Markaz Dawa al Irshad: Talibanisation
of nuclear Pakistan (contd.)
by B.Raman
Thereafter, Bin Laden invited a
group of Peshawar-based Pakistani journalists to Khost in Afghanistan for
a press conference. Addressing them, he announced that he had set up an
International Islamic Front For Jihad Against the US And Israel. He
claimed that Dr.Aiman al-Zawahiri, leader of the Jamatul Jihad of Egypt,
who was present at the press conference, had played a crucial role in
forming the Front and that leaders of Islamic movements in several
countries, including Pakistan, had evinced interest in joining the Front.
Bin Laden, who was accompanied by
Sheikh Taiseer Abdullah, who was introduced as his right-hand man, alleged
that Muslims all over the world were suffering at the hands of the US and
Israel and called upon them to wage a holy war not only against the US and
Israel, but also against unpopular regimes backed by the US in order to
protect their faith.He contended that the US was vulnerable and could be
defeated in the same way as the USSR was defeated in Afghanistan leading
to its (the USSR’s) dismemberment.
He recalled how the US was forced to
withdraw its troops from Somalia and Aden after suffering casualties at
the hands of Muslim fighters trained in Afghanistan and claimed that the
killing of * 26 Americans in Saudi Arabia and the growing opposition of
the Gulf people to the Western presence compelled the US Government to
consider similarly withdrawing its troops from Saudi Arabia. * He added:
"We are not alone in waging a struggle against the Americans and the
Israelis. The Muslims have woken up and a large number of our Ulema and
scholars are now speaking out against those who hate and harm Islam. The
Americans can take away our resources or rule us by proxy, but they cannot
stop Allah’s blessings and support for us. Infidel soldiers of the US
and other Western countries are deployed in a country in which our holy
places are located. This is the first time after prophethood was bestowed
on our Holy Prophet that infidels are in control of this holy land. The
Holy Prophet himself had said that "Mushriqeen" must be removed
from our holy places."
Bin Laden alleged that 10,000
mujahideen had been jailed in Saudi Arabia and that, recently, 820 Islamic
activists were arrested in Mecca and highly sophisticated weapons,
including a Stinger missile and other surface-to-air missiles, were
recovered from them. According to him, these weapons were supposed to be
used against the foreign troops based in Saudi Arabia.
He said that Mullah Omar, the
supreme leader of the Taliban, had no objection to his political
activities. Mullah Omar had only asked him not to indulge in military
activities from Afghan territory.
Mr.Wakeel Ahmed Mutawakil , the
Taliban spokesman, stated the same day that Mr.Richardson had failed to
convince the Taliban that Bin Laden was involved in terrorism. He added
that Bin Laden had been given asylum by the previous Afghan Government
because of his contribution to the Afghan jihad and that he was presently
a guest of the Taliban.
The activities of Osman Bin Laden
and his announcement of an International Islamic Front For Jihad against
the US and Israel assume ominous significance in the context of his past
and continuing links with the Markaz Dawa Al Irshad (the Centre For
Preaching ) of Pakistan and the Lashkar-e-Toiba (the Army of the Pure),
its militant wing. The Markaz and the Lashkar have been involved in acts
of terrorism , not only in J & K, but also in other parts of India.
The Markaz was founded in 1987, at
the inspiration of Osman Bin Laden, by Zafar Iqbal and Hafiz Mohammad
Saeed of the University of Engineering and Technology of Lahore and
Abdullah Azam of the International Islamic University, which has been
funded by Bin Laden. Abdullah Azam was killed in an explosion at Peshawar
in 1989 and, after his death, Zafar Iqbal and Hafiz Mohammad Saeed have
been leading the Markaz while continuing to teach at the University.
