Reclaiming Pakistan's Frontier!
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Mehsuds watch bid to isolate Baitullah from the fence
By Ismail Khan
Tuesday, 16 Jun, 2009
PESHAWAR: When jets of the Pakistan Air Force struck Makeen - a key trade centre of Mehsud tribe in South Waziristan - last week, ostensibly to avenge the suicide bombing in Lahore that killed religious scholar Dr Sarfaraz Naeemi, it was the culmination of a two-month long in-house debate within the military establishment on how to deal with Baitullah Mehsud.
It was, perhaps, the first significant indication that the military establishment - long derided for avoiding taking the chief of Pakistani Taliban head-on - had had enough.
He has a hand in virtually every terrorist attack in Pakistan, Army Chief Gen Ashfaq Parvez Kayani had said recently.
We wanted to deliver a message to Baitullah. If he carries out a suicide bombing, then there will be a response and that he cant get away with these attacks. There will be a quid pro quo, a senior military officer said.
To be sure, the government had the message delivered to the Taliban supreme personally through tribal intermediaries.
Battle lines have been drawn in South Waziristan. Although several new emerging factors may help the military action, the mother of all battles against Pakistani militants in South Waziristan, in all likelihood, will be tough and bloody.
The major factor, in this fast-changing scenario, is an anti-Baitullah Mehsud alliance between Turkistan - a 40-year-old veteran of the Afghan war, and Qari Zainuddin, a young lad in his mid-twenties leading a group once commanded by the late Abdullah Mehsud.
Many Mehsud tribesmen and government officials overseeing tribal affairs agree that more than any military operation, it is Qari Zainuddin who seems to have unruffled the seemingly invincible Baitullah Mehsud.
The environment that made Baitulllah is no more, a senior government official said. For the first time he has a challenger from within his Mehsud clan. Baitullah Mehsud is in trouble, he added.
A Mehsud tribesman concurred. Baitullah told a jirga member recently he was not too much worried about military action against him. Its Zainuddin who has caused him anxiety, the Mehsud tribesman said.
Like Baitullah, Zainuddin is a native Mehsud and has been leading his own militant group once led by Abdullah Mehsud - a one-legged fiery fighter and former Guantanamo detainee, who was killed in a commando action in Zhob, Balochistan, in July 2006.
Zainuddin and Abdullahs other comrades blamed Baitullah for orchestrating the death. And they had their reasons.
Long before Baitullah burst on to the scene, Abdullah was the undisputed leader of Mehsud tribal militants. All that changed with the kidnapping of two Chinese engineers in Oct 2004 that ended days later with the death of one of the hostages.
Power play
Baitullah was not amused. Thus began a systematic push to dethrone Abdullah and cut him down to size. A formula brokered by the Taliban from Afghanistan meant Abdullahs position was further weakened.
Soon he would have to leave his native Waziristan to fight in Afghanistan, leaving his fighters to fend for themselves. Many of them didnt live long enough to fight.
Zainuddin and his small band of fighters took refuge in Shakai, in the Ahmadzai Wazir tribe territory of South Waziristan.
Turkistan, who had retired as a sepoy from South Waziristan Scouts of the paramilitary Frontier Corps in 1998 to fight for the Taliban in Afghanistan, was once friends with Baitullah Mehsud. We fought together in Afghanistan, he once said.
The slaughter of some FC jawans and Baitullahs other actions, he added, made him leave the Tehrik-i-Taliban Pakistan chief. Dont poke your nose in this, he quoted Baitullah as telling him.
He has paid dearly for his desertion and has since lost 73 relatives in a war of attrition, including eight members of his family.
Revenge appears to be their sole motivation but this, government officials believe, would also prompt score others who have lost their near and dear ones in years of targeted killings. Sentiments are such that were Baitullah to be eliminated, no one would weep for him, the official said.
Already Turkistan, a Bhittani by tribe, and Zainuddin have made it difficult for Baitullahs men to operate freely in neighbouring Tank and Dera Ismail Khan districts.
The remaining few would be taken care of soon, Turkistan boasts.
And the government is helping, if not directly, then by turning a blind eye to the duos activities. During the past one month or so, Baitullah has lost more than thirty men in target killings in the twin districts.
