KARACHI, June 25: Karachi's oldest locality Lyari once known for its vibrant culture and political role in the democratic struggles in past years is now turning into a recruiting ground for the suicide bombers.
Telling this to Dawn, officials in the police department said they feared that if the poor socio-economic conditions persisted, it would always lure the deprived youth into this financially or ideologically motivated world of crime.
Out of the 17 incidents of suicide bombings across the country since 2000, seven were carried out in Karachi. Investigators dealing with these 17 incidents could identify only six suicide bombers, out of which four belonged to Karachi, including three hailing from Lyari.
According to a senior counter terrorism expert, the June 14, 2002 US consulate blast was carried out by a suicide bomber who was later identified as Abdul Hameed. The Hydri mosque blast on May 7, 2004 was carried out by a police constable, Mohammad Akbar Niazi. Mohammad Ali Khatri, an employee at a medical store, blew himself up during the Magrib prayers at Imambargah Ali Raza on May 31, 2004. "The residential addresses of all these three suicide bombers were traced to Lyari," the expert said.
A suicide bombing inside a Shia mosque in Satellite Town Rawalpindi on February 28, 2004 was carried out by a man later identified as hailing from Karachi, investigators said. However, they did not give further details about him.
According to investigators, the alleged mastermind of at least two suicide bombings of the Hydri mosque and Imambargah Ali Raza, 28-year-old Gul Hasan, who in a short span of four years went from laying bricks to recruiting suicide bombers, made Lyari his operational base for carrying out his activities. Last year an anti-terrorism court convicted him of planning suicide attacks on the Hydri mosque in Karachi that killed dozens of worshipers.
He is believed to have good persuasive skills, as he brainwashed two young men, Mohammad Akbar Niazi and Mohammad Ali Khatri, who blew themselves up in two mosques in May 2004. Gul Hasan with the help of his wife, is also believed to have brainwashed his two nieces by glorifying the acts of the two central figures of Lashkar-i-Jhangvi, Asif Choutu and Saifullah Bilal. The two girls after their long disappearances ended up marrying the two men in Akora Khattak. Both the sisters have sons from their marriages, investigators said. "With the Afghan jihad in the 80’s the demographic pattern of Lyari started to change. Afghan refugees started arriving and settling in the area," said Professor Tauseef Ahmed of the Urdu Arts College. Afghan war greatly depoliticised Lyari and extremist elements penetrated the area taking advantage of the political vacuum, Prof Tauseef added. Moreover, the poor socio-economic conditions provided fertile ground for jihadi elements to win over the hearts of the disenchanted youths, he remarked.
However, a former leader of the National Awami Party (NAP), Lal Bux Rind, disputed this approach and said that three suicide bombers might have come from outside and settled in Lyari. He admitted rampant unemployment among the young generation of Lyari, saying that it was an issue not only faced by Lyari, but it’s a problem of the entire country. "The jihadi elements are limited to the mosque only. They don’t have a strong influence over the communities living in Lyari," Lal Bux Rind remarked sitting at his ‘baitakh’ near Aath Chowk.
"So far we have not come across any case where we have found any evidence that the suicide bomber was bought for money by the perpetrators", SP Crime Investigation Department, Raja Umar Khataib, said conceding that these elements were driven by force of commitment or conviction.
Poverty, immature mindset where motivation can work by using the technique of brain washing are the prerequisite conditions for preparing a terrorist or a suicide bomber, SP said.
A terrorist caught in the attack on Masjid-o-Imambargah Madinatul Ilam in May 2005 came from abject poverty he didn’t had any utensils at his home in Orangi Town. His interrogation revealed that how he was exploited by the Asif Choutu group for their means, the counter terrorism expert said.
Lashkar-e-Jhangvi has a history of exploiting people living in poverty; the down trodden areas of southern Punjab are prone for such exploits. Asif Choutu and Saifullah Bilal have introduced explosives as tool of destruction which resulted in a more devastating impact. In the past they have employed target killings and random shooting inside mosques all over the country, especially in Karachi, the SP said. Since recent incidents of violence involving suicide bomber, the perpetrators are employing people whose identities are becoming harder to trace, an investigator remarked.
In both the March 3 and April 11 suicide bombings at US Consulate and Nishtar Park respectively, the identification of the attacker is still haunting the investigators. Sharing his findings, SP Umar said the suicide bomber is always accompanied by his associate ensuring that he does not have any second thoughts about what he is about to do.
Generally a night before his assignment the bomber spent whole night offering prayers and observe a fast on the day of his assignment.
Usually the suicide bombers are single and in case he is married, he is supposed to divorce his wife, the SP said.
Referring to the psychological aspects of suicide Dr Syed Ali Wasif, a psychiatrist, said that in 1897, French Sociologist and Philosopher, Emile Durkheim published an important book in which he propounded a relationship between suicide and socio cultural conditions.
He divided suicides into three main categories, Egotistic suicide occurred in individuals who had lost their sense of integration within their social group, so that they no longer felt subject to its social, family and religious controls.
Anomic suicide occurred in individuals who lived in a society that lacked ‘collective order’ because it was in the midst of major social change or political crisis.
Altruistic suicide occurred in individuals who sacrificed their lives for the good of the social groups, thus reflecting the influence of the group’s identity, Dr Wasif said.
