Attack on mobile phone franchise

Allegedly the Taliban are now using terrorism as an accompaniment to extortion.

A third attack on a cell phone franchise in just two months — this time the target was a Telenor franchise in Nazimabad, Karachi, which killed two people — signals a shift in tactics by those behind them. Allegedly the Taliban, they are now using terrorism as an accompaniment to extortion. After the two earlier attacks, one at a Telenor franchise in December 2011 and the other at a Mobilink franchise in January of this year, it seemed the attacks would finally end, after police claimed to have killed the mastermind. He was, the police said, a member of the Taliban and was demanding millions of rupees in extortion money. Now, it turns out the plot against cell phone franchises involved more than just one person.

From a law enforcement point of view, the police are almost helpless at stopping such localised attacks. While one of the attackers is reported to have been arrested in this attack, there are thousands of cell phone franchises in the city and beyond keeping an armed guard or two on duty, there is very little that can be done to protect them. The only possible solution seemed to be to target those behind the attacks before they could strike again, but with the Taliban’s involvement now seemingly confirmed, that would require breaking the back of a determined militant group. Such an effort would require not just authorities in Karachi but the entire country to pool their intelligence and law enforcement capabilities. Previously, it had been known that the Taliban was using bank robberies and kidnappings for ransom to fund their militant activities. The attacks on cell phone franchises are a more dangerous extension of that tactic. Citizens will now feel hesitant going to public places as the militants have shown that they can strike anywhere at any time. There is no way for the police to secure every cell phone franchise in the city. So, as long as these attacks continue, fear will pervade. These attacks may not be as spectacular as previous Taliban attacks but they cause no less fear.

Published in The Express Tribune, February 1^st, 2012.