Daily Times

QUETTA: While a spate of sectarianism in recent years involved lethal killers inspired by the Salafi/Deoband ideological mindset, a new wave is likely to submerge the country’s largest province from the opposite side.

Background interviews with intelligence and security officials revealed that certain elements from a neighbouring country are allegedly and secretly pumping money and recruits to foment a dreaded proxy war on sectarian grounds.

Pakistani agencies recently detected the existing of two groups namely Fatemiyoun Brigade and Zainabiyoun Brigade, which at the moment are recruiting disgruntled and angry youngsters hailing from Shia school of thought.

The message of those groups is very simple – they killed us with impunity, now is the time to pay them back in similar fashion. The Shia community in Balochistan has long been targeted by Lashkar-e-Jhangvi (LeJ) and the affiliated outfits. Officials said several Baloch youngsters, who joined those two groups, already had one or more of their family members killed in the sectarian violence. “It is very easy to recruit such a person. The desire of taking revenge, at times, is far more stronger than following one’s faith,” commented a senior official requesting anonymity.

Sources told Daily Times the Pakistani agencies tracked a number of Baloch youngsters who joined ‘Jihad’ against the so-called Islamic State (IS) in Syria and Iraq. This new sectarian-based global jihad against the IS is reminiscent of anti-Soviet jihad, primarily sponsored and facilitated by the Saudi Arabia more than three decades ago.

Pakistani agencies arrested some Baloch youngsters, who returned after fighting the IS forces in either Syria or Iraq. The interrogations revealed that they were encouraged to continue their so-called jihad, in Pakistan, against their sectarian rivals. The brainwashing was rather easier since many had seen sectarian violence against them in Balochistan and other parts of the country.

While Zainabiyoun Brigade was a new name for the Pakistani agencies, the name “Fatemiyoun Brigade” has been in the limelight for several years. According to foreign media reports, Fatemiyoun Brigade was an Afghan Shia militia formed in 2014 to fight the IS in Syria. The media reports alleged that Islamic Revolutionary Guards Corps (IRGC) had created that militia and also arranged for its training and further facilitation. However, both the IRGC as well as the Brigade denied any sort of collusion or alliance. The Iranian government repeatedly denied it ever patronised the IRGC. Thousands of Shias were massacred in Balochistan and other parts of the country in recent years. The leadership of the brigades, which operate from outside Pakistan, considered Pakistan as one of the best places to recruit fighters. The strategy was to first make them fight against the IS and, if they survive, encourage them to spread sectarian violence in Pakistan.

Intelligence reports revealed the Fatemiyoun Brigade lures potential fighters from Hazara community in Balochistan. On the other hand, the little known Zainabiyoun Brigade recruits potential fighters from Gilgit-Baltistan, Khyber Pakhtunkhwa and Parachinar.

Unlike LeJ, Sipah-e-Sahaba, Jaish-ul-Islam and other sectarian outfits, these two brigades have been training their fighters outside Pakistan.

The arrested operatives of the two brigades confessed they were involved in recruiting the like-minded people to fight rival sectarian groups and also target prominent personalities from the rival sects.

“At the moment their activities are limited to recruiting and future planning. They haven’t been involved in any major sectarian attack. Nonetheless, we expect them go violent once their planning and recruitment reaches a certain level,” a source said.

Fighters from the two brigades were seen protecting the holy shrines in Syria, which were repeatedly attacked by the IS forces. Several hundreds lost their lives in fierce battles against the IS around the cities of Darra and Aleppo.