Misplaced Pages

This is an old revision of this page, as edited by Idleguy (talk | contribs) at 06:57, 3 October 2005 (started the section on the Pak terrorist networks). The present address (URL) is a permanent link to this revision, which may differ significantly from the current revision.

Terrorism in Pakistan can be attributed to Pakistan's status as the fifth most populous country in the world, with diverse cultures, languages, traditions and customs, and its proximity to India, another hotbed of terrorist activity. Although diversity is an asset, friction often arises. Different cultures in Pakistan are associated with differing ideologies, further causing regionalism.

Two of the main reasons believed to be responsible for terrorism in Pakistan are sectarian violence and the mistrust in the Musharraf-Bush coalition in the war on terror. However, other causes like political rivalry and business disputes too take its toll.

Religious fundamentalism has also believed to have played some role in contributing to the rise of terrorist activity. The 7 July 2005 London bombings which were alleged of being carried out by people who are believed to have visited a Pakistani madrassa at some time in their life, stroked fears that perhaps certain groups in Pakistan were encouraging violent activity. The government of Pakistan denied such charges, saying that just because someone visits Pakistan once after living and being educated abroad for all their life, does not mean that they were encouraged to perform terrorist acts in Pakistan. The government still acted swiftly, requiring all religious schools to register with the government. Also, Pakistani President Pervez Musharraf's cooperation with the United States' War on Terrorism has led to several assassination attempts on him by those who seek the destruction of western interests. The president referred to this as terrorism. See also: Pakistani involvement in the War on Terror

The Government of Pakistan is accused of having supplied monetary aid to the Taliban and other anti-Soviet groups to fight the during the Soviet Invasion of Afghanistan and to separatists in Kashmir who India considers to be terrorists. It has strongly denied the latter; however some statements made by Kashmiri militants showed the involvement of Pakistan in establishing "terror camps".

Major terrorist networks and their attacks

Lashkar-e-Omar

Lashkar-e-Omar (The Army of Omar) was a new terrorist organisation which had its pool of candidates drawn from three terrorist organisations, Harkat-ul-Jihad-i-Islami (HuJI), Lashkar-e-Jhangvi (LeJ) and Jaish-e-Mohammed (JeM). The main terrorist activities for which it has been accused are:

• Attack on a church in Bahawalpur in Punjab on October 28, 2002, resulting in 18 dealths and 9 injuries.

• The abduction-cum-murder case of US journalist Daniel Pearl. JeM terrorist Omar Sheikh was later sentenced to life for involvement in this.

• The group, was allegedly involved in the March 17, 2002 grenade attack on a church in the heavily guarded diplomatic enclave in Islamabad in which five persons, including a US diplomat's wife and daughter, were killed and 41 others injured.

• LeO was reportedly involved in the suicide bombing outside the Sheraton Hotel in Karachi on May 8, 2002 and the June 14-attack on the US consulate in Karachi, in which 10 persons, including five women, were killed and 51 others injured.

Other incidents

• June 14, 2002 : A bomb exploded outside American consulate in Karachi, killing 12. The bombing was been linked to Al-Qaeda.

See also

• Terrorism in India
• Terrorism in Kashmir
• Lashkar-e-Toiba
• Islamic terrorism
• Pakistan Oppressed Nations Movement

External links

• General overview of Pakistani state terrorism

• Pakistan