers shows that he is often a brainwashed religious-minded militant who is spotted by a jihadi leader, who looks out for potential human bombs and usually finds unemployed and uneducated youth with the help of a cleric at a mosque or madrassah. The potential bomber is then scrutinised for his motives. The scrutiny is meant to clarify for the boy himself his real reasons and strength of his commitment.
During the preparation for the mission, he is told that this is a temporary life, one that ends with shahadat (martyrdom) they are to achieve by reducing the number of kafirs (infidels). The potential suicide bomber needs to be very clear that there is no drawing back in such an operation. Subsequent preparation bolsters his conviction and helps remove fear. The preparation follows a therapy, in which the boy goes through some spiritual exercises, including the recitation of the Holy Quran, particularly those chapters which dwell upon jihad.
In the next stage, the potential bomber is again indoctrinated and efforts are made to focus his attention on Paradise, on being in the presence of Allah, on meeting Prophet Mohammad (PBUH), on interceding for his loved ones so that they, too, can be saved from the agonies of Hell. "Before the living martyr sets out on his last journey, he performs a ritual ablution, wears clean clothes, and says traditional Islamic prayer customary before a battle." Before he steps out, the planner bids him farewell, 'May Allah be with you, may Allah give you success that you achieve Paradise'.
According to the investigators, the suicide-bomber cells mostly operate in small groups of five to seven people, never staying at one place for more than two nights. Moving in small cells has become a necessity for members of the larger splinter groups, already been thrown into disarray by a government crackdown after President Pervez Musharraf and Prime Minister Shaukat Aziz became targets of their futile attempts. The investigators say most of the human bombs are on the run, and short of resources, yet they conceded that they have the most dangerous and impossible tactic to stop, like elsewhere in the world.
Though suicide is forbidden in Islam, Islamic extremists have gotten around this problem by describing suicide attacks as acts of martyrdom. The suicide killings have been justified as attacks on infidels and therefore a part of the holy war or jihad. Therefore, a suicide mission in which the bomber is able to take the lives of Westerners and Hindus is not un-Islamic because both are non-believers. The members of a rival sect too are regarded as infidels and therefore their killing through a suicide attack is not un-Islamic. What is particularly worrying about the recent spate of suicide attacks in Pakistan is that both Shias and Sunnis, who used guns and bombs against their rivals in the past, are now deploying suicide bombers to settle scores. The April 11, 2006 suicide bomb blast at a congregation of the Sunni Tehrik in Karachi can be quoted as the latest instance which killed 55 Sunni worshippers who had gathered to celebrate the birth anniversary of Prophet Mohammad (PBUH).
Mosques, Imambargahs, processions and rallies have become vulnerable targets of suicide attacks by rival sectarian organisations which are out to kill each other. As their aim is to create terror and cause maximum damage to the rival sectarian group, suicide bombers target mosques on Fridays, when thousands of worshippers attend prayers. Unlike suicide bombers elsewhere who simply detonate their explosive-strapped bodies, Pakistan's sectarian suicide bombers first hurl grenades and shoot into the crowd to inflict maximum damage, and then top off their operation by detonating themselves. They are also known to position themselves near pillars so that the explosion can bring down the roof of the mosque or Imambargah, causing more casualties.
For years, the Pakistani intelligence agencies used to indoctrinate, motivate and train the jihadi cadres for export in the neighbourhood - to Jammu & Kashmir and Afghanistan. Indian-held Kashmir had witnessed the first suicide attacks in 1999 and since then there had been a steady stream of deadly suicide operations. These human bombs had, however, excluded their home ground in Pakistan from the scope of their holy war. But as things stand, there has been a sharp decline in deadly suicide attacks in Jammu Kashmir, with Pakistan apparently emerging as a favoured target of these attacks. Therefore, the human bombs originally designed and nurtured by the Pakistani military and intelligence establishment to rip apart the enemies of Islam and Pakistan are exploding themselves inside their own country and killing their fellow Muslims. Pakistan's chickens have come home to roost.
The writer is the former editor of Weekly Independent, currently affiliated with Reuters and the Gulf News |
<< Home