Sirajuddin Haqqani, feared and secretive Taliban figure, reveals face in rare public appearance 

Taliban Interior Minister Sirajuddin Haqqani speaks to new Afghan police recruits during a graduation ceremony at the police academy in Kabul on March 5, 2022. (AFP)
Short Url
Updated 07 March 2022
Follow

Sirajuddin Haqqani, feared and secretive Taliban figure, reveals face in rare public appearance 

  • Haqqani was photographed at the graduation ceremony of police recruits in Kabul on Saturday 
  • His name first echoed after 2008 attack on Kabul’s Serena Hotel that killed six, including a US national 

PESHAWAR: The name of Sirajuddin Haqqani, Afghanistan’s acting interior minister and the Taliban’s second-in-command, started echoing around the world in 2008 as a young commander of the most-feared Haqqani Network that was executing a series of deadly attacks on US-allied forces in Afghanistan.
The powerful Taliban commander has once again been in the headlines after he revealed his face in a rare public appearance in Kabul this week.
Haqqani was attending the graduation ceremony of the first batch of police recruits at the National Defense Police Academy in Kabul since the Taliban took over the reins of Afghanistan.
“I never came before the media, but today I am appearing in front of the media for you so that I can gain your trust and so that you know your value and importance,” Haqqani, who also goes by the name of Khalifa, said in his address.




Afghanistan's acting Interior Minister Sirajuddin Haqqani inspects recruits at the police graduation ceremony at the National Defense Police Academy in Kabul, Afghanistan on March 5, 2022. (IEA)

During the address that lasted around 30 minutes, he reiterated the Taliban’s stand of not allowing the use of Afghanistan’s soil against any foreign state, and the interim government’s commitment to providing unhindered access to humanitarian organizations and their staff in Afghanistan.
While his younger brother, Anas Haqqani, frequently appeared on media since his release in November 2019 after spending over five years in American captivity in Afghanistan, Haqqani was never clearly seen in photos despite extensively traveling to areas under the Taliban’s control for most of the last 15 years. Even after the Taliban takeover in August, his face remained hidden from the world as cameras were not allowed at the events or meetings attended by him, while on other occasions, he was filmed from behind or his face was blurred in still images.




Afghanistan's acting Interior Minister Sirajuddin Haqqani and his younger brother Anas Haqqani are seen sitting together at the National Defense Police Academy in Kabul, Afghanistan on March 5, 2022. (IEA)

Born in December 1979, Haqqani is the second of the seven sons of the first wife of the late Taliban leader and founder of the Haqqani Network, Mawlawi Jalaluddin Haqqani. Jalaluddin’s eldest son, Nasiruddin Haqqani, commonly known to the family and the Taliban as ‘Doctor Nasir,’ was shot dead by unidentified assailants in Islamabad, Pakistan in 2013.
Sirajuddin Haqqani lost three other brothers in the Afghan war. Badruddin Haqqani, who is still described by the Taliban as one of their most capable strategists and who was famous for preparing suicide bombers and vehicle-based explosive devices, was killed in a US drone strike in North Waziristan, Pakistan in 2012.
Muhammad Haqqani was killed in a US drone strike in North Waziristan in February 2010, while their youngest sibling, Omar Haqqani, was killed in a US military operation in Khost province in Afghanistan in July 2008.
Besides Sirajuddin Haqqani, Abdul Aziz Haqqani and Anas Haqqani are the only living sons of Jalaluddin Haqqani from his Pashtun wife. His other wife, of Arab origins, has been living with her children in her home country for a long time.
Like all his siblings, Haqqani also received his early education from his father. In 1984, he enrolled at a religious seminary, Anjuman Uloom Al-Qur’an, in northwestern Pakistan at the age of five.
“After completing his religious education, he remained close to his father in most of his journeys during the Mujahideen’s fight against the USSR, which influenced him a lot,” Sheikh Muhammad Saqib, a close friend of Jalaluddin Haqqani and a trusted aide of Sirajuddin Haqqani, told Arab News.
“Among all the siblings, Khalifa resembles his late father the most in many qualities.”




Taliban Interior Minister Sirajuddin Haqqani reviews new Afghan police recruits standing in formation during a graduation ceremony at the police academy in Kabul on March 5, 2022. (AFP)

Haqqani fought alongside the Taliban for the first time in 2003 and led his first attack against the US forces in Jawar, Khost in 2004. He was later appointed by the Taliban as the shadow governor for Khost province in 2006.
His name cropped up in the media for the first time after the January 2008 attack on Serena Hotel in Kabul, wherein six people were killed, including a US national.




