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US fears: ‘PAF airmen sabotaging F-16s’
A 2006 cable cites a senior air force official saying airmen were being radicalised.
A 2006 cable cites a senior air force official saying airmen were being radicalised.
NEW DELHI:
According to a WikiLeaks cable, Pakistan’s airmen were being radicalised by extremists and were sabotaging Pakistani F-16s deployed for security operations along the Afghan border, NDTV reported on Friday.
The cable sent on March 2006 from the US embassy to Washington, quotes then Deputy Chief of Air Staff for Operations Air Vice Marshal Khalid Chaudhry as saying that the airmen, most of whom came from rural villages, were being radicalised by extremist clerics.
The cable quotes Chaudhry as saying, “You can’t imagine what a hard time we have trying to get them to trim their beards.”
The cable also reveals that Chaudhry claimed “to receive monthly reports of acts of petty sabotage, which he interpreted as an effort by extremists amongst the enlisted ranks to prevent PAF aircraft from being deployed in support of security operations in the Federally Administrated Tribal Areas (Fata) along the Afghan border.”
According to NDTV, Chaudhry was briefing visiting US officials at the Pakistan Air Force Headquarters and impressing upon them the need to ensure “the F-16 deal has enough sweeteners to appeal to the public – a complete squadron of new F-16s, with JDAM and night-vision capability – but not to offer the PAF things that it cannot afford.”
The cable quotes Chaudhry as telling the delegation, “off the record”, that PAF aircraft were regularly called to provide air support to military and security forces when they get into tight spots in Fata … “, adding that the Army brass and the ground forces commanders would deny it.
Published in The Express Tribune, May 21st, 2011.
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Reader Comments (31)
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This happened in 2006,why didn’t our media report this & even today why haven’t any of our anchors screamed & shouted about this when they don’t waste a chance to cry about yahoodi & kaafir sazish against our military ,then why no talk shows on our very own fanatic traitors who’ve been damaging our aircraft bought with our tax money.
why no coverage on tv channels of this phenomenon of the infiltration of our forces by terrorists who are destroying our military from the inside??Recommend
Yeah Yeah now label everyone keeping beard as infested and radical!!… If they dont want to trim their beards who are you? Do you ask people to shave moustaches too?Recommend
Most of the media is paid by US one way or the other.
Dun count on them. They will only highight wat they are told to. Recommend
The Geberals use Paskistan as their personnel property In the end they will find no place to live here like MusharrafRecommend
Before accepting the report blindly, one needs to analyze the infiltration in US, Indian and Afghan forces in which there are many incidents of killings inside forces by fellow solders, however, there is not a single such incident inside Pakistani forces.Recommend
@farhan aziz:
our media only considers non-muslims as terrorists or criminals,don’t you hear after every terror attack ” yeh kisi musalmaan ka kaam nai hosakta”.our media continues to deflect blame away from the islamic terrorists who’ve killed 35000 of our own people.The anchors promote wild conspiracy theories & make excuses for the actions of the religious barbarians.
in our society only non-muslims can be criminals or terrorists as we live in our delusion of being better than everyone else simply by being born into islam.Recommend
@Abdul Wahab:
You are very right Abdul Wahab. The media seems to be on the payroll of the Army and ISI. They are themselves paid by the USA. So I guess, the media is ultimately paid by the US. Just not the way you expected though.Recommend
why are religious fundoos allowed to be in the forces in the first place?? all these religious fanatics want to do is to wage jihad & they’ll land us into trouble one day as these guys’ loyalties are to islamic fundamentalism first & to pakistan second.
they’ll be the ones doing some rash action & all the rest of the normal public will have to suffer the consequences of their jihadi actions.Recommend
Faraz aziz our media is also financed by americans so we can’t expected good from our media…America give billions of dollars to our media to change our people perception… this america say…but this billions of dollars gave to our media not to change our people perception its for to change our culture…if america want to change our people perception why they did not give that money to our schools, colleges, universities??? exactly they want to change our culture…they are not interested to develop our country…
It is great said…that..If you kill any nation completely you have to change their culture first…
they follow this quotation…we can see know a days what our media is doing….what our media try to promote…what our media is showing is this our culture?? Recommend
NDTV… isnt woth even mentioningRecommend
Where is the news in all this? Everybody knows about the radicalization of Pakistan.Recommend
Puppet show in full swing in Pakistan. Everyone is dancing on Dollar’s music. Our rulers are more loyal to US than their own people. We are disappointed to know what kind of people are ruling us.Recommend
@afzal khan What a childish reply…. And when did our media call TTP allies? lashkar e taiba and jhangwi adn on and on…?
