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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Inside Jihad<br />
attracting an increasing number of volunteers from <strong><strong>Pak</strong>istan</strong>’s southern<br />
provinces of Sindh and Balochistan where Wahabi influence had<br />
increased. Muslims from other countries, including Britain, had also<br />
joined LeT. Shamshur Rehman, an Afghan, was the chief commander<br />
of LeT when he was killed in Badgam district in Kashmir in May 1995<br />
in an encounter with Indian security forces. 21 Several foreign militants<br />
were believed to have received training at LeT camps in <strong><strong>Pak</strong>istan</strong>.<br />
Among them were Guantanamo Bay inmates David Hicks and French<br />
terrorist suspect Willie Brigitte, who were accused of planning attacks<br />
in Australia. 22<br />
LeT gave a new and more violent dimension to the Kashmiri<br />
struggle by launching Fidayin raids against Indian forces and military<br />
installations. <strong>The</strong> term ‘Fidayin attack’ was used by the LeT leadership<br />
for target operations well inside the Indian military bases. 23 ‘A Fidayin is<br />
one who must complete his mission even in the worst circumstances,’<br />
explained Abdullah Muntazir, an LeT spokesman. He insisted that the<br />
concept of Fidayin was different from that of a suicide bomber, who<br />
blew himself up to kill others. ’We consider suicide attacks un-<strong>Islam</strong>ic.<br />
Many Fidayin come back alive after completion of their missions,’ said<br />
Muntazir. <strong>The</strong> Fidayin attacks had brought an unprecedented ferocity<br />
to the Kashmir jihad.<br />
A Fidayin is chosen from among the best and most courageous<br />
fighters and not every guerrilla meets the tough criteria. An otherworldly<br />
level of devotion to the cause is required, as I discovered<br />
when I met a Fidayin recently returned from his mission. His thin<br />
frame, gentle eyes and polite manners gave not the slightest indication<br />
of his being a guerrilla fighter. <strong>The</strong> young bearded militant, who used<br />
the nom de guerre of Abu Ukrema, had just returned from Kashmir<br />
when I met him at the LeT headquarters in Lahore in January 2001.<br />
Abu Ukrema walked with a limp because of a bullet wound, received<br />
during an encounter with the Indian troops. ‘I will return to the<br />
fighting as soon as the bullet is removed and the wounds are healed,’<br />
he told me. ‘It is my desire to become a martyr.’ His face lit up as he<br />
narrated how he and his fellow guerrillas had destroyed an Indian<br />
army post after a fierce gun battle which lasted several hours and left<br />
many soldiers dead.<br />
Martyrdom is not mourned as it is considered to be the sole<br />
guarantee of entry to paradise. LeT local officials visit the house of the<br />
martyr to offer congratulations to the family. Sweets are distributed to<br />
celebrate the death. <strong>The</strong> occasion is also used to solicit new recruits.