Former Pakistani Lawmaker Javed Ibrahim Paracha: Osama Bin Laden Is Alive and Well and Often Rides to the Mosque on Horseback to Lead the Friday Prayers

Following are excerpts from an interview with former Pakistani lawmaker Javed Ibrahim Paracha, which aired on Alaan TV on November 18, 2010:
 

Interviewer: Does a policeman always accompany you?
 

Javed Ibrahim Paracha: Yes, at all times. Four or five policemen.
 

Interviewer: In your home…
 

Javed Ibrahim Paracha: At home, in my car, when I travel…
 

Interviewer: Why?
 

Javed Ibrahim Paracha: It’s the government.
 

Interviewer: Is the government afraid of you?
 

Javed Ibrahim Paracha: Yes. I am the chief of all the tribes. I am the head of the Sunnis. In the mountains, we always have a war going on, like Nasrallah, like Beirut, like Lebanon… This is why the government is afraid. I have a huge army of mujahideen, of the Taliban, and of the tribes. That’s why the government is afraid.
 

Interviewer: How many fighters are there under your control?
 

Javed Ibrahim Paracha: Where?
 

Interviewer: In the tribal areas?
 

Javed Ibrahim Paracha: In the tribal areas, there are many… Maybe 8,000-10,000…
 

Interviewer: Arabs? Pakistanis?
 

Javed Ibrahim Paracha: There are few Pakistanis, but there are many Arabs, and with the grace of Allah, there are Germans, Bulgarians, Chechens, and Uzbeks.
 

[…]
 

Interviewer: How many Arab women are there in the tribal areas?
 

Javed Ibrahim Paracha: 50 or 60.
 

Interviewer: 50 or 60.
 

Javed Ibrahim Paracha: Currently, yes.
 

Interviewer: Are they widows, or are their husbands still waging Jihad in the mountains?
 

Javed Ibrahim Paracha: They are the daughters, wives, and sons of the martyrs.
 

Interviewer: So their husbands are no longer alive.
 

Javed Ibrahim Paracha: No, they want to return to their countries.
 

Interviewer: So there are currently 60 Arab widows in the tribal areas?
 

Javed Ibrahim Paracha: Allah be praised.
 

Interviewer: How many Arab fighters are there in the tribal areas at present?
 

Javed Ibrahim Paracha: I don’t have the exact figure, but there are many.
 

Interviewer: Are we talking about dozens, about hundreds, or about thousands?
 

Javed Ibrahim Paracha: Maybe thousands. Maybe. Not just dozens.
 

Interviewer: Thousands of Arab fighters?
 

Javed Ibrahim Paracha: Don’t say fighters.
 

Interviewer: Mujahideen, sorry. There are thousands of Arab mujahideen?
 

Javed Ibrahim Paracha: Yes.
 

Interviewer: And they are here?
 

Javed Ibrahim Paracha: Not all of them are Arab. There are American…
 

Interviewer: I’m interested specifically in the Arabs. How many Arab mujahideen are there?
 

Javed Ibrahim Paracha: With the grace of Allah, 60-70 thousand.
 

Interviewer: 7,000?
 

Javed Ibrahim Paracha: No.
 

Interviewer: 70,000 Arabs.
 

Javed Ibrahim Paracha: Yes.
 

Interviewer: Seventy thousand?
 

Javed Ibrahim Paracha: Yes.
 

Interviewer: But the Americans and the Pakistani authorities say that it is very difficult to get their hands on any Arab fighter. Now you are saying there are about 70,000 of them in the mountains.
 

Javed Ibrahim Paracha: Allah be praised.
 

Interviewer: Where are all these fighters living?
 

Javed Ibrahim Paracha: They are all in the mountains.
 

Interviewer: Where exactly in the mountains?
 

Javed Ibrahim Paracha: There are many tunnels in the mountains.
 

Interviewer: I see.
 

Javed Ibrahim Paracha: Yes. They live in these tunnels. There is water in the mountains. With the grace of Allah, there are animals to slaughter and eat there.
 

Interviewer: In which provinces can these tunnels be found? Are they in Orakzai, in Waziristan?
 

Javed Ibrahim Paracha: In all the tribal areas. All the people of the tribal areas have connections with the Afghans. Pakistan is here, Afghanistan is there, and the tribal mountains are in the middle. There is no government here.
 

Interviewer: Do you go to the mountains yourself sometimes…
 

Javed Ibrahim Paracha: With their permission.
 

Interviewer: How does it work? Do you contact them...?
 

Javed Ibrahim Paracha: I contact them, and we go there and back by car.
 

Interviewer: Do they ever come down to…
 

Javed Ibrahim Paracha: Many times. Their sons and daughters are not in the mountains. They are with the tribes. Only the mujahideen are in the mountains.
 

Interviewer: So the mujahideen are in the mountains…
 

Javed Ibrahim Paracha: …and their women are with the tribes.
 