Taliban Interior Minister Sirajuddin Haqqani (C) and Deputy Prime Minister of the Taliban Abdul Salam Hanafi (L) attend a graduation ceremony for new Afghan police recruits at the police academy in Kabul on March 5, 2022. (AFP)

Later he became one of the most wanted persons to the US and the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) placed a reward of $10 million on his head.
Sirajuddin, like his father, added ‘Haqqani’ to his name for being a graduate of the famous Pakistani religious seminary, Dar-ul-Uloom Haqqania in Akora Khattak near Peshawar.




Taliban Interior Minister Sirajuddin Haqqani reviews new Afghan police recruits standing in formation during a graduation ceremony at the police academy in Kabul on March 5, 2022. (AFP)

In 2009, the Haqqani Network kidnapped US soldier Beaudry Robert ‘Bowe’ Bergdahl. Bergdahl was released in exchange for five Taliban commanders imprisoned at Guantanamo Bay in Cuba in May 2014.
Journalist Mushtaq Yusufzai, who has interviewed Haqqani more than once, says Haqqani never accepted that his network was a separate group, but for him it was part of the Taliban.
“I interviewed him for the second time in 2009 and asked him why he was sought after by the Americans,” Yusufzai recalled. “’I must have hurt them badly’ was the reply by Sirajuddin Haqqani who was probably 28 at the time.”


Gunmen kills seven laborers from Punjab province in Pakistan’s coastal Gwadar district

Updated 9 sec ago
Follow

Gunmen kills seven laborers from Punjab province in Pakistan’s coastal Gwadar district

  • The assailants targeted the seven hair-salon workers while they were sleeping in a residential quarter
  • No group have claimed the attack, though Baloch separatists have targeted Punjabi workers in the past

QUETTA: A group of unidentified gunmen attacked a residential quarter in Gwadar, a coastal town in Pakistan, in the early hours of Thursday, killing seven laborers from Punjab province, confirmed a local administration official.
The attack, which occurred about 24 kilometers from central Gwadar city, targeted hair-salon workers from Khanewal district in Punjab while they were sleeping.
Speaking to Arab News, Deputy Commissioner of Gwadar Hamood-ur-Rehman said the assailants stormed the quarter around 4 AM and opened fire on the occupants.
“The attackers killed seven laborers belonging to Punjab province before escaping from the area,” he said. “One worker was injured in the attack and has been transferred to District Headquarter Hospital Gwadar for medical treatment.”
Rehman also mentioned the district administration and law enforcement agencies had started investigating the incident. So far, no group has claimed responsibility for the attack.
This is the third attack against laborers from Punjab within a month in Pakistan’s restive southwestern Balochistan province, which shares porous borders with Iran and Afghanistan and has experienced a low-scale insurgency by Baloch separatist groups against the Pakistani state.
In April, the proscribed Baloch Liberation Army (BLA) claimed responsibility for the killings of nine Punjab residents traveling to Iran from Quetta, the capital of Balochistan. In another incident last month, two Punjabi garage workers were targeted.
Baloch nationalists have long accused the Pakistani government and Punjab province of monopolizing profits from Balochistan’s abundant natural resources, saying it has led to political marginalization and economic exploitation.
However, Pakistani administrations have denied these allegations, citing several development initiatives launched in the province to improve local living conditions.
Gwadar, located on the Arabian Sea coast, plays a pivotal role in the multibillion-dollar China Pakistan Economic Corridor (CPEC) that is envisaged to enhance regional connectivity.
Despite being resource-rich, Balochistan remains Pakistan’s most sparsely populated and impoverished province.
“The slain laborers were shot multiple times,” Dr. Hafeez Baloch, the medical superintendent at DHQ Gwadar, told Arab News. “We found bullet injuries on their heads and bodies.”
“One injured individual, who was in stable condition, has been referred to Karachi for better treatment,” he added. “The bodies of the slain laborers have been returned to their native village in Punjab.”
Prime Minister Shahbaz Sharif condemned the killings, describing the incident as “a cowardly attack on the country by its enemies.”
“We will eradicate terrorism from the country and stand with the families who lost their loved ones in Gwadar,” he declared in a statement.
Meer Sarfaraz Bugti, the provincial chief minister, vowed to pursue the attackers, saying: “We will use all our might against these terrorists and establish the writ of the state.”


