The Karachi Project

In the 1977 cold war thriller Telefon, a rogue KGB agent creates mayhem in the US simply by picking up a phone and reading a Robert Frost poem 'the woods are lovely, dark and deep...' to hypnotise sleeper agents who then go on to plant explosives across the continent.

The scenario could well echo a nefarious plan that India's security agencies are now grappling with: The Karachi Project set up by the Pakistan Army's ISI and groups like the Lashkar-e-Toiba (LeT) and HUJI which utilise Pakistani-trained Indian-operatives to plant explosives in selected cities in the Indian heartland.

For at least three years now, Indian security agencies have known of the outlines of this scheme, which Home Secretary G.K. Pillai held responsible for the German Bakery blast in Pune.

"The link between the LeT and Indian Mujahideen (IM), as part of the project, has been established. The LeT pushed David Headley into India to recce potential targets. IM operatives went to Pakistan and viewed videos shot by him, so that they could be sent to India to carry out attacks," he said.

Named after the Pakistani port city and crime hotbed which has turned into a sanctuary for fugitive Indian underworld dons like Dawood Ibrahim and Tiger Memon, the joint-venture project was conceived some time after 2003. It is part of an overall strategy which, Admiral Dennis Blair the director of National Intelligence told a US Senate committee on February 3, was for Pakistan to "use militant groups as an important part of its strategic arsenal to counter India's military and economic advantages".

The Karachi Project has been directly responsible for the deaths of over 500 Indians in 10 bomb blasts since 2005.

Details of the project were first revealed by Pakistan-born American jihadi David Coleman Headley to the FBI in December last year. According to him, the fugitive Bhatkal brothers Riaz and Iqbal who founded the IM, Mufti Sufiyan and underworld don Yaqoob Khan aka Rasool 'Party' were being sheltered in Karachi by the LeT and ISI.

Headley, who checked out Chabad House close to German Bakery, also told the FBI interrogators about serving and retired Pakistan Army officers being part of the project. Headley confirmed that the ISI had put together a team of Indian jihadis in the port city, calling it the Karachi Project. They were waiting to launch them into India for attacks.

Over 500 people have been killed in 10 terror attacks carried out by the Karachi Project since 2005.

Headley recceed targets for the 26/11 Mumbai terror attacks while shuttling between Mumbai and Karachi thrice in 2006 and 2008. Pune also figured prominently in his terror reconnaissance missions. He visited Pune twice, in 2008 and 2009, and stayed at the Surya Villa Hotel near the Osho Ashram and the local Jewish synagogue during his latter visit. This was part of his March 2008 survey of Israeli targets--Chabad Houses across Delhi, Pushkar, Goa, Pune and Mumbai--for future terror attacks.

More details of the plot emerged after the arrest of Abdul Khwaja, second-in-command of Shahid Bilal, who headed the Bangladesh HUJI unit. Khwaja was picked up by the R&AW in a clandestine 'rendition' operation in Bangladesh in December last year.

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Indian Missile Claims

Beijing's dismissal of the DRDO's claims that its missile technology is superior to that of China might provoke knee-jerk patriotism in Delhi. But no one in the world disputes that China is way ahead of India in missilery and military uses of space.

By transferring missiles and their production technology, China has also put Pakistan ahead of India. Instead of acknowledging the reality and redoubling the effort to catch up, the DRDO is making extravagant claims. Take, for example, its head V.K. Saraswat's claim that the Agni-III, with its 3000 km range, is ready for "induction" by the services.

A weapons system inducted after just four tests including one failure? This is the kind of sanctimonious self-congratulation that the DRDO has doled out for decades. Because they wrap themselves in the flag, we are not supposed to ask questions, only clap. Saraswat has claimed that "there is no need to produce and store missiles in today's world". Really? China has more than 1000 missiles pointed at Taiwan; and is producing and deploying missiles in scores every year.

This could be ignored but for the fact that it has begun to create diplomatic problems for India. Take the claim that India is developing anti-satellite weapons. Here he is talking about a weapon system that does not exist; and the Chinese have conducted ASAT weapon tests in 2007 and 2010 without making any claims in advance. Did he have the political clearance to say this?

Did he consult the foreign office which is campaigning in Geneva against an "arms race" in outer space? Even bolder is talk of targets for Agni-III in China and Pakistan. Since when has it become the DRDO's responsibility to decide on nuclear targeting? One had assumed that was the job of the nuclear command authority under the prime minister.

Meanwhile, the ministry of defence appears to have no oversight of the DRDO and the minister, A.K. Antony, seems out of the loop. Speaking at a conference in Delhi last week, Antony thundered against the "militarisation of space". Has anyone informed the poor minister that space has been "militarised" for decades? The international debate today is about deploying weapons in space.

While the minister of defence makes banal statements, his scientific adviser is boasting about space weapons. Why Delhi, which claims to be a responsible nuclear power, allows this dangerous drift at the MOD and DRDO is one of those known unknowns in Delhi.

