Sole hyper power

Asif Haroon Raja

Donald Rumsfeld, Paul Wolfowitz, Douglous Feith, Richard Perle, Dick Cheney backed by neo-cons media propagandists such as William Kristol and Max Boot were the ones who masterminded a plan to undermine Islam and incapacitate practicing Muslims, dubbed as fundamentalists and anti-America Muslims and to plunder the resources of Muslim world. Many across the world including USA are convinced that 9/11 was engineered by them and hold them responsible for two million Muslim deaths in Afghanistan, Iraq and Pakistan. The slaughter and mayhem was undertaken and is still continuing under the pretext of global war on terror (GWOT), but GWOT is confined to the Muslim world only. 

A recent revelation of a course arranged at Joint Forces College in the US Defence Department has brought to fore the hidden intent of neo-cons in USA. It propagated total war against Muslims. It preached that it would be necessary to consider using lessons of Hiroshima and Nagasaki in this war against Islam to protect USA. Although the course has been cancelled by Pentagon, its planner Lt Col Michael A. Dolley who teaches at Norfolk, Virginia College remains steadfast in his mindset and continues to spit hate. He ridicules concept of moderate Islam, distorts definition of Jihad and quotes Quranic verses and Hadith out of context. Types of Michael and Pastor Terry Jones in large numbers are occupying important seats in USA. They are the ones who have prolonged the GWOT into longest war fought by USA and do not want it to end.        

In accordance with the engineered plan, George W Bush offered a hand of friendship to Gen Musharraf after 9/11 attacks in New York and Pentagon on the condition that Pakistan should break off ties with the Taliban regime in Kabul and join the coalition to fight GWOT. A veiled threat was hurled that if he refused, Pakistan would be sent to Stone Age. Musharraf deemed it expeditious to become an ally of USA and accept its harsh demands to save Pakistan, not imagining that this alliance would prove extremely costly in the long run. He and his team naively thought that Afghan venture would be short and swift, after which foreign troops would return to their respective countries. Within one year time of occupation of Afghanistan, George Bush once again threatened Mush to induct regular troops into South Waziristan (SW) and sort out the foreign terrorists (al-Qaeda) and those who had given them refuge, or else the US military would barge in and do the job.

Mush capitulated once again by sending troops into FATA for the first time in Pakistan’s history in violation of the 1947 agreement between Quaid-e-Azam that defence of western border would be the responsibility of the tribesmen and in return they would be allowed to retain semi-independent tribal status under political agents. Mush miscalculated that he would de-induct Army after one to two operations. Since majority of al-Qaeda and Taliban operatives had fled to FATA from Tora Bora caves in December 2001 after the massive carpet bombing by US air force, military operations as well as hunt for fugitives continued. Most of the collaborators of Al-Qaeda and Afghan Taliban have become Pakistani Taliban and are relentlessly fighting Pak troops since they view them as American collaborators fighting for dollars. They formed a nexus with al-Qaeda and with all the Jihadi groups which were banned by Mush in 2001/02 under pressure from Washington. The then Secretary Defence Donald Rumsfeld had declared al-Qaeda members to be the most viscous and dangerous killers on earth.

For Pakistan, Tehrik-e-Taliban Pakistan (TTP) and not al-Qaeda are most dangerous since it is being funded, trained, equipped, and guided by CIA, RAW, Mossad, MI-6, and RAAM. Abdullah Mehsud detained in Gitmo was brainwashed by CIA and then set free to conduct guerrilla war in SW. He was later joined by Baitullah Mehsud. After the death of the two in 2007 and 2009 respectively, Hakimullah Mehsud commands TTP and he and several hundred runaway militants from Swat, Dir, Buner, Bajaur and SW have been provided shelter in Kunar and Nuristan provinces of Afghanistan wherefrom they are launching cross border attacks in Mehmand, Dir and Chitral. Nine years have gone by and Pak Army is still fighting the war on terror because of continued foreign support to terrorists. All the seven agencies of FATA as well as settled areas of Khyber Pakhtunkhwa are up in arms. Flames of terrorism have spread to all nooks and corners of Pakistan.

