Lashkar-e-Jhangvi

Deobandi movement

Key figures

Qasim Nanotvi · Rashid Gangohi Husain Madani · Mehmud Hasan Shabbir Usmani · Ashraf Ali Thanwi Anwar Kashmiri · Ilyas Kandhlawi Ubaidullah Sindhi · Taqi Usmani

Notable Institutions

Darul Uloom Deoband, India Mazahirul Uloom Saharanpur, India Hathazari Madrassah, Bangladesh Darul-uloom Nadwatul Ulama, India Darul Uloom Karachi, Pakistan Jamia Uloom ul Islamia, Pakistan Jamiah Darul Uloom Zahedan, Iran Darul Uloom London, England Darul Uloom New York, United States Darul Uloom Canada Madrasah In'aamiyyah, South Africa

Movements

Tablighi Jamaat Jamiat Ulema-e-Hind Jamiat Ulema-e-Islam Tehreek-e-Khatme Nabuwwat Sipah-e-Sahaba Lashkar-e-Jhangvi Taliban

Lashkar-e-Jhangvi (Punjabi: لشكرِجهنگوی; alternately Lashkar-e-Jhangvi, LJ; English: Army of Jhangvi) is a militant organization. Formed in 1996, it has operated in Pakistan since Sipah-e-Sahaba (SSP) activist Riaz Basra broke away from the SSP over differences with his seniors.^[1] The group is considered a terrorist organisation by Pakistan and the United States.^[2]

Formation

Basra, along with Akram Lahori and Malik Ishaq, separated from Sipah-e-Sahaba and formed Lashkar-e-Jhangvi in 1996. The newly formed group took its name from Haq Nawaz Jhangvi, one of the co-founders of the SSP. LJ's founders believed that the SSP had strayed from Jhangvi's ideals.^[1][3] (Jhangvi was previously killed in a retaliatory bomb attack by Shia militants in 1990.)

Riaz Basra gained notoriety when he orchestrated the assassination of Iranian diplomat Sadiq Ganji in Lahore.^[4] Basra was also involved in the killing of Iranian Air Force cadets visiting Pakistan in the early 1990s, when sectarian attacks on Shias in Pakistan were at their peak.^{[citation needed]} Both acts occurred in the northern city of Rawalpindi and greatly disturbed contemporary Pakistan-Iran relations.

After Basra's death in May 2002, Akram Lahori succeeded him as leader of LJ.^[3]

Malik Ishaq, the operational chief of LeJ, was released after 14 years by the Supreme Court of Pakistan on 14 July 2011.^[5][6][7][8]

Activities

LJ initially directed most of its attacks against the Pakistani Shia Muslim community. It also claimed responsibility for the 1997 killing of four U.S. oil workers in Karachi. Lashkar-e-Jhangvi attempted to assassinate Pakistani Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif (a Sunni) in 1999.^[4] Basra himself was killed in 2002 when an attack he was leading on a Shia settlement near Multan failed. Basra was killed due to the cross-fire between his group and police assisted by armed local Shia residents.

• In March 2002 LJ members bombed a bus, killing 15 people, including 11 French technicians.

• On March 17, 2002 at 11:00 AM, two members of the Lashkar-e-Jhangvi bombed the International Protestant Church in Islamabad during a church service. Five people were killed and 40 people were injured, mostly expatriates. In July 2002 Pakistani police killed one of the alleged perpetrators and arrested four Lashkar-e-Jhangvi members in connection with the church attack. The LJ members confessed to the killings and said the attack was in retaliation for the U.S. attack on Afghanistan.

• The Pakistani government Interior Ministry said that the suicide bomber involved in the assassination of Benazir Bhutto,^[9] along with the death of 20 others in Rawalpindi, belonged to Lashkar-e-Jhangvi on December 27, 2007.^[9]

• Authorities believe Mohammed Aqeel, an LJ member, was the mastermind behind the March 2009 attack on the Sri Lanka national cricket team.^[10]

• LJ claimed responsibility for killing 26 Shia pilgrims on 20 September 2011 in the Mastung area of Balochistan. The pilgrims were travelling on a bus to Iran.^[11][12] In addition, 2 others were killed in a follow-up attack on a car on its way to rescue the survivors of the bus attack.

Affiliations

LJ has ties to the Taliban, the Islamic Movement of Uzbekistan (IMU), Sipah-e-Sahaba (SSP), Harkat-ul-Mujahideen (HuM), Jaish-e-Mohammed (JeM), al-Qaeda and various local establishments.^[1][13][3] In addition to receiving sanctuary from the Taliban in Afghanistan for their activity in Pakistan, LJ members fought alongside Taliban fighters. Pakistani government investigations in 2002 revealed that Al Qaeda has been involved with training of LJ, and that LJ fighters also fought alongside the Taliban against the Afghan Northern Alliance. The Pakistan Interior Minister, speaking of LJ members, stated: "They have been sleeping and eating together, receiving training together, and fighting against the Northern Alliance together in Afghanistan."

