Saturday 8 July 2017


ANI

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Fighting Pakistan's dirty war in Kashmir Valley amid bad politics

Updated: Jun 26, 2017 10:37 IST       By: Col. Anil Bhat, VSM (Retd)


New Delhi [India], June 26 (ANI): The heinous abduction from a marriage ceremony in Kulgam town and killing of Lt. Umar Fayaz followed by the brutal massacre and mutilation of six Jammu and Kashmir policemen in Anantnag district and the barbaric lynching of Deputy Superintendent of Police Ayub Pandith by a mob outside Srinagar's Jama Masjid, mark an unprecedented high in the Pakistan-sponsored and supported proxy war and radicalisation of the Kashmir Valley.

Particularly Pandith's lynching by a mob only reinforces the fact that the separatists have sunk to their lowest in killing Kashmiriyat, which they claim to champion and expose them once again as vermin for the valley.

Further, the killings of the police personnel and Pandith in charge of Mirwaiz Omar Farooq's security detail being killing outside the Jama Masjid, where Mirwaiz was holding forth with his provocative discourse, both during Ramzan, only add to the utter dastardliness of the separatists-read dangerous traitors.

Finally, on 24 June 2017, youth addressed a large gathering condemning the killings of JK policemen and the separatists, but it still beats anyone's imagination as to why these traitors are still enjoying security and many other benefits at taxpayers' cost and why they have not been imprisoned in jails. Because frequent house arrests are a mockery as they do not prevent separatists from continuing their anti-national operations by telephone/ their network of foot soldiers.

Compared to 14 cease fire violations in J&K in 2016, there have been 193 violations in 2017, till 14 June. The breakdown is 8 in January, 13 in February, 22 in March, 29 in April, 87 in May and 34 till 14 June, when even half the year has not ended. Attacks in the J&K hinterland by Pak army/Inter Services Intelligence (ISI) trained and supported Pakistani and Kashmiri terrorists in 2017 have almost tripled in comparison with earlier years.

In Pakistan, Syed Salahuddin, the head of the Hizbul Mujahideen and United Jihad Council, in his mad-dog mode has reportedly threatened nuclear war against India over the Kashmir issue. Speaking to reporters in Karachi Salahuddin said there is a great chance of a nuclear war taking place between India and Pakistan over the Kashmir issue. "Pakistan is duty bound, morally bound, politically bound and constitutionally bound to provide concrete, substantial support to the ongoing freedom struggle on the territory of Kashmir.

And, if Pakistan provides this support, there is a great chance of a nuclear war between the two powers," he added.

He said three wars have already been fought between the two countries over the Kashmir issue, adding that he can predict a fourth war with certainty because Kashmiris are no longer willing to compromise under any circumstances. "Whether the world supports them or not; whether Pakistan stands by them or not; whether the United Nation performs its duty or not; they have taken a pledge to fight up to the last drop of their blood," he added.

After over 12 months of dealing with rioting mobs of Kashmiri youth of the five' infected' districts of Kashmir Valley-Anantnag, Baramula, Kulgam, Pulwama and Shopian-who have been attacking the Army and security forces with not merely stones, but also petrol bombs, acid and even in some cases firearms, what Army Chief General Bipin Rawat was constrained to state in an interview by PTI - that it's a dirty war that is being fought in Kashmir Valley- stands vindicated.

"This is a proxy war and proxy war is a dirty war. It is played in a dirty way. The rules of engagements are there when the adversary comes face-to-face and fights with you. It is a dirty war... That is where innovation comes in. You fight a dirty war with innovations..."People are throwing stones and even petrol bombs at us. If my men ask me what do we do, should I say, 'just wait and die? I will come with a nice coffin with a national flag and I will send your bodies home with honour'. Is it what I am supposed to tell them as Chief? I have to maintain the morale of my troops who are operating there," Gen Rawat said.

He wholeheartedly defended Major Leetul Gogoi for using a Kashmiri stone-pelter as a 'human shield' by, an action which has been praised / approved by many including Attorney-General Mukul Rohatgi, who did not mince his words when he stated in media: "The recent report about a stone pelter tied to an Army vehicle helped contain stone pelters and saved the poll officials". Gen Rawat said that as the Army chief, it was his duty to maintain the morale of the army personnel in Jammu and Kashmir and by awarding Major Gogoi he did exactly that.

"As Army Chief my concern is morale of the Army. I am far away from the battlefield. I cannot influence the situation there. I can only tell the boys that 'I am with you'. I always tell my people, things will go wrong, but if things have gone wrong and you did not have malafide intent, I am there," he said.

Referring to the complexity of the security challenges in Kashmir Valley he could not but help expressing, that if people in any country lose fear of the army, then the country is doomed.

"Adversaries must be afraid of you and at the same time your people must be afraid of you. We are a friendly army, but when we are called to restore law and order, people have to be afraid of us," he said and simultaneously asserted that maximum restraint is being maintained while handling the situation in the Valley.

General Rawat said there was a ploy to break the trust between various security forces, and Major Gogoi could not have refused to provide security when polling agents had sought security assistance.

"Tomorrow elections have to be held in Anantnag and similar things may happen. If the army does not respond to call for assistance, then the trust between the people whom we are protecting, police and army will break. "That is something I cannot allow to happen. This is what the militants want. It can create a divide between the army and other security forces," he said.

