Day: May 26, 2024

The rugged mountains lining the border between Pakistan’s Balochistan province and Afghanistan have long been a security concern. This sparsely populated region, riddled with informal crossing points and smuggling routes, presents a formidable challenge for border control. In recent months, this vulnerability has become pronounced with  surge in terrorist activities emanating from Afghan soil. The situation in Zhob, a mountainous frontier district in eastern Balochistan bordering Afghanistan’s Ghazni and Paktika provinces, exemplifies the severity of threat.

Stretching for roughly 300 kilometers, the border between Zhob and Afghanistan is characterized with a harsh, unforgiving landscape. Steep, rocky terrain and sparse population density make effective border patrolling a constant struggle. The porous nature of the border, marked by informal crossings under use of smugglers and local communities, further complicates the matters. This geographic vulnerability has long been exploited by criminal elements and insurgent groups, making Zhob a prime target for infiltration.

The recent press release by the Inter-Services Public Relations (ISPR) on 22 May 2024, underscores a concerning trend: a surge in terrorist activities originating from Afghanistan. While the ISPR statement doesn’t explicitly name the perpetrators, the most likely suspects are the Tehrik-e-Taliban Pakistan (TTP) and its affiliates, the Jamaat-ul-Ahrar (JuA). Both groups have a long history of carrying out violent attacks against Pakistani security forces and civilians in their quest, to establish an Islamic emirate in Pakistan.

While the Taliban have pledged to prevent Afghan soil from being used for terrorism against other countries, concerns remain high regarding their allegiance to the TTP. A United Nations’ report released in October 2023 stated that the Taliban leadership “generally sympathizes” with the TTP. The report also highlighted the presence of TTP training camps in Afghanistan and the movement of TTP fighters across the border with Taliban’s tacit approval. DG ISPR in his presser on May 7th, 2024, signified the concerns about a resurgent TTP launching attack from Afghanistan and the challenges of managing millions of Afghan refugees while prioritizing internal security. 

Pakistan faces a resurgent TTP threat stemming from TTP sanctuaries in Afghanistan. Pakistan witnessed another year of an unprecedented surge in militant attacks as the country saw a staggering 70 percent rise in attacks, an 81 percent increase in resultant deaths, and a 62 percent surge in the number of wounded individually. According to the Pakistan Institute for Conflict and Security Studies (PICSS) database, the year 2023 witnessed at least 645 militant attacks across the country in which 976 people were killed and 1354 injured. The year 2022 had witnessed 380 militant attacks resulting in 539 deaths and 836 injuries. The situation could have been even worse if Pakistani security forces had not foiled hundreds of attacks and attempts during the year. The threat isn’t just about numbers. The nature of attacks has also become more brazen, with suicide bombings targeting civilians and security installations becoming increasingly common. 

The ongoing fight against cross-border terrorism in Zhob has come at a heavy price. In addition to other areas along the Pakistan-Afghanistan border, Security Forces have been conducting operations in the general area of Sambaza in Zhob of Balochistan, since 21 April 24. As a result of effective engagements, 29 terrorists have been successfully neutralized by the Security Forces in the past month. In the same series of operations, during an intelligence-based operation on 14 May 2024, Maj Babar Khan also embraced Shahadat, while fighting gallantly. His sacrifice, and the sacrifices of countless other Pakistani security personnel who patrol this challenging border, underscore the constant dangers they face in the line of duty.

Securing the Pak-Afghan border requires a multi-faceted approach that goes beyond simply bolstering security measures. Addressing the root causes of terrorism, such as poverty, lack of education, and a sense of alienation among some communities in the border regions, remains crucial. Investing in development projects, improving basic infrastructure, and fostering economic opportunities in these areas can help stem the tide of radicalization and create a more stable environment.

The international community also has a responsibility to support Pakistan’s efforts to strengthen border security and tackle terrorism. This involves providing financial and technical assistance for border control initiatives and counter-terrorism programs. Furthermore, ensuring that Afghanistan does not become a haven for terrorist groups once again is vital for long-term regional security.

The situation in Zhob reflects the complex and evolving security challenges faced by Pakistan. While the recent operations by Pakistani security forces have yielded results, the porous border and the Taliban’s relationship with TTP remain to be a high concern. A multi-pronged approach that combines enhanced security measures, regional cooperation, addressing the root causes of extremism, and international support will remain necessary to transform this fragile frontier from a festering wound into a more secure and peaceful region.