The headquarters of the Markaz,
occupying over 190 acres of land, are located at Muridke, about 45 kms
from Lahore in Pakistani Punjab. Its vast campus contains a huge Jamia
mosque for the construction of which Bin Laden had reportedly contributed
Rs.10 million, a garments factory, an iron foundry, a wood works factory,
a swimming pool and three residential colonies for the inmates. A big
Islamic University is also coming up.
The "Herald", the monthly
journal of the prestigious "Dawn" group of publications of
Karachi, reported as follows in January,1998: "While the Dawa is
involved in various areas, including religious education and social
welfare, it is mainly through its militant wing that it is well known
throughout the country. The Lashkar-e-Toiba provides military training to
its members and prepares them to wage jihad. Although the Lashkar was
initially involved in Afghanistan as well, its activities are now
restricted to Indian Kashmir. Today, it is Pakistan’s largest so-called
jihadi organisation."
It quoted an office-bearer of the
Lashkar as stating as follows: " There are many other jihadi groups
operating inside Kashmir, but their members are mainly local men (Kashmiris),
assisted by fighters from other countries, such as Pakistan and
Afghanistan. Eighty per cent of the Mujahideen in other jihadi groups
operating in Kashmir come from that area, but the case with the Lashkar is
exactly the opposite. Eighty per cent of its soldiers belong to
Pakistan."
The "Herald" adds: "
The Lashkar prefers not to reveal the exact number of men it has currently
deployed in Kashmir.The Amir ( Hafiz Mohammad Saeed) decides how many
Mujahideens should be sent to the (Kashmir) Valley. The decision depends
on the number of deaths that have taken place. It also depends on the
requirement and capacity of the organisation inside Kashmir to absorb the
new fighters. What is known, however, is that the Lashkar recruits and
trains many more men than it actually requires to fight in Kashmir at any
given time.
" Compared to other similar
organisations, the Lashkar has proved to be a resounding success. Since
its inception, it has managed to attract thousands of committed young men
to its fold. The driving force behind its massive success in recruitment
is deceptively simple. It uses its impressive organisational network,
which includes schools, social service groups and religious publications,
to create a passion for jihad."
According to the "Herald",
the Lashkar organises two kinds of military training – a 21-day basic
course called "Daura Aam" and a three-months advanced course
called "Daura Khas". The entire advanced course is geared
towards guerilla warfare, with training in the use of arms and ammunition,
ambush and survival techniques. Other Pakistani press reports after the
arrest of Ramzi Yousef had also revealed that in the past some volunteers
were also trained in aircraft-hijacking.
The Markaz and the Lashkar are
extremely secretive organisations and take great care to conceal the real
identities of their office-bearers except the Amir and their fighters. For
this purpose, they emulate the Palestinian organisations in the use of
"Kuniat", which are Arabic pseudonyms adopted from the "Kuniats"
of the Companions of the Prophet and later Islamic heroes.
Whereas in the Palestinian
organisations, the "Kuniats" die with the holder and the same
"Kuniat" is not allotted to any other fighter, in the Markaz and
the Lashkar, the "Kuniat" does not die with the holder. The same
"Kuniat" is allotted to another fighter. It is not unusual to
come across two individuals with the same or similar "Kuniats".
Past reports on the activities of
the Markaz and the Lashkar had referred to two heroes of the organisation
who had reportedly played a legendary role in assisting the Bosnian
Muslims in their fight against the Serbs. One of them used to be referred
to as Abu Aziz and the other as Abu Abdul Aziz.
Abu Abdul Aziz, who is suspected to
be none other than Osman Bin Laden, is a leading financier of the Markaz
and the Lashkar and had contributed Rs.10 million for the construction of
a mosque and another sum for the construction of a special guest house
inside the Muridke complex of these organisations. This guest house was
initially built by Bin Laden as a house for his stay during his visits to
Pakistan, but, after 1992, the Pakistani authorities do not allow him to
stay in Pakistani territory for fear of annoying the US,Saudi Arabia and
Egypt. He has, therefore, converted it into a guest house for his
associates from Saudi Arabia and elsewhere visiting Pakistan. It is
reported that this guest house was also used as a hide-out for Ramzi
Yousef and Mir Aimal Kansi,a Pathan from Balochistan, who was arrested and
taken to the US last year and subsequently convicted and sentenced to
death for murdering two CIA officers outside the CIA’s headquarters in
Washington in January,1993.