The army chief also wondered why not much noise was made when young army officer Lt Umar Fayaz was killed by militants when he was on leave.

Asked whether there should be a political initiative to reach out to the Kashmiri people, the Army Chief said it was for the government to decide, adding such initiatives were taken in the past as well.

"Has political initiative not been taken in the past? What was the result, you had Kargil...," he said.

On 13 June 2017 Army Chief met and complimented Kashmiri students trained by Army's Super-40 coaching initiative for the Engineering Entrance Examination. The results broke all previous records when 26 boys and two girls from the state cracked the IIT-JEE Mains Exam 2017. Nine students have successfully qualified the IIT Advanced Exam, the results of which were declared on 11 June 17. The coaching is conducted at Srinagar jointly by Army, Centre for Social Responsibility & Learning (CSRL) and Petronet LNG. This was also the first batch in which five girls from Kashmir valley were coached, out of which two qualified in the JEE Mains.

This exam and the response to many recruitment tests by the Army and JK police, where up to 1500 applicants have been showing up only goes to prove that there is a fair constituency of Kashmiri youth, who do not subscribe to radicalization and rioting but who want to get ahead in life within the Indian system.

However, the great irony is that while the proxy war by terror and radicalization perpetrated by Pakistan is dirty, not withdrawing the separatists' facilities, not putting them in jails allowing them to continue their deadly activities, while some Indian political leaders, apologists, peaceniks, pseudo-secularists, pseudo-human rights activists vilify the Army and the security forces and keep harping on talks with the separatists/traitors, only proves that the politics on this war is even dirtier.

Terrorists and their supporters are intimidating young Kashmiris wanting to join the Army, police or security forces. A video of one of them being tonsured was widely aired. Many J&K police personnels' homes have been raided by terrorists/their supporters to threaten them for discharging their duties.

Separatists have also issued diktats against sending children to Army's goodwill schools, which could not be burnt and where students have been faring well, accusing these schools of compromising 'Kashmiriyat', which actually is being erased and replaced with Wahabism by Pakistan supported Kashmiri terrorists of Hizbul Mujahideen and the separatists, who are not even sparing their own fellow Kashmiris.

There is no dearth of evidence of the separatists' treacherous activities. One of them, Naeem Khan has had the temerity to boast of forgetting how many Kashmiri Pandits he killed after killing 25. Dangerous terrorists have been able to escape owing to orchestrated rioting by youth, including girls.

The Pakistan Army has reportedly raised a battalion or two worth of battle action teams to further raise the ante across the Line of Control and International Boundary in Jammu and Kashmir.

With the PDP-BJP government not being able to/not wanting to take urgently needed steps, it is now high time that New Delhi jettisons the politics of appeasing traitors/anti-nationals and instead meaningfully demolishes the entire separatists network. Because no matter how many cross-border strikes or bombardments are undertaken, they will only affect Pak army and not the process of radicalizing/poisoning the minds of the Valley's Kashmiris. The districts contaminated/commandeered by Pakistani and Kashmiri (Hizbul Mujahideen) terrorists must be cleansed effectively and equally important, FIRs against Army and constabularies must stop.

And if the only way of decontaminating Kashmir Valley is by promulgating Central rule, then no more time should be lost in doing so.

The views expressed in the above article are that Col. (Retired) Anil Bhat. (ANI)

 

Pakistan's border brutalities, radicalisation of Kashmir warrant stern, swift measures

Updated: May 18, 2017 17:25 IST       By: Col. (Retired) Anil Bhat


New Delhi [India], May 18 (ANI): Hailing from the troubled Kulgam district, 22 year old Lieutenant Ummer Fayaz, the son of an apple grower, was a classic example of a young Kashmiri boy who aspired to do well in life and in his case, by joining the Army.

Selected for the National Defence Academy, where he excelled in studies and sports, he was commissioned into the Rajputana Rifles in December 2016 and posted to its 2nd Battalion deployed in Akhnoor.

While on leave to attend a marriage in the family, on May 9, 2017, he was abducted by terrorists from his relative's house in Kulgam town and his bullet-riddled body was found in Harmain area of Shopian the next morning.

While it is not shocking that in an environment poisoned by hate spread painstakingly by Kashmiri separatists controlled by Pakistan army/Inter Services Intelligence, Fayaz was targeted for joining the Indian Army, what is shocking is that stone-pelters did not even spare Fayaz's funeral procession.

Terrorists and their supporters are intimidating young Kashmiris wanting to join the Army, police or security forces. A video of one of them being tonsured was widely aired.

Many Jammu and Kashmir police personnels' homes have been raided by terrorists/their supporters to threaten them for discharging their duties.

They have also issued diktats against sending children to Army's goodwill schools, where students have been faring well, accusing these schools of compromising 'Kashmiriyat', which actually is being killed by Pakistan supported Kashmiri terrorists of Hizbul Mujahideen and the separatists, who are not even sparing their own fellow Kashmiris.

Fayaz's brutal abduction and murder came shortly after another mutilation of two Indian security personnel by Pakistani troops and/or their terrorists comrades in the Krishna Ghati Sector opposite Battal in Pakistan Occupied Kashmir (POK) on May 1 2017.

This repeated barbaric act of mutilating Indian soldiers/security personnel has further raised the level of public ire which has been simmering since heightened levels of heckling of security forces by Kashmiri youth of the valley's 'infected' districts.

