Intel report: Why is Pakistan promoting the ISIS?

New Delhi, July 14: Credible Intelligence reports point to the Pakistanis supporting the ISIS in a big way.

Although to the world it may appear that the ISIS would be a big problem to the Pakistanis, in reality the picture is entirely different.

Now, why would Pakistan want to promote the ISIS? Doesn't it have its own share of concerns where terrorism is concerned?

Pakistan thrives on military aid from the United States and this is why they would want to promote the ISIS, Intelligence Bureau officials tell OneIndia.

Why will Pakistan promote the ISIS?

It is a fact that the ISIS is making inroads into the Afghanistan-Pakistan region. Although there were reports of its chief in Afghanistan being killed in a drone strike, this has not really dented their prospects. The leader of the ISIS, Hafiz Saeed who was killed in a drone strike can be largely credited to the intelligence provided by both the NDS and the ISI.

Saeed was not the one to buckle down under ISI pressure. The ISI did not want a repeat of the Tehrik-e-Taliban an outfit that has refused to tow the line of the spy agency. The killing of Saeed would open the doors for a new leader and he would be chosen only with the approval of the ISI.

However the larger picture of the ISI promoting the ISIS, according to the Indian intelligence is to extract more military aid from the US. The US claims to be fighting a war against the ISIS in Iraq and Syria. Pakistan is well aware that if the ISIS is promoted in the AF-Pak region, it would be entitled for more military aid from the US, the intelligence report also states.

Can Pakistan afford to play this game?

The next question is whether Pakistan can afford to play this game? It has played similar games in the past, burnt its fingers, but the fact is that it would continue to explore such options. The military aid that it gets from the US is too lucrative and promoting terrorists is a very minor price that it would have to pay.

Pakistan played a similar game when it first engineered a split in the Taliban. The formation of the Tehrik-e-Taliban has resulted in the creation of a Frankenstein Monster.

However with the great deal of damage done by the TTP also came millions of dollars in aid. Officials in the Intelligence Bureau say that the promoting of the ISIS by Pakistan is a reality today and it is directly connected with extracting more financial aid from the US.

What India needs to do?

India on the other hand is watching the developments closely. The entry of the ISIS is currently restricted only to the Afghanistan-Pakistan region. The ISIS has not hurt Indian interests as of now in Afghanistan.

However what India would need to watch out for is the ISIS trying to make an entry into Kashmir. So far barring the flying of a few ISIS flags there has been no instance of a module being set up. It is only the Hizbul Mujahideen which is aping the ISIS in its battle in Kashmir.

India would need to keep in mind that the ISIS does have Kashmir on its agenda.

In the early half of the year 2014, it had released a world map and had called it the Global Islamic Council. In the map it had included Maharashtra, Gujarat and Kashmir to be part of the council.

This is a future plan of the ISIS, but with the Pakistanis aiming at promoting this outfit, India would need to keep a specific watch at least in Kashmir for now.

OneIndia News