Monday, May 23, 2011

Taliban Attack Pakistani Naval Base With 20 Man Assault Team, Battle Still Raging, Hostages Taken UPDATE: Battle Is Over


In all of the time that I have covered Pakistan, I don't believe I've seen this long of a battle that has pitted the Pakistani military and the Taliban as an assault team of up to 20 Taliban fighters have besieged a Pakistani naval base in Karachi - and the battle is still raging. As of right now, it looks like four terrorists have been killed and four at the base have been killed and a number of hostages have been taken as the Taliban have secured at least one building.

From the report at The Long War Journal:

The Pakistani Taliban attacked a naval airbase in the city of Karachi today, sparking an hours-long battle in which several people have been killed and at least two naval aircraft were destroyed. Fighting is still ongoing and hostages have been taken.

A large terrorist assault team, thought to be between 15 to 20 men strong, stormed Pakistani Naval Station Mehran Sunday night in a coordinated, complex attack. A Taliban spokesman claimed 22 fighters, who have enough provisions for three days, executed the assault.

The heavily armed gunmen penetrated security at the base from three gates and fanned out, attacking aircraft hangars and military personnel. At least two Pakistani naval aircraft, both P-3C Orion maritime surveillance planes, are reported to have been destroyed. The military confirmed that one P-3C was blown up. At least three other aircraft are said to have been damaged in the attack.

Four naval personnel and four terrorists have been reported killed during the fighting. The terrorists are said to have taken hostages and have seized control of one or more buildings on the base. Several Chinese military personnel are said to be among the hostages. At least 10 terrorists are said to be holding the hostages.

Pakistani naval commandos, Marines, and Rangers have been deployed and are fighting the gunmen.

The Pakistani Taliban has claimed credit for the attack. The Taliban and allied terror groups such at the Lashkar-e-Jhangvi, which has a significant presence in Karachi, have launched similar attacks in the past.

"We claim responsibility for this attack in Karachi," Ihsanullah Ihsan, a Taliban spokesman said. "We had already warned after Osama's (bin Laden) martyrdom that we will carry out even bigger attacks."

Now, as serious as this attack is, one simply cannot escape the thoughts of just how safe Pakistan's nuclear weapons are in that country. I mean, seriously, this is a major naval base and for 20 Taliban to make this kind of inroad into that facility and to actually be in control of parts of it is more than a bit unnerving.

One other thing that I find a bit interesting from this story. Did you see this in the article?:

Several Chinese military personnel are said to be among the hostages.

There were several reports out this weekend that the Pakistanis were looking to the Chinese for military support in their efforts and not more than 24 hours after those reports surface, we see Chinese military personnel at a Pakistani naval base (and held hostage to boot!).

Makes one wonder if the Chinese connection might explain some of the "coolness" shown towards American officials by the Pakistanis recently.

UPDATE:

I've just run across a breaking release from Al Jezeera that states that the siege is over:

Pakistan's navy has declared that the operation involving an attack by armed men on a military base in the Pakistani city of Karachi has come to an end.

According to a navy spokesman, 11 navy officers and two paramilitary ranger have been killed and 14 others injured in the attack that lasted for hours before ending past midday on Monday.

I don't see at the Al Jezeera article how the hostage situation was resolved but I'm assuming that all of the Taliban holding the abducted were killed.


Pakistani Navy base under siege


The Pakistani Taliban attacked a naval airbase in the city of Karachi today, sparking an hours-long battle in which several people have been killed and at least two naval aircraft were destroyed. Fighting is still ongoing and hostages have been taken.

A large terrorist assault team, thought to be between 15 to 20 men strong, stormed Pakistani Naval Station Mehran Sunday night in a coordinated, complex attack. A Taliban spokesman claimed 22 fighters, who have enough provisions for three days, executed the assault.

The heavily armed gunmen penetrated security at the base from three gates and fanned out, attacking aircraft hangars and military personnel. At least two Pakistani naval aircraft, both P-3C Orion maritime surveillance planes, are reported to have been destroyed. The military confirmed that one P-3C was blown up. At least three other aircraft are said to have been damaged in the attack.

Four naval personnel and four terrorists have been reported killed during the fighting. The terrorists are said to have taken hostages and have seized control of one or more buildings on the base. Several Chinese military personnel are said to be among the hostages. At least 10 terrorists are said to be holding the hostages.

Pakistani naval commandos, Marines, and Rangers have been deployed and are fighting the gunmen.

The Pakistani Taliban has claimed credit for the attack. The Taliban and allied terror groups such at the Lashkar-e-Jhangvi, which has a significant presence in Karachi, have launched similar attacks in the past.

"We claim responsibility for this attack in Karachi," Ihsanullah Ihsan, a Taliban spokesman said. "We had already warned after Osama's (bin Laden) martyrdom that we will carry out even bigger attacks."

Today's assault on the Karachi naval base is very similar to the Oct. 10, 2009 attack on the Army General Headquarters in Rawalpindi, in which terrorists penetrated the heavily guarded installation and held several senior and junior officers hostage.

The Taliban have targeted Pakistani Navy personnel in Karachi in the recent past. Nine people were killed in three separate bombings that targeted naval personnel on buses in the city on April 26 and April 27.

Al Qaeda has teamed up with the Taliban to execute attacks in Karachi. In November, 2010, both groups attacked the Crime Investigation Department headquarters in a highly secured area of the city. During the assault, 17 people were killed, including two CID officers and five paramilitary soldiers guarding the building.

Multiple Taliban groups, as well as al Qaeda, have vowed to take revenge for the death of Osama bin Laden, who was killed by US SEALs and CIA operatives on May 2 in the Pakistani city of Abbottabad. But terrorist groups have been attacking Pakistani security forces for years.

Pakistan's military has been under fire from the public since the May 2 assault, as officials have admitted they were unaware of the mission to kill bin Laden. The operation took place just north of Islamabad, and was far from Pakistan's tribal areas, where bin Laden was presumed to have been hiding. Bin Laden was living in Abbottabad for more than six years and actively communicating with al Qaeda and Taliban leaders as he lived next door to Pakistan's premier military academy.

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