Former Pakistan Army Chief General Aslam Beg: Raymond Davis was 'Working as a Coordinator of Four Important Foreign Secret Agencies in Our Country'

In an interview conducted before CIA contractor Raymond Davis was released by Pakistan on March 16, 2011, former Pakistan Army chief General (retired) Mirza Aslam Beg granted an interview to the Urdu-language daily Roznama Ummat. In the interview, he answered several questions regarding the Raymond Davis issue, noting that this one issue has given Pakistan a diplomatic advantage and has put the U.S. under Pakistani pressure. General Beg added that the Pakistan-U.S. relations will not remain the same after Raymond Davis's release.

In the interview, General Beg went on to allege that Raymond Davis was working for the intelligence agencies of four countries. He alleged that CIA and RAW (India's external intelligence Research & Analysis Wing) are responsible for terror attacks in Pakistani cities. The former Pakistan Army chief also alleged that Lashkar-e-Jhangvi, an Al-Qaeda affiliated Sunni jihadist organization, and the Sipah-e-Sahaba Pakistan (which is the mother of Pakistani Sunni militant groups), were created on the advice of the U.S.

Regarding a question about Punjab Chief Minister Shahbaz Sharif's recent objection to the use of the expression "Punjabi Taliban," General Beg said that Punjabi Taliban were responsible for the attack on Pakistan Army headquarters in Rawalpindi a few years ago, and also noted that the Punjabi Taliban and the Frontier Taliban (a reference to Pashtun Taliban) exist in the Pakistani border region.

Following are excerpts from the interview:[1]

"Americans Bite Their Friends Wherever They Want; They did It in Vietnam and Also in Cambodia; [The U.S.] has Made Our Country a Target of Its Conspiracies"

Question: "At what level do you see Pakistan-U.S. ties after the arrest of Raymond Davis?"

General Aslam Beg: "You must understand this - that Americans bite their friends wherever they want. They did it in Vietnam and also in Cambodia. Now that the U.S. is fighting wars in Afghanistan and Iraq, it is repeating the same behaviors here. In particular, it has made our country a target of its conspiracies. Lahore had become the center of American activities.

"In 2005, a special investigating center was established in Pakistan; its headquarters manned with 600 officials was set up at Model Town in Lahore, which was blown up in a powerful bomb explosion about one and a half years ago. This institution is responsible for many nefarious designs and activities in Pakistan. It has handed over hundreds of Pakistanis to the CIA after kidnapping them. Some of them were killed and some were put into torture cells. It is deplorable that the majority of those working in this institution are Pakistanis.

"Besides being the head of this institution, Davis is also responsible for other institutions like Blackwater [the private U.S. security firm now known as XE Worldwide Services] and an unnamed institution operating under the CIA in the north western frontier areas; and has been responsible for many other anti-national activities and drone attacks, and which continues until present. If it's not true, then why it is that [those] from President Obama to the U.S. Departments of State and Defense are pressuring Pakistan for the release of Raymond. The U.S. is lying that he is a diplomat and he has [diplomatic] immunity."

Question: "Why is the U.S. afraid of a legal action against Raymond?"

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General Aslam Beg: "Because if this man remains in the custody of the Pakistani security agencies, many secrets would be obtained from him. Whatever he has said so far, its result is before us and we have come to know who this man is. He was working as a coordinator of four important foreign secret agencies in our country. He was the chief of the U.S. intelligence in Pakistan and was working under the CIA and the U.S. government. That is why the U.S. wants him back, so that the secret could not be divulged."

Question: "Will the difficulties of the government not grow by standing up to the U.S.?"

General Aslam Beg: "It is not Pakistan but the U.S. which is in difficulty. In my opinion, positive results will come out of it for the nation. A national awakening has greatly [occurred] with regard to this issue. The reaction which emerged from our media and people and the way Raymond Davis's reality was revealed, [President Asif] Zardari got such courage from the nation that he told President Obama not to put so much pressure that could worsen the situation.

"At present, Pakistan's position is sound and the American position is weak on the diplomatic level. Because of this incident, the U.S. General [David] Petraeus is saying that now they would intensify their action on the Pak-Afghan borders to stop intervention from Pakistan [in Afghanistan by Taliban militants]. So far, the demand had been that Pakistan should itself stop this intervention. The demands to 'do more' [and act against Taliban militants] were regarding this issue that Pakistan take military action in North Waziristan. But Pakistan told the U.S.: 'You don't trust us and it is your responsibility to stop the [Taliban's] intervention in Afghanistan, or face it.'

"In this case, our army and intelligence particularly rejected their demands. Because of the one case of Raymond, Pakistan has gained diplomatic advantage, and today, due to this, the U.S. is under our pressure. This change came at a time when the U.S. is leaving Afghanistan after facing defeat and it needs help from Pakistan."

Question: "Will the government hand over Raymond Davis on some pretext? There are reports that Saudi Arabia has sent messages in this regard."

General Aslam Beg: "Now, Raymond Davis has become insignificant. Pakistan-U.S. relations will not remain the same even after he is handed over. Now it is being tried to contact those persons whose relatives have been killed by Davis and they would be persuaded by Saudi Arabia through the Qisas and Diyat [tit-for-tat or compensation for the killing]."

"Punjabi Taliban and Frontier Taliban Exist; Many Organizations… Like Lashkar-e-Jhangvi and Sipah-e-Sahaba were Formed on the Advice of the U.S… to Cause Riots"

Question: "But even after Raymond Davis's arrest, there are terror attacks in Pakistan."

General Aslam Beg: "Not all terrorist attacks are linked to Raymond Davis. Some other organizations are also involved in big terrorist activities to get their objectives fulfilled. Besides the CIA, RAW [the Research & Analysis Wing of India] is also involved in explosions carried out in mosques, Imambargahs [Shi'ite places of worship], and on congregations in order to cause riots between Shi'ites and Sunnis.

Question: "Shahbaz Sharif doesn't like the mention of Punjabi Taliban. Does the Punjabi Taliban exist?"

General Aslam Beg: "Punjabi Taliban and Frontier Taliban exist. Many organizations and groups like Lashkar-e-Jhangvi and Sipah-e-Sahaba were formed on the advice of the U.S. in order to cause riots. And when these people were banned after being declared as terrorists, they took flight to the borders where they are active. They are the people who abducted [former Pakistani spies] Colonel Imam and Khalid Khwaja and killed them. They have links with both the RAW and CIA.

"It was Usman Punjabi who killed Colonel Imam and Khalid Khwaja after abducting them; and other people wiped out his group. Who does not know that Punjabi Taliban were involved in the attack on GHQ [general headquarters of Pakistan Army]? Usman was from Kahuta and was running a full team.

"There are more such people. They are engaged in revenge attacks because the government has arrested them, tortured them, and put them behind bars; their men were killed. In my opinion, Shahbaz Sharif objects to the mention of 'Punjabi Taliban' because it gives this impression that Punjab is sending these terrorists. In reality, such sectarian organizations were formed by the government itself. And now, instead of finishing them duly, they have been declared terrorists."

Question: "Who could be involved in the murder of Shahbaz Bhatti [the Minority Affairs Minister of Pakistan killed over his support for reform in Pakistan's blasphemy laws]?"

General Aslam Beg: "The mindset which killed [Punjab Governor] Salman Taseer has killed him too. The government made lapses in his security and that is why he was killed. The Taliban don't seem to be involved in it."