Mutilations and more exposures about separatists and their Pakistani contacts have hardened Indian public opinion/ rhetoric like never before. Never earlier had Indian television news anchors been heard referring to separatists as 'Pakistan ke dalaal' (Pakistan's agents) on the face of some of the pro-separatist speakers, while some guest commentators referred to the separatists/ their supporters as pimps.

Attorney-General Mukul Rohatgi did not mince his words in media, when he recently stated: "The recent report about a stone pelter tied to an Army vehicle helped contain stone pelters and saved the poll officials".

While the army is reportedly planning punitive action against the Pakistan Army for mutilations at a time and place of its choosing, there are some meaningful calibrated measures the government must take on incriminating evidence.

Because surgical strikes may cause lethal damage to the Pakistan Army and terrorists, but will not stop the ever rising level of poisoning the minds of the Valley's youth and support of terrorists by separatists.

Immediate actions the government must take in Kashmir Valley are (a) stop the largesse/benefits to separatists, which should have been done ages ago, (b) stop the totally ineffective house arrests and instead, put them in jails outside J & K State, (c) expose Indian liberals/apologists/peaceniks and repeatedly criticize/condemn/comment against them (d) publicise Indian Army's Kashmir Super - 40 initiative for coaching J & K youth for engineering entrance exams breaking all previous records and overwhelming responses to recruitment into the Army, police and security forces and (e) publicise Pak army's atrocities in POK and Balochistan.

On Pakistan announcing death penalty for retired Indian Navy commander Kulbhushan Jadhav, following a ridiculous Pakistan Army-managed kangaroo trial accusing him of being an Indian spy and terrorist, New Delhi finally decided to approach the International Court of Justice (ICJ), which has temporarily stayed his execution.

Whether the government's decision to approach the ICJ was based on a suggestion made by Dr.Subramanian Swamy,or other reasons is not yet known, but such a step has been taken after many decades of declining to do so.

The ICJ must also be approached for the many cases in which the Pakistan Army has been charged with mutilating Indian Army personnel and recently one of the Border Security Force.

This writer recently reviewed Supreme Court Advocate Aman M. Hingorani's book, Unravelling the Kashmir.

Interacting with Mr. Hingorani, this author found that the latter maintains that mutilations by Pakistan are in gross violation of international law.

There is nothing to prevent India from taking Pakistan to the ICJ at The Hague for condemnation, reparation and damages. The Simla Agreement and the Lahore Declaration do not preclude India from doing so.

In any case, Article 103 of the UN Charter provides that in the event of a conflict between the obligations of the UN Members under the Charter and their obligations under any other international agreement, their obligations under the UN Charter shall prevail.

Former CIA station chief in Islamabad, Kevin Hulbert writing in Cipher Brief, a website for the intelligence community, states, "With a failing economy, rampant terrorism, the fastest growing nuclear arsenal, the sixth largest population, and one of the highest birthrates in the world, Pakistan is of grave concern.. while Pakistan is not the most dangerous country in the world, it probably is the most dangerous country for the world."

The repeated recommendations by liberals/apologists/peaceniks for talks with Pakistan and Kashmiri separatists, as also conciliatory moves like drastic reduction of Indian Army troop levels in the hinterland must be nullified, as this is what has led to at least five Valley districts being dominated by terrorists.

India needs to ratchet up its moves in the Kashmir Valley and against Pakistan, it must militarily raise the cost, while continuously exposing Pakistan's politic and diplomatic duplicity.

Will a stage be reached when Prime Minister Narendra Modi's August 15, 2016 reference to Balochistan be taken forward?

Disclaimer: The views expressed in the above article are that of Colonel (Retired) Anil Bhat.(ANI)

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Sheikh Hasina's significant visit to India

Updated: Apr 27, 2017 17:18 IST      


By Colonel Anil Bhat

New Delhi [India], Apr 27 (ANI): Bangladesh Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina's recent four-day state visit to India, her first after seven years, was an eventful milestone in the India-Bangladesh relationship.

This high-profile visit is expected to further boost to bilateral ties between India and Bangladesh as the two nations signed 22 pacts, including one on civilian nuclear cooperation and a defence agreement which includes a USD 4.5 billion (around Rs. 3,200 crore) line of credit to buy Indian military hardware. train and bus services, between West Bengal and Bangladesh were also launched during the visit.

Apart from the various events, including Sheikh Hasina's visit to Ajmer Sharif and her meeting with industrialists, what went quite under-reported was the very moving Sommanona ceremony to honour Indian soldiers martyred in 1971, held befittingly at Manekshaw Center, Delhi Cantonment.

With the two Prime Ministers seated on the dais flanked by External Affairs Minister Sushma Swaraj and Defence Minister Arun Jaitley and two of Bangladesh's Ministers, Manekshaw Centre's auditorium was full with a group of Bangladesh's Bir Mukti Joddhas (brave liberation soldiers) of the Mukti Bahini, Indian Army, Navy Air Force veterans of the 1971, two former Indian Army Chiefs, Generals V.N. Sharma and Deepak Kapur, the three service chiefs, diplomats, senior officials and serving Indian armed forces officers.

