Frontline Pakistan : The Struggle With Militant Islam - Arz-e-Pak
Frontline Pakistan : The Struggle With Militant Islam - Arz-e-Pak
Frontline Pakistan : The Struggle With Militant Islam - Arz-e-Pak
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11 <strong>Frontline</strong> <strong><strong>Pak</strong>istan</strong><br />
Major-General-Khalid Mahmood told them. ‘So, you have to stop all<br />
cross-border operations.’ Several of the guerrilla commanders leapt<br />
to their feet, shouting that <strong><strong>Pak</strong>istan</strong> should not surrender to Indian<br />
and American pressure. ‘After ditching the Taliban, Musharraf has now<br />
betrayed the Kashmiri cause,’ said a senior commander belonging<br />
to HuM, one of the largest <strong>Islam</strong>ic militant groups involved in the<br />
separatist war in Kashmir. ‘How can we accept this?’ <strong>The</strong> commanders<br />
were bitter and vengeful, and left the meeting declining the officer’s<br />
invitation to join him for lunch.<br />
This outburst of anger towards Musharraf and his policies appeared<br />
logical. Thousands of militants had perished fighting <strong><strong>Pak</strong>istan</strong>’s war<br />
in Kashmir. <strong>Islam</strong>ic militant leaders, who had depended for over a<br />
decade on the active support of <strong><strong>Pak</strong>istan</strong>’s army for their crossborder<br />
guerrilla actions, viewed <strong>Islam</strong>abad’s move as a betrayal of the<br />
Kashmiri freedom struggle. ‘We have lost so many friends, brothers and<br />
relatives in the Kashmir struggle. What was that for?’ asked Amiruddin,<br />
a veteran Kashmiri guerrilla fighter. He reflected the sentiments of<br />
thousands of jihadist cadres trained and armed by the <strong><strong>Pak</strong>istan</strong>i military<br />
establishment. ‘We are not going to sit quietly.’<br />
<strong>The</strong> orders came as hundreds of fresh guerrillas were waiting at<br />
their base camps in Azad Kashmir to cross the border. It was generally<br />
at that time of the year that infiltration took place. ‘<strong>The</strong> volunteers<br />
are becoming increasingly upset over the delay. <strong>The</strong>y have not been<br />
informed about <strong><strong>Pak</strong>istan</strong>’s ban,’ said the commander. He complained<br />
that the communication link between the guerrilla fighters inside Indian<br />
Kashmir and their base on the <strong><strong>Pak</strong>istan</strong>i side had been cut off and that<br />
training centres inside Azad Kashmir had been closed down. ‘Many of<br />
our colleagues are stuck across the border without reinforcements and<br />
supplies,’ he said.<br />
<strong><strong>Pak</strong>istan</strong>’s decision to withdraw support had caused a setback to<br />
the militancy, but did not bring it to an end. <strong>The</strong> militant infrastructure<br />
remained intact and outlawed groups continued working, either under<br />
new banners, or merged into others. Hundreds of <strong><strong>Pak</strong>istan</strong>i fighters<br />
who were inside Kashmir at that point had continued their jihad,<br />
ignoring <strong><strong>Pak</strong>istan</strong>’s policy shift. Most militant leaders hoped that the<br />
restrictions were temporary and still had faith in the army. ‘<strong>The</strong> army<br />
will always be our ally,’ a senior militant commander told me.<br />
Facing down the jihadists was not going to be an easy task for<br />
Musharraf. Since an indigenous insurrection against Indian domination<br />
broke out in Kashmir in 1989, some 10,000 fighters had crossed the