Chinese military personnel caught up in Taliban Mehran attack?

plawolf

plawolf

Lieutenant General
The BBC has just reported on the Taliban attack on Mehran naval air base in Pakistan. While that is a tragic and deplorable act that has sadly already cost over a dozen lives and probably the loss of at least one Orion, what caught my eye was the comment that initial reports suggested Chinese military personel were amongst the hostages.

Does anyone else have any more details or confirmation that PLA personnel were present at the base at the time of the attack? If it turns out that Chinese personnel were at the base, it might cause some awkward questions from the US about what they were doing there, especially since P3Cs are also based there. Does the US only have restrictions that the newest F16s must be based where Chinese personnel do not have access to, or do the P3Cs also have similar restrictions?

If PLA personnel are still being held hostage on the naval base, this would become an international incident. And might cause Pakistan additional headaches as the last thing they need now is for Chinese military personnel to be killed in a rescue bid.

I also wonder if the PLA would offer to send in their own special forces to help out in any rescue bid if some of the hostages were important Chinese officers or speicalists.
 
bd popeye

bd popeye

The Last Jedi
VIP Professional
According to this report below all the Chinese are safe.

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Pakistani troops have ended a siege by militants who attacked a naval base in the city of Karachi, navy sources say.

The troops are now said to be "mopping up" after the raid, which has left 10 soldiers and three attackers dead.

Reports that hostages including some foreigners were taken were denied. Some militants may still be in the compound.

The Pakistan Taliban says the raid was to avenge Osama Bin Laden's killing by US special forces on 2 May.

"It was the revenge of martyrdom of Osama Bin Laden. It was the proof that we are still united and powerful," Ehsanullah Ehsan told Reuters news agency.

They have carried out several attacks since then.

Interior Minister Rehman Malik said 10 soldiers had died and 15 were wounded in the attack.

Two attackers were also killed and a third blew himself up. An unexploded suicide jacket and live grenades were found, the minister added.

There were 17 foreigners at the site, including 11 Chinese aviation trainers, but all are safe, Mr Malik said.

The attack is similiar to a raid in October 2009 in which Taliban militants laid siege to the army headquarters in the garrison town of Rawalpindi, killing dozens.

The BBC's Aleem Maqbool in Islamabad says the Karachi incident will revive fears about the security of Pakistan's nuclear installations

On Sunday evening at 2230 (1730 GMT), militants stormed three hangars housing aircraft at the Mehran naval aviation base, according to officials.

Their first targets were aircraft parked on the tarmac and equipment in nearby hangers, says the BBC's Syed Shoaib Hasan at the scene.

Eyewitnesses say the militants used rocket-propelled grenades to damage and destroy several warplanes. These included the Pakistan navy's premier anti-submarine and marine surveillance aircraft - the US-made P-3C Orion.

At least two of these multi-million dollar planes were set ablaze.

The gunmen then opened indiscriminate fire, killing several naval personnel as they carried their raid into the heart of the base.

Subsequently, navy commandos and marines launched a counter-assault. Dozens of heavily armed army reinforcements also arrived to provide cover.

Some of the militants were killed, officials say.

They added that troops were now combing the base for any remaining militants but they had to be careful because of military aircraft on the site.

"Because of the presence of several assets on the base, the operation is being carried out in a cautious, smart way," Irfan ul Haq told the Associated Press news agency.

"That's why it's taking so long."

On Friday, the Taliban bombed a US consulate convoy in Peshawar, killing one Pakistani.

Other attacks by Pakistani militants this month include a raid on a security post that killed two police in the north-west and a twin suicide bombing at a paramilitary police training centre.
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plawolf

plawolf

Lieutenant General
Thanks for the update mate, looks like things are still quite fluid as the BBC did not have so many details when I read their site just before starting this thread.

There are also slightly different reports coming out, some claiming the number of terrorists killed to be higher than the BBC article, and I have even seen reports that one American personnel was killed during the attack.

But the question of what restrictions the Americans had on the P3Cs still remain. Although it would look less suspicious if there were American personnel also present at the base and they knew about the Chinese presence.
 
bd popeye

bd popeye

The Last Jedi
VIP Professional
Americans? I did not read that. I would not be surprised however. I remember reading in the initial report about 12 hours ago that the BBC reporter called the P-3C a "jet fighter"..
 
siegecrossbow

siegecrossbow

General
Staff member
Super Moderator
Maybe we can get the joint Sino-U.S. military operation every one is speculating about if the situation gets out of hand.
 
bd popeye

bd popeye

The Last Jedi
VIP Professional
siegecrossbow said:
Maybe we can get the joint Sino-U.S. military operation every one is speculating about if the situation gets out of hand.
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That would be difficult in my opinion. Where as neither countries SOF have trained together. Coordination is a key in such a mission. And training is need for that to happen.
 
asif iqbal

asif iqbal

Lieutenant General
bd popeye said:
Americans? I did not read that. I would not be surprised however. I remember reading in the initial report about 12 hours ago that the BBC reporter called the P-3C a "jet fighter"..
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you cant trust what the media say, first they said that a PC3 Orion had been "shot" down, even although it was stationary on the ground

as for the Chinese working in Pakistan, Pakistan takes thier protection very seriously, I know that when a Chinese personal is in danger SSG Commandos are sent in for the operation, SSG group is the elite fighting force of Pakistan only used for major operations

there has been reports that a anti-submarine helicopter has been damaged and early indications say it could be a Z9C but not confirmed
 
A

advill

Junior Member
It should not be a surprise to hear of Chinese presence or involvemement in this naval base. A recent press report stated that Pakistan wants China to build its naval base at Gwadar. China has already invested US$200M in the first phase of the Gwadar port construction which was inaugurated in 2007. Quoting Pakistan's Defence Minister Ahmad Mukhtar: "China is the closest ally of Pakistan. In whatever sectors Pakistan requested assistance during (Pak) PM's recent visit to China, they immediately agreed with Pakistan". This has a bearing on the faltering ties with the US due to the "Osama B L" episode.
 
bd popeye

bd popeye

The Last Jedi
VIP Professional
Best photo I could find of the destroyed P-3C Orion.

1-95.jpg


Pakistani soldiers walk past the wreckage of a P-3C Orion aircraft at a major Pakistani naval air base a day after militants attack in
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on May 24, 2011.
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is investigating a brazen assault on a naval base in Karachi, raking over clues in a bid to identify the attackers who carried out the siege, two of whom may have escaped. It was the worst assault on a military base since the army headquarters was besieged in October 2009, piling further embarrassment on the armed forces three weeks after
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was found living under their noses.
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