Prime Minister Narendra Modi began his address at Manekshaw Centre by praising Bangabandhu Sheikh Mujibur Rahman's efforts. When he referred the Bangabandhu's family being rescued from imprisonment in 1971, he pointed to Major Ashok Tara, who had conducted the rescue and was sitting in the audience with his wife. Referring to Bangabandhu's murder on 25 August 1975, PM Modi said "16 of her family were murdered, but Sheikh Hasina stood still like a rock.' Those were moments when Sheikh Hasina was visibly moved. She and her sister escaped the bloodbath as they were in West Germany. That was an indeed trying time for her. Completely broken owing to the senseless killing of her parents and siblings, and with a hostile government in Bangladesh, she was provided asylum in New Delhi from 1975 to 1981.

Holding forth on the progress made by Bangladesh in its post-liberation decades, PM Modi had the entire audience stunned when he rattled off many facts and figures extempore. "There is one thought in South Asia which breeds, inspires and encourages terrorism. The thought whose priority is not humanity, but extremism and terrorism...Without being selfish, the two countries worked for the betterment of entire region, it's sad that there is a third mentality which exists.. It's my clear mandate that my neighbouring country Bangladesh should also develop along with India.. As a friend, India will offer whatever required to Bangladesh. I have same dream for Bangladesh as I have for India, Jai Hind! Jai Bangla," said PM Modi.

In a moving ceremony, PM Hasina honoured the following next of kin of six posthumous gallantry awardees of Indian Armed Forces martyred during the 1971 War of Bangladesh's Liberation: Mrs Vilambini, the widow of Lance Param Vir Chakra recipient Naik Albert Ekka, who was in a wheelchair, Mrs. Santosh, sister of Maha Vir Chakra (MVC) recipient Major Anup Singh Gehlot, Mrs. Gurdev Kaur, widow of Subedar Malkiat Singh, Mrs. Sugam Singh, widow of MVC recipient Havildar Sugam Singh, Mrs Kavita Das, sister-in-law of MVC recipient Lt Samir Das, an Indian Navy clearance diver, who fought alongside the Mukti Bahini, Mrs. Arundhati Samanta, widow of Vir Chakra (VrC) recipient Squadron Leader A.B. Samanta and Mr. Vishwa Nath Chakravarty, brother of VrC recipient Lance Naik Mohini Ranjan Chakravarty of the Border Security Force.

"I pay tribute to some special Indian friends, the martyrs and their families...This time the struggle was for our freedom..The history of Bangladesh has been written by the blood of Indian martyrs," said Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina.

Interacting with this writer, Colonel Sajjad Ali Zahir, Bir Protik, who accompanied PM Hasina and conducted the honouring ceremony recalled, "I was posted in Pakistan Army's 14th Para Brigade in Sialkot, when news came of unspeakable atrocities by Pakistan Army back home. After trying hard, I finally managed to escape into India and was brought by the Indian military to a secret camp in Sylhet district, where I became the trainer for the Mukti Bahini."

Meanwhile Pakistan Army passed a death sentence against him for 'deserting his post'. "We began our guerrilla operation from September 1971 and quickly raised an artillery battery to cause maximum damage to the Pakistani forces as they had to be stopped from committing human rights violations..

At one point, we found a government office which had been turned into a sex-labour camp with kidnapped women locked up on the first floor. I am still haunted by the memory of a girl who wrote her name, Ratna, in blood on the wall of a labour camp before dying".

The third India-Pakistan war during December 1971 was historically significant as it liberated erstwhile Bengali East Pakistan from decades of oppression by the ruling military government of West Pakistan culminating in horrific genocide by Pakistan army and created the new nation, Bangladesh. On 25 March 1971, the liberation war was launched by the Mukti Bahini, as Pakistani soldiers aided by local collaborators, had reportedly killed an estimated 3 million people, raped 200,000 women and forced millions of people to flee to India.

Eventually, when Pakistan sparked off the war on December 3, 1971, it took only 13 days for India Army to encircle East Pakistan. On December 16, 1971, Pakistan's eastern army commander signed the instrument of surrender at Dhaka, as 93,000 Pakistan armed forces personnel surrendered to Indian Army all over what got declared as the newly born nation of Bangladesh.

The year 2011 was marked by extended celebrations in Bangladesh, for one of which it invited 17 Indian veterans of that war, in December 2011.

Simultaneously Headquaters, Eastern Command, Kolkata hosted three serving Bangladesh Army officers, 22 Mukti Joddhas (Mukti Bahini veterans) and Indian armed forces veterans, including. Bangladesh Parliament's Deputy Speaker Shaukat Ali, former Eastern Command chief of staff Lt. Gen. (retired) J.F.R. Jacob, former Indian Army chief and Member of Parliament, Gen. (retired) Shankar Roychowdhury.

Prime Minister Hasina's first ever visit to, Tripura, on 11-12 January 2012, which she referred to as a pilgrimage, marked a high point in the extended celebrations of the 40th anniversary of Bangladesh's Liberation war.

Accompanied by her sister, Sheikh Rehana and an over 100-strong delegation, including some more ministers, businessmen and intellectuals, she came on an invitation by Tripura Central University for being conferred with the degree of Doctor of Literature, by for her "great contribution to the protection of multicultural democracy and peace".

"As we touched down at Agartala airport last evening, a flush of emotions overwhelmed me as I recalled the tremendous sacrifices during our glorious struggle for independence," said Prime Minister Hasina, in a voice choked with emotion, after receiving the degree of from Vice President of India Hamid Ansari at Agartala on 12 January 2012.