Gunmen kill seven barbers in Pakistan’s volatile Balochistan province

Updated 09 May 2024
Follow

Gunmen kill seven barbers in Pakistan’s volatile Balochistan province

  • No group has claimed responsibility, though Baloch separatists have targeted people from Punjab in the past
  • The Pakistan government says it has quelled separatist insurgency, but violence in Balochistan has persisted

QUETTA: Attackers fatally shot seven barbers before dawn Thursday in a home in a volatile province in southwestern Pakistan, police and a government official said.
The killings occurred near the port city of Gwadar in Balochistan province, police official Mohsin Ali said. All of the barbers were from Punjab province and lived and worked together.
Provincial Interior Minister Ziaullah Langau condemned the killings and said police were investigating who was behind the attack.
There was no immediate claim of responsibility. Separatists in Balochistan have often killed workers and others from Punjab as part of a campaign to force them to leave the province, which for years has experienced a low-level insurgency by the Balochistan Liberation Army and other groups demanding independence from the central government in Islamabad. Islamist militants also have a presence in the province.
The government says it has quelled the separatist insurgency, but violence in the province has persisted.
Police said they believe the attack on the barbers was not related to their jobs. Last month, the Balochistan Liberation Army claimed responsibility for killing nine people from Punjab province who were abducted from a bus on a highway in Balochistan, saying it had information that spies were on the bus.
Separatists have also targeted people from Punjab working on coal-mine projects in Balochistan.
In January, gunmen killed six barbers in a former stronghold of the Pakistani Taliban in the country’s northwest near the Afghanistan border. Pakistani militants years ago banned the trimming of beards and haircuts in Western styles.


No casualties, four Hajj flights ‘operated,’ CAA says after Lahore airport fire

Updated 09 May 2024
Follow

No casualties, four Hajj flights ‘operated,’ CAA says after Lahore airport fire

  • Local media widely reports delays, says immigration system damaged 
  • CAA did not identify a cause, media says fire caused by short circuiting

ISLAMABAD: The Pakistan Civil Aviation Authority (CAA) said on Thursday four Hajj flights scheduled to fly in the morning were “operated,” following a fire at an airport in the eastern city of Lahore in which local media widely reported the facility’s entire immigration system was gutted.
Pakistani media channels widely attributed the fire to short circuiting while the CAA did not specify a cause in its statement.
“The situation at the airport is gradually returning to normal and no casualties have been reported,” the Authority said. “All agencies at the airport are trying to bring the situation back to normal.”
The statement said four Hajj flights scheduled to depart from the airport on Thursday morning had been “operated.”
“Normal operations will be restored as soon as the technical issues are overcome,” the statement concluded.
Several Pakistani outlets reported that the fire damaged the immigration system partially, after which the process of immigration was halted. Airport authorities also evacuated several passengers from the international immigration lounge due to heavy smoke and shifted them to the domestic lounge.
While the CAA did not report flight delays, Pakistani media widely reported that a total of six flights, including a Qatar Airways flight, had been delayed.


Qatari minister arrives in Islamabad today amid Pakistan’s active investment outreach

Updated 09 May 2024
Follow

Qatari minister arrives in Islamabad today amid Pakistan’s active investment outreach

  • Dr. Mohammed bin Abdulaziz Al-Khulaifi is expected to meet Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif, other officials
  • Pakistan previously showed interest in Qatar’s IT sector and sent its a delegation to the Arab state in December

ISLAMABAD: Qatar’s Minister of State for Foreign Affairs Dr. Mohammed bin Abdulaziz Al-Khulaifi will arrive in Pakistan today to meet with Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif and other officials, as the government actively seeks foreign investment to tackle financial challenges.
Pakistan has welcomed numerous foreign officials and business delegations in recent weeks, encouraging local partnerships and asking them to explore investment opportunities across various economic sectors.
A Saudi business delegation, consisting of senior representatives from nearly 35 companies, recently concluded their visit to Pakistan, during which they held several business-to-business meetings.
Additionally, Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif met with a group of Japanese industrialists, urging them to invest in Pakistan’s nascent electric car industry.
The country is also expecting the visit of Saudi Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman later this month, hoping it would bring several billion dollars in investments.
“The Minister of State for Foreign Affairs of the State of Qatar, Dr. Mohammed bin Abdulaziz Al-Khulaifi will visit Pakistan on 9 May 2024, as a special envoy of the Prime Minister and Foreign Minister of the State of Qatar Sheikh Mohammed bin Abdulrehman bin Jassim Al Thani,” the foreign office said in a statement.
“In Islamabad, the Minister of State will call on Prime Minister Muhammad Shehbaz Sharif and on Deputy Prime Minister and the Foreign Minister Mohammad Ishaq Dar,” it continued. “Pakistan and Qatar have longstanding and multifaceted bilateral relations characterized by high-level exchanges and visits.”
The foreign office did not divulge specific details about the agenda of the visit. However, Pakistan has expressed interest in Qatar’s information technology sector and sent the first delegation of IT professionals to Qatar last December.
Many countries in the Gulf region are diversifying their economies beyond oil and gas by investing in technology sectors, creating innovation hubs and developing digital infrastructure to boost various industries.
The strategic shift includes a significant emphasis on adopting advanced digital technologies, such as AI, cloud computing and cybersecurity, with the goal of transforming these nations into knowledge-based economies.
Qatar has also moved in this direction by investing in tech startups and committing to host technologically advanced events such as the FIFA World Cup 2022.
Qatar has also been working actively to promote peace in regions like Afghanistan and, more recently, Gaza.
These issues have been central to Pakistan’s diplomatic engagements, and the two countries have discussed them in past meetings.


