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| Friday, September 21, 2001, Chandigarh, India   
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Most
oppose Pervez’s bid to back US effort
No US
split on target
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Anarchy reigns
in Kabul USA
refuses relief offers USA
ready ‘to ease’ sanctions on Pak Weekly
offers $1m for Laden news UN
debate put off Paper
apologises to UK Sikhs Israel
sees Iraqi hand in attacks Israeli
woman gunned down despite truce
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Most oppose Pervez’s bid to back US effort Islamabad, September 20 It’s an uphill battle. A public opinion poll showed the vast majority of people oppose Pakistan joining any attack on its former allies in Afghanistan’s ruling Taliban movement. And street demonstrations against US policy, while still small, are growing by the day. Rather than the confident commander Pakistanis had seen since he seized power in October 1999, Musharraf sounded on the defensive throughout his evening speech last night. As reports of him snapping at questioners during recent meetings indicate, he is under pressure. “When there is a crisis situation, the path of wisdom is better than the path of emotions,” Musharraf said, making clear he felt he had little choice but to accept US demands for help in the aftermath of the devastating attacks on New York and Washington. In an analogy aimed at the Islamic parties who have been threatening a jihad, or holy war, if there is a US attack on the Taliban in reprisal for sheltering Saudi militant Osama bin Laden, Musharraf said even the Prophet had to make agreements of convenience. “Pakistan is facing a very critical situation,” he said, adding “the decision we take today can have far-reaching and wide-ranging consequences...if we take wrong decisions in this crisis, it can lead to worse consequences.” Musharraf portrayed some Islamic critics as displaying emotion rather than wisdom. That may be true, but does not diminish the threat it poses in a country where mobs destroyed the US Embassy in 1979 and attacked the US information centre a decade later. There is no doubt that emotion is running high on the streets. Demonstrations are growing in size, especially in North-West Frontier Province where the population comes from the same Pushtun tribes as the Taliban. A national strike has been called for tomorrow. In an effort to win backing in a country where many see the USA as hostile to Islam, Musharraf listed the reasons why he felt compelled to help in what is increasingly likely to be US military action in Afghanistan. Musharraf also posed as defender of the Taliban against a hostile world, saying he did not want any harm done to the Taliban or Afghans despite the US requests all pointing at an attack on Afghanistan. “We are telling the Americans too that they should be patient,” he said. “Whatever their plans they should be cautious and balanced; we are asking them to come up with whatever evidence they have against Osama bin Laden. “What I would like to know is how do we save Afghanistan and the Taliban. And how do we ensure that they suffer minimum losses,” he said. “I am sure that you will favour that we can bring some improvement by working with the nations of the world.” Musharraf’s claims still to be helping the Taliban emerge unscathed sit uncomfortably with the stream of statements out of Washington thanking the Pakistani leader for his offer to provide any assistance required. Musharraf, sensing growing doubts among the public about US threats to the Taliban and Bin Laden, appeared less forceful in his endorsement for Washington than in the immediate aftermath of the attacks. The General has clearly concluded that the cost to Pakistan of not helping the USA is greater than bowing to American demands. But he sounds deeply uneasy, knowing that scepticism is likely to increase as chances of a conflict rise. Peshawar: About 5,000 Afghan tribesmen today staged an anti-US demonstration across Pakistan’s Torkham border, sending the message that they were ready to defend Afghanistan. Their leader, Molvi Zar Lal Khan Shinwari, told the Peshawar-based Afghan Islamic Press (AIP) agency that “if the USA attacked Afghanistan, we will wage jehad (holy war)’’. AIP said Shinwari tribesmen raised slogans of “death to America, death to terrorist, long live Osama, long live Mullah Omar”. “Jehad will become a duty if the USA attacks Afghanistan. We have prepared 5,000 young men to fight the aggressor,” Zar Lal Khan said. AIP said the demonstrators had come from areas as far away as 50 km from the border.
