Yesterday LondonYank posted a terrific diary noting many connections between Pakistan and terrorism ("
The REAL Reason for Secret Tribunals? Pakistan Terrorism Timeline"). Daniel Pearl was mentioned in the diary and also in the comments (including comments by
LondonYank and
PaulGaskin). These comments pointed out apparent connections between Pakistan and 9/11, connections that Pearl was reportedly investigating when he was killed. LY also made this important point: Bush is planning to send Pakistan F-16s. This prompted me to remember one of the major demands made by Pearl's killers:
to send Pakistan F-16s.
In other words Bush is now in the process of appeasing and rewarding Pearl's killers, by sending Pakistan the F-16s those killers demanded.
Pearl's killers demanded F-16s
Pearl was a WSJ reporter, so it makes sense to start with their account of his death:
... Pearl disappeared in the southern Pakistani city of Karachi on Jan. 23 after embarking for what he believed was an interview with a prominent figure in the country's Islamic movement. Four days later, a group calling itself "The National Movement for the Restoration of Pakistani Sovereignty" sent an e-mail ... In their messages, the group called for the release of ... Pakistanis being detained ... as terrorism suspects. It also called for the U.S. to turn over F-16 fighter jets purchased by Pakistan in the late 1980s but never delivered because of U.S. sanctions related to Islamabad's nuclear-weapons program.- WSJ, 2/24/02
Here's what Bush said at the time (from the same source):
President Bush reacted angrily to the news, saying those who "engage in criminal, barbaric acts need to know that these crimes only hurt their cause." Mr. Bush expressed particular sympathy for Mr. Pearl's pregnant wife, Mariane, saying: "We're especially saddened for his unborn child, who will now know his father only through the memory of others." In a separate statement, the State Department suggested the U.S. will continue to hunt for those who captured and killed Mr. Pearl.
Now, Musharraf has freed Pearl's killers. And Bush has sent the following message: those who "engage in criminal, barbaric acts need to know that these crimes" will get them exactly what they demanded: F-16s.
Pearl was reportedly investigating links between Pakistan and 9/11; Pearl's killers were reportedly linked to Pakistan's ISI
Pearl was apparently following a 9/11 money trail, which led to ISI:
Bernard-Henri Levy "spent more than a year investigating [Pearl's] murder in Pakistan, Afghanistan, Bosnia, and other locales ... Levy suggests ... Pearl's killing was a state crime ... [done] with the backing of Pakistan's Inter-Services Intelligence (ISI), its CIA. Levy theorizes that Pearl was close to uncovering ties between ISI chiefs and al Qaeda." - Time, 9/27/03
Pakistan has surrended to the Taliban
We've all heard the news, that Pakistan recently surrendered to the Taliban, by creating the Islamic Emirate of Waziristan. This has been covered here in various diaries (search for "waziristan") and also front-paged by Kos (9/5/06): "Pakistan and Taliban sign pact."
Pakistan has released Pearl's killers
See quaoar's excellent diary (9/16/06): "Pakistan empties jails of Taliban, frees Daniel Pearl's killers."
So while Bush is meeting one major demand made by Pearl's killers (F-16s), Musharraf is meeting the other major demand: free these and other terrorists.
Reversing an embargo, Bush is providing Pakistan with F-16s
Bush and the GOP are taking steps to bring some of our most advanced weapons within reach of the Taliban, rewarding the killers of Daniel Pearl:
Bush [recently authorized] the sale of F-16 fighter jets to Pakistan ... Pakistan initially wants to buy about two dozen aircraft, but Bush administration officials said there would be no limits on how many it could eventually purchase ... [This move by Bush] reversed 15 years of policy begun under his father. ... Former senator Larry Pressler (R-S.D.), who sponsored the 1985 law that ultimately forced the cancellation of the original F-16 sale, called Friday's decision "an atrocity" that goes against "everything the Bush administration has stood for."- WaPo, 3/25/05
Bush welcomes Musharraf to the White House, this Friday
This Friday, 9/22, Musharraf meets Bush in White House. This meeting will obviously trigger fairly major coverage. This is the precise moment we should do whatever we can to make sure that coverage includes three key points: 1) Musharraf has recently surrendered to the Taliban; 2) Musharraf has freed many terrorists, including the killers of Daniel Pearl; and 3) despite all this, Bush is planning to provide Musharraf with F-16s.
Congress made a weak effort to block the F-16s deal
A few in Congress spoke up against this deal. But most were silent.
This should be much bigger than the Dubai ports deal
The Dubai ports deal sat unnoticed for months. Then suddenly it started getting attention. I think that attention began here. It soon turned into a very major headache for Bush and GOP, because it was an issue that spoke to their base. It woke up the GOP base to this reality: Bush values corporate profits over national security.
In my opinion, selling F-16s to Pakistan is much more insane than letting Dubai run our ports. And the time to raise awareness for this story is now. This is exactly the kind of issue (like Dubai, immigration and Harriett Miers) that will disgust Bush's base and convince them to stay home on 11/7.
This is the moment to ask every R incumbent where they stand on the appeasement of Daniel Pearl's killers. This is the moment to ask every R incumbent where they stand on Bush welcoming to the White House the man who just surrendered to the Taliban, and released Pearl's killers. This is the moment to ask every R incumbent where they stand on Bush's plan to arm our enemies, by sending F-16s to a state that supports terrorism.
The GOP is the party of appeasement and surrender. America can't afford to trust its national security to the party of appeasement and surrender.
Other resources
Guardian, 5/19/06, "Pakistan sheltering Taliban, says British officer."
Council on Foreign Relations, 9/11/06, "Musharraf's Taliban Problem." Excellent overall background on Musharraf and Pakistan.
The Hill, 7/27/06, "Time is short to block Pakistan F-16 deal." This piece discusses recent congressional efforts to block the F-16 deal. For more on this topic also see here, here, here, here, and here.
A good analysis explaining why the F-16 deal is a bad idea: here. Also see this.
Commentary promoting the F-16 deal can be seen here and here. What's interesting about that recent NRO piece is that it tacitly admits that Pakistan winks at terrorism ("Pakistan has officially banned groups like JEM and the Lashkar-e-Tayyiba ... but has taken little concrete action to stop their activities"), but claims we should arm Pakistan anyway!
In a recent diary I tried to provide a broad perspective on the threat Pakistan represents (9/7/06): "Bush: creating the world's first radical Islamic nuclear power."