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Taliban in Pakistan Targeting U.S. Troops
By NICK SCHIFRIN, March 18, 2009
ISLAMABAD, Pakistan -- Three of the most dangerous Taliban leaders in Pakistan, once arch-enemies, have formed an alliance that could threaten thousands of American troops set to arrive across the border in Afghanistan this year, according to an exclusive interview with one of the commanders.
Maulvi Nazir, one of the leaders of the newly established Council of the Mujahedeen Union, said U.S. troops in Afghanistan were "absolutely" the group's target. "We have readied suicide bombers for them, they cannot escape us," he said in the interview, sitting in front of the mountains that separate Pakistan and Afghanistan, a black turban wrapped around his head. "We, Baitullah, Hafiz Gul Bahadur [the third commander] and all our friends reached the conclusion that organizations have created mistrust and discrimination among us -- the CIA, Mossad, and especially Pakistani organizations," he told an ABC News cameraman, referring to the American, Israeli, and Pakistani spy agencies. "All these divisions, cracks and mistrust were created by the enemy. Baitullah, Hafiz Gul Bahadur and I understood this and reached this conclusion and put all differences aside and united against the enemy."
"These networks have been allowed to operate," says Samina Ahmed, the Pakistan country director for the International Crisis Group. "They have fought with the government and the government security agencies. And yet we see after all these years, not only are their networks intact, they can forge open alliances, and declare war on Afghanistan and American troops -- from Pakistani territory."
Nazir did not mention Mullah Omar, the leader of the Taliban in Afghanistan, during the interview. But one-page announcements distributed in mosques across North and South Waziristan have mentioned him, likely indicating that the Pakistani and Afghan Taliban have never been more united against a common enemy.
Nazir and Bahadur lead fighters from the Wazir tribe in South and North Waziristan, respectively, and much of their animosity with Mehsud comes from their differences with the Mehsud tribe. At one point Bahadur joined Mehsud, but the two had a falling out, according to Jane's Terrorism and Security Monitor. Nazir never joined Mehsud, and some of the Uzbek fighters that Mehsud was sheltering fought with Nazir as early as April, 2007. At one point Nazir was once dubbed a "pro government" Taliban leader for his attacks on Mehsud's fighters. But Pakistani analysts say that unmanned CIA drone strikes in Waziristan -- and reported support for them by the Pakistani government -- have helped alienate Nazir from the Pakistani authorities, helping push him toward the alliance. The alliance also gives Mehsud access to the Afghanistan border for the first time -- both Nazir and Bahadur's land is between Mehsud's territory and the border.
But despite the potency of such an alliance, there is no indication that the Pakistani military has any intention to try and confront it.
There is an unwritten agreement between the Taliban and the military not to attack each other in Waziristan, according to the provincial government that oversees Pakistan's Northwest Frontier Province.
"There was certain pressure on us to accept the agreement in Waziristan between the militants, led by Baitullah Mehsud, and the military," said Bushra Gohar, senior vice president in the Awami National Party. "The agreement was … that they will not operate inside Pakistan, but they would be free to operate outside, anywhere." Gohar says the agreement was made in early 2008, but state patronage of Taliban training camps has existed for much longer than that, despite claims to the contrary by Pakistani authorities.
"When Pakistan says militants' training camps are going to be closed, then we must mean that we're going to close those camps," she said. "And for the past 8 to 10 years we've all seen that those camps have received state patronage. So this duplicity of policy needs to come to an end."
Publicly, the military denies a deal was ever made. But senior military officials are privately thankful that there is no fighting in Waziristan at the same time as paramilitary troops continue to battle the Taliban in the tribal areas north of Waziristan.
Each of the Taliban fighters have focused most of their energies on Pakistan and Afghanistan, though in the interview, Nazir had a message of global jihad.
"Infidels … attack innocent people with drones on our land, and pain the innocent people of Afghanistan, and martyr innocent people and 400 to 500 children in Palestine," Nazir said in the interview. "Hence we will do jihad against the infidels and America. This is a large burden and problem for us. So we will confront them."
ABC News: EXCLUSIVE: Taliban Commander Says U.S. Troops are Being Targeted
________________________________________
This interview by Maulvi Nazir explicitly confirms that Pakistani soil is being used to harbor groups that attack US and other forces in Afghanistan. So there is no doubt that the PA is NOT stopping the use of FATA for cross border attacks into Afghanistan. Of course we already know that but some here at the forum seem to deny this is happening or that Pakistani Taliban are involved.