This may have helped shape the environment, as one official put it. The governments recognition matters. In Feb 2007 the government had recognised Baitullah Mehsud as the Mehsud chieftain by signing a peace deal with him. Now it is backing a different horse and the Mehsuds appear willing to bet on it.
A jirga of Mehsud tribal elders at Qari Zainuddins invitation met in Tank to deliver a message to that most feared man in Sourh Waziristan, something that would have been unthinkable a year ago. Another jirga has been planned for Wednesday.
This in itself has created a damn-if-you-do and damn-if-you-dont situation for these tribal chiefs, who are stuck between a rock and a hard place.
Some of the influential figures who had been leading negotiations in the past have opted for medical treatment in Islamabad.
The tribal dynamics and punitive action, government officials believe, should tilt the balance against the man who carries $ 5 million reward for information leading to his capture or death.
Governor Owais Ahmad Ghani on Sunday evening ordered military action a constitutional requirement to authorise the use of force, but it was also a cue to his administration to go tough on the Mehsud tribe.
A notification has since been issued under the Frontier Crimes Regulation to authorise the arrest of Mehsud tribesmen and seizure of their properties.
Efforts are under way to neutralise Maulvi Nazeer and Hafiz Gul Bahadar, the two top militant commanders from South and North Waziristan. The two had forged an alliance with Baitullah Mehsud last year.
They had pledged to stand by Baitullah in the event of any military action and there is no indication that they will renege on their word, although some Wazir tribesmen believe tribal pragmatism will take care of this.
Economic blockade
As a quid pro quo and reward to the Ahmadzai Wazirs, the government has opened the Gomal Zam Road that links Wana, South Waziristans regional headquarters, with Tank district, bypassing Mehsud territory. The move ended Wazirs dependence on supplies to the Ahmadzai Wazir heartland.
This, say some security analysts, will help the military impose an effective economic blockade on the Mehsud tribe.
Its fairly easy. All that we need to do is to block the three main roads that go into Mehsud territory and you will have choked them up effectively, a senior military officer said.
And this may well be the strategy. Perhaps military strategists hope that the Zainuddin-Bhittani partnership and a suffocating economic blockade would force Mehsud tribesmen to desert Baitullah in droves, making things easy for the army.
But, warn some analysts, that this is far easier said than done. Baitullah is no ordinary man. He is the chief of the Tehrik-i-Taliban Pakistan and enjoys the support of thousands of committed fighting men operating in one of the toughest terrains in the entire tribal region.
Having lost in Swat, Bajaur and Mohmand, militants are reported to be heading in that direction for one last stand.
Two previous military operations failed to cause a dent in Baitullahs ranks. On the contrary, it turned the militant commander into a mythical figure who has at his disposal an arsenal of, what a former Mehsud parliamentarian once described, walking, talking and breathing bombs - a weapon he has used with telling effect.
Its like sitting in the front row and watching a horror movie, a security official said. I get nightmares when I think of the potential destruction and bloodshed this man can cause, said another official.
But the news is out already: families living in Mehsud territory are making a beeline to Tank, Dera Ismail Khan and other nearby places. This is the third displacement from the region.
On the previous occasion the military launched what it called a three-star operation, but stopped short of achieving its objective. The Mehsuds are worldly wise. They will take their time, wait and see which side is winning before making their own bets.
By Ismail Khan
Tuesday, 16 Jun, 2009
PESHAWAR: When jets of the Pakistan Air Force struck Makeen - a key trade centre of Mehsud tribe in South Waziristan - last week, ostensibly to avenge the suicide bombing in Lahore that killed religious scholar Dr Sarfaraz Naeemi, it was the culmination of a two-month long in-house debate within the military establishment on how to deal with Baitullah Mehsud.
It was, perhaps, the first significant indication that the military establishment - long derided for avoiding taking the chief of Pakistani Taliban head-on - had had enough.
He has a hand in virtually every terrorist attack in Pakistan, Army Chief Gen Ashfaq Parvez Kayani had said recently.
