Word: punjab
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...troops' faltering campaign against the militants - met on Friday with Zardari and his Prime Minister, Yousaf Raza Gilani. Although Pakistan's army has routinely staged political interventions, analysts believe that it is unwilling to seize power in another military coup. But as Zardari and Sharif joust for control over Punjab, the largest province and the home of the bulk of the army, it could yet assert its clout through backstage maneuvers...
Pakistan's political turmoil has deepened as a result of a government crackdown on opposition groups across two provinces. In a desperate attempt to halt next week's lawyer-led "long march" for the reinstatement of deposed judges, police and intelligence officials carried out early-morning raids across Punjab and Sindh, arresting more than 300 lawyers and political activists. All major entry points to the capital, Islamabad, have been blocked by either large containers or manned checkpoints. As human-rights groups denounce the moves, political observers wonder how much longer the already shaky government of President Asif Ali Zardari...
...Chief Justice Iftikar Chaudhry, who, along with a raft of other judges, was removed by Musharraf when he imposed emergency rule. Last month, in a controversial ruling, the Supreme Court barred Sharif and his younger brother Shahbaz from standing for elected office. The decision triggered the collapse of the Punjab government led by Shahbaz as Zardari moved swiftly to impose governor's rule on the largest and wealthiest province, handing over control to a key ally, Salmaan Taseer. The Sharifs have since been staging political rallies across Punjab, rallying support for the protest march with a series of inflammatory speeches...
...growth of Wahhabi institutions in traditionally Barelvi parts of Pakistan is not limited to Muridke. Punjab province has seen an explosion of radical mosques, madrasahs and schools, many around the southern cities of Bahawalpur and Multan. A resident of Bahawalpur describes a visible expansion of jihadi infrastructure, unchecked by government supervision. Camps modeled on the one at Muridke are being built in the city, and photographs of the construction sites show young men with AK-47 logos on their shirts. Graffiti on village walls in the region declare, "Jihad against unbelievers is mandatory. Break their necks and shake every bone...
Rana, the expert on militancy, has seen an accompanying rise in extremist activity. He estimates that 60% of all terrorist attacks in Pakistan since 2002 have originated in the Punjab. "What the militant groups are doing now," says political analyst and academic Ayesha Siddiqa, "is recruiting people and sending them to fight elsewhere." Some are going to Kashmir, she says, but many more are fighting in Bajaur and Swat, in the North-West Frontier Province, where government forces are waging a losing war to contain militancy. Groups like LeT have always been open about their goals for an Islamic state...