The word Armageddon is the Hebrew Har Meghiddo, meaning “Mountain of Megiddo ”. Har Magheddon, which is 80 miles north of Jerusalem, is the symbol of a major battle in which, when the need is greatest and the believers are most oppressed, God reveals His power to His distressed people and their evil enemies are destroyed. 

Millions of religious people think that the road to Armageddon was started by the Hamas October 7 massacre, when 3,000 Hamas terrorists burst across the border into Israel killing some 1,200 people and seizing 250 hostages of all ages.

Armageddon is a warning that people in the Middle East need to change to avoid Armageddon.

Gaza peace activist Ahmed Fouad Alkhatib has embarked on a one-man social media campaign to draw attention to the human plight of the majority of Gazans who are not involved with terror, and call for mutual recognition between Palestinians and Israelis in the hope that the two peoples will someday be able to share the same land in peace. He has published editorials in Haaretz, the Wall Street Journal, and The Forward, among others, and has laid out his vision for peace in his blog with The Times of Israel. His dovish advocacy efforts, has gained him a following of over 33,000 on X.

“There’s a reason why the Palestinians have no state 75 years after the establishment of Israel,” he said. “It’s their awful leadership that goes back to the pan-Arabism of the Nasser days, and that has adopted different ideologies – the secular PLO [Palestine Liberation Organization], the Marxist PFLP [Popular Front for the Liberation of Palestine], or Islamist Hamas – to sell different versions of the same narrative: We’re going to liberate all of Palestine.” Realists say this will never happen.

In Arabic, the word Jihad is a noun meaning the activity of “striving and/or persevering.” According to Prophet Muhammad there are two types of Jihad: minor and major. Once when Muslims were returning from a military expedition, which for Prophet Muhammad was a minor jihad. He said to the fighters that now they had to go through the major jihad. When Prophet Muhammad was asked what he meant by major jihad, he said it was the spiritual jihad. 

On another occasion, Prophet Muhammad said the real mujahid is the one who declares jihad against his/her carnal soul. (Tirmidhi). Exercising self-control and using willpower and reason to overcome one’s anger is described by Prophet Muhammad as “the major jihad.” Overcoming our own feelings of hatred, revenge and anger is much more difficult than overcoming our enemies.

In today’s world of fanaticism and extremism the words of Al-Ghazali, a 12th century Persian Muslim theologian, need to be repeated by all the world’s religious and political leaders: “Declare your jihad on thirteen enemies you cannot see – Egoism, Arrogance, Conceit, Selfishness, Greed, Lust, Intolerance, Anger, Lying, Cheating, Gossiping and Slandering. If you can master and destroy them, then you will be ready to fight the enemy you can see.”

Congresswoman Rashida Tlaib says, “From the river to the sea is an aspirational call for freedom, human rights, and peaceful coexistence, not death, destruction, or hate.” I say we can make it truly aspirational by making it focus on both suffering peoples first; and the homeland second. “From the river to the sea, Palestinians and Israelis should be freed, from hatred and suffering, by ‘a two state for two peoples sharing of the land peacefully’ solution.”

As the French philosopher Bernard-Henri Levy said: “Hamas must be dismantled for Israel’s future, but also for the future of the Palestinians. Israel and the Palestinians must be liberated from Hamas. The world needs a Hamas-free space – from the river to the sea.”

There is some good news from Gaza. A group of highly respected academics and public health officials who authored a working paper on the amount of food entering the Gaza Strip during the war concluded that the supply from January through April was sufficient for the population’s daily energy and protein needs. Food delivered through crossings ‘provided for a mean of 3,163 calories per person per day’ for Gazans, 40% higher than the accepted humanitarian standard for daily calorie intake.

This significantly exceeds the widely accepted standard of 2,100 calories per person, per day established by the Sphere humanitarian organization, for the minimum amount of food aid required in response to a crisis.

The authors also found that the amount of food entering Gaza was “significantly greater” in the January-April period under review than in the pre-October 7 period.

Although it might seem impossible now, I do believe that within a decade or two Muslims will visit Jerusalem and pray together with Jews as Prophet Zechariah predicts: “Then everyone who survives from all the nations that came against Jerusalem shall go up year after year to worship the King, the LORD of hosts, and to celebrate the Feast of Booths.” (Zechariah 14:16)

For more than eight decades political nationalist leaders in Israel and Palestine have failed to find a way to end the conflict between their two peoples. Perhaps it is time for religious leaders who understand the religious importance of repentance, humility, forgiveness, compromise and hope for peace in overcoming more than seven decades of pain and anger. 

