[ALOCHONA] Lessons from Pakistan on how the Bangladesh Government should have responded to

There are many similarities in the terrorist attack on the police training academy in Pakistan and the BDR mutiny in Dhaka. Apparently there were 14-25 gunmen who entered the training compound and opened fire on cadets and police officers who were taken completely by surprise. The gunmen were heavily armed and committed to their task and their objective was to kill as many people as possible. The similarity between this attack in Pakistan and the BDR mutiny, however, ends there. The manner in which the Pakistan security forces promptly dealt with the threat was both efficient and utterly ruthless. The following is a short description of what happened –

"Black-clad Pakistani commandos overpowered a group of militants who had seized a police academy, took cadets hostage and killed at least six of them Monday in a dramatic challenge to the civilian government that faces U.S. pressure to defeat Islamic extremists.

The security forces stormed the compound on the outskirts of Lahore to end the eight-hour siege by the grenade-throwing gunmen, with three militants blowing themselves up and authorities arresting four, officials said. At least three other unidentified bodies were recovered." (AP - 12 die in bloody siege at Pakistan police academy (March 31, 2009)

If a bunch of commandos could achieve this in circumstances very similar to what occurred in Pilkhana then imagine the effect 2 dozen tanks and 6000 army soldiers would have had on the morale of the BDR mutineers. When the Bangladesh armed forces were not permitted to do what they were trained to do the mutineers gained confidence and commenced on their killing spree (as the photos now appearing on the internet from the very start of the mutiny seems to suggest). In light of the Pakistan security services response to the police academy terrorist attack and the outcome there it clearly puts the claims by the Bangladesh government that more lives would have been put at risk had a more aggressive posture been taken by the armed forces seems doubtful and extremely suspicious. (What the AL government is now doing in the name of investigations into the Pilkhana massacre can only be described as political repression and victimization of opposition party members and this may also eventually include anyone else critical of this administration.)

 

Another interesting aside to the Pakistan incident is the criticisms made of the Zardari government by Ahmed Quraishi which is also equally relevant to the Hasina government and the official statements being made on the BDR mutiny by some high-profile ministers - 

Is Rehman Malik Blaming ISI For Lahore Attack?

Ahmed Quraishi

ISLAMABAD, Pakistan—A second Mumbai-style attack in Lahore in less than a month, both targeting Lahore, a city that has traditionally bore the brunt of Indian-inspired terrorism inside Pakistan.

The level of training of these people and the choice of targets leaves little doubt that someone is trying to teach Pakistan a lesson. It is baffling to see Interior Advisor Rehman Malik so eager to quickly pin the blame on groups such as Lashkar Tayyeba or Lashkar Jhangvi that were active in the Kashmir freedom struggle in the past and are dormant now. Accusing these groups is an indirect swipe at the Pakistani security and intelligence agencies that implemented State policy in the past of supporting the freedom fighters inside the disputed territory with India.

Why is Mr. Malik not willing to consider the possibilty of Indian involvement? Is he afraid of upsetting the Brits or the Americans? He knows more than anyone else that we have conclusive evidence of Indian involvement in terrorism in Balochistan and the tribal belt. Unfortunately, Pakistani media projection is not as strong as the propaganda of the American and the British media that supresses these facts. Pakistan has shared this information at the highest levels with the Americans, who continue to protect the Indians in Afghanistan because of long term strategic interest.

Additionally, where are those local agents of Indian intelligence that were arrested from various Pakistani cities in the past few weeks and months near both the Indian and the Afghan borders? Why are we scared of bringing these people out? Please cut through the thick propaganda smokescreen of the biased Anglo-American media and let the world and the peaceful Indian public opinion also know about the activities of their security agencies.

There is no question that terrorists involved in the attack will eventually turn out to be Pakistanis. No foreign-induced covert terrorist operation can succeed without local elements. The only country other than the United States that has an elaborate, Pakistan-focused intelligence setup in Afghanistan is India. The Indians are actively using the chaos in Afghanistan to create a wedge between the U.S. and Pakistan by indirectly supporting terrorist elements. This is one level of the covert war in the region. The second element is the suspicion that the U.S. is supporting the insurgencies inside Pakistan either directly or through the Indians and possibly other players.

Since we are unable to make our concerns heard throughout the world because of the bias and the choking grip of the American and British media, the only other way to highlight the nefarious and terrorism-abetting activities of Indian security and intelligence agencies is by cutting off rail, air, and road links with India, including denying Indian airlines the right to use Pakistan airspace and denying Indian overland trade to Central Asia pending the investigations and a review by Pakistan of Indian activities inside and around Pakistan.

This is also the time to neutralize elements in the Pakistani government such as President Zardari and Mr. Rehman Malik whose assets, lives and apparently loyalties lie outside Pakistan. Democracy cannot be allowed to become a trojan horse for foreign powers to meddle in Pakistan.

Take action on India, Mr. Malik.

http://pakistankakhudahafiz.wordpress.com/2009/03/30/is-rehman-malik-blaming-isi-for-lahore-attack/

 

    

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