While Osman Bin Laden, also known as
Abu Abdul Aziz, no longer attends the annual gatherings of the Markaz and
the Lashkar at Muridke, he addresses them over the conference phone. Till
1995, he used to address from his hide-out in the Sudan and ,since 1996,
he has been doing so from Afghanistan. Addressing the last annual
conference at Muridke in November,1997, over phone from Kandahar, Bin
Laden said: " Those who oppose jihad are not true Muslims."
There is some confusion about the
real identity of Abu Aziz. He used to attend the annual conferences at
Muridke till 1993 and was introduced to the gatherings as a Saudi Muslim
of Indian origin who was co-ordinating the flow of assistance to the
Bosnian Muslims. He has not been heard of since then. It needs to be
checked up whether Bin Laden’s parents or other ancestors had, by any
chance, migrated to Yemen from India before proceeding from there to Saudi
Arabia. If this was so, there could be a possibility that Abu Abdul Aziz
and Abu Aziz are one and the same person—Osman Bin Laden.
There are some distinguishing
characteristics about the operational methods of the Lashkar militants.
They do not shave or have a hair- cut and allow their beard and hair to
grow long and are taught to employ extremely cruel methods such as
beheading and disembowelling their victims from the security forces and
non-Muslim communities. Like fighters of many other jihadi organisations,
they generally wear shalwars which do not cover the ankle.
As regards ideology, the Markaz, an
Ahle Hadith organisation of Wahabi orientation, was initially very close
to Saudi Arabia, but seems to have developed differences with it because
of its proximity to Osman Bin Laden and of its contention that even Saudi
Arabia does not have an ideal Islamic society. Its criticism of the
stationing of US and other Western troops in Saudi Arabia also contributed
to this. It describes the Hindus and Jews, in that order, as the main
enemies of Islam and India and Israel as the main enemies of Pakistan. Its
Amir is a strong opponent of Western-style democracy.
The Amir said in an interview to the
"Herald": "Democracy is among the menaces we inherited from
an alien government. It is part of the system we are fighting against.
Many of our brothers feel that they can establish an Islamic society by
working within the system. They are mistaken. It is not possible to work
within a democracy and establish an Islamic system. You just dirty your
hands by dealing with it. If God gives us a chance, we will try to bring
in the pure concept of an Islamic Caliphate."
The "News" of Pakistan
(November 23,1997) reported as follows on the ideology and beliefs of the
Markaz Amir as reflected during its annual conference of November,1997:
"The Markaz is trying to take advantage of the growing public
discontent with the political system and widespread corruption. Using
explicit references to the hardline Taliban in Afghanistan, it is making
growing references to ending the democratic system in Pakistan. Prof.Saeed
calls for a jihad to turn Pakistan into a pure Islamic state.
" He rejects democracy saying
that "the notion of the sovereignty of the people is anti-Islamic.
Only Allah is sovereign." The whole venue of the congregation was
full of signboards with the slogan "Jamhooriat ka jawab, grenade and
blast (the answer to democracy, grenade and blast)". Saeed was
categorical in saying that his organisation had no immediate designs in
Pakistan, even though the present system in Pakistan was not Islamic.
"He stated: "In fact,
there is no Islamic government in the world. Not even in Saudi Arabia,
where the system is closer to Islamic teaching, but still not fully
Islamic." He expressed his happiness over the success of the Taliban
in Afghanistan.
"He said his organisation’s
main interest in Pakistan was to pick people and train them to wage jihad
in countries where an unislamic government was in power."