Upon the death of Riaz Basra in May 2002, correspondence between al-Qaeda and LJ seems to have stopped. Basra communicated to al-Qaeda commanders through Harkat ul-Ansar.^[1]

Designation as a "terrorist organization"

The Government of Pakistan designated the LJ a terrorist organization in August 2001, and the U.S. classified it as a Foreign Terrorist Organization under U.S. law in January 2003.^[2] As a result, its finances are blocked worldwide by the U.S government.

References

1. ^ ^{a b c d} Roul, Animesh (2005-06-02). [http://www.jamestown.org/programs/gta/single/?tx_ttnews[tt_news]=497&tx_ttnews[backPid]=180&no_cache=1 "Lashkar-e-Jhangvi: Sectarian Violence in Pakistan and Ties to International Terrorism"]. Terrorism Monitor (Jamestown Foundation) 3 (11). http://www.jamestown.org/programs/gta/single/?tx_ttnews[tt_news]=497&tx_ttnews[backPid]=180&no_cache=1. Retrieved 2010-07-27. 
2. ^ ^{a b} Pakistani group joins US terror list BBC News South Asia. 30 January, 2003.
3. ^ ^{a b c} "Lashkar-e-Jhangvi". South Asia Terrorism Portal. http://www.satp.org/satporgtp/countries/pakistan/terroristoutfits/Lej.htm. Retrieved 2011-10-11. 
4. ^ ^{a b} Rory McCarthy Death by design Guardian (UK). Friday May 17 2002
5. ^ Mir, Amir (2011-10-04). "Kidnappers of Taseer’s son want release of Qadri". The News International. http://www.thenews.com.pk/TodaysPrintDetail.aspx?ID=70814&Cat=6. Retrieved 2011-10-26. 
6. ^ Mukhtar, Imran (2011-10-06). "LeJ leader’s entry in Islamabad banned". The Nation. http://nation.com.pk/pakistan-news-newspaper-daily-english-online/Regional/Islamabad/06-Oct-2011/LeJ-leaders-entry-in-Islamabad-banned. Retrieved 2011-10-26. 
7. ^ "Attack On Lankans: SC moved against Ishaq’s release". The Express Tribune. 2011-10-11. http://tribune.com.pk/story/271434/attack-on-lankans-sc-moved-against-ishaqs-release/. Retrieved 2011-10-26. 
8. ^ "Detention of Malik Ishaq, Shah extended for 2 months". The Nation. 2011-10-26. http://nation.com.pk/pakistan-news-newspaper-daily-english-online/Regional/Lahore/26-Oct-2011/Detention-of-Malik-Ishaq-Shah-extended-for-2-months. Retrieved 2011-10-26. 
9. ^ ^{a b} "Pakistan: Fractured skull killed Bhutto". CNN. 2007-12-28. http://www.cnn.com/2007/WORLD/asiapcf/12/28/pakistan.friday/. Retrieved 2007-12-28. 
10. ^ "Wave of Deadly Attacks in Pakistan". Wall Street Journal (Dow Jones & Company, Inc.). 2009-10-15. http://online.wsj.com/article/SB125557894653686797.html?mod=WSJ_hps_MIDDLEThirdNews. Retrieved 2009-10-15. "In March, gunmen attacked the Sri Lankan cricket team during its visit to Lahore, killing six police officers. That attack, officials say, was masterminded by Mohammed Aqeel, also known as Dr. Usman, a member of Lashkar-e-Jhangvi, a banned Punjabi militant outfit with strong links to the main Pakistan Taliban faction and al Qaeda. Mr. Aqeel also led the attack on the military headquarters in Rawalpindi, officials say, and was captured in the attack." 
11. ^ "Gunmen attack bus in Balochistan, 26 killed". The Express Tribune. 2011-09-20. http://tribune.com.pk/story/256419/gunmen-attack-bus-in-balochistan-20-killed/. 
12. ^ "28 Shia Muslims shot dead by Lashkar militants in Pakistan". Daily News & Analysis. 2011-09-20. http://www.dnaindia.com/world/report_28-shia-muslims-shot-dead-by-lashkar-militants-in-pakistan_1589572. 
13. ^ "Pakistan and the Taliban". Economist. 2009-08-07. http://www.economist.com/world/asia/displaystory.cfm?story_id=14201152. Retrieved 2009–08–11. 

External links

• U.S. Department of State:Designation of Lashkar I Jhangvi as a Foreign Terrorist Organization, 2003^{[dead link]}
• U.S Treasury Department:Treasury Department Statement Regarding the Designation of Lashkar i Jhangvi, 2003, downloaded from Google cache, 29 September 2005
• People's Daily: "Explosion in Islamabad Kills Four, Wounds 40"

An early version of this article was adapted from the public domain U.S. federal government sources.