Allies Against Adversity
The extremely unreliable alliance in the 'war on terror' between the United States/NATO and a nuclear-arms-owning country that has served as a warm and safe place for violent jihad to take root and send out viral tentacles across the globe, is so glaringly evident that it makes one huge guffaw of a disbelieving laugh of incredulity at the dissonance of the pairing.Pakistan, which has consistently and vehemently denied any hand in the protection and arming, concealment and mentoring of the Afghan Taliban, also laughed derisively at American claims that Osama bin Laden was an honoured guest in the mountainous regions of the country just across the border from Afghanistan.
'Prove it', was the order of the day and the challenge did not go unanswered.
The hugely successful raid by U.S. Navy SEALs that rid the world forever of al-Qaeda's chief executive was a triumph toward the eventual eradication of the vicious virus of Islamist jihad, but one obviously not shared by Pakistan. As allies, the uneasy suspicion that any top level secret information shared by the U.S. with Pakistan would be shared with al-Qaeda led the U.S. to forego forewarning of its intention.
That vibrant insult to the integrity of the 'trust' between the two states, and the violation of sovereignty occasioned by the fact that Pakistan was not given notice of the pending spectacular was exacerbated by the revelation that Pakistani doctor Shakil Afridi - a neighbour of the al-Qaeda leader's compound in Abbottabad - who agreed to work with the U.S. to reveal bin Laden's identity was critical to the success of the operation.
And for his pains, aiding and assisting the United States, and by default, one would naively have it, his own country, this man has now been declared a threat to his country. He was convicted of treason, and sentenced to 33 years of imprisonment in Pakistan's finest holding cells. Sentenced under Khyber's tribal justice system; part of the semi-autonomous tribal region, which welcomed the Taliban and al-Qaeda.
This is Pakistan's poetic license in its administration of justice. The absurd paradox of the very region that exists as a lawless non-state-administered area of tribal impunity using its own system of law administration inclusive of stoning women who are held to be complicit in their own rape, has now signalled any other Pakistanis of what their future holds should they think of 'betraying' Pakistan.
Labels: Conflict, NATO, Pakistan, Political Realities, Social-Cultural Deviations, Terrorism, United States
posted by Pieface @ Wednesday, May 23, 2012
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