Farooq Ashraf
A diplomatic row broke out between Pakistan and the US over the latest US drone
attack on a said to Afghan refugee camp situated near Hangu, Kurram Agency. Both
sides publicly rejected each other’s claims on the actual target. Pakistan
challenged the American government’s claims that a Haqqani network commander,
along with his two accomplices, were hiding in what they called a “terrorist
sanctuary” in Kurram and insisted that the predator attack actually hit the
Afghan refugee camp as there exist no sanctuaries inside the Pakistani
territory.
In an unsual move the American embassy here in Islamabad issued a statement, and
called the ISPR claim as “false”. This prompted the Inter Services Public
Relations to issue a quick rebuttal, saying the “drone strike on January 24 in
Spintal, Hangu district, was on an individual target who had morphed into Afghan
refugees and not any organized terrorists’ sanctuary which have been
eliminated.” The ISPR statement said the presence of militants in the refugee
camps validates Pakistan’s stance that leftover terrorists easily morph into
Afghan refugee camps and complexes. “Thus their early and dignified return to
Afghanistan is essential. Pakistan’s brotherly hospitality to peaceful Afghan
refugees must not be exploited by the terrorists.”
This drew criticism from the Pakistani print as well as electronic media, saying
that the strike must be seen as first attack from the US after President Donald
Trump’s 1st January threatening tweet. Threats, it said, by the US that it would
take unilateral action against Pakistan if it were not seen to take action
against the Haqqani network and the Afghan Taliban – the way the US would have
us do – “seem to have now been carried out.” We, said a newspaper editorial,
have been here too many times before to think it may now be different. “Each
time a US drone hits a target here in this country, we hear the same disco club
remix of the old tune about how this is violation of Pakistan’s airspace and
sovereignty. The only thing that has changed since the first strike back in 2004
is that the state at least now admits these are American bombs raining down on
our parade.” Has the time not come to change the record, it asks.
The war of words has reached the extent a UNHCR statement appeared in the press
claiming no any refugee camps are existed in the Kurram area. Whether one should
believe it or not, yet since the United States president is adamant on “teaching
Pakistan and lesson”, the drone attack will get a justification – no matter how
false it maybe – the ISPR’s claims however seems valid. “Out of total 54 Afghan
refugee camps and complexes in Pakistan, 43 are in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa that
overlap in FATA. Pakistan has hosted millions of Afghan refugees for more than
last four decades. The Pakistan government has time and again sought an early
repatriation of the Afghan refugees owing to the security concerns and changing
moods.
“The time for action has come if, indeed, we are serious about putting an end to
the American drone programme in our country. Let us be momentarily reckless and
assume we are.” This is time for the people of Pakistan to join hands together,
shun differences and gather on one-point agenda – i.e. the security concerns of
the country. Both the houses, National Assembly and the Senate of Pakistan, as
well as all the five provincial assemblies of the provinces must pass the
resolutions against the US attack, and raise their voice at the international
levels, urging the Americans to eschew the path of violating Pakistan’s
sovereign space and find a way of working together in cohesion and unison, to
fight the menace of terrorism by joining hands together and sharing intelligence
from both the sides of the Afghan border.
At the same time, Pakistan must have other options to keep in mind. This is an
issue where Islamabad cannot afford to allow the Americans to let loose their
reign of terror through drone strikes or ground hot pursuit, so there has to be
an agreement afresh that first; the border between Pakistan and Afghanistan may
be secured, two; both sides would be responsible to secure their respective
areas and purge it of terrorists or terrorist safe havens, three; the Afghan
side must be asked to bust the sanctuaries offered to Mullah Fazlullah and
others or otherwise Pakistan reserves the right to send its own predator Uqabs
to destroy those save havens. Uqab drone; which we basically have built to
primarily monitor the CPEC infrastructure projects, has a very sophisticated and
advanced technology with a flight capacity of 15 hours; it can also carry a
missile of up to 1,000kg in ammunition weight. One believes that if actionable
intelligence is shared, this war of words cannot escalate to the level of a
dangerous war in the region. For that purpose, we must seek the political and
diplomatic help from our friends like China, Turkey and Saudi Arabia and other
countries including Russia and European Union.
Fifthly, Pakistan must expedite the process of sending back the refugees. There
should no more be a deadline to further extend the refugees’ stay in Pakistan.
Last month the government had approved only 30-day extension to the stay of
around 1.4 million registered Afghan refugees in Pakistan. Islamabad has now set
a deadline of January 31 for all the refugees to return to Afghanistan.According
to the UNHCR statistics, nearly 1.4 million Afghan refugees remain in Pakistan.
However, unofficial data suggests that a further 700,000 undocumented refugees
could be in the country.
Before and after the January 1st tweet by the US president, Donald Trump,
America gradually stopped both the Coalition Support Fund, military aid and
security assistance. The Pakistan government announced to stop intelligence
sharing and other cooperation it had been extending to ISAF and NATO troops
stationed in Afghanistan. The Americans rebuff Pakistan’s offer of taking action
itself on the basis of shared intelligence.
As a newspaper read, “the Trump administration seems to have decided to see its
relationship with Pakistan through the lens of its war in Afghanistan and its
desire to cultivate closer ties to India. With thousands more US troops expected
in Afghanistan, it would come as no surprise if there was a steep increase in
the frequency of drone attacks. But, as the experience of the US in the past has
shown, the more drone strikes it launches in Pakistan, the more chances of peace
are diminished. Unilateral military action has been ounterproductive in
the past and this time will be no different.”
Pakistan needs to engage the world community and the international community
must engage the US towards seeking a diplomatic solution of the Afghan imbroglio
as immediately possible and let this war or words turning into an ugly war of
killing machines on both the sides.
(The author is concerned citizen)