as far as your concern about statements they give “u need some dose of common sense…”
@J Oberoi What is different in all this? Everybody knows about sic Indian trolling….Recommend
Why should people trust Wikileaks?…. It’s just another tool for propaganda…Recommend
@ afzal khan
s u have taken media statement as totally wrong thing….they say no muslim can do this..means islam does not preach us for killing innocent people….musalman means follower of islam so when u say they direct on non muslims it’s ur thinking try to be open minded think with ur brain not just u say what on ur tongue is…..try to be realistic…and see ground realities are’nt these attacks done by non muslims…everybody knows this tehreek e taliban is funded by RAW, MOSSAD and CIA to attack on us….this is modern time…dont wait for that moment when u think America will takeover pakistan like iraq or afghanistan…Pakistan is a better nation then those..so nowadays they want civil war…they’ll make ur economy vey down…attack is only done by that country which has no hold on that particular surface but we r totally under U.S..why U.S would directly attack us??/afghan talibans are good. they have always been secure for pakistan but TTP is mixture of agents of World controversial agencies…so think about it..aren’t they non muslims???Recommend
The issue of sabotage is very serious and disconcerting.Recommend
How much Indians are delighted after hearing this ? Bogus News………
F-16 aircrafts are fully operational and more JF-17 planes are pouring in.
Indians should not be in some doubts about military capability of Pak Armed Forces.Recommend
I take it as more nonsense by those who wish to raise and spread doubts about the capacity of Pak armed forces to guard it’s assets… Rubbish.Recommend
Such a real fear and emanating threat and look at the confounding complacency of the security establishment. The question is: Instead of complaining to the Americans what the low-ranking officers or pilots were doing, why did not you bother to act yourself. Strictly and dedicatedly to avoid a dreadful outfall. Recommend
That report is so rubbish. i dont know the context in which the air force commander said things about the beards. And everyone who has a beard and comes from a non-english speaking class is not extremist. We need to get out of this superiority(inferiority) complex. Recommend
the fact that its reported by Indian media.. I stopped reading half way!… they (indians) cant even get a wanted list right!..lolRecommend
Unlike the indians who use ‘flying coffins’ F16 is extremely valuable to pak and extremist would never get their hands on them..Recommend
US is now getting desperate to try and get a mandate to attack Pakistan. Now wikileaks reveal something which was back in 2006. Nobody since than ever heard anything about it on TV, newspapers or in any manner. Now they are trying to frame the PAF as well, and this cable appears soon after China promised 50 more JF17s.Recommend
US is getting desperate.Recommend
Well what US embassy has been conveying to its home land must not be taken as correct as we have seen their capability and credibility in the past.They have been cheating and sending false reports and US government has also been deceiving the world.Reports of Wikileaks are mostly based on the correspondence of US embassy with US government,so these reports should be viewed in this perspective.Recommend
@farhan aziz:
Perhaps the moderators working at our media cannot allow us to speak against those who will issue no objection certificate on day of judgement. so that selected favorites of mullah and media could enter the home of 72 celestial virgins?Recommend
@farhan aziz:
Mullah/military/terrorist alliance has hurt the country more than anything in the past. They usurp all the money and resources and then act as traitors. Sad to see these elements are supported by military touts like Imran Khan, Like minded party, JI and like. It is about time the educated and secular majority of the country take care of these terrorists. Not that they are Muslims so they are not terrorists and killers.
Mirza, USARecommend
God, i am so obsessed to reading the comments by any indians around. They would first write their crap and supposedly use a ip changing software to change alias and recommend their post as to make it seem very popular. We dont buy your CRAP. A post which would have only 4 comments and 1 from an indian, still you would see atleast 19 recommends on it =D sounds funnyRecommend
Stop copy paste of news, your paper is better than that…….Recommend
Do some real research / reporting for a change……have you guys confirmed it from the AF??Recommend
Uzair Javaid wrote:
Yes, “obsession” is the right word. All posts look completely legitimate to me. I do have an :IP changing software”, but I wouldn’t bother to expend so much effort only to post multiple comments, as I have better things to do.
Yes, does appear to be a report by the usually feisty Indian media all right, but the original source is still Wikileaks, not NDTV.
Unlike the Pakistani media who published outrageous LIES about 9 training camps for Baloch insurgents established by India’s RAW (who were much embarrassed when Wikileaks and The Guardian (UK) denounced the story as a Pakistani media fabrication), this report is authentic. Also who says Wikileaks is a propaganda tool? Which country gains? The US? Think again.Recommend