Downloaded by [New York University] at 23:42 28 November 2016 Pakistan’s Inter- Services Intelligence Directorate This book is the first comprehensive study of Pakistan’s Inter- Services Intelli- gence Directorate (ISI). The rise of Pakistan- backed religious extremist groups in Afghanistan, India and Central Asia has focused international attention on Pakistan’s premier intelligence organization and covert action advocate, the Inter- Services Intelligence Directorate or ISI. While ISI is regarded as one of the most powerful government agencies in Pakistan today, surprisingly little has been written about it from an academic perspective. This book addresses critical gaps in our understanding of this agency, including its domestic security mission, covert backing of the Afghan Taliban, and its links to al- Qa’ida. Using primary source materials, including declassified intelligence and diplomatic reporting, press reports and memoirs, this book explores how ISI was transformed from a small, negligible counter intelligence outfit of the late- 1940s into the national security behemoth of today with extensive responsibilities in domestic security, political interference and covert action. This study concludes that reforming or even eliminating ISI will be funda- mental if Pakistan is to successfully transition from an army- run, national security state to a stable, democratic society that enjoys peaceful relations with its neighbors. This book will be of interest to students of intelligence studies, South Asian politics, foreign policy and international security in general. Owen L. Sirrs is Adjunct Professor at the University of Montana, USA, and the author of two previous books, including, most recently, The Egyptian Intelligence Service (Routledge 2011). Downloaded by [New York University] at 23:42 28 November 2016 This page intentionally left blank Downloaded by [New York University] at 23:42 28 November 2016 Pakistan’s Inter- Services Intelligence Directorate Covert action and internal operations Owen L. Sirrs Downloaded by [New York University] at 23:42 28 November 2016 First published 2017 by Routledge 2 Park Square, Milton Park, Abingdon, Oxon OX14 4RN and by Routledge 711 Third Avenue, New York, NY 10017 Routledge is an imprint of the Taylor & Francis Group, an informa business © 2017 Owen L. Sirrs The right of Owen L. Sirrs to be identified as author of this work has been asserted by him in accordance with sections 77 and 78 of the Copyright, Designs and Patents Act 1988. All rights reserved. No part of this book may be reprinted or reproduced or utilized in any form or by any electronic, mechanical, or other means, now known or hereafter invented, including photocopying and recording, or in any information storage or retrieval system, without permission in writing from the publishers. Trademark notice: Product or corporate names may be trademarks or registered trademarks, and are used only for identification and explanation without intent to infringe. British Library Cataloguing- in-Publication Data A catalogue record for this book is available from the British Library Library of Congress Cataloging- in-Publication Data Names: Sirrs, Owen L., author. Title: Pakistan’s Inter-Services Intelligence Directorate : covert action and internal operations / Owen L. Sirrs. Description: New York, NY : Routledge, 2016. | Includes bibliographical references and index. Identifiers: LCCN 2016004564| ISBN 9781138677166 (hardback) | ISBN 9781315559711 (ebook) Subjects: LCSH: Pakistan. Inter Services Intelligence. | Military intelligence–Pakistan. | Intelligence service–Pakistan. Classification: LCC UB251.P35 S57 2016 | DDC 327.125491–dc23 LC record available at https://lccn.loc.gov/2016004564 ISBN: 978-1-138-67716-6 (hbk) ISBN: 978-1-315-55971-1 (ebk) Typeset in Bembo by Wearset Ltd, Boldon, Tyne and Wear Downloaded by [New York University] at 23:42 28 November 2016 Contents List of illustrations vii Acknowledgments viii List of Abbreviations and Acronyms ix Introduction 1 PART I ISI’s Early Days 11 1 ISI’s Origins 13 2 ISI and Anglo- American Intelligence 25 3 Covert Action in Northeast India 39 4 Intelligence and the 1965 War 49 PART II ISI at War 59 5 ISI’s Domestic Missions under Ayub 61 6 Intelligence Failures in East Pakistan 69 7 Intelligence and the 1971 War 82 Downloaded by [New York University] at 23:42 28 November 2016 8 ISI under Zulfikar Ali Bhutto 95 PART III Overreach 107 9 Zia ul- Haq, Afghanistan and ISI 109 10 ISI’s Afghanistan War 123 vi Contents PART IV Adrift 139 11 Intelligence and Democracy: 1988–1999 141 12 Insurgency in Kashmir and Punjab 156 13 Escalating Tensions with India 171 14 Pakistan’s Afghan Quagmire 180 15 ISI and Osama Bin Laden 194 PART V Confrontation 209 16 Intelligence and Nuclear Weapons in South Asia 211 17 ISI–CIA Liaison after 9/11 221 18 Friction in ISI–CIA Relations 235 19 ISI’s Internal Security Missions 249 20 US Operations in Pakistan 264 21 ISI and the Demise of Bin Laden 275 Conclusions 288 Bibliography 302 Index 308 Downloaded by [New York University] at 23:42 28 