Foreign Policy Blogs

Mumbai Attacks

A brilliant work of investigative journalism by Jason Motlagh helps us understand that it is in the interest of everyone to try to solve issues by talking to each other instead of letting the nuts take advantage of our inability to commit to a constructive dialogue. Take for example the Mumbai tragedy. Right after the horrific terrorist attacks in Mumbai in 2008, people in Pakistan declared it to be an Indian conspiracy and in India, it was generally agreed that Pakistan was behind this attack.

No need to further investigate.

However, what has emerged so far about the Mumbai attacks is much more complicated. There are details that are missing, and there are facts that don’t add up. Unsolved mysteries during the investigation have proved, once again, that at times, it is best to avoid commenting about events that are as complicated as the Mumbai attacks.

So far, we know that stateless actors were involved in carrying out these attacks. These people want nothing, but chaos and mayhem in Asia, and it is important to stop them without pointing finger at other.

Pakistan has been at the receiving end of these attacks for decades now. First, there were attacks when Pakistan was helping the West in Afghanistan while Russians were trying to conquer Afghanistan. Then, after 9/11, nut jobs from Al-Qaeda and the Taliban are carrying out devastating attacks in Pakistan against the country that is fighting nihilists. If anything, Pakistan needs help – a lot of help and understanding from not only the Western countries, but also from its neighbors. This is not the time, especially for India and Pakistan to accuse each other of ‘not doing enough’ while the viscous and brutal enemy is determined to destroy both India and Pakistan. Therefore, it would be wise for Delhi and Islamabad to engage each other without doubting each other’s intentions.

Terrorist working to destabilize the region win if India and Pakistan continue to look at each other as the source of all evils in the world (or the region) and we can’t let that happen. Judging from my recent and a very long trip to Pakistan, I can say this with confidence that most of the country is interested in living in peace with India. They don’t want war or for that any type of conflict or even an argument with India. They just want to live in peace and I am sure the same can be said about the people in India. So, in my opinion, the tragedy of Mumbai should bring the governments and the people from both countries together because coming close is the only way to overcome suspension and acrimony towards each other.

War has never been the answer when we look at history. It can, and it does suppress the issues temporarily, but in the end, all parties have to come to the negotiating table to find answers and solutions for the problems.

Notwithstanding the hardcore chicken hawks on both sides of Pak-India border, there is hardly an issue that Islamabad and New Delhi won’t be able to resolve amicably, but for this, egos have to be controlled, finger pointing has to stop and honest and open environment is needed and I am sure that mature and cooler minds on both sides in both countries can make the argument for peace successfully. It is in the interest of everyone to shake hands instead of trying to slap each other.

 

Author

Bilal Qureshi

Bilal Qureshi is a resident of Washington, DC, so it is only natural that he is tremendously interested in politics. He is also fascinated by the relationship between Pakistan, the country of his birth, and the United States of America, his adopted homeland. Therefore, he makes every effort to read major newspapers in Pakistan and what is being said about Washington, while staying fully alert to the analysis and the news being reported in the American press about Pakistan. After finishing graduate school, he started using his free time to write to various papers in Pakistan in an effort to clarify whatever misconceptions he noticed in the press, especially about the United States. This pastime became a passion after his letters were published in Vanity Fair and The New Yorker and his writing became more frequent and longer. Now, he is here, writing a blog about Pakistan managed by Foreign Policy Association.

Areas of Focus:
Taliban; US-Pakistan Relations; Culture and Society

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