Security Update – 10 June 2009

A major suicide bomb attack hit the Pearl Continental Hotel in Peshawar at about 2200 local time on 9 June. The attack marks the seventh fatal bombing in the north-west Pakistani city in the past month.

Security Briefing – 16 April 2009

Security in Pakistan’s capital, Islamabad, was heightened on 10 April amid fears of a potential Taliban siege of the city. Many businesses, government offices and diplomatic interests were closed and additional security forces were deployed in the city, particularly around the parliament building and diplomatic area. Fears of a potential attack had grown after four suspected terrorists were arrested on the night of 9 April. Although no attack eventuated, the city continues to be at extreme risk of terrorist attack.

Current Situation

A bomb at the Sitara Market in Islamabad killed two police officers on 23 March while six people were reportedly killed in an attack on a Frontier Constabulary position in the city on 4 April. Taliban fighters have now advanced their combat zones to Bajaur, just 153 km (95 miles) west of Islamabad, while reports claim that militias have moved into villages in the Buner region, 98 km (61 miles) from the capital.

Security Briefing - 4 March 2009

Pakistan’s capacity to provide high level security for foreign visitors has been widely condemned following the 3 March attack on the Sri Lankan cricket team. Six police officers and a driver were killed during the attack which took place near Liberty Chowk in central Lahore. The weapons allegedly used include AK-47 rifles, rocket grenade launchers, hand grenades and plastic explosives; however it is not yet clear which terrorist group was responsible.

Media Update - The Associated Press 10 January 2009

Mumbai attacks seen as model for future terrorism By Devlin Barrett

WASHINGTON (AP) — The deadly attacks in India may have provided a low-frills but bloody blueprint for other violent groups to follow, U.S. anti-terrorism officials told Congress on Thursday.

The FBI's chief intelligence officer told a Senate hearing that the November siege showed that well-trained assailants with simple weaponry can cause massive casualties.

"I think we can expect that groups will look to that as a model for themselves," Donald Van Duyn said at the Senate Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs hearing. "We sometimes focus on tactics that may be exotic and esoteric ... but for most terrorists, they're looking for what works."

His counterpart at the Homeland Security Department, Charles Allen, told senators that "the sheer brutality of this attack, I believe, is the kind of thing that can be conducted against soft targets around the world."

The attacks in Mumbai, India's financial capital, left 164 dead and nearly 300 more wounded. Lawmakers held the hearing to discuss lessons learned from the ordeal.

Van Duyn said that as much as governments worry about chemical, biological, or radiological attacks, what happened in India may encourage terrorists to launch low-tech violence. In Mumbai, 10 gunmen with handheld rifles and explosives were able to keep police at bay for nearly three days.

Media Update - AAP Beijing 14 December 2008

CHINA'S capital has carried out anti-terrorist drills to ward off an attack similar to the deadly assault on India's financial centre of Mumbai late last month, state press said.

The Beijing Special Armed Police Unit engaged on Saturday in a mock hostage rescue at a hotel using a helicopter, special anti-terrorist vehicles and a wide array of weapons, Xinhua news agency said.

"The drill was aimed at preventing terrorist attacks, especially after the Mumbai attack which had definite targets and a careful plan,'' it quoted Xiao Yong, head of Beijing's anti-terrorist unit, as saying.

"We noticed that the terrorists attacked different sites of the city in different ways.''

The exercises were the first anti-terrorism training in the capital since the August Beijing Olympics, state press reports said.

China's police chief Meng Jianzhu last week said the fight against terrorism needed to be "serious.''

Meng said that the main terrorist threat facing China remained from ethnic Muslim Uighurs seeking to establish an independent ``East Turkestan'' in China's westernmost region of Xinjiang.

International Operations Group thanks www.news.com.au for this article. The original post can be found here - http://www.news.com.au/story/0,27574,24797969-23109,00.html.