An Islamic Nuke?
by Robert Fisk
A Pakistani nuclear missile can now hit Tel Aviv, according to a former Pakistani intelligence chief who is "strategic adviser" to his country's Islamist politico-religious parties. Gen. Hamid Gul, the retired head of the Inter-Services Intelligence agency, in his latest well-publicized (in Pakistan) statement, says "we have the nuclear capability to destroy Madras (India), surely the same missile can do the same to Tel Aviv. Washington cannot stop Muslim suicidal attacks. Taliban are still alive and along with 'friends' they will continue the holy jihad against the US. America will destroy Iraq and later on repeat the same act of war against Pakistan, Iran, Syria and Saudi Arabia."
A coalition of six extremist religious parties, MMA, now governs two of Pakistan's four provinces -- a direct result of the free elections the United States insisted be held after the President Perez Musharraf endorsed the Bush administration's war on terror. MMS leader and newly elected senator Sami ul- Haq has also declared jihad against the United States and Israel. "If the US attacks Iraq, the MMA alliance and all their supporters will attack Washington and Tel Aviv," he said.
Another redoubtable MMA leader, Fazlur Rehman, said, for his part, "the US better take seriously the consequneces of its attack against Iraq because we are fully capable of taking revenge." Arguably the most powerful extremist religious leader, Qasi Hussain Ahmed, head of Jamat-e-Islami, warned President Bush he "will suffer the horrible punishment of God."
Pakistan possess between 35 and 60 nuclear weapons with the missile capability (obtained from North Korea) to deliver them. The nuclear arsenal is designed as a deterrent to India's older nuclear capability. India conducted its first nuclear tests in 1974. This was the first time an influential Pakistani, well known for his hatred of the United States and Israel, had mentioned another nation besides india as a possible target for Pakistani nukes.
A number of Pakistani generals are Islami[c] fundamentalists and resent President Musharraf's close alliance with the United States. It was a "shotgun wedding" some of them have said. Musharraf had no choice when Bush called him the day after 9/11 and asked him whether he could count on him to pursue the new war against the Taliban and al-Qaeda. Musharraf made a quick command decision, broke with the Taliban regime in Afghanistan, and gave the United States the use of several bases for Operation Enduring Freedom.
The all-powerful ISI's culture has long been anti-American, dating back to 1989 when the Soviets pulled out of Afghanistan and the United States began punishing Pakistan for its secret nuclear buildup. Ever since the collapse of the Taliban in November 2001, ISI officers have spread the word among the tribal chiefs along their ill-defined Pakistani-Afghan border that "America will be coming after Pakistan's nuclear arsenal as soon as they have finished with Afghanistan."
How safe is Pakistan's nuclear arnsel? Shortly after 9/11, Musharraf ordered the country's nuclear weapons to be detached from their launchers and stored in six different secret locations with fail safe security systems. But Musharraf has survived six assassination plots since 9/11, and the CIA is clearly concerned about the very real possibility that an Islami[c] general could take over one day -- and acquire control of the arsenal.
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