OPERATION LAUNCHED TO OPEN KOHAT TUNNEL

C O N F I D E N T I A L SECTION 01 OF 02 PESHAWAR 000472

SIPDIS

E.O. 12958: DECL: 9/27/2018
TAGS: PTER MOPS PGOV PK
SUBJECT: OPERATION LAUNCHED TO OPEN KOHAT TUNNEL

REF: A) PESHAWAR 468, B) PESHAWAR 449, C) PESHAWAR 84

CLASSIFIED BY: Michael A. Via, Acting Principal Officer, U.S.
Consulate Peshawar, Department of State.
REASON: 1.4 (a),(b),(d)
Summary
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1. (C) The Inspector General of the Frontier Corps (IGFC)
reported that security forces launched an operation in the areas
surrounding Darra Adam Khel in Frontier Region Kohat on
September 23 after nearly a month of more limited activity. The
Inter Services Public Relations (ISPR) office claimed that
security forces had killed over 50 militants since August 29
when the militants took control of the Kohat Tunnel. The
purpose of the new offensive is to clear the Kohat tunnel, which
links Peshawar with the southern districts of the North-West
Frontier Province (NWFP) on the Indus Highway. The tunnel was
closed after the arrest of a local taliban commander and clashes
with security forces, which involved a suicide attack. Despite
the limited cordon and search operations that the police and
security forces began in late August, the security situation has
continued to deteriorate. Thousands of residents have fled the
area, as the southern districts continue to be cut off from
Peshawar and businesses have been adversely affected. Some
areas of neighboring Kohat, meanwhile, have formed lashkars
(volunteer militias) to combat the militants.

Security Forces Attempt to Clear Tunnel in Time for Eid
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2. (C) The newly appointed IGFC, Tariq Khan, told the Acting
Principal Officer in Peshawar that security forces launched
Operation Eagle Swoop Phase-II on September 23. The objective
is to secure the Pakistan-Japan Friendship Tunnel, more commonly
known as the Kohat Tunnel, so that it can be reopened for
traffic. For several days the government had been criticized by
political parties and popular protests for not controlling vital
positions along the main road artery linking the southern half
of the province with Peshawar, despite the limited cordon and
search operations that the Frontier Corps and police operation
have conducted since August 29. The IGFC hopes to clear the
tunnel before the heavy travel expected for the Eid holiday
following Ramadan, likely to begin on October 1.


3. (C) The ISPR office claimed that the security forces killed
50 militants since late August and caused hundreds more to flee
the area. Civilian contacts say that the security forces have
not reopened the tunnel, contrary to headlines in the national
press, and that the gains are not yet clear. The Frontier Corps
(FC) issued a press release a few days before the operation
began, charging miscreants in the area with attacking law
enforcement personnel, looting banks and disrupting traffic on
the Indus Highway. The FC claimed that local residents were
calling on security forces to reestablish the writ of the
government. Multiple local contacts suspect that militant
activities in Frontier Region Peshawar and along the Kohat Road
leading to Peshawar are being staged in Darra Adam Khel. The
IGFC said that this operation, however, delayed a planned
offensive in Peshawar district at Michni, on the border with
Khyber and Mohmand agencies.

Tunnel Closed for Nearly Four Weeks
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3. (C) Militants moved in to take over the Kohat Tunnel on
August 29, a day after the arrest of two of their local
commanders and the same day they mounted a suicide attack at the
tunnel. An explosives-laden vehicle detonated when it came
under fire by security personnel at the tunnel. Thirty-six
members of the security forces were injured, including a colonel
(ref. B). Just days later on September 2, militants fired
several rockets at the tunnel, causing peripheral damage (ref.
A). The security forces last recaptured the tunnel in late
January amidst rising militancy in the area (ref. C). Post
contacts claim that shelling by the security forces in the past
month has damaged ten villages and five mosques in the Darra
Adam Khel area, known as a hub for gun manufacturing and
approximately ten kilometers northwest of the tunnel.


PESHAWAR 00000472 002 OF 002


A Marked Deterioration in Security since August
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4. (C) The security situation in Darra Adam Khel began
deteriorating in August when militants stepped up their attacks
on local targets. The local taliban have been demanding the
release of five of their commanders arrested in Hangu and Darra
Adam Khel, according to press reports. In the most notable
attack, a remote-controlled bomb killed six members of the
Frontier Constabulary in the town on September 16 as their
convoy conducted a routine patrol. The very next day on
September 17, militants blew up a nearby bridge on the Indus
Highway. Militants ambushed a Frontier Constabulary check post
at Spina Thana at the northern entrance of Darra Adam Khel four
days later, injuring 19 personnel. On September 28, a day
before the full operation began, a remote-controlled bomb struck
an army convoy, killing one soldier. Over the past two months,
militants have burned or damaged many schools in the area.

No Direct Route between Southern NWFP and Peshawar
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5. (C) The residents of the southern half of NWFP have also been
affected by the situation in Darra Adam Khel, because the tunnel
and the Indus Highway are important road links to Peshawar. The
route via nearby Kotal Pass, which had been the primary
north-south link until 2003 when the tunnel was completed, is
also closed due to the militancy. Alternate roads through
Orakzai are dangerous due to the local taliban check posts,
where militants ask drivers to show identity cards and remove
their shirts, apparently to identify Shi'a travelers who often
have scars on their backs from self-flagellation during the
ritual of Ashura (ref. A). Residents of Kohat, Bannu, Karak,
Lakki Marwat, Dera Ismail Khan, Tank and Hangu districts are all
affected, as are those living in North and South Waziristan.
(Note: Kurram has been cut off entirely since November because
of militant control of the Thall-Parachinar road linking the
agency to Hangu. End note.) Drive times and costs of public
transportation have tripled or quadrupled with the tunnel's
closure. Businessmen are reporting declining stocks and rising
prices on essential commodities due to the difficulty in
delivery goods to the region. Arms manufacturers in Darra Adam
Khel claim that their business has come to a standstill.

Families Fleeing the Area, Lashkar Formed in Kohat
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5. (C) The government has imposed a curfew on the area since
August 29, but thousands of residents have fled in the past
month due to the unrest and food shortages. The district
administration in neighboring Kohat recently set up a relief
camp to house some of the displaced, though many families are
fleeing to Peshawar or staying with friends and relatives. On
September 11 the people of neighboring Kohat set up a lashkar to
defend themselves against the spreading militancy, galvanized by
the insecurity and the widespread destruction of schools and
property in the area.

Comment
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6. (C) Operations to clear the Kohat Tunnel have been successful
in the past but have failed to prevent the return of militancy
to the area. The security forces may indeed achieve their
objective of reopening the tunnel in this latest effort. But
the prospects of longer term success are unclear. The operation
in January had more forces at its disposal and arguably fewer
distractions of concurrent operations. The public frustration
at the closure of the tunnel could turn more hostile if the
government does not succeed in linking the southern districts to
Peshawar before Eid.
VIA