We wanted to deliver a message to Baitullah. If he carries out a suicide bombing, then there will be a response and that he cant get away with these attacks. There will be a quid pro quo, a senior military officer said.
To be sure, the government had the message delivered to the Taliban supreme personally through tribal intermediaries.
Battle lines have been drawn in South Waziristan. Although several new emerging factors may help the military action, the mother of all battles against Pakistani militants in South Waziristan, in all likelihood, will be tough and bloody.
The major factor, in this fast-changing scenario, is an anti-Baitullah Mehsud alliance between Turkistan - a 40-year-old veteran of the Afghan war, and Qari Zainuddin, a young lad in his mid-twenties leading a group once commanded by the late Abdullah Mehsud.
Many Mehsud tribesmen and government officials overseeing tribal affairs agree that more than any military operation, it is Qari Zainuddin who seems to have unruffled the seemingly invincible Baitullah Mehsud.
The environment that made Baitulllah is no more, a senior government official said. For the first time he has a challenger from within his Mehsud clan. Baitullah Mehsud is in trouble, he added.
A Mehsud tribesman concurred. Baitullah told a jirga member recently he was not too much worried about military action against him. Its Zainuddin who has caused him anxiety, the Mehsud tribesman said.
Like Baitullah, Zainuddin is a native Mehsud and has been leading his own militant group once led by Abdullah Mehsud - a one-legged fiery fighter and former Guantanamo detainee, who was killed in a commando action in Zhob, Balochistan, in July 2006.
Zainuddin and Abdullahs other comrades blamed Baitullah for orchestrating the death. And they had their reasons.
Long before Baitullah burst on to the scene, Abdullah was the undisputed leader of Mehsud tribal militants. All that changed with the kidnapping of two Chinese engineers in Oct 2004 that ended days later with the death of one of the hostages.
Power play
Baitullah was not amused. Thus began a systematic push to dethrone Abdullah and cut him down to size. A formula brokered by the Taliban from Afghanistan meant Abdullahs position was further weakened.
Soon he would have to leave his native Waziristan to fight in Afghanistan, leaving his fighters to fend for themselves. Many of them didnt live long enough to fight.
Zainuddin and his small band of fighters took refuge in Shakai, in the Ahmadzai Wazir tribe territory of South Waziristan.
Turkistan, who had retired as a sepoy from South Waziristan Scouts of the paramilitary Frontier Corps in 1998 to fight for the Taliban in Afghanistan, was once friends with Baitullah Mehsud. We fought together in Afghanistan, he once said.
The slaughter of some FC jawans and Baitullahs other actions, he added, made him leave the Tehrik-i-Taliban Pakistan chief. Dont poke your nose in this, he quoted Baitullah as telling him.
He has paid dearly for his desertion and has since lost 73 relatives in a war of attrition, including eight members of his family.
Revenge appears to be their sole motivation but this, government officials believe, would also prompt score others who have lost their near and dear ones in years of targeted killings. Sentiments are such that were Baitullah to be eliminated, no one would weep for him, the official said.
Already Turkistan, a Bhittani by tribe, and Zainuddin have made it difficult for Baitullahs men to operate freely in neighbouring Tank and Dera Ismail Khan districts.
The remaining few would be taken care of soon, Turkistan boasts.
And the government is helping, if not directly, then by turning a blind eye to the duos activities. During the past one month or so, Baitullah has lost more than thirty men in target killings in the twin districts.
This may have helped shape the environment, as one official put it. The governments recognition matters. In Feb 2007 the government had recognised Baitullah Mehsud as the Mehsud chieftain by signing a peace deal with him. Now it is backing a different horse and the Mehsuds appear willing to bet on it.
A jirga of Mehsud tribal elders at Qari Zainuddins invitation met in Tank to deliver a message to that most feared man in Sourh Waziristan, something that would have been unthinkable a year ago. Another jirga has been planned for Wednesday.
This in itself has created a damn-if-you-do and damn-if-you-dont situation for these tribal chiefs, who are stuck between a rock and a hard place.
Some of the influential figures who had been leading negotiations in the past have opted for medical treatment in Islamabad.
The tribal dynamics and punitive action, government officials believe, should tilt the balance against the man who carries $ 5 million reward for information leading to his capture or death.