Fondly recalling the help Tripura had extended during 1971 Liberation War spearheaded by her father Sheikh Mujibur Rahman, she further said, switching to Bengali, "I express my deep gratitude to the people of Tripura who gave us food, shelter and clothing and care when the people of our country were subject of inhuman and barbaric torture in the hands of Pakistani Army and migrated to this land.I was further amazed when I came to know that before this university was set up, this place was a training camp of the Bangladesh liberation soldiers".

Awami League's current tenure is the best time for India to resolve all pending issues with Bangladesh and develop its connectivity to India's North Eastern states, which will go a long way to boost trade and development of that region.

The views expressed in the above article are that of Colonel (retired) Anil Bhat (ANI)

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19th Asian Security Conference amid India's security inconsistencies

Updated: Mar 15, 2017 18:39 IST


By: Col Anil Bhat, VSM (Retd.)

New Delhi [India], Mar. 15 (ANI): The 19th Asian Security Conference of the Institute for Defence Studies and Analyses (IDSA) held from March 6-8, on the subject Combating Terrorism: Evolving an Asian Response, featured an impressive and wide array of speakers from India and fourteen foreign countries.

The aim of this conference was to focus on the following themes over multiple interactive sessions:

I. Evaluating the norm building efforts in countering global terrorism, understanding the geo-political realities and defining the Asian and global response to terrorism.

II - Identifying ideologies and drivers fuelling this transnational resurgence of extremist violence, with an eye on the role of terror finance in exacerbating conflict in the region

III - Examining how technology is changing the nature of conflict and the rising challenges there-in to Asian security.

IV - Assessing the threat of terrorism in Asia: From South West Asia, to the extended outposts in South Asia and South East Asia.

V - Forecasting challenges that lie ahead, debating the absence of effective counter-narratives, and building upon a reservoir of best practices of counter-terrorism efforts by countries in the region.

The conference explored these subjects through the course of the following interactive sessions:

• Norms: The Global War on Terror : Challenges for Asia

• New Wave of Global Terror: Ideas, Resources and Trends

• The Age of 'Instant Terror': Technology, the Game Changer

• Regional Perspectives - The West Asia Conundrum : Unraveling geopolitics; global response

• Regional Perspectives - South and South East Asia : The Growing Spectre of Terror

• Constructing effective counter-narratives: The need for a global response

• The Asian Response to Combatting Terror : The Way Forward.

The speakers were former defence minister Manohar Parrikar, DG, IDSA, Jayant Prasad, DDG, IDSA, Maj Gen Alok Deb, SM, VSM (Retd), Mohammad Hanif Atmar, National Security Advisor (NSA), Afghanistan, Pratap Bhanu Mehta, President, Centre for Policy Research, New Delhi, Maj. Gen. Mahmud Ali Durrani, former national security advisor, Pakistan, Mr. Abdel Bari Atwan, Editor-in- chief, Raial-Youm, Praveen Swami, The Indian Express, Mr. Ehsan Monawar, Counter-Terrorism Expert, Afghanistan, G.K. Pillai, Former Home Secretary, Government of India, Baker Atyani, Veteran journalist from Jordan, Waiel Awwad, New Delhi-based Syrian journalist, Lamya Haji Bashar Taha, Public advocate of the Yazidi community, Iraq, Karnal Singh, Director Enforcement Directorate,Government of India, Dr. Christine Fair, Associate Professor, Peace and Security Studies Program Georgetown University, USA, Gulshan Rai, Chief of Cyber security, Government of India, Arvind Gupta, Deputy NSA, Government of India, Dr. Anne Speckhard, Director, International Center for Study of Violent Extremism (ICSVE), USA, Madan Oberoi (IPS), former Director, Cyber-Crime, Interpol, Singapore, Saikat Datta, Director, Centre for Internet ; Society, India, Sanjeev Singh, Addl. DG (anti-Naxal Operations), Madhya Pradesh Police, Manjula Sridhar, Founder ArgByte - a cybercrime analytics software, Sanjay Singh, former Secretary (East), Ministry of External Affairs, Vladimir I. Sotnikov,

Senior Research Fellow, Institute of Eastern Studies, Russian Academy of Sciences, Mustafa El Sagezli , General Manager, Libyan Program for Reintegration; Development, Abul Cader Mashoor Maulana , Former OSD, Foreign Minister, Saudi Arabia, Frank Ledwidge (UK), Former Military Intelligence Officer who served in Iraq, Afghanistan and Libya, Mohammad Hossein Shojaei, Deputy Chief of Mission, Embassy of Iran, India, Eitan Shamir, Senior Research Fellow, Begin Sadat Center for Strategic Studies, Israel, Sanjaya Baru, Director, Geo-Economics and Strategy, International Institute of Strategic Studies, Lt. Gen. Chowdhury Hasan Sarwardy, Commandant, National Defence College, Mirpur, Bangladesh, Ayesha Siddiqa, former bureaucrat and political commentator, Pakistan, Ma Xiangwu, Functionary, Communist Party of China, Lt. Gen. Daya Ratnayake, former Commander of Army, Sri Lanka, Kumar Ramakrishna, Head of Policy Studies and Coordinator of National Security Studies Programme in the Office of the executive deputy chairman, RSIS, Singapore, Syed Asif Ibrahim, Indian Prime Minister's Special Envoy on "Countering Terrorism and Extremism, Lt. Gen. Ata Hasnain, former GOC 15 Corps, J-K, Ahmad Badreddin Hassoun, Grand Mufti, Syria, Adil Rasheed, Research Fellow, IDSA, A.R. Anjaria, President, Islamic Defence Cyber Cell of India and Member, Advisory Council, Jama Masjid, Delhi, Saad al-Qarni, Associate Professor, University of Imam Mohamed Ibn Saud, Kalbe Sadiq, Founder, Tauheedul Muslimeen Trust and Commodore C. Uday Bhaskar, Director, Society for Policy Studies.