Amid Karachi’s chronic drinking water crisis, hundreds of thousands forced to buy from filtration companies

Updated 09 May 2024
Follow

Amid Karachi’s chronic drinking water crisis, hundreds of thousands forced to buy from filtration companies

  • KWSC study conducted last year showed 90% of water from samples collected across Karachi was unsafe for drinking purposes
  • Impure water has forced people to spend thousands of rupees monthly on filtered water sold by reverse osmosis plants

KARACHI: Hina Mehmood Javed, a mother of three, opened the door to her second-floor apartment in Karachi earlier this week after she heard the familiar cry of ‘pani wala’ [water man] followed by a knock.
Outside, a young man stood with a heavy 19-liter water bottle, which he delivered for a fee to Javed, one among hundreds of thousands of residents in Pakistan’s commercial hub of Karachi who are buying water from plants that use reverse osmosis to separate pollutants.
A Karachi Water and Sewerage Corporation (KWSC) study conducted last year showed that 90 percent of water from samples collected from various places in Karachi was unsafe for drinking purposes, contaminated with E. coli, coliform bacteria, and other harmful pathogens. And that’s when there is water flowing through the city’s water pipes. Most residents are forced to get their water through drilled motor-operated wells (known as ‘bores’), even as ground water in the coastal city tends to be salty, and unfit for human consumption.
The only other option for residents is to either buy unfiltered water from private water tanker operators, who fill up at a network of legal and illegal water hydrants across the city, or buy from RO plants that they visit to fill up bottles or have delivered to their homes.
“We have to buy it [water] from outside and sometimes it happens that when the weekends come or when there are government holidays, and there’s no water at home, we have to use water like gold,” Javed told Arab News as she paid Rs100 ($0.36) for the water bottle, which is delivered daily.
“We have to buy and drink water because clean water is not available to us.”
The chronic shortage of drinking water is caused by a broken distribution system as well as leakages and inefficiency in the system and theft.
Dr. Muhammad Bashir Lakhani, a water and energy expert associated with a company working on the K-4, a major project that aims to address Karachi’s chronic water shortages, said the city’s daily water consumption was around 1,250 million gallons.
The megacity draws its water mainly from the Keenjhar Lake, a man-made reservoir about 150km from the city, which sources it from the Indus River. Through a network of canals and conduits, 550 million gallons of water a day (MGD) is fed into the city’s main pumping station at Dhabeji, most of which, a staggering 42 percent or 235 MGD, is either lost or stolen before it ever reaches consumers, according to KWSB data.
And the water that does manage to reach people’s homes was largely unfiltered and untreated, Dr. Lakhani told Arab News.
“Not only is it not treated but most of the time it is polluted,” he said. “It is mixed with sewage and wastewater flows.”
“FORCED TO BUY WATER”
Many, like Muhammad Adeel, are tapping into this problem of impure water by going into the filtration business, setting up small RO water plants inside their shops or homes to supply filtered water to households.
Adeel, whose plant is located in the city’s old and busy Burns Road neighborhood, explained that his system treated water through seven different processes before it became drinkable.
“It [plant] contains minerals which dissolve in it, making it mineral water,” Adeel told Arab News.
Dr. Lakhani, however, said while water provided by RO plants may be safer to drink compared to piped water, it was still not entirely safe for consumption.
“Most of these RO plants do not follow the required environmental health cleaning sanitization requirements,” he said.
But residents have no choice and there are hardly any neighborhoods in the sprawling metropolis where at least two RO plants are not operating.
“You do the math, there are thousands of plants. If at least five to six workers are working on one plant, then you can calculate how many households are being served by this,” Adeel said. “This is a good source of employment for people.”
Residents too said they had no choice, even though it was unfair to have to pay for water, which was the government’s responsibility to provide.
“We have cut down on many expenses to buy water because survival is impossible without water,” Javed the housewife said.
Dr. Lakhani agreed:
“Ten to fifteen years ago, bottled water was considered to be a luxury. But now every person is forced to buy the water from these water filtration companies.”