Interviewer: Is there a specific tribe that…
 

Javed Ibrahim Paracha: Various tribes, not just one.
 

Interviewer: But if there are 70,000 Arab mujahideen, there should also be 70,000 families.
 

Javed Ibrahim Paracha: But not all of them are in the same place, on the same mountain.
 

Interviewer: Obviously.
 

Javed Ibrahim Paracha: One mountain may be 60 km away, another may be 100 km away. One mountain may be near Quetta, another may be near Durkham, and so on. They are not in the same place.
 

Interviewer: And where are their families?
 

Javed Ibrahim Paracha: Their families are near the mountains. They have homes among the tribes. They rent houses among various tribes.
 

Interviewer: So you are in charge of 60 families, or 60 widows, who have lost their husbands, but the other families are with the tribes.
 

Javed Ibrahim Paracha: The 60 families we have here are without men, without husbands. They are all orphans, and they want to return to their countries, through coordination with the embassies and invitation from their countries.
 

Interviewer: What do the families of the mujahideen in the tribal areas live off?
 

Javed Ibrahim Paracha: The Muslims give them food.
 

Interviewer: This is what they do with their time.
 

Javed Ibrahim Paracha: Yes.
 

Interviewer: Do they study?
 

Javed Ibrahim Paracha: Yes, yes. They all get their college and university education from Sheik Osama bin Laden. There are American teachers, German teachers, computer science teachers, and so on. They have everything.
 

Interviewer: And they get their degrees from Sheik Osama?
 

Javed Ibrahim Paracha: They get their degrees from the charity associations.
 

[…]
 

Interviewer: Aren’t the families in touch with the fighters?
 

Javed Ibrahim Paracha: Why do you say “fighters”?
 

Interviewer: Sorry, mujahideen. I apologize.
 

Javed Ibrahim Paracha: Thank you.
 

Interviewer: Are the women in touch with the mujahideen?
 

Javed Ibrahim Paracha: Every month, half of the mujahideen are in the mountains, and the other half are with the women. This is how they organize it. On Friday, there is a huge gathering for the Friday prayer.
 

Interviewer: A gathering of the women and the mujahideen?
 

Javed Ibrahim Paracha: Yes, and they swap on Friday.
 

Interviewer: Who is the imam of the Friday prayer?
 

Javed Ibrahim Paracha: There are many mosques and many imams. On many Fridays, Sheik Osama Bin Laden leads the prayer.
 

Interviewer: Sheik Osama Bin Laden himself?
 

Javed Ibrahim Paracha: Yes, on many Fridays.
 

Interviewer: This happens now?
 

Javed Ibrahim Paracha: Yes, him and his children.
 

Interviewer: You are telling me that Sheik Osama Bin Laden is alive, and that he is leading the prayers in the mosques?
 

Javed Ibrahim Paracha: It all happens. In one mosque, Ayman Al-Zawahiri, in another, Sheik Osama Bin Laden, in another mosque, Abdallah, Sheik Osama’s son… You cannot understand. Are these Arabs? They all wear their clothes, and speak Pashtu, Arabic, and English.
 

Interviewer: But Sheik Osama himself…
 

Javed Ibrahim Paracha: He is a computer science engineer.
 

Interviewer: But how does he get to the mosque? By car?
 

Javed Ibrahim Paracha: On a horse. Yes, on a horse.
 

Interviewer: He goes to the mosque on horseback?!
 

Javed Ibrahim Paracha: Yes. In the mountains, there are no roads for cars.
 

Interviewer: All the mujahideen have horses, and they ride them to get about?
 

Javed Ibrahim Paracha: Osama is always with the special squads of the mujahideen. He is always with the Shura [Council], and they keep moving around. He does not remain in one place.
 

Interviewer: Have you personally seen him in one of these mosques, leading the prayer?
 

Javed Ibrahim Paracha: Yes, yes. There are videotapes.
 

Interviewer: You saw him with your own eyes?
 

Javed Ibrahim Paracha: Yes, yes.
 

Interviewer: When was the last time?
 

Javed Ibrahim Paracha: Maybe on Friday, maybe on Ramadhan.
 

Interviewer: Who goes to this mosque? The mujahideen and their families?
 

Javed Ibrahim Paracha: It’s not just one mosque. There are many.
 

Interviewer: Does Sheik Osama attend a specific mosque?

Javed Ibrahim Paracha: Not a specific one. One day he goes to Islamabad Mosque, another day to Kuar Mosque, and the next day, to another mosque. He doesn’t go to just one place.
 

Interviewer: Islamabad Mosque is something…

 

Javed Ibrahim Paracha: It is far away.
 

Interviewer: Is there a mosque called Islamabad Mosque in the mountains?
 

Javed Ibrahim Paracha: One Friday, he goes to Waziristan, another Friday, to the Orakzai region, another Friday, to the Mohmand region, and another Friday, to Quetta in Baluchistan.
 