Source: The Indian Express

Bangalore Blast. It was today...

It is Friday (July 25, 2008) today, and it is my turn for the vehicle pooling.

As always I am awake at 6.20 am. Didi is already done with the dishes and about to get ready to prepare the lunch for my nephew, me and her. Jijaji always has his lunch at office itself. She is cooking dal and roti. By 7.45am lunch boxes are ready and didi is about to leave. I am still doing my daily yoga and jijaji is helping my nephew to get ready for school. Today I make my own lunch. I don’t want to take dal for office lunch. I made sweet rice for lunch and planning what all features I can add to an ordinary project for the client. My vehicle partner calls up and says that he just woke up and is getting ready (Pretty usual stuff for him to get up late and get late).

Everything is as usual. No change in the situation. No change in the lives.

We both get onto my bike and start off to our office. Today we are taking the service road towards our office to bypass the usual traffic jam at the junction near our house. We reach our office before time. I start working upon the project. I start doing multi-tasking: I start reading news on my google reader using mozilla firefox. Till then my outlook opens up and I start catching up with my friends using IMO. And before I get to know, it’s already time to lunch at 1pm.

Me and my friends start having our lunch. We are catching up the live action of cricket: India-Sri Lanka Test match. We are speculating what will be the final score Sri Lanka will pose for India to achieve? This is amongst are normal time pass while having lunch. We discuss about lots of things for whiling away the time, totally unaware of what lies ahead in time for the people of Bangalore. For us. For the world. Everyone unaware of the things to happen for the day.

Everything is as usual. No change in the situation. No change in the lives.

We all come back at our seats. Unaware of the welcome mail already present in my mailbox. The mail was:
Urgent Alert, bomb blasts in Bangalore.
Today at 1.30 pm 3 blasts occurred at Mysore Road, Adugodi, and Forum. Employees are requested to stay calm and within the company premises.

It was a mail from my friend, he had forwarded the mail from his office. I thought he was just kidding. I thought this could not happen in Bangalore atleast. I dismissed the mail as a prank. But then immediately there was a pop-up on my web communicator. My colleague just said that something has happened in Bangalore. I immediately opened up the google search page and checked: “Bomb blasts Bangalore”. It didnt gave search result relevant to this. I thought it must be another hoax. Then people started entering my office bay and all were on their mobile phones. Tensed. Perplexed. Astonished. I thought has this really happened?

I asked them “What has happened? Why are you so tensed?” they said “Hey! Don’t you know? There are bomb blasts in Bangalore. Where are you dude?” I suggested lets immediately go to canteen to check the news on the TV. We are going to the canteen, on the way more people are joining us. All of us are thinking what has happened? How big is the explosion? How many have exploded? Till we reached to the canteen, there are two more blasts reported. Within 15 minutes there are more reported blasts within the city.

Everything is as un-usual. Total change in the situation. Many changes in the lives.

This was the first time I was hearing the blasts in the city in which I live. Never had I, before, heard this kind of incident. I was looking at the people’s faces. I felt the fear, anger, amazement and the bag of emotions which I hadn’t imagined. People started receiving calls asking for their wellness. Some people were terrified and angry as their calls were not getting connected to their friends, relatives. Their FAMILY. The networks were jammed to stop the rumor mongerers. The people started analyzing the situation and deducting the person/ organization who could conduct such kind of act. Everyone was immersed in the situation.

8 blasts, 1 death with 8 injured. The blasts were mild blasts using gelatin and some hurting stuff. Today was an unusual day.

I have experienced many cities. All the cities have been calm and quite. This city being IT capital, the Silicon City of Asia, had all the ingredients and the attractions for a terror strike. Ahh, “TERROR STRIKE”. People associate this quoted word sentence to only the North-East India or the Kashmir. Rest of the Indian peninsular region being quite and calm. Then why has such kind of attack on the Indian IT capital? Many theories are doing the round in my mind. Is it to show that the terrorists are still present in India, to warn the government “Beware, we are still here”. Or was it a precursor to something heavier, more deadly. Or was it just to show to government the terrorists striking power, the immaculate timing of the blasts?

But then immediately I got a phone call on my cell. It was from my friend from Goa, who is doing his MBA. He was concerned. I was thinking should I say him the truth about the vicinity of location to my residence, or to say that the location was very far. The truth was the location is quite near and I was planning to go that place on Saturday. But telling him that would have not done any good. He would be more sorry than happy. I didn’t not say that the reported death too, was at the same location which is near to my residence. I told him, “Hey everything is alright. Didi is at home, nephew too is on his way back. The school is in other direction than the blasts ites. Jijaji is in office. I am in office.” He also wanted to check with our another friend in bangalore. She is married and lives with her husband and brother-in-law. I called her up. The call didn’t get through. I called again, then again, and finally got through. She picked it up quite late. My first sentence “Are you OK?”. To my amazement she said, she is in Pune. She has gone there to see off his brother-in-law to US. I was thankful that she was in Pune. Then I immediately sent an sms to jijaji asking about how the things are at his side? He said he was ok. Then I called up my cousin who is in the same office as Jijaji. She too was in office itself.

