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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Nursery for Jihad<br />
station in East London, was the eldest son of Mohammed Mumtaz<br />
Tanweer, who had migrated to England in the 1960s. He grew up<br />
in the Beeston area of Leeds, but remained connected with <strong><strong>Pak</strong>istan</strong><br />
through his extended family members who lived in a farming village<br />
in Faisalabad district. 23 In December 2004, Shehzad went to Manzoor<br />
ul <strong>Islam</strong>ia madrasa in Lahore, which was linked with JeM. He intended<br />
to stay there for nine months of religious education, but left just a<br />
week later. 24 <strong>The</strong>re are strong suspicions that Shehzad might have met<br />
the mastermind of the London bombings during his brief stay there.<br />
<strong>The</strong> suspected <strong><strong>Pak</strong>istan</strong>i connection to the 7/7 attacks brought<br />
Musharraf under a renewed pressure to act against militant madrasas.<br />
As in the past, he responded this time by ordering a nationwide<br />
crackdown on <strong>Islam</strong>ic extremist groups. <strong>The</strong> police again stormed a<br />
number of madrasas and arrested hundreds of suspected extremists.<br />
But the entire operation appeared merely superficial; most of them<br />
were released after a few weeks.<br />
In his new role as a key ally in the US-led war on terror, Musharraf<br />
toned down many policies that had previously fostered militancy and<br />
religious extremism. But most of the measures, particularly against<br />
the home-grown jihadists, were taken under external pressure and<br />
lacked conviction. Very little was done to rein in the militant madrasas,<br />
despite their continuing involvement in jihadist politics. While talk<br />
about reform went on, fresh batches of volunteers ready to confront<br />
what they perceived as enemies of their faith continued to graduate<br />
from madrasas.<br />
Even after the ousting of the Taliban regime, many madrasas in<br />
parts of Balochistan continued to preach jihad to Afghan students. A<br />
major part of Musharraf’s anti-extremism drive was to regulate and<br />
transform those madrasas whose role in promoting jihad had come<br />
under increasing international scrutiny. <strong>The</strong> move was stalled because<br />
of the administration’s failure to stop their funding from <strong><strong>Pak</strong>istan</strong>is<br />
working abroad, as well as from foreign Muslim charities. <strong>The</strong> biggest<br />
source of financing for madrasas was external – from Muslim countries<br />
as well as private donors and <strong><strong>Pak</strong>istan</strong>i expatriates. A report by the<br />
Brussels-based International Crisis Group (ICG) revealed that <strong><strong>Pak</strong>istan</strong>i<br />
madrasas and religious centres had received more than 90 billion<br />
rupees ($1.5 billion) every year through charitable donations. <strong>The</strong><br />
amount was almost equal to the government’s annual direct income<br />
tax revenue. 25 Most of the madrasas, which had in the past received<br />
government funding, now relied solely on private charity. Ninety-four