The Pakistani Spectator

Instead of refuting angrily the claims made by the US newspapers that the Afghan Shura of Taliban, which shifted from Kandhar to Quetta in 2001 as the US invaded Afghanistan, has now moved to the Karachi. A port city which is the economic lifeline of Pakistan and which is calm and at rest for the some years.

Every after few days, some US daily stands up and accuses that the ISI, the premier Pakistani intelligence agency has shifted Mullah Omer from Quetta to Karachi to keep him save from the Drone attacks. Though not a single US paper has managed to ever produce any proof, however weak in the support of their accusation.

This time Washington Times has observed this ritual and claimed without any proof that the Mulla Muhammed Omar, the leader of the Afghan Taliban, has fled Quetta and found refuge from the potential US attacks in Karachi with the assistance of Pakistan’s intelligence. WT has quoted two senior US intelligence officials and one former senior CIA as source and said that Mullah Omer left for Karachi at the end of this Ramadan.

Karachi has seen it’s fair share of bloodshed and violence for decades as the ethnic parties clashed with each other and still the situation in Karachi is very volatile and fragile as the ethnic fissures smoulder. Target killing is still going on in Karachi and the mafias are very active. There are also very big and renowned Madaris in the city of Karachi, but anyone who is aware of ground realities in Karachi, knows that these Madaris are entirely different from the Madaris of Southern Punjab or NWFP and very open and work on modern lines. Also the modern city of Karachi makes it very unfriendly and hostile for any sort of extremism to foster.

Pakistani officials just make it plain clear to the US counterparts that by hurling such accusations every now and then, the US origins are not doing any service to their war against terror, rather they are strengthening the suspicions that the US wants to weaken the Pakistan to promote India in the region and US is ill at ease to see any city of Pakistan saved from the wars. This also give rise to the hate and anger towards the shady US companies like Dyncorp, Xe Services in Karachi and other cities.

But the question is that who will act tough and rough with the US? Our ambassador to US or our Premier or our President or our Media?