MQM leader Altaf Hussain disclosed on Friday that Islamic State of Iraq and Sham (ISIS), which is also known as Daish or by shorter acronym IS, has started taking roots in Pakistan which can entail far worse situation here than Rwanda and other African countries.
“Army alone cannot control the situation. We all Pakistanis have to play our part, otherwise the situation will spiral out of control and Pakistan may witness civil war and genocide,” he said while addressing the media by telephone at a press conference at the party headquarters Nine Zero.
The MQM leader warned the Pakistan government, political parties, youth and civil society members to be alert against the extremist organisation, calling it more dangerous than Taliban and al Qaeda.
“You can find flags of this organisation right from Sadiqabad (southern) Punjab to Islamabad. It originally came to being on October 15, 2006 in Iraq, but now many militant groups and some Taliban and al Qaeda leaders have joined it,” he said, appealing to the authorities concerned to convene all parties conference (APC) on this issue.
“Around 10 years ago, no one believed me when I made a hue and cry against hatcheries of Taliban and extremist groups in Karachi. The then government and leaders of political parties turned a deaf ear to me, but it later proved (to be correct) when these militants started their activities in the city,” he said.
Briefing about the organisation, he said that Abu Musab al-Zarqawi initially led the organisation in Iraq and militant organisations from other areas including South Western Iran, Iraq, Syria, Turkey and Afghanistan joined it. Later, when Zarqawi was killed, its shura council appointed Abu Omar al-Baghdadi as its head under the name of Abu Abdullah al-Rasheed al-Baghdadi. In 2010, the consultative or Shura council of the militant organisation announced the death of Abu Omar and appointed Abu Bakar al-Baghdadi as its new head, who has integrated different militant groups and wants to start their activities in Pakistan.
“Army and its intelligence agencies should also mobilise the network and we are ready to help them,” he said, offering the army his party’s help in the mission.
Altaf, while recalling the existence of Taliban in this region said that America created Taliban after the cold war. “Not only America, but Saudi Arabia and Pakistan also supported Taliban against the Soviet Union,” he said, adding that after the disintegration of the Soviet Union, the US pulled out of Afghanistan by ignoring the militants they had created.
“Since there was no one to financially support them, these Taliban started looting and plundering the people by committing bank robberies, kidnapping for ransom, extortion and occupation of lands in order to generate funds,” he said, adding that thousands of innocent people and personnel of police and army were killed and important installation were attacked by these extremists. “They want to impose their self-styled sharia at gunpoint.”
MQM leader stressed the need to impart awareness among the people against the ISIS.
Published in The Express Tribune, November 1st, 2014.
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@Aysha M: i am certainly short of words to praise ur piece , i am an ardent MQM supporter past 30+ years ,your comments made me repost my trust that ,vision and wisdom of Altaf Hussain is the only answer to our woes , he has practise what he preach, he calls people to liberal , modern ,multicultural , multifaith pluralistic Pakistan,equal justice for all , he calls pakistan on the solid foundation of pure ethics which is common in all religions and faith . May we pay heed to his words and make a return to progress ,prosperity ,and peace
@rohit950723: yes this is the only way , the first step is to get mulla out of political arena, who will do that a big question, not million but trillion dollar question
@Ch. Allah Daad: It seems that the only solution is Mr. Altaf as he is the only leader of a political party with UK citizenship and living outside Pakistan. Moreover he has a phone too, always at his side to address "nation" thru telephonic speeches.
@ When Altaf Hussain raised his voice and tried to caution the government about Talibans gaining strength in the city, the media, the government and the political adversaries responded in unison. He was deeply despised, devotedly disrespected and downrightly dismissed. Those in authority were just not willing to listen to what he was saying. Media attributed his concern as MQM’s deterrence to Pukhtoons. To most, the panacea to the problems of Karachi seems embedded in maligning the MQM and Altaf Hussain. What has Altaf Hussain done to deserve such disregard and why is he so spitefully and unanimously slighted? His cardinal sin is perhaps the fact that he challenged the forces of status quo and empowered the middle and the lower middle classes. Among his countless failings include introduction of a political culture where no cronies or relations were given any privileged access into the party. His political vision transcends all forms of divisiveness upon which Pakistani politics thrives. He provided a philosophical foundation which aimed to develop inter faith harmony and peaceful co-existence of different sects. He raised voice for all oppressed and marginalized communities, may it be Christians, Ahmedis or Shites. He impacted the landscape of Pakistani politics much to the chagrin of the ruling elite. He is the only leader who unequivocally condemned Talibans. The people of Karachi refuse to suffer in silence. They are resilient and in lockstep with Altaf Hussain. He is the only leader who with decisive clarity and informed vision and political maturity has the ability to pull the nation out of the abyss of confusion and provide an ideological direction. He has once again given a very clear call to the leaders and the people of Pakistan to unite and fight the beastly forces of extremism before it is too late. It would be inarguably unwise and it may cause irreparable damage if he is ignored this time around.
@Ch. Allah Daad.... Make your education & constitution secular & scientific... that is it...
Thanks for the warning but nobody knows the solution.