Adil Najam
UPDATE: Reports in the Pakistan media suggest that the Lal Masjid leader has finally been arrested while trying to escape wearing a burqa. According to a BBC update:
The leader of a radical mosque besieged by Pakistani security forces in Islamabad has been caught trying to escape wearing a woman’s burqa. Security forces seized Abdul Aziz as he tried to leave the Red Mosque amid a crowd of women… He was wearing a burqa that also covered his eyes,” a security official told the AFP news agency about the cleric’s escape bid. “Our men spotted his unusual demeanour. The rest of the girls looked like girls, but he was taller and had a pot belly.“
ORIGINAL POST: Things are moving fast and the showdown at Lal Masjid, Islamabad that began this morning is now ready to turn into an even more real battle. The day took the lives of at least 10 people, possibly more. These included policemen, soldiers, by-standers, a journalist, and a number of Madrassah students. (For details see our earlier post and update comments on it, here).
The latest - and this keeps changing by the minute - is that in a mid-night press conference the government has given an ultimatum to the management of the Lal Masjid (Red Mosque) to surrender. There is no indication that they will. In the past things have always ended with ‘negotiated settlements.’ This time the likelihood of this happening is much less. A curfew has been imposed in the area. Tanks have been called in. So have special forces.
Metroblog Islamabad is doing a wonderful job of keeping abreast with breaking news. It reports, through Dawn TV, that 111 Brigade (Army) from Rawalpindi has already assembled around the mosque. Ambulances have been fully stocked. Hospitals are on alert. An ultimatum for time has been given (3.30 PST… NOW!). The entire area has been cordoned off.
Here is a news clip from ARYOne, broadcast earlier.
In an article written last week for The News, I had argued that inaction was not a solution and because of so many delays and policies of apeasement some confrontation was now becoming inevitable.
This episode [i.e., the Chinese massage parlor case] will further embolden the already violence-prone brigands at the two madressahs and we are likely to see an escalation in their demands as well as their tactics. Meanwhile, the government has once again demonstrated an inability and/or unwillingness to act decisively. The much-cherished ‘writ of the state’ continues to rot in tatters.
This, it seems, is what happened when earlier the Lal Masjid management incited this escalation in response to the government’s build-up of force around the mosque. In that article, I had gone on to argue that:
Just like standing still in the middle of the road at the sight of the blinding lights of a truck speeding towards it does not save the life of the stunned deer, doing nothing about this escalating crisis out of fear that doing anything will only make things worse is not going to help the government, or Pakistan. Something needs to be done, and done fast.
I had called in the article for the government to “act to judiciously dismantle militancy at Lal Masjid.” This situation has to be responded to. But the key word remains “act judiciously.” What is really important is how that action is taken. Further bloodshed should be avoided. At least minimized. One hopes that any action is intelligent action and all steps are taken to minimize loss of life. Not just because one does not wish to create needless ‘martyrs.’ Much more so because all life - and everyone’s life - is precious.
The technologies to undertake low casualty offensives are available. The will and sagacity to do so is needed. The test for the government - acting with force in the very center of the Federal Capital - is not only what it does, but how it does it.
Photo credit: Associated Press, B.K. Bangash.
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govt ne belkol zulam kia hain our ham inshaallah is zulam ka badla zaror lenge. hamare chote shaheed kar dia gaya.
when in Rome do as the Romans do
When in Pakistan don’t ask for Shariah
Just toe the line of the rulers
Do not protest
Talk ill about anything everything
But not the Army
Army is our protector
Army is our savior
Army is our Rescuer
It rids us from problems
From our wishes
from our aspirations
from our freedom
from our desires
from our principles
And ultimately from malaise
So rampant in the
Islamic Republic Of Pakistan
where the constitution
stipulates Islam as its religion
But if You demand Islamic system
Or the enforcement of Quranic teachings
You’ve had it
As did the poor Red Mosque folks
Indiscriminately massacred
by our own folks
by our own brave army
who hardly won a battle
with the enemies
across our borders !
may God bless us all
Let’s pledge not to
Demand enforcement of Islamic laws
lest we plan to suffer the same fate
as the Jihadis at the red Mosque
Govt has to this. Anarchy cannot be allowed. Where pen fails gun must take over.
I would like to bring onething infront all muslims….”is this what Islam teaches…to kill ur own muslim brothers?”…i live in england and i really feel sometimes bad for muslims. why v r not united? we r killing eachother-one muslim killing the another..wt is this…Dont create such situation where all the non muslims makr fun of us…we r fighting on what things. we r against our own leader and our army. we dont realise that we sleep sound coz we knw that our soldiers protecting us ,they r guarding our borders…we we get against army then mark my words they will never have the Jazba to protect us civilians.
please love ur country , love ur religion and stop these Suicide bomb attacks…Islam never teaches to kill innocent people….please be united coz remember one is one and 2 makes 11…..stop criticising the governments, and west…peep into ur ownselves wt r you doing…wt image u r creating of muslims…v r not terrorists but wt we are showing to the world is different…wt we say and wt we do…is different…
please love pakistan ..dont destroy ur country for the sake of few fanatics .
The official codename of the military action was not “operation silence”. It was “operation sunrise”. Apparently the phrase “operation silence” was coined by somebody else and picked up by the media. Details are at:
http://www.dawn.com/2007/07/12/top7.htm
One thing is clear now as the news comes out. This was not a drama of any sort. The govt mismanaged this be delaying it for so long. But in general did a god job of the operation and in minimizing casualty. The fact of the matter is that there were so many thousands in the compound and most of them were saved alive and only the most militant ones died. So, it would be better if no one died but credit to govt for keeping death toll low.
From:
http://atimes.com/atimes/South_Asia/IG11Df03.html
more then 400 dead.
Why would we care those who died were not related to us?
But they were Pakistani.
This army has killed more of its own citizens then enemies.