Chori Aur Seena Zori: Dost Muhammed Khosa

I know this is hardly a major crime (compared to what else is going around) but it illustrates the mentality of our ruling class pretty well. This guy doesn’t really need the vehicle (he has stolen enough money already and has many a government vehicles at his service) but still there is that itch that has to be scratched I guess…

A Quickie: Collective Punishment In Gurguri

This little new item caught my attention:

Over 200 held for attacking Gurguri oil and gas field

Tuesday, April 20, 2010
By our correspondent

KARAK: More than 200 people were arrested here on Monday for attacking the Oil and Gas Development Company Limited (OGDCL) installations in Gurguri a couple of days ago.

Sources said the FC personnel cordoned off the area and directed the residents to stay indoors and hand over the wanted persons who attacked the oil and gas installation, allegedly stabbed three personnel of the FC and snatched their guns.

The arrested persons included the president of the Islahi Tanzim, Nasrullah Jan, and an accused, identified as Ghulam Amin, who had allegedly injured the paramilitary force personnel.

An FIR against the latter had already been registered in the area police station, the sources said. However, the FC arrested all those who had stormed the oil and gas field and resorted to vandalism during the search operation in Gurguri.

First thing I thought was if so many people were involved in an “attack”, it must have been quite an attack; so why hadn’t I heard about it? Certainly it must have been front-page news so how could I miss it?

I went searching and finally found one — ONLY ONE — brief mention of the “attack” in ONE newspaper:

3 FC men hurt in scuffle with local man

Sunday, April 18, 2010
By Our correspondent
KARAK: A man attacked a camp of the foreign oil and gas exploring company MOL, injuring three security personnel, sources said Saturday.

The sources said that one of the members of the Gurguri Islahi Tanzeem and former councilor Ghulam Ameen visited the Gurguri gas camp on Saturday and complained to the community relations officer of the MOL that his land had been badly affected by the storage water of the camp. The sources said the CRO assured him that his loss would be compensated.

Despite assurance by the CRO, the sources said, the man tried to meet the site in-charge of the MOL but the security in-charge refused to give him permission for the meeting.

During scuffle with the security personnel, Ghulam Ameen took out the knife and allegedly stabbed three security personnel of Frontier Constabulary. The local person was arrested by the police on the spot and was locked up in the Gurguri Police Station.

Later on, other members of the Tanzeem and the officials held negotiations with the elders of the Gurguri Islahi Tanzeem. The negotiations were in progress till filing of this report.

That’s it? Note this is the “official version” and that too admits the local had a valid complaint. What transpired afterwords is anyone’s guess. That he ended up stabbing three FC men certainly was criminal and he was arrested. That should have been the end of this story. But what gives the government the right to arrest “more than 200 people” for that crime, people who by the FC’s own version had nothing to do with the “attack” (and that too now being described as “attacking the Oil and Gas Development Company Limited (OGDCL) installations in Gurguri” — do note the plural : “installations”). Also, this passage is interesting:

FC personnel cordoned off the area and directed the residents to stay indoors and hand over the wanted persons who attacked the oil and gas installation, allegedly stabbed three personnel of the FC and snatched their guns.

Why did FC “cordon off the area and demand ‘hand over the wanted persons who attacked the oil and gas installation’ when there was only one person attacking and he was already under arrest? And if the following part is true:

the FC arrested all those who had stormed the oil and gas field and resorted to vandalism during the search operation in Gurguri.

Did another follow-up incident take place (“during search operation”)? If it is, then the responsibility squarely lies on the shoulders of FC for it shows that despite having the cculprit in custody, they went out to incite by threatening/intimidating the local population, confined them to their houses illegally (was it for a few hours?one day? two days?), and violated the sanctity of their homes by carrying out an illegal and unnecessary search operation.

Gilani Raises His Stature By Murdering 124 Civilians

[Graphic to be added later…you know what kind…]

That those 124 killed the other day were not militants was clear from the army’s own description of them as “suspected militants“.

That a major slaughter was was in the offing was clear because Gillani was to meet Obama (see “note” at the link).

That those killed were indeed civilians was clear from day one as all eyewitness accounts agreed on that.