Interviewer: But how can he move around with all the US planes in the sky?
 

Javed Ibrahim Paracha: The Americans do not go the high mountains. The Russian planes are good and strong, but as for the American planes – they are afraid. They do not get close to you. They operate from afar.
 

[…]
 

Nobody knows in what mosque Osama Bin Laden will be on a specific Friday.
 

Interviewer: All of a sudden, he shows up?
 

Javed Ibrahim Paracha: That’s right.
 

[…]
 

Interviewer: What does Bin Laden say in his Friday sermons? What are the topics?
 

Javed Ibrahim Paracha: It’s all about Jihad and Islam, and about the conflict with the Jews and with America. All the sermons are about Jihad. All of them.
 

Interviewer: Doesn’t going from one mosque to another put him in danger?
 

Javed Ibrahim Paracha: With the grace of Allah, no.
 

Interviewer: He comes with Ayman Al-Zawahiri?
 

Javed Ibrahim Paracha: Ayman Al-Zawahiri is in one place, and Sheik Osama in another.
 

Interviewer: But some people say that Bin Laden might not be alive due to a medical problem.
 

Javed Ibrahim Paracha: They are all liars.
 

Interviewer: He is in good health?
 

Javed Ibrahim Paracha: Thanks be to Allah. He is alive and well, and is engrossed in Jihad.
 

Interviewer: He himself goes to fight?
 

Javed Ibrahim Paracha: Yes.
 

Interviewer: Is there any truth to the rumors that he suffers from a kidney disease, and that he is being treated for that?
 

Javed Ibrahim Paracha: That was in the past, but now he is okay.
 

Interviewer: Does he have doctors?
 

Javed Ibrahim Paracha: Many. Many doctors.
 

Interviewer: What do they say about his condition?
 

Javed Ibrahim Paracha: That he is healthy.
 

[…]
 

Interviewer: Does Bin Laden move between Pakistan and Afghanistan, or does he stay in Pakistan?
 

Javed Ibrahim Paracha: He is in the tribal mountains – neither in Pakistan, nor in Afghanistan.
 

Interviewer: But in your capacity as the chief of the tribes, maybe you know exactly where he is.
 

Javed Ibrahim Paracha: If he was in my tribe, I should provide him with protection. But he is not in my tribe. He is with other tribes, and they provide him with protection.
 

Interviewer: Is he with your tribe?
 

Javed Ibrahim Paracha: He was at first, but not now. He was with us after Tora Bora.
 

Interviewer: He was with your tribe in 2001?
 

Javed Ibrahim Paracha: Yes, for a long time.
 

Interviewer: Right now you do not know exactly where he is.
 

Javed Ibrahim Paracha: Now, I don’t know. Allah knows, and so do America and Pakistan.
 

[…]
 

[Bin Laden] attended the holiday prayer in Afghanistan, with the Emir of the Believers.
 

Interviewer: Who is the Emir of the Believers?
 

Javed Ibrahim Paracha: Mullah Omar.
 

Interviewer: He was with him in Afghanistan?
 

Javed Ibrahim Paracha: He was there for the holiday prayer.
 

Interviewer: What did they talk about during the holiday prayer?
 

Javed Ibrahim Paracha: I don’t know.
 

Interviewer: What was the topic of the sermon?
 

Javed Ibrahim Paracha: Jihad.
 

Interviewer: In what mosque?
 

Javed Ibrahim Paracha: Kandahar. Or Kunduz.

[…]
 

Interviewer: When a new fighter arrives, does he contact you, so you coordinate…
 

Javed Ibrahim Paracha: It’s possible, Allah willing.
 

Interviewer: And you help him?
 

Javed Ibrahim Paracha: I must. I it is a religious duty.
 

[…]
 

A man hands Javed Ibrahim Paracha a roll of bank notes, which he pockets.
 

[…]
 

Interviewer: Who sent all that money?
 

Javed Ibrahim Paracha: It comes from their countries.
 

Interviewer: This money came from Kuwait?
 

Javed Ibrahim Paracha: Yes, from Kuwait.
 

Interviewer: Who in Kuwait sent the money?
 

Javed Ibrahim Paracha: Their fathers, their brothers.
 

Interviewer: The money you just got came from Kuwait?
 

Javed Ibrahim Paracha: These people are traders from Islamabad who have business in Kuwait. The fathers and brothers of the mujahideen from Kuwait send them money. If one of them comes and tells me that they need to pay expenses, they take the money. It’s like a bank.
 

Interviewer: You are the bank?
 

Javed Ibrahim Paracha: Yes, like a bank.
 

Interviewer: How much did you just receive?
 

Javed Ibrahim Paracha: One thousand.
 

Interviewer: One thousand dollars.
 

Javed Ibrahim Paracha: Not dollars, Pakistani rupees.