As the Qur’an states: “Perhaps Allah will put, between you and those to whom you have been enemies among them, affection. And Allah is competent, and Allah is Forgiving and Merciful.”  (60:7) Then the words of the Qur’an will be full-filled “From the depths of Darkness into the Light; for Allah is very kind and merciful to you.” (Qur’an 57:9)

Dr. Mohamed Chtatou, a Professor at a university in Rabat, Morocco writes: “After the current (Hamas-Israel) war, Israel’s ultra-nationalist coalition will undoubtedly be undermined by public opinion, and probably by a commission of inquiry. If the Palestinian Authority were to agree to take over Gaza – backed by the international reconstruction aid that would inevitably arrive – and if a centrist coalition government were to emerge in Israel, everything would once again be possible. Two difficult “ifs”? Perhaps, but there is no serious alternative.” 

The Qur’an refers to Prophet Abraham as a community or a nation: “Abraham was a nation-community [Ummah]; dutiful to God, a monotheist [hanif], not one of the polytheists.” (16:120) 

If Prophet Abraham is an Ummah; then fighting between the descendants of Prophets Ishmael and Isaac is a civil war and should always be avoided. 

Prior to the 20th century Arabs and Jews almost never make war with each other. Even the surprise attack by Egypt and Syria of the Yom Kippur War was followed six years later by a Peace Treaty between Egypt and Israel. Could the same process follow the weakening of Hamas?

Prophet Muhammad said: “Should I not tell you what is better in degree than prayer, fasting, and charity.” They (the companions) said: “Yes.” He said: “Reconciling people, because grudges and disputes are a razor (that shaves off faith).” (Ahmad, Abu Dawood, and At-Tirmithi)

This is an excellent guide to dealing with the three-generation old Israeli-Palestinian conflict. Rather than focusing mostly on what the other side did to us, we all should focus on how the conflict has hurt all of us, and how much better our future would be if we could live next to each other in peace. 

If the descendants of Prophet Isaac and Prophet Ishmael negotiate a settlement that reflects the religious policy that “…there is no sin upon them if they make terms of settlement between them – and settlement [reconciliation and peace] is best.” (Quran 4:128)  

The Nakba (catastrophe), the displacement of Palestinians during the 1948 establishment of the State of Israel and the War of Independence, could have been totally avoided if the Palestinian leadership had accepted the UN two state solution. 

Indeed, if the Palestinian leadership had accepted the British 1937 two state solution; millions of Jews would have been able to escape the Holocaust (catastrophe). Hopefully, the Palestinians will not make this all or nothing mistake again.

If we all can live up to the ideal of following the will of God we will help fulfill the 2700 year old vision of Prophet Isaiah: “On that day there will be a highway from Egypt to Assyria. The Assyrians will go to Egypt, and the Egyptians to Assyria. The Egyptians and Assyrians will worship together. On that day Israel  will join a three-party alliance with Egypt and Assyria, a blessing upon the heart. The LORD of Hosts will bless them saying, “Blessed be Egypt My people, Assyria My handiwork, and Israel My inheritance.”…(Isaiah 19:23-5)

US-Supplied Glide Bombs in Ukraine Keep Missing, Russia Jamming Them  Business Insider

After northern distraction, Russia steps up attacks on Ukraine’s east | Russia-Ukraine war News  Al Jazeera English

Zelenskyy urges Ukraine’s partners to make decision on “preventive” killing of terrorists  Ukrainska Pravda

Brazil, China call for Russia-Ukraine peace talks with both countries  SRN News

Ukraine says it foiled a Russian spy agency plot to assassinate President Zelensky  Los Angeles Times

1. Ex-CIA officer accused of spying for China pleads guilty in a Honolulu courtroom  POLITICO
2. Ex-CIA officer accused of spying for China pleads guilty in a Honolulu courtroom  NBC News
3. Former CIA officer pleads guilty to spying for China, DOJ says  CNN

German military officer says nuclear fears led him to spy for Russia  Yahoo! Voices

Speaking of “horseshoe theory” Biden could stand in the middle of Fifth Avenue and shoot 40,000 Palestinians, and wouldn’t lose your vote. https://t.co/lSjTnwzYwd

— Matt Lieb?? (@mattlieb) May 26, 2024