December 7, 2008

The battle for Afghanistan and Iraq may be heading for stalemate and a quagmire. The Americans are now targeting Pakistan on almost a daily basis as unmanned drones crisscross into Pakistani territory and strike targets deep inside sovereign Pakistani airspace. While the Government in Islamabad keeps mum amidst allegations that they have allowed the Americans to strike inside Pakistan but do not have the courage to tell their people for fear of a certain political death.

For over seven years American and NATO forces are on the brink of a major military defeat and have squandered hundreds of billions of dollars worth of bombs and missiles on Afghanistan, needless to say many of which have wreaked havoc amongst poor ordinary Afghan citizens across the length and breadth of that nation. A strong re-emergent Taliban in Afghanistan under the leadership of Mullah Omar has now a grip on vast stretches of the territory and have denied the Afghan Government its writ.

Faced with a dangerous situation the Americans are now intensifying their attacks inside Pakistan which tantamount to a declaration of war and which is also prompting the threat of reprisals. A fact that is already evident from the increase in attacks on supply convoys that pass through Pakistan to keep the American led campaign in the so-called war on terror.

With all that in mind one has to question why India is now beatings its drums of war after what was clearly a massive Indian Maritime and security failure to prevent a bunch of young men armed with AK 47 Assault rifles. New Delhi blamed Pakistan. The initial knee jerk response from the Indian media about Pakistani involvement has polluted the air and obscured the truth. Many here are convinced that the group has an internal Indian dimension to it and may even be staged by the Hindu right wing BJP party which has been spitting venom against the Muslims and is directly involved in the massacre of thousands of Muslims in Gujarat State, besides covering up the role of extremist Hindu groups who have now been able to penetrate the Indian intelligence and military setup.

Islamic fundamentalism may be one thing but extremist Indian groups like the RSS, Shive Sena and the larger BJP is for all to see and gauge. So what are we to make of it and why is India now bent upon demanding the handover of 20 people that India alleges are involved in destabilizing that country. A list that goes back to 1981 and includes even Sikh freedom fighters who were at the time struggling for the independence of their homeland Khalistan. But India is not the main worry. For the people of Pakistan it appears the worst may be yet to come and there are apprehensions even in concerned quarters that Americans and even the Israelis are shaping un alliance or what is now called a nexus to target Pakistan.