| Submit your comments on this article |
| India-Pakistan |
| Kashmir Descends Into Common Gang War: Foreign vs. Domestic |
| 2006-02-02 |
| On January 15, when a Lashkar sharpshooter pumped 15 bullets into the stomach of top Hizbul Mujahideen commander Imtiyaz Ahmad, it signalled the beginning of a new kind of war. A war where rules of engagement were blurred, making the boundary between enemies and friends indistinct. Forget jihad. Kashmir today is witnessing a clash of arms that is evoking reactions from unbridled joy to unadulterated anguish depending on which side of the divide one stands. For security forces, there couldn’t be any better news. Mentors of militants across the border are shell shocked. More power, control over illegal finances and urge for dominance are some reasons that have militants baying for one another’s blood. In the last 10 days, around three Hizbul militants have been killed by Lashkar-e-Toiba sharpshooters in Doda district of Jammu. This Sunday, Lashkar militants carried their most audacious attack yet, when they stormed the heavily guarded hideout of top Hizb commander Mohammad Sain in Kither Bunjwani in Doda district and shot him down. “This is simply a war between foreigners and local militants for supremacy,” says Colonel Dinesh K Badola, Colonel General Staff (IW) of the Jammu-based 16 Corps. “LeT comprises 70 per cent foreigners and 30 per cent locals. In HM’s case the trend is reverse. So both outfits want to regain supremacy in the area they operate.” Conservative figures released by the Army say around 15 inter-gang rivalries have been reported till now. “And there are several incidents which go unreported because they take place at isolated and inaccessible areas,” says Col Badola. “Each incident results in the death of at least one gang member of either group.” Around 1,500 to 2,000 militants are believed to be operating in Jammu and Kashmir. Lashkar and Hizbul are the two outfits that have the maximum number of militants. It is followed by smaller outfits like Harkat-ul-Mujahdeen and Jaish-e-Mohammad. Control over finances is the major reason for militants to kill fellow comrades. A foreign militant gets a salary of Rs1,500 to Rs2,000 plus other emolument. He is also at liberty to generate the finances through extortion and other means locally. “This is against the liking of local militants who do not want foreigners to control the finances. Plus the foreigners get maximum chunk of the finances from Pakistan, which locals resent. And most of the times it spills over to roads resulting in bloodshed,” says a senior officer of the Army. “Militancy is like a mafia here and everything revolves around finances. The money factor is playing its part. And there is always an urge to control the finances, which are not being liked by other militants. This results in inter-gang clashes,” says Dr S P Vaid, Inspector General of Police, Jammu range. The inter-group clashes are not new to Jammu and Kashmir. It started in 1993 between Jammu and Kashmir Liberation Front and Hizbul-Mujahideen. In that battle the Hizbul Mujahideen emerged victorious. “The current turf war between Lashkar and Hizbul was initially an urban phenomenon. But as the pressure of security forces started mounting the militants shifted bases. With the result the clashes started occurring in remote areas. For the last one year most of the clashes have been reported from remote districts of Rajouri, Poonch and Doda,” says the army officer. “Such was the turf war that rival militants used to tip off the security forces about rival gangs. This worked to our advantage. Top leadership of Al-Jihad, which was very strong in 1993 was eliminated within three months because of the information trickling from rival gangs,” says the army officer, who was also posted in Jammu and Kashmir in the early nineties when militancy was at its peak. Security forces, though not on record, agree that they love the turf war. “We are fighting a war against terror. In this all ultras no matter which outfit they belong to are our enemies. If one enemy kills another, he lessens our burden because we have to kill only one instead of two,” says a senior security force officer engaged in counter insurgency operations. Security experts also feel that the inter-group rivalries are helping the security forces in their fight against terror. “Insurgency is also a battle of nerves. Intelligence agencies and militants play games to pin down each other. Militants fighting each other helps security forces in their efforts to neutralise the ultras,” says M.M.Khajuria, former Director General of J&K Police and noted security expert. The inter-group clashes have also led to disillusionment among the militant ranks who consider it wise to surrender and join the mainstream. “Around 10 militants of Hizbul have laid down their arms before security forces in Doda district in this month,” says Vaid. “Foreign militants do not trust the local ultras. In many cases locals ultras are being dubbed as traitors and killed by foreign militants,” Asif Mohammad Jan, alias Omar Jan, a hardcore militant of Hizbul, hailing from Nandana Thatri, who laid down arms before the security forces a few days ago, told DNA. |
| Posted by:Anonymoose |
| #7 both sides of any 'divide' |
| Posted by: MacNails 2006-02-02 21:23 |
| #6 Kashmir IS gang warfare , if any of these reporters actually spent proper time there , then they would know . Nothing new at all . |
| Posted by: MacNails 2006-02-02 21:22 |
| #5 pFrank Pfrank |
| Posted by: Phuse Sherert6192 2006-02-02 21:18 |
| #4 I don't want to hear from you when we nuke Iran, Frank. |
| Posted by: Darrell 2006-02-02 21:07 |
| #3 ROFL, Frank!!! |
| Posted by: .com 2006-02-02 20:46 |
| #2 On January 15, when a Lashkar sharpshooter pumped 15 bullets into the stomach of top Hizbul Mujahideen commander Imtiyaz Ahmad, it signalled the beginning of a new kind of war I think I got a woody over that :-) |
| Posted by: Frank G 2006-02-02 20:41 |
| #1 Ultras, I love it. Doesn't Nisson make ultras ? I hope this interkill tendency will affect the democrats as well. This is further proof that the world has taken a turn toward the luny bin. The rest of us should be issued cards that say Official Observer and make popcorn. |
| Posted by: wxjames 2006-02-02 19:56 |