Governor Owais Ahmad Ghani on Sunday evening ordered military action a constitutional requirement to authorise the use of force, but it was also a cue to his administration to go tough on the Mehsud tribe.
A notification has since been issued under the Frontier Crimes Regulation to authorise the arrest of Mehsud tribesmen and seizure of their properties.
Efforts are under way to neutralise Maulvi Nazeer and Hafiz Gul Bahadar, the two top militant commanders from South and North Waziristan. The two had forged an alliance with Baitullah Mehsud last year.
They had pledged to stand by Baitullah in the event of any military action and there is no indication that they will renege on their word, although some Wazir tribesmen believe tribal pragmatism will take care of this.
Economic blockade
As a quid pro quo and reward to the Ahmadzai Wazirs, the government has opened the Gomal Zam Road that links Wana, South Waziristans regional headquarters, with Tank district, bypassing Mehsud territory. The move ended Wazirs dependence on supplies to the Ahmadzai Wazir heartland.
This, say some security analysts, will help the military impose an effective economic blockade on the Mehsud tribe.
Its fairly easy. All that we need to do is to block the three main roads that go into Mehsud territory and you will have choked them up effectively, a senior military officer said.
And this may well be the strategy. Perhaps military strategists hope that the Zainuddin-Bhittani partnership and a suffocating economic blockade would force Mehsud tribesmen to desert Baitullah in droves, making things easy for the army.
But, warn some analysts, that this is far easier said than done. Baitullah is no ordinary man. He is the chief of the Tehrik-i-Taliban Pakistan and enjoys the support of thousands of committed fighting men operating in one of the toughest terrains in the entire tribal region.
Having lost in Swat, Bajaur and Mohmand, militants are reported to be heading in that direction for one last stand.
Two previous military operations failed to cause a dent in Baitullahs ranks. On the contrary, it turned the militant commander into a mythical figure who has at his disposal an arsenal of, what a former Mehsud parliamentarian once described, walking, talking and breathing bombs - a weapon he has used with telling effect.
Its like sitting in the front row and watching a horror movie, a security official said. I get nightmares when I think of the potential destruction and bloodshed this man can cause, said another official.
But the news is out already: families living in Mehsud territory are making a beeline to Tank, Dera Ismail Khan and other nearby places. This is the third displacement from the region.
On the previous occasion the military launched what it called a three-star operation, but stopped short of achieving its objective. The Mehsuds are worldly wise. They will take their time, wait and see which side is winning before making their own bets.
RabzonKhan
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Need to deliver
Dawn Editorial
Wednesday, 17 Jun, 2009
The ranks of the doubters are diminishing by the day. It is well established now that Pakistans government and its security personnel are committed in their resolve to engage the forces of militancy and quell the obscurantists bid for power.
Considerations of faith or religion are not first or foremost in the minds of the militants. Being able to take human life at will can be a heady drug and it gives the formerly unempowered Taliban foot soldiers a singular sense of importance. Fortunately, the citizenry has seen through the façade at long last and is now roundly condemning the militants. The political consensus on the need for a telling military operation against the Taliban is backed by public opinion. And this view seems to be shared by the majority of displaced persons from Malakand who want to see the Taliban routed once and for all so that life for them ceases to be a living hell.
It appears that what began in Swat, Buner and Dir is being extended to Waziristan and other parts of the tribal belt. Baitullah Mehsud and his Taliban HQ are now in the crosshairs, or so it seems. But this is no mean task and while the world realises that Pakistan cannot go it alone in this fight, it has been slow to come to Islamabads aid in combating both militancy and its socio-economic fallout. On Monday, Pakistans president, prime minister and foreign minister all reiterated the need for urgent help in the battle against the Taliban and the rehabilitation of millions of displaced persons. Pledges of support have not been delivered on and people are going hungry. Hearts and minds cannot be won this way. Whenever an individual loses faith in the state, the Taliban can claim a minor victory.