Commenting on Asia's pivotal role in combating terrorism, Parrikar said that a strong regional push from Asia will exert more pressure on the rest of the world to adopt a cohesive framework to fight terrorism, a 'transnational threat''.

He explained that the response to this threat is generally local and uncoordinated, largely due to conflicting definitions of terrorism and geopolitical constraints, which have stymied a global response, whereas successful combat against terrorism requires a holistic approach, of which important steps are tackling of terror finance and countering the misuse of the internet through social media by terrorist entities.

Atmar, National Security Advisor, Afghanistan described security and counter terrorism as the 'most defining challenge of our times and called for a strong counter-terrorism strategy, with proposed actions at four levels - global, the Islamic world, regional and national. Cautioning that such strategy would be a 'generational challenge' requiring long-term planning, the Afghan NSA insisted that its objective should be to end State sponsorship of terrorism by initiating coordinated political, strategic and military responses to destroy the flourishing sanctuaries for terrorist groups. Terming international accountability as a prerequisite to counter terror, the NSA laid equal emphasis on the need for appropriate action at the national level through good governance, education, and infrastructure building. Dispelling the perception of terrorism being associated with Islam as unethical and unhelpful, the NSA insisted that the Muslim nations have lost more lives to extremism and terrorism than other nations.

Adding that Muslim nations are natural allies in the war against terrorism, he insisted that the narrative of distinguishing between good and bad terrorists should be stopped, as such distinction helps a perpetrator organisation disguise itself as a victim and morphing itself into a Frankenstein monster.

He further noted that Afghanistan is not confronted with a civil war, but a terrorist war, and an undeclared state to state war.

Advocating strongly for the need for security and economic prosperity for all in West Asia, Ambassador Hossein Sheikholeslam, Advisor to Foreign Minister, Islamic Republic of Iran, blamed socio-economic imbalances for political uncertainty in the region. Stressing that West Asia has been a victim of Western arrogance and colonial intervention along with continued meddling for years, is the root cause of political conflicts in the region and added that cohesive socio-economic development of the entire region is the only way to establish peace.

Commenting on Syria, the Ambassador said Iran and Syria share a common political and strategic outlook and it is the people of Syria who must decide their own future.

On Afghanistan, he said Iran's relations with Afghanistan are founded on very close cultural and historic ties.

Speaking on West Asia and Caucuses, other speakers at the conference highlighted the clash of interests of powers involved in the New Great Game for influence in Central Asia, and large-scale drug trafficking along the northern transportation route from Afghanistan to Russia, as chief causes of instability in the region.

The international community was unanimously urged to agree on common denominators for formulation of a single counterstrategy for violent extremism.

The speakers agreed that political communities should try to reach out to the nations and ethnic sections that are potentially prone to radicalisation.

Citing external interventions as one of the major causes for increasing radicalisation of youth and terrorism in the region, the experts called for greater regional and international cooperation for the systematic eradication of religious extremism.

Speaking on the rise of Da'esh as an unprecedented event in the geopolitics of the West Asian region, the experts noted that the terrorist outfit has challenged the existing regional political order by trying to redraw boundaries in the volatile region.

Even if defeated, its surviving fighters could go underground, return to their countries of origin and mutate into another radical organisation.

Some of the common denominators for a counterterrorism strategy identified by the experts were discouraging religious extremism, having proper legislation in place to protect minorities, denying of terrorist sanctuaries and use of non-state actors, and national action plans against terrorism.

There was wide agreement on the need for de-linking religion from terrorism and that the counter-narratives should go beyond religions, to the connected political, historical and psychological issues. Lack of socio-economic development, inadequate education, heightened poverty, corruption, and misguided nationalism were cited as some of the key drivers of extremist ideologies.

Exclusion of minorities from mainstream politics, rising religious chauvinism, and lack of an ideological response to the extremist school of thought, were some other factors.

There was also wide agreement on the need for developing multi-disciplinary approaches, capacity-building of law enforcement agencies, and strengthening of public-private partnership to counter terrorism.

While the conference dwelt on all aspects and issues and proved to be an effective platform for brainstorming on the problems and responses to terror, there is an irony that must not be overlooked. Considering that the host country, India has been a long-term target of terror emanating from Pakistan, with Jammu and Kashmir as a fulcrum, India's own policy and responses have been flip-flop and inconsistent.

While the BJP government-expected to be assertive- showed its assertiveness post the terrorist attack on the Army at Uri by approving a cross-Line of Control surprise strike, subsequent two Pakistani attacks with beheadings/mutilation of two Indian soldiers, were responded to by pounding of over twenty Pakistani border posts. No matter how many such attacks Indian Army launches, induction of Pakistani terrorists into the Kashmir valley and attacks by them as well as radicalization of valley public/youth will not stop until the separatists- read traitors- and their wide network are not neutralized.

