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Intelligence agencies are exploring the distinct possibility of presence of Islamic State of Iraq and Syria (ISIS) in Pakistan after reports of activities of the elements believed to be associated with it. Interior Minister Chaudhry Nisar Ali Khan recently ruled out the existence of ISIS in the country; however, sources in the security establishment told Business Recorder that the concerned agencies were currently in the process of verifying recent reports about 12,000 militants joining ISIS from Kurram Agency tribal areas and district Hangu.
At present, they maintained, there was no evidence which could verify the practical existence of ISIS in Pakistan but the concerned authorities are examining the veracity of an increasing number of reports of a 12-point manifesto reportedly penned by ISIS and distributed in Peshawar in Afghan-populated areas. They are also looking into wall chalking in support of the ISIS in various cities of the country, including Lahore, Multan, Karachi and Peshawar. The provincial government of Balochistan recently conveyed a confidential report to the federal government and law enforcement agencies warning of increased footprints of ISIS, which was followed by a statement by Fahad Marwat, a spokesman for Jundullah, a splinter group of the TTP, who claimed that a delegation from the ISIS had visited the outfit's leaders in Balochistan.
Marwat claimed that the visit took place this week in Balochistan with the objective of determining how it could work to unite various Pakistani militant groups. "We cannot completely reject all these reports and the activities at this stage but the concerned authorities are seriously looking into all these developments," said a source privy to the development. He said the intelligence agencies are looking into the matter from different angles to identify the elements claiming their association with the ISIS.
Recently, six leaders of the outlawed Tehreek-e-Taliban Pakistan (TTP) including its former spokesperson Shahidullah Shahid, Mufti Hassan, TTP former chief for Peshawar region, Hafiz Sayed Khan, TTP ex-chief for Orakzai Agency, TTP commander from Khyber Agency Gul Zaman and Khalid Mansoor, TTP commander for Hangu and Kurram Agency tribal region announced their allegiance to the ISIS Abu Bakar al-Baghdadi.
However, some sources close to the Taliban maintained that some TTP commanders shifted their loyalties from Mullah Omer to Abu Bakar al-Baghdadi due to an internal rift within the outlawed outfit. The TTP led by Mullah Fazlullah and its militants owe allegiance to Afghan Taliban chief Mullah Mohammad Omer and consider him as "Ameer-ul-Momineen". The sources said that due to the internal differences various factions have already parted ways, limiting the TTP only to Malakand Taliban. Several groups like the powerful Mehsud Taliban and militants from Mohmand Agency have already quit their alliance with the TTP after developing differences with its main leadership.
They said that though there was no formal existence of the ISIS in the region yet many militants, particularly those disappointed with the lack of visible gains by Taliban and al Qaeda leadership, were eager to extend their support to the ISIS. They also maintained that the militants associated with al Qaeda were worried about their future as al Qaeda is shifting its focus from the region. Others argue that their support for the ISIS may be premised on their perception of its military successes in controlling large swathes of land in spite of heavy bombardment by the US-led 40-nation coalition.

Copyright Business Recorder, 2014

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