The World Food Programme is running out of food. The new US aid-to-Pakistan bill may still be months in the making. The EU has failed us in our hour of need and the Muslim world even more so. Pakistan needs logistical help in the physical fight against the Taliban. At the same time, people displaced by war need to be looked after, and not just in the immediate term. Even if they can be fed and kept relatively comfortable and disease-free which is clearly not the case right now their homes and towns will have to be rebuilt and they will need resources to make up for lost livestock and agricultural produce. As the foreign minister said, Pakistan cannot afford to divert from other sectors the kind of money needed to fight militancy and rehabilitate its victims.
That could further harm the economy and make people poorer. And that may generate a new generation of militants.
Dawn Editorial
Wednesday, 17 Jun, 2009
The ranks of the doubters are diminishing by the day. It is well established now that Pakistans government and its security personnel are committed in their resolve to engage the forces of militancy and quell the obscurantists bid for power.
Considerations of faith or religion are not first or foremost in the minds of the militants. Being able to take human life at will can be a heady drug and it gives the formerly unempowered Taliban foot soldiers a singular sense of importance. Fortunately, the citizenry has seen through the façade at long last and is now roundly condemning the militants. The political consensus on the need for a telling military operation against the Taliban is backed by public opinion. And this view seems to be shared by the majority of displaced persons from Malakand who want to see the Taliban routed once and for all so that life for them ceases to be a living hell.
It appears that what began in Swat, Buner and Dir is being extended to Waziristan and other parts of the tribal belt. Baitullah Mehsud and his Taliban HQ are now in the crosshairs, or so it seems. But this is no mean task and while the world realises that Pakistan cannot go it alone in this fight, it has been slow to come to Islamabads aid in combating both militancy and its socio-economic fallout. On Monday, Pakistans president, prime minister and foreign minister all reiterated the need for urgent help in the battle against the Taliban and the rehabilitation of millions of displaced persons. Pledges of support have not been delivered on and people are going hungry. Hearts and minds cannot be won this way. Whenever an individual loses faith in the state, the Taliban can claim a minor victory.
The World Food Programme is running out of food. The new US aid-to-Pakistan bill may still be months in the making. The EU has failed us in our hour of need and the Muslim world even more so. Pakistan needs logistical help in the physical fight against the Taliban. At the same time, people displaced by war need to be looked after, and not just in the immediate term. Even if they can be fed and kept relatively comfortable and disease-free which is clearly not the case right now their homes and towns will have to be rebuilt and they will need resources to make up for lost livestock and agricultural produce. As the foreign minister said, Pakistan cannot afford to divert from other sectors the kind of money needed to fight militancy and rehabilitate its victims.
That could further harm the economy and make people poorer. And that may generate a new generation of militants.
RabzonKhan
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Tribesmen on their own
By Syed Irfan Ashraf
Wednesday, 17 Jun, 2009
OVER 2,500 villagers are up in arms against 200 dreaded Taliban militants in the inaccessible mountain terrain of Dhog Dara, 25 kilometres northwest of Dir in Upper Dir.
Local tribesmen have encircled the Taliban militants for the last fortnight or so, and are locked in fierce fighting to which there appears to be no end in sight unless the state steps in to overpower or flush out the militants.
The confrontation started on June 5 when a suicide bomber struck a mosque in Hayagai Sharqi in Upper Dir killing over 40 tribesmen. After attending the burial rites, more than 700 enraged locals from Hayagai Sharqi and the nearby villages marched on the thickly forested Dhog Dara valley where there is a cluster of 25 villages to settle scores with the Taliban. Initially 13 Taliban were killed, including two commanders, and the homes of their supporters demolished. Hemmed in, the Taliban found themselves restricted to the strategic hilltop in Ghazigai village at the western edge of Dhog Dara. Since then, they have been corralled by a swelling lashkar, composed of people from most of the villages of Dhog Dara.
However, the drop scene is yet to take place. The tribesmen fear that the fortified bunkers equipped with arms, ammunition and food will give the militants the edge allowing them to drag on the battle and test the nerve of the tribesmen.
Strategically, Dhog Dara links Taliban hideouts, through its snowy mountains, with Swat in the southeast, Chitral in the north and far beyond into Afghanistan in the northwest. The militants cannot ignore such an important location.