November 2016 Illustrations Figures 1.1 Early Pakistani Intelligence Community 19 1.2 Early ISI Organization 20 2.1 Commonwealth Joint Intelligence 28 10.1 ISI’s Afghan Bureau 129 Maps 1.1 Kashmir, Summer 1947 15 3.1 Northeast India 45 9.1 Northern Pakistan 112 10.1 ISI Logistics, 1980s 124 Downloaded by [New York University] at 23:42 28 November 2016 Acknowledgments The genesis of this book was my two- month stay at the Counterinsurgency Training Center in Kabul, Afghanistan during the summer of 2009. It was there that I learned a great deal more about Afghanistan–Pakistan relations in general and ISI operations in Afghanistan in particular. My thanks therefore to my former boss, Janice Trickel, for sending me there, Mohammed Eshaq for hosting me, and Colonel, USA (retd) John Agoglia for providing me with this opportunity. At the Mansfield Center I would like to thank Major General, USAF (retd) Don Loranger, who built up the Defense Critical Lan- guage and Culture Program from truly humble beginnings to the impressive entity it has become today, and Brigadier USA (retd) Joel Cusker, an inspir- ing boss and friend. I would also like to thank my Afghan colleagues here at the center but, unfortunately, the grim realities of the Afghan war make it impossible to name them in person. It goes without saying that they have given me fresh insights into the tortured history of their country and its diffi- cult relationship with Pakistan. My research was greatly enhanced with the assistance of the Inter- Library Loan librarians at the Mansfield Library of the University of Montana. Without their help, this book would not have been possible. Finally, this book is dedicated to my mother, Margaret, and my wife, Julie, both of whom were there, although at different times. Downloaded by [New York University] at 23:42 28 November 2016 Abbreviations and Acronyms AIG Afghan Interim Government CAB Cabinet Papers CI Counter Intelligence CIA Central Intelligence Agency CID Criminal Investigation Department COAS Chief of Army Staff COIN Counter Insurgency CPP Communist Party of Pakistan CUP Columbia University Press DCI Director of Central Intelligence (U.S.) DCIA Director of the Central Intelligence Agency (U.S.) DEFE Defence Ministry DGIB Director General Intelligence Bureau DGISI Director General Inter- Services Intelligence DGMI Director General Military Intelligence DMI Director Military Intelligence FATA Federally Administered Tribal Areas FBI Federal Bureau of Investigation FCO Foreign and Commonwealth Office FO Foreign Office FRUS Foreign Relations of the United States GHQ General Headquarters HM Hezbul Mujahidin HuM Harakatul Mujahidin HUMINT Human Intelligence Downloaded by [New York University] at 23:42 28 November 2016 IB Intelligence Bureau ISI Inter- Services Intelligence JCIB Joint Counter Intelligence Bureau (ISI) JCO Junior Commissioned Officer JeM Jaish- e-Mohamed JI Jama’at –e- Islami JIB Joint Intelligence Bureau (ISI) JIC Joint Intelligence Committee (UK) x Abbreviations and Acronyms JKLF Jammu and Kashmir Liberation Front JSIB Joint Signals Intelligence Bureau (ISI) LAT Los Angeles Times LeT Lashkar- e-Taiba LOC Line of Control MI Military Intelligence MNF Mizo National Front NAP National Awami Party NARA National Archives and Records Administration NCO Non- Commissioned Officer NDS National Directorate of Security (Afghanistan) NWFP North- West Frontier Province NYT New York Times OUP Oxford University Press PDPA Peoples Democratic Party of Afghanistan PIC Pakistan Intelligence Community PML Pakistan Muslim League PML- Q Pakistan Muslim League – Quaid PNA Pakistan National Alliance PPP Pakistan Peoples Party RAW Research and Analysis Wing (India) SIGINT Signals Intelligence SSG Special Services Group UKNA United Kingdom National Archives UTN Umma Tamer- e-Nau UW Unconventional Warfare VCOAS Vice Chief of Army Staff WO War Office WP Washington Post Downloaded by [New York University] at 23:42 28 November 2016 Introduction On the night of 1–2 May 2011, a dark chapter in American history came to an abrupt end with the death of Osama Bin Laden in the Pakistani garrison city of Abbottabad. His killers were US Navy SEALs ferried into the city on state- of-the art helicopters with stealthy features to avoid early warning radars. While some SEALs hauled Bin Laden’s body to a waiting helicopter, others scoured his residence for computers, hard drives, flash drives, cell phones and written documents of potential intelligence value. This hunt for information was almost as important as killing the man himself, for it would provide new insight into his terrorist organization called al- Qa’ida. Back in Washington, intelligence analysts hoped Bin Laden’s archive would shed light on upcom- ing al- Qa’ida operations, its links to other terrorist groups, and the extent of its relations with foreign intelligence agencies like Iran’s Revolutionary Guards or Pakistan’s Inter- Services Intelligence Directorate. In the United States, news of Bin Laden’s death was greeted with joy, relief and an outpouring of national pride.