New Delhi, May 1 (IANS) There are clear signs that the Al-Qaeda is looking to boost operations against the Pakistan regime in the wake of tensions between Islamabad and the Afghan Taliban. In the last one week, the Al-Qaeda’s media cell has been in overdrive mode, ramping up its messaging drive against the Pakistan establishment.
The Al-Qaeda feels that the Pakistan regime has cozied up to western powers and in the bargain is hurting the interests of the region. While calling out the Pakistan Army and its war in Afghanistan, the Al-Qaeda has urged all its cadres in Pakistan and fight against the regime.
An Intelligence Bureau official said that this messaging by the Al-Qaeda was bound to happen. Pakistan has not only attacked Afghanistan, but has been promoting the Al-Qaeda’s arch-rival, the Islamic State Khorasan Province (ISKP).
The ISKP has officially joined the ranks of the Lashkar-e-Tayiba and Pakistani security forces in the battle against the Tehreek-e-Taliban Pakistan (TTP). Although the ISKP has spoken out against the Pakistan establishment in the past, today it has become a close ally.
For the ISKP the larger battle is against the Taliban. A weakened Taliban means that the ISKP can thrive in Afghanistan.
The Afghan Taliban has largely managed to keep the ISKP away in the country. However the war kept the Taliban busy and the ISKP had hoped to capitalise on that.
Given the current scenario, the Al-Qaeda feels that it could capitalise on the peoples’ sentiments in Pakistan and cause an internal rift.
An official said that a vast majority within Pakistan is against the regime, especially the Army. However their voices have been silenced owing to the brute force of the Army. The Al-Qaeda seeks to become that voice of the Pakistan people and hence is inciting them to fight against the regime.
The official added that the Al-Qaeda could also look to carry out a major strike in Pakistan in the near future. It has, through its messaging channels such as the Shahada News Agency, called for violence in Pakistan, while urging cadres to carry out attacks against the Pakistan establishment.
The outfit has also vowed to back the Afghans in the battle against Pakistan.
The Al-Qaeda is targeting an audience that is sympathetic towards Afghanistan.
Another official said that the Al-Qaeda is fully aware that a large majority of the people in Pakistan are completely against what the Army has done in Afghanistan. Driving the Afghan refugees out of Pakistan has also angered the locals. The Al-Qaeda also touches upon this issue and urges the people of Pakistan to stand by the Afghan people.
An Intelligence Bureau official said that the Al-Qaeda may not be at its peak at the moment. When it comes to an arms battle, they are largely down. However the ideology of the outfit still appeals to millions across the globe and this is what is keeping their relevance alive, the official said.
The outfit would first engage in mass messaging with the hope that there is an uprising in Pakistan. This would be used to regroup and recruit.
Eventually, the Al-Qaeda would look to carry out big ticket hits in Pakistan. The experts say that the Pakistani establishment, especially the Army has made a mess out of the region.
Groups such as the ISKP and Al-Qaeda were largely down and were not at their operational best. Such misadventures in Afghanistan and too much meddling in Balochistan and Khyber Pakhtunkhwa (KP) have given ammunition to various terror groups.
Most of them who were inactive are now fully active and this thanks to the miscalculations by the Pakistan Army. Thanks to Islamabad, the region has become volatile and extremely unstable, the experts also note.
–IANS
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