The local people say that the Afghan Taliban arrived in the valley three years ago and were later joined by their comrades from Mardan and Swat. They lived mostly in isolation; however, soon they were offering hefty amounts as rent for shabby mud houses and offering support to locals against their rivals. The absence of the governments writ gave the Taliban a free hand in entrenching themselves.
In 2007, the Taliban began to make their agenda clear by launching an FM radio station in Dhog Dara to preach jihad to the local community. They won the support of five villages. But, according to Abul Kalam, a resident in the area, people became aware of the real face of the militants when a journalist-cum-NGO worker, Akhtar Kohistani, escaped from the militants, who had abducted him for ransom, in January 2009 and sought the tribesmens help.
The people of Shringal village cut off the main supply route to adjoining Dhog Dara and asked the villagers to evict the Taliban. This led to a confrontation amongst the villagers with the Taliban playing on their differences. Fortunately, a temporary solution came in the form of a lashkar from adjoining villages that outnumbered the Taliban. According to Kalam, Many Taliban left for Afghanistan. Some stayed back and destroyed the mosque in a suicide attack to tame the villagers into submission.
The confrontation had simmered for months while the civil administration in Dir and the political leadership in Peshawar and Islamabad looked the other way. Although the district coordination officer of Upper Dir claims that contacts were made with the local tribesmen for handling the Taliban problem, the tribesmen say that official help in the form of arms was too little and too late in coming.
Three days after the mosque blast, helicopter gunships targeted Taliban hideouts in Ghazigai village. The lashkar members, entrenched in the surrounding mountains, kept on calling their Islamabad-based MNA to request the military not to shell the surrounding villages and target only the Taliban bunkers. But apparently, their call was not heeded and over 500 families were forced to leave. As a tribal elder pointed out, before shifting his family to safety, The more people get displaced, the more the militants will be strengthened.
This saga is indicative of the fact that an indifferent official response only bolsters rogue elements. After the US invasion of Afghanistan, it took militants almost seven years to establish their network in Pakistans northwest. Almost every militant commander launched his own FM radio station in order to carve out his terror fiefdom. However, such developments went unnoticed by the powers that be.
It is not a good idea to be convinced by ISPR images of destroyed tunnels and militants bunkers in the Peuchar valley and other areas. It took almost a decade for the militants to build their infrastructure under the very nose of the state, and it will take the state a similar number of years to eradicate this. This can be attributed both to the massive intelligence failure on the part of the state as well as the superior managerial skills of the Taliban leadership, who supervised their terror industry from unfriendly locations in faraway Waziristan and Afghanistan.
In fact, it was much before Mullah Fazlullah made his mark that the ragtag militants organised their terror network in early 2003 in Swat. They hired a piece of land from a respectable family in the remote but strategic Gutpeuchar valley bordering Lower Dir. At that time, it was not too difficult to run training camps in the remoteness of the mountains as many such camps had enjoyed state patronage in the past. However, by 2003 the militants stepped up hostilities, launching rocket attacks against the office of an intelligence agency in Balogram, Swat.
In one such attack two officials were killed. Strangely enough, intelligence agencies threatened journalists not to publish the news. I was harassed when I dared published it. The intelligence tried to turn my colleagues against me for working against the interests of Swat, said a journalist, who later left the area, and even his profession temporarily.
The tribesmen of Dhog Dara are not alone in their worries. Almost everyone in the settled districts is passing through the same agony. It is the duty of the government to take the rogue elements to task. However, a flawed security apparatus and a listless political leadership cannot support the public whose anger could have formed the basis for a major rebellion against the Taliban in Malakand division and the province.
By Syed Irfan Ashraf
Wednesday, 17 Jun, 2009
OVER 2,500 villagers are up in arms against 200 dreaded Taliban militants in the inaccessible mountain terrain of Dhog Dara, 25 kilometres northwest of Dir in Upper Dir.
Local tribesmen have encircled the Taliban militants for the last fortnight or so, and are locked in fierce fighting to which there appears to be no end in sight unless the state steps in to overpower or flush out the militants.