Once it was ascertained that Musharraf-King Party combination is not politically strong enough to enable the US to cross the red line and denuclearize Pakistan, Bush team and Tony Blair team jointly hatched a plan to marry up Mush and Benazir Bhutto. Power sharing deal between the two, who in that timeframe were under distress, was made possible by the architects after Mush was assured that he would continue to serve as president till 2013. BB in self-imposed exile and in no position to return to Pakistan because of dozens of corruption cases pending against her and her husband Zardari had given a commitment that she would fulfill Washington’s agenda in totality.

The undertakings included allowing US-NATO troops to conduct hot pursuit operations in FATA; opening up of our nuclear program for inspection by IAEA and making Dr AQ Khan available for interrogation; mending fences with India by settling Kashmir dispute on Indian terms and continuing to fight GWOT with full force. Rumor has it that she backtracked from her commitments after she returned to Pakistan in October 2007. Earlier on, she had not honored the promises made with USA in 1986 and in 1994. Seeing that she was slipping out of their hands, she was bumped off in December 2007 and in her place, totally pliant and acquiescent Zardari was brought in. He consented to work hand-in-glove with USA to enfeeble Pak Army and the judiciary and make the two institutions totally subservient to the whims of US manufactured parliament consisting of American stooges.  

Unlike BB, Zardari was not strong enough to convince Gen Kayani to follow the US Af-Pak policy in letter and spirit and allow cross border raids by the US Special Forces on the basis of actionable intelligence. As a compromise the US was allowed to use drone as a choice weapon against suspected terrorists in FATA freely. It was also agreed to employ the Army full hog against the militants led by Maulana Fazlullah, thereby dissuading US forces to step in and eliminate the threat. Accordingly, unanimous parliamentary resolution was passed to authorize high level military operations in Swat, Bajaur and SW. Outstanding victories achieved by the Army and FC which not only disarrayed al-Qaeda-TTP alliance but also exposed foreign involvement in restive regions, strengthened rather than weakened the Army and raised its image, thus pouring cold water on the evil designs of the detractors of Pakistan. In frustration, late Richard Holbrooke stated in December 2009 that more could be done by Pakistan to defeat Afghan-centric Taliban.         

Hullabaloo over safe havens in North Waziristan and Haqqani network was made with the intent of pushing the Army in yet another carefully laid out death trap. Ignoring Pakistan’s sacrifices, the US kept pressing Pakistan to launch another military operation and resorted to all sorts of pressure tactics but Gen Kayani stood his ground and refused to get snared. He candidly declared that Pak military human losses far outnumbered the losses incurred by 43 member NATO countries and hence to accuse that it is in cahoots with militants is mischievous. He added that NW will be tackled as and when the security situation so demanded.

As if this frustration was not enough, counter measures adopted by the ISI in the aftermath of arrest of Raymond Davis further enraged the US and it decided to hit Pak Army and ISI below the belt. The schemers were sure that OBL venture followed by a terrorist attack on Mehran base would for sure discredit the premier institutions. When the two ventures together with propaganda snipes failed to achieve the expected results and the blowback of OBL killing occurred in Afghanistan in the form of series of attacks by Taliban culminating in 22 hour siege of Kabul on September 13, 2011 and murder of Burhanuddin on 20 September, the US military and NATO went ballistics. ISI was held responsible for the attacks without furnishing any proof. In order to deliver a real hard blow attack on Salala was planned.

The two NATO helicopters after demolishing the two military posts on night of 26 November 2011 kept hovering and pounding the destroyed posts for two hours to ensure that none survived. All concerned in Afghanistan closed their ears to the impassioned appeals of Pak military to stop the massacre. The murderous attack killing 16 soldiers and injuring 13 had been launched to give vent to their pent up anger. The attack was meant to inculcate fear and give a message that this is what happens when someone dares to defy the sole hyper power and stand in its way. With such a belligerent mindset and evil motives, apology was out of question, since apology would have erased the shock and awe effect. Zafar Hilaly rightly names the US as sole hyper power devoid of morals and ethics. Despite feeling the pinch as a result of closure of supply routes for the last six months, the US refuses to tender an apology and to cease drone attacks. It wants Pakistan to comply with its dictates without a whimper and dare not put across conditions. Zardari at present attending Chicago Summit had gone there with a pre-determined mind to make the announcement concerning reopening of supply lines and earn applause from the audience, but public pressure came in his way and he made an excuse that the parliament will decide the issue.