Reuters, DPA |
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No US split on target Washington, September 20 “First of all, there is no rift developing in the administration,’’ he said in an interview on the NBC “Today’’ programme. “The Department of State, the Department of Defence and the President are all on same sheet of music.’’ The New York Times today reported that Paul Wolfowitz, the Deputy Defence Secretary, and Lewis Libby, Vice-President Dick Cheney’s Chief of Staff, were pressing for the earliest and broadest campaign against not only the Osama bin Laden network in Afghanistan but also against suspected guerrilla bases in Iraq and in Lebanon’s Bekaa valley. In response, Secretary of State Colin Powell argued during weekend meetings with Bush that the administration must take the time to prepare the diplomatic groundwork for US military action, first in Afghanistan, by consulting with allies and building the case to justify American actions under international law, the paper said. Instead, he cited the annual State Departments list of alleged state sponsors of terrorism, and added, “We know that a number of those countries are in the Middle East.’’ Five of the seven on the list are located in the Middle East: Iran, Iraq, Syria, Libya and Sudan. In an address to the nation later, Bush will make clear that his campaign is not a replay of the Gulf war, a traditional war conducted by his father, President George Bush, pitting a US-led coalition against Iraq. “I think the President is going to use this as an opportunity to talk about the sustained nature of this campaign,’’ White House National Security Adviser Condoleezza Rice said. “I think he will use it as an opportunity to urge patience and reason, and to demonstrate again that his resolve is going to be over a long period of time, not in a single moment.’’ The first phase of the US response would be retaliation against those responsible and those who harbour them followed by a longer global struggle against militant networks, she said. Federal law enforcement officials, who have a list of about 200 suspects or witnesses they want to question over the attacks, are also exploring what they call “clear’’ support for the hijack network ‘’by a variety of foreign governments.’’ The criminal investigation is the biggest in US history. “It’s time for those governments to understand with crystal clarity that the USA will not tolerate that,’’ Attorney-General John Ashcroft said without elaborating. With rescuers digging grimly to find bodies in the rubble of the World Trade Center’s 110-storey twin towers, shaken New Yorkers were warned by their Mayor to brace for an economic blow after the emotional devastation of the attacks. The list of missing people stood at 5,422, while the number of confirmed dead was 233.
Reuters |
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Anarchy reigns in Kabul Kabul, September 20 The slide towards lawlessness came as the “shura” or council of clerics met for a second day after a warning from their leader that the USA was bent on the Taliban’s destruction. “There is a sharp rise in thefts,” said one resident who was robbed in his home at gunpoint. Crime in Kabul, a city once known for its streets lined with roses but pounded almost to rubble by factional fighting in the 1990s, is home to the poorest of its 20 million people. The capture of the capital by the hardline Taliban in 1996 marked the return of law and order as the purist movement imposed its Islamic system of government. Many of the new attacks were carried out by looters posing as members of the Taliban’s feared religious police. “Mainly men carrying arms are entering people’s homes under the guise of checking to see if they have arms or are watching a movie or listening to music,” said a resident. “The owner of the house lets them in because he has nothing to hide. Then he and the rest of the male family members are rounded up and women are forced to hand them over cash or jewellery,” he said. Another resident said his neighbour’s house was looted by six armed men on Tuesday. “I have lost everything. We don’t know what sort of security the Taliban are saying they have brought to the city and what will happen if there is a strike,” said one frightened man. The Taliban have disarmed the population and banned guns except those held by their own security personnel. Residents said law and order appeared to be deteriorating rapidly in the city from which thousands have fled fearing US strikes.
Reuters |
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US, UK planes attack Iraqi sites
Riyadh, September 20 |
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USA refuses relief offers Washington, September 20 The official, speaking to reporters on condition of anonymity, yesterday said 58 countries, including nearly all the nations of Europe, Australia, New Zealand and Turkey, had offered to aid in the search and rescue efforts after Tuesday’s strikes and the collapse of the World Trade Center. “People have offered very generously with very concrete kinds of support that is needed: dogs and thermal imaging and search equipment and specialised teams,” the official said. “There’s a lot of real solid expertise, it’s just we also have a lot of that expertise as well and haven’t at this point found a need for most of these things, much as we appreciate the offers,” he said. The official said the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) is reviewing the offers, including one for psychiatrists, but will likely decline all with thanks.
