Afghan, Paki update

Afghanistan: Mapping the rising violence

By The LWJ EditorsAugust 5, 2008 8:16 PM

Click to view map of attacks in Afghanistan by province, 2007 versus 2008.

By Chris Radin and Bill Roggio

Attacks in Afghanistan by province, 2007 versus 2008. Click to view chart.

Afghanistan has seen its worst bout of violence since the US overthrew the Taliban government in 2002. Taliban-related attacks and incidents have skyrocketed as the Taliban seeks to destabilize and de-legitimize the weak Afghan government and break NATO's will to fight a protracted counterinsurgency campaign.

The number of Taliban-related incidents per day has jumped by almost 50 percent, according to data compiled by Vigilant Strategic Services Afghanistan. The data compares the Taliban-related incidents from the Jan. 1 to July 13 time periods in 2007 versus 2008.

Afghanistan experienced 18.4 attacks per day in 2008 compared to 12.4 in 2007. Much of the violence can be traced back to Pakistan's lawless border region, where the Taliban openly control wide swaths of territory.

More than two-thirds of the Taliban-related violence has occurred in nine of Afghanistan's 34 provinces. Each of the nine provinces borders Pakistan and seven of them border the volatile tribal areas where the Taliban and al Qaeda have a de facto sanctuary and maintain more than 100 camps.

SOURCE: More:

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Some Afghan MPs back Taliban, drugs trade -official

Wed Aug 6, 2008 3:38am EDT

KABUL, Aug 6 (Reuters) - A senior Afghan intelligence official has accused a number of parliamentarians of supporting Taliban insurgents, Afghan newspapers said on Wednesday.

Afghan and foreign troops are struggling to contain the growing Taliban insurgency while President Hamid Karzai's government is also coming under increasing international pressure to rein in rampant corruption fed by the booming drugs trade.

The deputy head of the National Directorate of Security (NDS), Dr. Abdullah, told parliament on Tuesday that a "number of delegates" in the parliament "supported drug traffickers and terrorists", several newspapers reported on Wednesday.

Abdullah, who uses only one name, did not elaborate and did not name any politicians.

http://www.reuters.com/article/asiaCrisis/idUSISL50881

http://snipurl.com/3cnaa

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MQM ready to counter Taliban threat

* Sattar says extremists trying to plot ethnic, sectarian violence with variety of weapons

Staff Report

KARACHI: A day after the Pakistani Taliban said it was targeting Karachi, Muttahida Qaumi Movement (MQM) leaders declared that they had proof the Taliban were plotting to "spread ethnic and sectarian violence" with a variety of weapons but the party was prepared to counter the threat.

"After this open announcement from the Taliban, can these religious and political personalities still deny the conspiracy of Talibanization in Karachi?" asked MQM Rabita Committee Deputy Convener Dr Farooq Sattar at a press conference at party headquarters Nine Zero Tuesday. In an interview with BBC Urdu on Monday, Tehreek-e-Taliban Pakistan spokesman Maulvi Umar said that they aimed to establish themselves in Karachi. Umar said that the MQM was working on the agenda of foreign agencies and was responsible for terrorism in Karachi.

At his press conference, the MQM's Sattar referred to these words and demanded the government do something to stop the spread of 'Talibanisation' and investigate the sources of its funding and weapons. The Rabita Committee deputy convenor reiterated the MQM's anti-extremism stance. This was their "true cause" he said. The MQM sees religious extremism as a threat to peace in the country and has organized many rallies in Karachi, attended by hundreds of thousands of people, to raise public awareness.

Over the last few months, MQM chief Altaf Hussain has been warning of what he referred to as signs of Talibanization.

http://www.dailytimes.com.pk/default.asp?page=2008%5C08%5C06%5Cstory_6-8-2008_pg12_1

http://snipurl.com/3cnb0

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Lot going on, things moving fast.

G

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