It beats reason as to why the Central and state governments instead of neutralizing the separatists, provide them with many benefits, including security personnel and bullet-proof vehicles-when policemen do not have enough bullet proof gear- and further, even providing a government job for the leading separatist's grandson.

It is these very separatists who are consistently and continuously sustaining/funding/inciting anti-Indian sentiments and activities. (ANI)

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19th Asian Security Conference amid India's security inconsistencies

Updated: Mar 15, 2017 18:39 IST


By: Col Anil Bhat, VSM (Retd.)

New Delhi [India], Mar. 15 (ANI): The 19th Asian Security Conference of the Institute for Defence Studies and Analyses (IDSA) held from March 6-8, on the subject Combating Terrorism: Evolving an Asian Response, featured an impressive and wide array of speakers from India and fourteen foreign countries.

The aim of this conference was to focus on the following themes over multiple interactive sessions:

I. Evaluating the norm building efforts in countering global terrorism, understanding the geo-political realities and defining the Asian and global response to terrorism.

II - Identifying ideologies and drivers fuelling this transnational resurgence of extremist violence, with an eye on the role of terror finance in exacerbating conflict in the region

III - Examining how technology is changing the nature of conflict and the rising challenges there-in to Asian security.

IV - Assessing the threat of terrorism in Asia: From South West Asia, to the extended outposts in South Asia and South East Asia.

V - Forecasting challenges that lie ahead, debating the absence of effective counter-narratives, and building upon a reservoir of best practices of counter-terrorism efforts by countries in the region.

The conference explored these subjects through the course of the following interactive sessions:

• Norms: The Global War on Terror : Challenges for Asia

• New Wave of Global Terror: Ideas, Resources and Trends

• The Age of 'Instant Terror': Technology, the Game Changer

• Regional Perspectives - The West Asia Conundrum : Unraveling geopolitics; global response

• Regional Perspectives - South and South East Asia : The Growing Spectre of Terror

• Constructing effective counter-narratives: The need for a global response

• The Asian Response to Combatting Terror : The Way Forward.

The speakers were former defence minister Manohar Parrikar, DG, IDSA, Jayant Prasad, DDG, IDSA, Maj Gen Alok Deb, SM, VSM (Retd), Mohammad Hanif Atmar, National Security Advisor (NSA), Afghanistan, Pratap Bhanu Mehta, President, Centre for Policy Research, New Delhi, Maj. Gen. Mahmud Ali Durrani, former national security advisor, Pakistan, Mr. Abdel Bari Atwan, Editor-in- chief, Raial-Youm, Praveen Swami, The Indian Express, Mr. Ehsan Monawar, Counter-Terrorism Expert, Afghanistan, G.K. Pillai, Former Home Secretary, Government of India, Baker Atyani, Veteran journalist from Jordan, Waiel Awwad, New Delhi-based Syrian journalist, Lamya Haji Bashar Taha, Public advocate of the Yazidi community, Iraq, Karnal Singh, Director Enforcement Directorate,Government of India, Dr. Christine Fair, Associate Professor, Peace and Security Studies Program Georgetown University, USA, Gulshan Rai, Chief of Cyber security, Government of India, Arvind Gupta, Deputy NSA, Government of India, Dr. Anne Speckhard, Director, International Center for Study of Violent Extremism (ICSVE), USA, Madan Oberoi (IPS), former Director, Cyber-Crime, Interpol, Singapore, Saikat Datta, Director, Centre for Internet ; Society, India, Sanjeev Singh, Addl. DG (anti-Naxal Operations), Madhya Pradesh Police, Manjula Sridhar, Founder ArgByte - a cybercrime analytics software, Sanjay Singh, former Secretary (East), Ministry of External Affairs, Vladimir I. Sotnikov,

Senior Research Fellow, Institute of Eastern Studies, Russian Academy of Sciences, Mustafa El Sagezli , General Manager, Libyan Program for Reintegration; Development, Abul Cader Mashoor Maulana , Former OSD, Foreign Minister, Saudi Arabia, Frank Ledwidge (UK), Former Military Intelligence Officer who served in Iraq, Afghanistan and Libya, Mohammad Hossein Shojaei, Deputy Chief of Mission, Embassy of Iran, India, Eitan Shamir, Senior Research Fellow, Begin Sadat Center for Strategic Studies, Israel, Sanjaya Baru, Director, Geo-Economics and Strategy, International Institute of Strategic Studies, Lt. Gen. Chowdhury Hasan Sarwardy, Commandant, National Defence College, Mirpur, Bangladesh, Ayesha Siddiqa, former bureaucrat and political commentator, Pakistan, Ma Xiangwu, Functionary, Communist Party of China, Lt. Gen. Daya Ratnayake, former Commander of Army, Sri Lanka, Kumar Ramakrishna, Head of Policy Studies and Coordinator of National Security Studies Programme in the Office of the executive deputy chairman, RSIS, Singapore, Syed Asif Ibrahim, Indian Prime Minister's Special Envoy on "Countering Terrorism and Extremism, Lt. Gen. Ata Hasnain, former GOC 15 Corps, J-K, Ahmad Badreddin Hassoun, Grand Mufti, Syria, Adil Rasheed, Research Fellow, IDSA, A.R. Anjaria, President, Islamic Defence Cyber Cell of India and Member, Advisory Council, Jama Masjid, Delhi, Saad al-Qarni, Associate Professor, University of Imam Mohamed Ibn Saud, Kalbe Sadiq, Founder, Tauheedul Muslimeen Trust and Commodore C. Uday Bhaskar, Director, Society for Policy Studies.