Tribal elders have told the media that the jets targeted a jirga ortribal council that was discussing ways to evict militants from the area. They insisted that most of the dead were civilians, including women and children.

A media report said one of the homes targeted by the jets belonged to the father of a Pakistani soldier.

That is is being confirmed today even by our pathetic pro-war English press leaves no doubt.

And for what? So that Gilani can “stand tall” in front of Obama.

Special “Shame On You Award” goes to our armed forces, especially out Air Force who have killed more Pakistanis in last couple of years than Israeli Air Force in all their years of destruction.

(So who are the Israelis now?)

P.S. Also ignore the over 200,000 who have been force to flee the area and ignore the beheadings done by the brave soldiers because it is “speculated” “the beheaded bodies were of high profile militants believed to have been killed during the clash but accomplices cut their heads before fleeing the area apparently to conceal their identity” (so it was “OK” as The News would like to have us see it)

UPDATE: No longer any doubt those killed was civilians. While the army continues with it’s bullshit, here is the latest from LA Times:

But residents from the Tirah Valley village of Sra Vela said the dead and wounded were civilians with no connections to the region’s militant groups. Many of the wounded taken to a hospital in the northwest city of Peshawar were active or retired members of Pakistan’s Frontier Corps, a paramilitary force that battles militants in the tribal belt.[So the b@stards killed their own to please Obama! What a wonderful job!]

“There is not a single militant in the area,” said Kashmalo Khan, 63, a retired Frontier Corps officer who suffered a broken leg in the airstrike. “God knows better who gave information to the government about militants’ presence in the area.”

Villagers said the house targeted in the airstrike belonged to a tribesman with sons serving in the Frontier Corps. After a first bomb struck, neighboring tribespeople rushed to the site to rescue the wounded, Khan said. As they pulled bodies from the rubble, another bomb hit the area.

“The second bomb came while people were busy with relief work,” Khan said. “Everything flew into the air, and I was thrown several yards away.”

The army spokesman denied that any civilians were killed in the strike. A Khyber administration official said that a six-member panel made up of local officials and tribal elders has been formed to investigate the airstrike. [Oh so if you already know no civilians were killed, why form the panel? And I already know what that panel’s report will say: “No civilians were killed in the air-strike]

Khyber’s administration chief, Shafeerullah Khan, said $125,000 in government funds would be set aside to compensate survivors and families of tribespeople killed in the airstrike.[$$$$$? Is that our currency? Any doubt who is paying for ‘our war’?? And again, if no civilians were killed, why set up the fund to compensate survivors and families of tribespeople killed???]

“The army never takes action against innocent tribesmen,” Khan said in a prepared statement. “Security forces had received intelligence about the presence of militants in the area, and action was taken.” [Assh*le, they just did. And that tells us enough about your “intelligence”!]

Another story just out (AP) that has more detail:
Pakistani airstrike kills many civilians: official

Our Army Compared to Our Enemies

Let’s just compare who did the more killing? Those who are supposed to or those who are supposed to prevent it? Following are the figures for just the past week (U.S. Drone strikes are not included as it was unusually calm on the drone end this week):

Date:	Pakistanis Killed By Pak Forces	Israeli Forces	Indian Forces
Apr 11	12 Suspected Militants (so far … it is midday still at time of writing)	0	0
Apr 10	124 ‘Suspected Militants’	0	0
Apr 09	30 ‘Suspected Militants’	0	0
Apr 08	7 ‘Suspected Militants’	0	0
Apr 07	13 ‘Suspected Militants’	0	0
Apr 06	Army accused of extra-judicial killings	0	0
Apr 05	40 More ‘Suspected Militants’	0	0
Total:	Atleast 246	0	0

Note: Whenever you see the figure go above 30, you can be assured some American ‘dignitary’ is on a visit. Whenever you see those killed exceed 50, be assured one of our ‘leaders’ is visiting a Western capital.

UPDATE:

39 “militants” killed in Orakzai clashes April 11
Told ya the day was still young. So that brings the total to 273 trophies for our armed mercenaries.

Also DO keep in mind these are official figures and DO NOT include the number injured which should be 10 times or more that figure. It also does not 200,000 plus — and still counting — made refugees.