Finally the canteen got a bit emptied and employees had started going back to their workstations. Till evening a warning was announced on the PA system, not to leave the office and the cabs will be arranged. The Bangalore traffic conditions was bad. Everyone was heading towards their home, to get along with their family, to be together. There was huge traffic jam. Me and my pool partner decided to leave late. Till then we thought of doing our project work.

Everything is usual. Total change in the situation. Many changes in the lives.

Later while riding back to home, I was thinking, has this incident did any change in life? Did it affect the way I think? Did it affect me? Or Did it affect anyone?

Is it resilience of the people to take up this kind of incidence or is it indifference?
Are the people really affected by such kind of things? I feel people are getting used to such kind of incidence. People do not feel the attachment towards other. There is no affection left. But the immediately what counter convinces this thing is, even if I feel affectionate to those affected by the incidence, what change can I bring in their lives. There is no way I can help them with my meager resources. If I give it to the government, will there be no corruption to suck up my helping money? Will my help money reach the needy? Will there be any difference made with my donated amount?

People keep swinging between these extremes and do not settle on any thought as their final ideology. There is a group of people who want to help, another group who is indifferent towards all the incidents and there is another group who want to cash in from the helping hands. There are 10 answers and 100 questions to be answered. This imbalance doesn’t help anyone. And finally……

Everything is usual. No change in the situation. No change in the lives.

The ultimate reality remains is:
In a universe of ambiguity, this kind of certainty comes only once.

Why attacks on India embassy in Afghanistan?

While Afghan security sources have projected the incident as an attempt to kill Afghan President Hamid Karzai, the neo Taliban has projected it as an operation to demonstrate its capability even in Kabul, despite all the security precautions taken by the government. The incident has revealed serious deficiencies in route security and perimeter security.

The deficiencies in route security enabled six heavily-armed terrorists enter the city and reach the hotel without being detected and intercepted anywhere. The deficiencies in perimeter security enabled the perpetrators to take up position in a room of the hotel without being detected and fire from there.

Apart from these physical security deficiencies, was there also complicity by any member of the security forces? That is a question, which should be worrying the Afghan authorities. In Iraq, many successful terrorist strikes have been made possible by internal complicity.In Afghanistan, till now, there have been few instances of such complicity." Forty one people are reported to have been killed by a suicide bomber with a Vehicle-borne Improvised Explosive Device outside the gates of the Indian embassy in Kabul on July 7. Four of them are stated to be Indian nationals -- including the Indian defense attaché, a counselor-level diplomat and two security guards.
From the indications available so far, it is evident that it was a targeted attack on the Indian mission. Was it also a targeted attack on the defense attaché? This question arises from the fact that the vehicle-borne suicide bomber reportedly rammed his vehicle against two cars of the mission as they were about to enter the mission. North Atlantic Treaty Organization officers in Afghanistan have spoken of a 40 per cent increase in the infiltration of terrorists from the tribal belt of Pakistan into Afghanistan since the new Pakistani government suspended military operations against the Tehrik-e-Taliban Pakistan and entered into peace negotiations with them. Even as acts of terrorism -- including suicide terrorism -- have increased in Afghan territory, there has been a sharp decrease in acts of suicide terrorism in Pakistani territory.

The increasing Indian presence in Afghanistan for assisting in the economic development of Afghanistan and for strengthening the capability of the Afghan government in various fields has been a constant source of criticism by Pakistan, which has taken up the issue repeatedly with the US and other NATO countries. Urdu newspapers in Pakistan had even accused India of fomenting trouble in Balochistan from covert bases in Afghan territory.
Pakistan thus has a strong motive to target Indian nationals and interests in Afghanistan through its surrogate, the Taliban. During the last three years, there has been a steep increase in acts of suicide terrorism by the neo Taliban of Afghanistan headed by Mulla Mohammad Omar.

Initially, the suicide attacks were by individual suicide bombers who carried the IEDs on their person. The modus operandi using VBIED, which causes many more fatalities than individual bombers carrying the IED, was and is still being used with devastating effect in Iraq by Al Qaeda. Training in this has been imparted by Al Qaeda to neo Taliban volunteers in the training camps of Al Qaeda, the Islamic Movement of Uzbekistan and the Islamic Jihad Group, another Uzbek organization, in North Waziristan in the Federally-Administered Tribal Areas of Pakistan.
The successful attack outside the Indian mission has been made possible by poor security on the road in which the Indian mission is located. One would have, therefore, expected the level of road security and access security on this road to have been high. The details available so far do not speak of any specific physical security deficiency in the Indian mission itself .

Al Qaeda has been looking for opportunities for a major terrorist strike against the US and Israel. Even if Al Qaeda has no motive presently for targeting Indian nationals and interests, it badly needs a successful terrorist strike against the US or other Western powers in order to prove to its followers and admirers that its capability for action against the US and Israel remains strong.