The confrontation started on June 5 when a suicide bomber struck a mosque in Hayagai Sharqi in Upper Dir killing over 40 tribesmen. After attending the burial rites, more than 700 enraged locals from Hayagai Sharqi and the nearby villages marched on the thickly forested Dhog Dara valley where there is a cluster of 25 villages to settle scores with the Taliban. Initially 13 Taliban were killed, including two commanders, and the homes of their supporters demolished. Hemmed in, the Taliban found themselves restricted to the strategic hilltop in Ghazigai village at the western edge of Dhog Dara. Since then, they have been corralled by a swelling lashkar, composed of people from most of the villages of Dhog Dara.
However, the drop scene is yet to take place. The tribesmen fear that the fortified bunkers equipped with arms, ammunition and food will give the militants the edge allowing them to drag on the battle and test the nerve of the tribesmen.
Strategically, Dhog Dara links Taliban hideouts, through its snowy mountains, with Swat in the southeast, Chitral in the north and far beyond into Afghanistan in the northwest. The militants cannot ignore such an important location.
The local people say that the Afghan Taliban arrived in the valley three years ago and were later joined by their comrades from Mardan and Swat. They lived mostly in isolation; however, soon they were offering hefty amounts as rent for shabby mud houses and offering support to locals against their rivals. The absence of the governments writ gave the Taliban a free hand in entrenching themselves.
In 2007, the Taliban began to make their agenda clear by launching an FM radio station in Dhog Dara to preach jihad to the local community. They won the support of five villages. But, according to Abul Kalam, a resident in the area, people became aware of the real face of the militants when a journalist-cum-NGO worker, Akhtar Kohistani, escaped from the militants, who had abducted him for ransom, in January 2009 and sought the tribesmens help.
The people of Shringal village cut off the main supply route to adjoining Dhog Dara and asked the villagers to evict the Taliban. This led to a confrontation amongst the villagers with the Taliban playing on their differences. Fortunately, a temporary solution came in the form of a lashkar from adjoining villages that outnumbered the Taliban. According to Kalam, Many Taliban left for Afghanistan. Some stayed back and destroyed the mosque in a suicide attack to tame the villagers into submission.
The confrontation had simmered for months while the civil administration in Dir and the political leadership in Peshawar and Islamabad looked the other way. Although the district coordination officer of Upper Dir claims that contacts were made with the local tribesmen for handling the Taliban problem, the tribesmen say that official help in the form of arms was too little and too late in coming.
Three days after the mosque blast, helicopter gunships targeted Taliban hideouts in Ghazigai village. The lashkar members, entrenched in the surrounding mountains, kept on calling their Islamabad-based MNA to request the military not to shell the surrounding villages and target only the Taliban bunkers. But apparently, their call was not heeded and over 500 families were forced to leave. As a tribal elder pointed out, before shifting his family to safety, The more people get displaced, the more the militants will be strengthened.
This saga is indicative of the fact that an indifferent official response only bolsters rogue elements. After the US invasion of Afghanistan, it took militants almost seven years to establish their network in Pakistans northwest. Almost every militant commander launched his own FM radio station in order to carve out his terror fiefdom. However, such developments went unnoticed by the powers that be.
It is not a good idea to be convinced by ISPR images of destroyed tunnels and militants bunkers in the Peuchar valley and other areas. It took almost a decade for the militants to build their infrastructure under the very nose of the state, and it will take the state a similar number of years to eradicate this. This can be attributed both to the massive intelligence failure on the part of the state as well as the superior managerial skills of the Taliban leadership, who supervised their terror industry from unfriendly locations in faraway Waziristan and Afghanistan.
In fact, it was much before Mullah Fazlullah made his mark that the ragtag militants organised their terror network in early 2003 in Swat. They hired a piece of land from a respectable family in the remote but strategic Gutpeuchar valley bordering Lower Dir. At that time, it was not too difficult to run training camps in the remoteness of the mountains as many such camps had enjoyed state patronage in the past. However, by 2003 the militants stepped up hostilities, launching rocket attacks against the office of an intelligence agency in Balogram, Swat.
In one such attack two officials were killed. Strangely enough, intelligence agencies threatened journalists not to publish the news. I was harassed when I dared published it. The intelligence tried to turn my colleagues against me for working against the interests of Swat, said a journalist, who later left the area, and even his profession temporarily.
