Globe-trotting jihadis who need a place to train, network or plot attacks on the West are finding a warm welcome among militant groups in northwestern Pakistan, experts say.
Reports of eight German militants killed in a suspected US drone attack in Pakistan deepened concerns over an alleged plot against European targets reported to have originated with a group of individuals, some of them believed to be European citizens, in mountainous northern Pakistan.
Experts say the click of a computer mouse on a jihadi website can eventually lead to the forbidding terrain of Pakistan’s North Waziristan, a magnet for militants and aspiring jihadists of all nationalities.
“They come in from everywhere. Some can get in by using fake passports and visas, while others can get in from anywhere from Iran, or from Afghanistan by land,” said a Pakistani security official, adding that border smuggling routes are often used.
Hooking up with militant networks is fairly simple.
It is done through informal channels in conversations in mosques, restaurants or religious meetings that are difficult to track, Pakistani security officials say. Britons of Pakistani origin, for instance, may have relatives with ties to groups.
“You know people who know people, and then they connect you. That’s what makes this very dangerous. There are no formal structures that you can take down,” said Kamran Bokhari, South Asia director for the Stratfor global intelligence firm.
Britons, Americans, Germans, Chechens, Turks, Egyptians and Saudis are among what Mr Bokhari refers to as transnational globe-trotting jihadis who operate from North Waziristan.
Some are freelancers loosely associated with the big leagues such as al-Qaeda or the Pakistani or Afghan Taliban, which provide an entrenched network built over many years.
Settling for one of the many splinter groups that fall far under the radar of intelligence agencies is another option.
Determining how many foreigners operate in North Waziristan and gathering intelligence on them is extremely difficult, security officials say, mainly because a large number of informants are uncovered and killed by militants. – (Reuters)