Commenting on Asia's pivotal role in combating terrorism, Parrikar said that a strong regional push from Asia will exert more pressure on the rest of the world to adopt a cohesive framework to fight terrorism, a 'transnational threat''.

He explained that the response to this threat is generally local and uncoordinated, largely due to conflicting definitions of terrorism and geopolitical constraints, which have stymied a global response, whereas successful combat against terrorism requires a holistic approach, of which important steps are tackling of terror finance and countering the misuse of the internet through social media by terrorist entities.

Atmar, National Security Advisor, Afghanistan described security and counter terrorism as the 'most defining challenge of our times and called for a strong counter-terrorism strategy, with proposed actions at four levels - global, the Islamic world, regional and national. Cautioning that such strategy would be a 'generational challenge' requiring long-term planning, the Afghan NSA insisted that its objective should be to end State sponsorship of terrorism by initiating coordinated political, strategic and military responses to destroy the flourishing sanctuaries for terrorist groups. Terming international accountability as a prerequisite to counter terror, the NSA laid equal emphasis on the need for appropriate action at the national level through good governance, education, and infrastructure building. Dispelling the perception of terrorism being associated with Islam as unethical and unhelpful, the NSA insisted that the Muslim nations have lost more lives to extremism and terrorism than other nations.

Adding that Muslim nations are natural allies in the war against terrorism, he insisted that the narrative of distinguishing between good and bad terrorists should be stopped, as such distinction helps a perpetrator organisation disguise itself as a victim and morphing itself into a Frankenstein monster.

He further noted that Afghanistan is not confronted with a civil war, but a terrorist war, and an undeclared state to state war.

Advocating strongly for the need for security and economic prosperity for all in West Asia, Ambassador Hossein Sheikholeslam, Advisor to Foreign Minister, Islamic Republic of Iran, blamed socio-economic imbalances for political uncertainty in the region. Stressing that West Asia has been a victim of Western arrogance and colonial intervention along with continued meddling for years, is the root cause of political conflicts in the region and added that cohesive socio-economic development of the entire region is the only way to establish peace.

Commenting on Syria, the Ambassador said Iran and Syria share a common political and strategic outlook and it is the people of Syria who must decide their own future.

On Afghanistan, he said Iran's relations with Afghanistan are founded on very close cultural and historic ties.

Speaking on West Asia and Caucuses, other speakers at the conference highlighted the clash of interests of powers involved in the New Great Game for influence in Central Asia, and large-scale drug trafficking along the northern transportation route from Afghanistan to Russia, as chief causes of instability in the region.

The international community was unanimously urged to agree on common denominators for formulation of a single counterstrategy for violent extremism.

The speakers agreed that political communities should try to reach out to the nations and ethnic sections that are potentially prone to radicalisation.

Citing external interventions as one of the major causes for increasing radicalisation of youth and terrorism in the region, the experts called for greater regional and international cooperation for the systematic eradication of religious extremism.

Speaking on the rise of Da'esh as an unprecedented event in the geopolitics of the West Asian region, the experts noted that the terrorist outfit has challenged the existing regional political order by trying to redraw boundaries in the volatile region.

Even if defeated, its surviving fighters could go underground, return to their countries of origin and mutate into another radical organisation.

Some of the common denominators for a counterterrorism strategy identified by the experts were discouraging religious extremism, having proper legislation in place to protect minorities, denying of terrorist sanctuaries and use of non-state actors, and national action plans against terrorism.

There was wide agreement on the need for de-linking religion from terrorism and that the counter-narratives should go beyond religions, to the connected political, historical and psychological issues. Lack of socio-economic development, inadequate education, heightened poverty, corruption, and misguided nationalism were cited as some of the key drivers of extremist ideologies.

Exclusion of minorities from mainstream politics, rising religious chauvinism, and lack of an ideological response to the extremist school of thought, were some other factors.

There was also wide agreement on the need for developing multi-disciplinary approaches, capacity-building of law enforcement agencies, and strengthening of public-private partnership to counter terrorism.

While the conference dwelt on all aspects and issues and proved to be an effective platform for brainstorming on the problems and responses to terror, there is an irony that must not be overlooked. Considering that the host country, India has been a long-term target of terror emanating from Pakistan, with Jammu and Kashmir as a fulcrum, India's own policy and responses have been flip-flop and inconsistent.

While the BJP government-expected to be assertive- showed its assertiveness post the terrorist attack on the Army at Uri by approving a cross-Line of Control surprise strike, subsequent two Pakistani attacks with beheadings/mutilation of two Indian soldiers, were responded to by pounding of over twenty Pakistani border posts. No matter how many such attacks Indian Army launches, induction of Pakistani terrorists into the Kashmir valley and attacks by them as well as radicalization of valley public/youth will not stop until the separatists- read traitors- and their wide network are not neutralized.

It beats reason as to why the Central and state governments instead of neutralizing the separatists, provide them with many benefits, including security personnel and bullet-proof vehicles-when policemen do not have enough bullet proof gear- and further, even providing a government job for the leading separatist's grandson.

It is these very separatists who are consistently and continuously sustaining/funding/inciting anti-Indian sentiments and activities. (ANI)

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