dawn.com
<>Pakistan third in the world (behind the
United States and Switzerland) in seizing terrorist
assets, AFP reported.
(May be because that had so many!! ggg my comments..)
US lauds Pakistan's cooperation
WASHINGTON, April 30: A new US report released on
Wednesday termed Pakistan a "key" anti-terror ally,
and ranked Pakistan third in the world (behind the
United States and Switzerland) in seizing terrorist
assets, AFP reported.
The Patterns of Global Terrorism Report for 2002
lauded Pakistan's cooperation in the US anti-terror
campaign stating, "Pakistan remained a key ally in the
anti-terrorism effort, offering support to US
operations in Afghanistan, implementing close law
enforcement cooperation and cracking down on domestic
extremists."
The report praised Pakistan as a "vital partner in the
global coalition against terrorism," noting that
President Pervez Musharraf's government had banned
five extremist organizations including Lashkar-e-Taiba
(LT) and Jaish-e-Mohammed (JEM).
It noted Pakistan's arrest of former Taliban and Al
Qaeda operatives who fled into its territory from
Afghanistan and Islamabad's cooperation following
terror attacks against US citizens and interests.
Our Correspondent adds: Several Pakistani and Kashmir
organizations are on a list of 36 terrorist outfits
the US State Department named on Wednesday. The annual
report on "patterns of global terrorism" also includes
38 other terrorist groups that were identified in the
previous report as well.
The Pakistani and Kashmiri groups named on the list
include Jaish-e-Mohammed, Lashkar-e-Jhangiv,
Sipah-e-Sahaba, Lashkar-e-Tayyaba, Hezbul Mujahideen,
Harkatul Mujahideen and Al-Badr Mujahideen.
An Iranian group, Mujahideen-e-Khalq, also remains on
the list although Iran recently claimed that the
United States was negotiating a deal with this group
to use it against the government in Tehran.
Afghan leader Gulbadin Hekmatyar's Hezb-e-Islami also
made it to the list along with other armed movements
around the globe, such as the Tamil Tigers, the Basque
separatists, the Shinning Path.
But the largest bunch of the groups designated as
terrorists belong to the Middle East, particularly
those fighting the Israelis in Palestine. This
includes such big names as Hamas, Hizbollah and the
Popular Front for the Liberation of Palestine as well
as splinter groups that separated from larger
organizations, such as the al-Aqsa Martyrs Brigade.
The Egyptian al-Jihad and Jemaah Islamiya are there.
So is the Kurdistan Workers Party, which has carried
out terrorist attacks in Turkey in the past. An Iraqi
religious group, Ansar ul Islam, shares the list with
the Muslim movements of Turkestan and Uzbekistan.
Last year's biggest name, Al Qaeda, is sandwiched
between PFLP (General Command) and the Real IRA. The
original IRA is also there, but Middle Eastern and
Muslim groups keep popping up under every heading.
Even groups previously unheard of, such as the
Salafist Group for Call and Combat, have not been
missed.
Harakat ul-Jihad Islami is there along with Harakat
ul-Jihad Islami (Bangladesh). |
