The Movement of the Taliban is capable of organizing, training and executing attacks such as today’s assault on the Air Force camp near Peshawar despite the military offensive that is targeting the group in North Waziristan.
Both the Taliban in Pakistan and its ally, al Qaeda, have stepped up their presence in eastern Afghanistan over the past several years.
Earlier today, Pakistani Taliban spokesman Muhammad Khorasani denied reports that his group was going to join Abu Bakr al Baghdadi’s Islamic State. Khorasani said that these reports are “false” and based on “lies.” There are multiple indications that al Qaeda helped reorganize the current Pakistani Taliban coalition this year.
Mullah Mansour Dadullah, who has rejected the appointment of Mullah Mansour to replace Mullah Omar, also said that the Taliban’s leadership is based in Pakistan. He has not expressed a desire to join the Islamic State.
Al Qaeda-linked Twitter feeds, including one attributed to a senior al Qaeda leader, are claiming that Idris al Balushi was killed during a counterterrorism raid by Pakistani forces. Balushi is purportedly the nephew of Khalid Sheikh Mohammed. His death has not been confirmed.
Jamaat-ul-Ahrar’s spokesman said that the Punjab home minister was killed in “revenge for the martyrdom” of Malik Ishaq, the head of the Lashkar-e-Jhangvi who was killed by Pakistani police in late July.
If the images released by the Islamic State supporter are legitimate, then Khorasan province now has a foothold in Waziristan, the epicenter of al Qaeda’s base of support in Pakistan.
Malik Ishaq has been in and out of Pakistani custody over the years, despite the fact that he was the head of one of the most violent jihadist groups in Pakistan and directed numerous terror attacks.
The spokesman for the Jamaat-ul-Ahrar faction of the Movement of the Taliban in Pakistan said it “will avenge” the death of Shahidullah Shahid “from the Americans and its allies.” He also claimed a peace council was formed to mediate the dispute between the Islamic State and the Afghan Taliban.
The attack took place in a section of Pakistan’s tribal agencies where the the US is concentrating its drone campaign in North Waziristan.
Five of the eight strikes that have taken place in Pakistan so far this year have targeted jihadists operating in the Shawal Valley, which spans both North and South Waziristan.
The strike took place in the Shawal Valley in Pakistan’s Taliban-controlled tribal agency of North Waziristan. The US continues to launch drone strikes in Pakistan, but the counterterrorism operation does not stray beyond the tribal areas.
The Pakistani Taliban has released a lengthy statement rejecting Abu Bakr al Baghdadi’s claim to be the new caliph. The group praises Afghan Taliban leader Mullah Omar, as well as deceased al Qaeda leader Osama bin Laden and his successor, Ayman al Zawahiri.
The Taliban’s propaganda cannot be independently verified. The Pakistani government claims the Mi-17 crash, which resulted in the death of the ambassadors of Norway and the Philippines and five others, was caused by a technical malfunction.
Matiur Rehman, who has served as a senior al Qaeda leader and the operations chief for Lashkar-e-Jhangvi, brought three Pakistani jihadist groups into the fold of the Movement of the Taliban in Pakistan.
The Pakistani Taliban, which has advertised the Mujahideen Special Group as its version of special forces, shows the fighters going through various stages of instruction.
The statement highlights the close working relationship between al Qaeda and the Movement of the Taliban in Pakistan, and al Qaeda’s influence over the fellow jihadist group.
Pakistan declines Saudi call for armed support in Yemen fight
Zakiur Rehman Lakhvi, the mastermind of the deadly 2008 Mumbai assault, is out of prison. Pakistan continues to favor Lashkar-e-Taiba.
Iraq, Afghanistan, Pakistan, Ukraine Among World's Most Dangerous Countries
Afghanistan and Pakistan: The false promise of rapprochement
Khawray Mehsud served as a bodyguard and close aide to Baitulllah Mehsud, the founder of the Movement of the Taliban in Pakistan. The Taliban said Khawray was a skilled military commander who fought on multiple “fronts” in both Pakistan and Afghanistan.
The murder of Samiullah Afridi will make it all the less likely that Dr. Shakil Afridi will ever get a chance to appeal his prison sentence for his role in helping find Osama bin Laden.
Seven Pakistani Shiites who were killed while fighting for Bashar al Asad’s regime in Syria appear to have been recruited and trained inside Iran.
Omar Khalid Khorasani’s Jamaat ul Ahrar faction and Mullah Fazlullah’s group have put aside differences and reformed the Movement of the Taliban in Pakistan. Lashkar-e-Islam also joined the group.
Recently released letters recovered in Osama bin Laden’s compound reveal that key Pakistani leaders, including the brother of Pakistan’s current prime minister, sought out negotiations with al Qaeda. Pakistan intelligence also communicated with al Qaeda leaders through jihadist intermediaries to discuss a possible truce.
Haqqani Network, Taliban Quetta Shura must for talks’ success: Pakistan.
One al Qaeda commander, Abu ‘Uthman, was a bit too close to Gulbuddin Hekmatyar for Osama bin Laden’s liking. Abu ‘Uthman was denied a seat on al Qaeda’s elite shura council because of his flaws, including his lack of proper respect for Mullah Omar.
Senior al Qaeda, Taliban, and allied jihadist leaders killed in US airstrikes in Pakistan, 2004 – 2017 Created by Bill Roggio Since 2004, the US has been conducting a covert program to target and kill al Qaeda and Taliban commanders based in Pakistan’s lawless northwest. The program has targeted top al Qaeda leaders, al Qaeda’s […]
Islamic State a serious threat to Pakistan, Foreign secretary admits.