By NICK SCHIFRIN, March 18, 2009
ISLAMABAD, Pakistan -- Three of the most dangerous Taliban leaders in Pakistan, once arch-enemies, have formed an alliance that could threaten thousands of American troops set to arrive across the border in Afghanistan this year, according to an exclusive interview with one of the commanders.
Maulvi Nazir, one of the leaders of the newly established Council of the Mujahedeen Union, said U.S. troops in Afghanistan were "absolutely" the group's target. "We have readied suicide bombers for them, they cannot escape us," he said in the interview, sitting in front of the mountains that separate Pakistan and Afghanistan, a black turban wrapped around his head. "We, Baitullah, Hafiz Gul Bahadur [the third commander] and all our friends reached the conclusion that organizations have created mistrust and discrimination among us -- the CIA, Mossad, and especially Pakistani organizations," he told an ABC News cameraman, referring to the American, Israeli, and Pakistani spy agencies. "All these divisions, cracks and mistrust were created by the enemy. Baitullah, Hafiz Gul Bahadur and I understood this and reached this conclusion and put all differences aside and united against the enemy."
"These networks have been allowed to operate," says Samina Ahmed, the Pakistan country director for the International Crisis Group. "They have fought with the government and the government security agencies. And yet we see after all these years, not only are their networks intact, they can forge open alliances, and declare war on Afghanistan and American troops -- from Pakistani territory."
Nazir did not mention Mullah Omar, the leader of the Taliban in Afghanistan, during the interview. But one-page announcements distributed in mosques across North and South Waziristan have mentioned him, likely indicating that the Pakistani and Afghan Taliban have never been more united against a common enemy.
Nazir and Bahadur lead fighters from the Wazir tribe in South and North Waziristan, respectively, and much of their animosity with Mehsud comes from their differences with the Mehsud tribe. At one point Bahadur joined Mehsud, but the two had a falling out, according to Jane's Terrorism and Security Monitor. Nazir never joined Mehsud, and some of the Uzbek fighters that Mehsud was sheltering fought with Nazir as early as April, 2007. At one point Nazir was once dubbed a "pro government" Taliban leader for his attacks on Mehsud's fighters. But Pakistani analysts say that unmanned CIA drone strikes in Waziristan -- and reported support for them by the Pakistani government -- have helped alienate Nazir from the Pakistani authorities, helping push him toward the alliance. The alliance also gives Mehsud access to the Afghanistan border for the first time -- both Nazir and Bahadur's land is between Mehsud's territory and the border.
But despite the potency of such an alliance, there is no indication that the Pakistani military has any intention to try and confront it.
There is an unwritten agreement between the Taliban and the military not to attack each other in Waziristan, according to the provincial government that oversees Pakistan's Northwest Frontier Province.
"There was certain pressure on us to accept the agreement in Waziristan between the militants, led by Baitullah Mehsud, and the military," said Bushra Gohar, senior vice president in the Awami National Party. "The agreement was … that they will not operate inside Pakistan, but they would be free to operate outside, anywhere." Gohar says the agreement was made in early 2008, but state patronage of Taliban training camps has existed for much longer than that, despite claims to the contrary by Pakistani authorities.
"When Pakistan says militants' training camps are going to be closed, then we must mean that we're going to close those camps," she said. "And for the past 8 to 10 years we've all seen that those camps have received state patronage. So this duplicity of policy needs to come to an end."
Publicly, the military denies a deal was ever made. But senior military officials are privately thankful that there is no fighting in Waziristan at the same time as paramilitary troops continue to battle the Taliban in the tribal areas north of Waziristan.
Each of the Taliban fighters have focused most of their energies on Pakistan and Afghanistan, though in the interview, Nazir had a message of global jihad.
"Infidels … attack innocent people with drones on our land, and pain the innocent people of Afghanistan, and martyr innocent people and 400 to 500 children in Palestine," Nazir said in the interview. "Hence we will do jihad against the infidels and America. This is a large burden and problem for us. So we will confront them."
ABC News: EXCLUSIVE: Taliban Commander Says U.S. Troops are Being Targeted
________________________________________
This interview by Maulvi Nazir explicitly confirms that Pakistani soil is being used to harbor groups that attack US and other forces in Afghanistan. So there is no doubt that the PA is NOT stopping the use of FATA for cross border attacks into Afghanistan. Of course we already know that but some here at the forum seem to deny this is happening or that Pakistani Taliban are involved.
