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The following is research published today from MEMRI’s Special Dispatch Series, MEMRI TV Project, and the MEMRI Blog.

Special Dispatch No. 3426—Pakistan/Taliban/South Asia Studies Project

Pakistan's Tourism Minister – 'Taliban are the True Followers of Islamic Ideology And America is the Biggest Terrorist of the World'; Pakistani Columnist – 'The Tourism Minister's... Utterances Simply Confirm the Deeply Schizophrenic Country Pakistan has Become'

Image courtesy: pakistanileaders.com.pk

Maulana Attaur Rehman (pictured above) is Pakistan’s Federal Minister for Tourism. He was elected to the National Assembly the lower house of the Pakistani parliament, in the February 2008 elections. Rehman belongs to the Jamiat Ulema-e-Islam (JUI-F), a political-religious party that is part of the federal governing coalition in Pakistan.

While speaking at a public meeting in the Mansehra district of Pakistan’s Khyber Pakhtunkhwa province, the tourism minister recently described the Taliban as the "true followers of Islamic ideology" and dubbed the United States as the world’s "biggest terrorist."

The tourism minister’s comments drew a strong response from liberal Pakistani columnist Irfan Husain, who questioned why Maulana Attaur Rehman, a pro-Taliban orthodox cleric, was given the charge of tourism ministry by President Asif Zardari.

Writing in the Dawn newspaper, Irfan Husain observed: "Normally, if the public views of a minister are so far out of sync with government policy, he is asked to resign. But as far as I can detect, Zardari and his Prime Minister [Yousuf Raza Gilani] show no embarrassment at all over this outburst...."

To read the full report, visit http://www.memri.org/report/en/0/0/0/0/0/0/4816.htm.

Special Dispatch No. 3425—South Asia Studies Project/Pakistan

Former Pakistani Lawmaker Javed Ibrahim Paracha: Osama bin Laden Is Alive and Well and Often Rides to the Mosque on Horseback to Lead the Friday Prayers

Javed Ibrahim Paracha is a former Pakistani lawmaker who has championed the cause of Al-Qaeda and Taliban militants over the past several decades. As a leader of the center-right Pakistan Muslim League (PML-N) party, he represented the Kohat parliamentary seat in the National Assembly, the lower house of Pakistani parliament.

A lawyer by profession, Paracha heads the World Prisoner Relief Commission, a pressure group that has defended the Taliban and Al-Qaeda militants in Pakistani courts, securing their release in many cases over the past few years. Paracha is also a leader of the Ehl-e-Sunnat wal Jamaat, a Deobandi religious organization that supports the Taliban.

In recent years, Paracha has been detained several times by Pakistani security agencies due to his links to militant groups. In a recent interview, he insisted that there are "seventy thousand" mujahideen in the Afghan-Pakistan region, adding: "Not all of them are Arab. There are Americans…"

Following are excerpts from an interview with Paracha, which aired on Alaan TV (UAE) on November 18, 2010:

To view this clip on MEMRI TV, visit http://www.memritv.org/clip/en/0/0/0/0/0/0/2694.htm.

Interviewer: "Does a policeman always accompany you?"

Javed Ibrahim Paracha: "Yes, at all times. Four or five policemen."

Interviewer: "In your home…"

Javed Ibrahim Paracha: "At home, in my car, when I travel…"

To read the full report, visit http://www.memri.org/report/en/0/0/0/0/0/0/4815.htm.

Special Dispatch No. 3424—South Asia Studies Project/Afghanistan/Taliban

Afghan MP Shukria Barakzai: The Taliban Can Join the Political Process

Shukria Barakzai is a prominent Afghan lawmaker and journalist who has campaigned for media freedom and women's rights in Afghanistan in recent decades. As a journalist, she launchedAina-e-Zan, a newspaper for women's rights, and founded the Afghan Women Journalists Association. During the 1990s, Barakzai stood as a voice of dissent in Afghanistan against the fundamentalist policies of the Taliban regime.

