Pakistan eases pressure on terror group Jaish-e-Mohammed
Dated 17/12/2005
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Under pressure from Gulf governments, mainly Saudi Arabia and Kuwait, General Parvez Musharraf has shelved his plans to force the Jaish-e-Mohammed out of Pakistani territory, although it can operate in areas Pakistan considers outside its jurisdiction, the FATA region bordering Afghanistan, Gilgit, and Occupied Kashmir.
Diplomatic sources said that Musharraf has intelligence of increased cooperation between the Al-Qaeda and Jaish, jointly involved in two assassination attempts on him within ten days of each other in end-December 2003, for which one ex-army jawan has been hanged, five others given death sentences, and three more handed down life imprisonments this year.
While the ostensible reason for banning the Jaish from Pakistan, which operates in almost all the major towns and cities, is its Al-Qaeda links, sources said Musharraf was more apprehensive about its building connections with the senior and middle ranks of the Pakistan army, which is upset at the hanging of one of his would-be assassins, Abdul Salam Siddiqi, in a Multan jail in August, after his mercy petition was rejected by the Pakistani president.
In as many as six public engagements recently, Musharraf has accused the Jaish-e-Mohammed of tarnishing the country’s image, because its links have also surfaced in the London bombings, and contrastingly, he has praised the Lashkar-e-Toiba for its earthquake relief work, to turn them against one another, and also ensure that they never come together.
But under pressure from some Gulf states, which patronise the Jaish, Musharraf has been forced to withdraw his eviction orders against the terrorist group, which car-bombed the Jammu and Kashmir assembly, suicide attacked India’s Houses of Parliament in 2001, and has spearheaded a violent campaign in the Valley for the past five years.