AFP |
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USA ready ‘to ease’ sanctions on Pak London, September 20 Proposals to ease sanctions on Pakistan, as well as on India, imposed after the two carried out nuclear tests in 1998, are expected to be presented to members of the foreign relations committees of Congress today, the FT said. They represent a clear incentive for Pakistani cooperation with the USA in dealing with Osama bin Laden, the chief suspect behind the September 11 attacks, and the Taliban regime in neighbouring Afghanistan, which harbours him. The move to court Pakistan is the latest step by the Bush administration in the task of building a coalition of allies to back retaliation against those responsible, the FT said. Standard and Poor’s rating agency said yesterday that Pakistan could face US sanctions or financial aid depending on its reaction to the terrorist attacks. “Pakistan could look forward to financial assistance by cooperating with the USA, including the removal of sanctions, the receipt of additional funding from official creditors, rescheduling bilateral debt and even bilateral debt forgiveness,” the agency said.
AFP |
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Weekly offers $1m for Laden news Hong Kong, September 20 East Week took out a full-page advertisement in a local newspaper today urging anyone with news about the Saudi-born dissident to come forward. Bin Laden, who lives as a “guest” of the ruling Taliban in Afghanistan, has been named by the USA as the prime suspect in last week’s devastating attacks in New
York and Washington which left nearly 6,000 persons missing or dead. “Whether you are a war correspondent, military expert, international affairs pundit or if you know friends or relatives of Bin Laden or local Afghans... and you offer exclusive earth-shattering news or pictures about Bin Laden... you stand a chance of winning the generous reward,” the advertisement reads. New Media Group, which owns the magazine, has set up a hotline for any leads. The company would not say how many calls it has received so far but said the information gathered would be published in its October 3 edition.
Reuters |
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UN debate put off United Nations, September 20 In view of the urgency created by attacks on the “World Trade Center (WTC) and the Pentagon, fresh date for debate will be decided at the earliest, in consultation with regional groups, hosts and Washington. On a proposal given by Belgium, on behalf of the European Union (EU), the Assembly agreed to hold discussion on “measures to eliminate international terrorism.” This is the first time in the 56-year history of the world body that the debate has been delayed.
PTI |
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Paper apologises to UK Sikhs London, September 20 “We have been asked to emphasise that this man had no connection with those attacks and was subsequently released. We apologise if any contrary impression was given,” the Associate Editor of the Evening Standard Don Berry said. The apology was a sequel to a complaint lodged with the Editor of the newspaper by Counsellor in-charge of the Press and Information in the High Commission of India, Navdeep Suri. While admitting that the error might have occurred because Sikhs wear turban and have beard, Suri said, “the publication of the picture has, however, caused considerable anxiety amongst members of the Sikh community in the United Kingdom, following the killing of at least one Sikh in the USA in an apparently retaliatory attack. “There have been several incidents of intimidation and racial abuse of members of the Sikh community in the UK as well.” Suri added “their outward appearance, which is a manifestation of their religious belief, appears to have made them victims of mistaken identity.”
PTI |
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Israel sees Iraqi hand in attacks London, September 20 The website, which specialises in defence and security matters, said Aman officers believed two of the world’s foremost terrorist masterminds directed the operation. They are Lebanese Imad Mughniyeh, head of the special overseas operations for Hezbollah, and the Egyptian Dr Ayman Al Zawahiri, a senior member of Osama bin Laden’s Al-Qaeda network, according to Jane’s. Bin Laden is the chief suspect in the hunt for the perpetrators of the devastating strikes in the USA. The Israeli sources claim that for the past two years Iraqi intelligence officers have been shuttling between Baghdad and Afghanistan, meeting with Zawahiri, it said. According to the sources, one of the Iraqi intelligence officers, Salah Suleiman, was captured in October last by the Pakistanis near the border with Afghanistan. The Iraqis are also reported to have established strong ties with Mughniyeh, Jane’s Security said.
AFP |
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Israeli
woman gunned down despite truce Jerusalem, September 20 Both sides ordered the ceasefire on Tuesday under fierce international pressure amid concern that US efforts to forge a global coalition to fight terrorism would be undermined by the year-old Israel-Palestinian violence. Israel wants 48 hours of total calm before talks start. The Israeli police and security sources said the settler was killed and her husband was seriously wounded as they drove with their children near the Jewish settlement of Tekoa, close to Palestinian-ruled Bethlehem in the West Bank.
Reuters |
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