In a recent interview, Barakzai spoke about a range of issues, especially with regard to the Afghan government's initiatives for reconciliation with the Taliban. In the interview, she ruled out any possibility of the Taliban returning to power amid the changed realities of Afghanistan, stating: "I can assure you that there is no chance that the Taliban will become the regime again. They will not, because they are not the same Taliban as before, and today's Afghanistan is not the same Afghanistan…"

Barakzai also backed the Karzai government in its bid for peace talks with the Taliban, stating: "Today, we must turn to dialogue and negotiations within the framework of the Afghan constitution."

Following are excerpts from her interview, which aired on Al-Arabiya TV on November 15, 2010.

To view this clip on MEMRI TV, visit http://www.memritv.org/clip/en/0/0/0/0/0/0/2696.htm.

Interviewer: "With regard to your personal experience with the Taliban – you suffered violence and beatings at the hand of the Taliban, and then you established the secret schools of those times. You are perhaps the best example of the suffering of the Afghan woman in those days. Today, people are talking about the possible return of the Taliban, its inclusion in the government, and dialogue with it. What will be the condition of Afghan women if the Taliban returns to power in Afghanistan?"

To read the full report, visit http://www.memri.org/report/en/0/0/0/0/0/0/4814.htm.

Special Dispatch No. 3423—Afghanistan/Jihad and Terrorism Studies Project

Hizb-e-Islami Chief Gulbuddin Hekmatyar Rejects Islamic Clerics’ Fatwas against Suicide Bombings, Says: 'Tehran Thinks that the U.S. and Its Allies have Conquered Afghanistan for It [Iran]'

On September 13, 2010, a Pakistani website posted a television interview of Gulbuddin Hekmatyar, the chief of Hizb-e-Islami, the second largest militant group in Afghanistan that has been fighting against the U.S. and NATO troops alongside the Taliban and Al-Qaeda.

The interview was telecast as part of the program Jirga, hosted by prominent television anchor Saleem Safi on Pakistan’s main television channel Geo News. Safi did not conduct the interview in person; instead, a set of his questions were sent on video to the remote unidentified mountains of Afghanistan where Hekmatyar is located. Hekmatyar responded to these questions.

In the interview, Hekmatyar spoke about a range of issues including: the Afghan government’s purported talks with the Taliban and other militant groups; some Islamic clerics’ fatwas rejecting suicide bombings; Iran’s role in Afghanistan; and popular conspiracy theories in the Muslim world that purport that the 9/11 attacks were planned by the Jews.

To read the full report, visit http://www.memri.org/report/en/0/0/0/0/0/0/4813.htm.

Special Dispatch No. 3411—South Asia Studies Project/Pakistan/Islamic Reform

Pakistani Journalist Huma Imtiaz Criticizes Pakistan’s Recent Ban on Facebook and YouTube, Says: "The Pakistan Government has… Turned a Blind Eye to the Abundance of Religious Hate Material that is… Available on the Internet"

In the summer of 2010, the Pakistan Telecommunications Authority (PTA), banned hundreds of websites, including Facebook and the video sharing site YouTube, following widescale protests by religious organizations in Pakistan as well as a court order against the publication of content that was deemed blasphemous of Islam. The Lahore High Court defended the decision to ban the website, arguing "If the Western nations can ban the veil, why can’t we ban Facebook?"

The ban literally cut the Pakistani people off from the internet’s most popular websites. Salman Taseer, a campaigner for secularism and Governor of Pakistan’s Punjab province, criticized the Pakistani government’s ban on social networking sites, saying that information-based corporations such as Facebook are significant in the current era and are a great source of knowledge. Later, the ban was lifted in late-May after some writers questioned the wisdom behind such bans.

In a recent article, senior Pakistani journalist Huma Imtiaz drew attention to the double standard behind the Pakistani authorities’ decision to ban the websites while taking no action against several jihadist websites that are preaching hatred and violence against various Islamic sects such as Shi’ite Muslims and Ahmadi Muslims in Pakistan.

To read the full report, visit http://www.memri.org/report/en/0/0/0/0/0/0/4801.htm.