The paper quoted him as saying as
follows: "God has ordained every Muslim to fight until His rule is
established. We have no option but to follow God’s order. We continue to
support other Islamic organisations in the world. This is a very long
battle."
The paper concluded as follows:
" The thumping success of the Muridke gathering took the government
and the intelligence agencies by surprise…..Observers say the failure of
the political government and growing poverty have turned Pakistan into a
breeding ground of organisations carrying out jihad in various countries.
Most intelligence officers interviewed by the daily view the unchecked
military training of youngsters in the name of launching a jihad outside
Pakistan as the most serious threat to the integrity and security of the
country in the very near future."
Even though the Pakistani
authorities are concerned over the impact of the organisation on Pakistani
youth which could, in the long run, lead to the Talibanisation of Pakistan
with a Pakistani version of the Taliban possibly getting its finger on the
nuclear trigger, they continue to use the Markaz and the Harkat-ul-Ansar,
categorised as a terrorist organisation by the US last year, in their
proxy war against India and leaders like Mr.Mushahid Hussain, Prime
Minister Nawaz Sharif’s Information Minister, continue to openly flirt
with the organisation and bless its activities against India.
When the Markaz was started in 1987,
it had a two-fold objective: to assist the Afghan Mujahideen and to rid
Islam in Pakistan of what it projected as the corrupting influence of
Hinduism. It continues to wage a sustained campaign against what it sees
as the evil influence of sufism and Kashmiriyat. As it looks upon
Kashmiriyat as the expression of the evil Hindu mind, many of its
operations in J & K are directed against the Hindus.
Unlike the Kashmiri extremist
organisations which describe their aim as the right of self-determination
for the Kashmiris, the Markaz describes its objective as the liberation of
the Muslims of J & K from the control and influence of the Hindus
followed by the liberation of the Muslims of the rest of India. It
describes Kashmir as the gateway to India and calls for the creation of
three Pakistans or Muslim homelands—with Pakistan and J & K
constituting one, the Muslims of North India forming the second and the
Muslims of South India, the third.
Addressing the Lahore Press Club on
February 18,1996,Amir Saeed said: "The jihad in Kashmir would soon
spread to entire India. Our Mujahideen would create three Pakistans in
India."
In an interview to the "Takbeer"
of Pakistan (October 9,1997), he said: " We feel that Kashmir should
be liberated at the earliest. Thereafter, Indian Muslims should be aroused
to rise in revolt against the Indian Union so that India gets
disintegrated."
Amongst other leading office-bearers
of the Markaz are Yusuf Taibi, who is in charge of external relations, and
Amir Hamza, Editor of its journal called " Majla Al Dawa", which
claims to have a circulation of 70,000 ( Rs.12 per copy). The Markaz
describes photo cameras, TV sets and movie films as unIslamic. It carries
out periodic campaigns for the destruction in public of cameras and TV
sets and appeals to the public not to see films.
The Inter-Services Intelligence (ISI)
of Pakistan and the CIA made full use of the Markaz against the Soviet
troops in Afghanistan. After the withdrawal of the Soviet troops, the CIA
cut off its links with the organisation, but the ISI has been continuing
to use it to instigate acts of terrorism not only in Kashmir, but also in
other parts of India. The Markaz’s objective of radicalising sections of
the Muslim community in North and South India and setting them up against
the Hindus and the Union of India suits the operational aims of the ISI.
At the same time, the Pakistani
authorities have been concerned over the Markaz’s links with Osman Bin
Laden and other anti-monarchy Saudi dissidents. Their discomfiture is
likely to increase with the announcement by Bin Laden of the formation of
an International Islamic Front against the US and Israel.
The threat posed to regional peace
and stability by the Markaz and the Lashkar needs to be adequately
highlighted in international fora .
26-7-98
(Former Additional
Secretary,Cabinet Secretariat and presently Director, Institute for
Topical Studies)