The tribesmen of Dhog Dara are not alone in their worries. Almost everyone in the settled districts is passing through the same agony. It is the duty of the government to take the rogue elements to task. However, a flawed security apparatus and a listless political leadership cannot support the public whose anger could have formed the basis for a major rebellion against the Taliban in Malakand division and the province.
RabzonKhan
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Jets and choppers fly sorties over Waziristan
June 18, 2009
* 22 Taliban killed, 17 arrested as part of Malakand operation
* Tribesmen kill 6 in Dir
RAWALPINDI: Army surveillance planes flew over suspected Taliban strongholds in Waziristan Agency, where a major operation is planned, and helicopter gunships hit several targets in advance strikes on Wednesday, officials said.
Three security and intelligence officials, asking not to be named, told AP that planes flew over parts of the area taking videos. Helicopter gunships and artillery were also used to hit suspected Taliban hideouts, they said.
Also on Wednesday, security forces said that 22 Taliban were killed and another 17 arrested, while one soldier was injured in the military operation in Malakand in the last 24 hours.
The security forces carried out a search operation in the Galgut area (Dir) and killed 20 terrorists and 15 were apprehended, the Inter-Services Public Relations said, adding that forces recovered a cache of arms and ammunition.
Separately, as many as 3,000 villagers who took up arms in early June, forming a tribal lashkar (militia) after 38 people were killed in a suicide bombing at a mosque in the district, blamed on the Taliban killed six Taliban and destroyed their hideouts. staff report/agencies
June 18, 2009
* 22 Taliban killed, 17 arrested as part of Malakand operation
* Tribesmen kill 6 in Dir
RAWALPINDI: Army surveillance planes flew over suspected Taliban strongholds in Waziristan Agency, where a major operation is planned, and helicopter gunships hit several targets in advance strikes on Wednesday, officials said.
Three security and intelligence officials, asking not to be named, told AP that planes flew over parts of the area taking videos. Helicopter gunships and artillery were also used to hit suspected Taliban hideouts, they said.
Also on Wednesday, security forces said that 22 Taliban were killed and another 17 arrested, while one soldier was injured in the military operation in Malakand in the last 24 hours.
The security forces carried out a search operation in the Galgut area (Dir) and killed 20 terrorists and 15 were apprehended, the Inter-Services Public Relations said, adding that forces recovered a cache of arms and ammunition.
Separately, as many as 3,000 villagers who took up arms in early June, forming a tribal lashkar (militia) after 38 people were killed in a suicide bombing at a mosque in the district, blamed on the Taliban killed six Taliban and destroyed their hideouts. staff report/agencies
RabzonKhan
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Militants bomb schools in Pakistan tribal area
9 hours ago
KHAR, Pakistan (AFP) Militants blew up two boys' schools and a college in Bajaur tribal area in northwest Pakistan, an official said Friday, as an offensive against the Taliban rumbled on in nearby districts.
"Several locally-made bombs planted inside the school buildings went off late in the night," local government official Adalat Khan told AFP, adding that both schools were "completely demolished."
"They also bombed a boys' degree college in Mamond town."
Gul Rehman, a Bajaur education officer, said 44 schools had been bombed or set on fire in the past year in the district troubled by Taliban attacks.
Elsewhere in Bajaur on Friday, a roadside bomb exploded and wounded a tribal policeman while he was on patrol, an official said.
Bajaur lies just to the west of Dir and Swat districts, where the military is locked in a nearly two-month-long offensive against Taliban insurgents.
Militants in Swat have destroyed nearly 200 schools, mostly for girls, in the valley during a two-year campaign to enforce sharia law.
The army has said it is also poised to launch a fresh assault into the tribal areas along the Afghan border to track down the senior Taliban leadership.
Pakistan's northwestern tribal belt has become a stronghold for hundreds of extremists who fled Afghanistan after a US-led invasion toppled the hardline Taliban regime in late 2001
9 hours ago
KHAR, Pakistan (AFP) Militants blew up two boys' schools and a college in Bajaur tribal area in northwest Pakistan, an official said Friday, as an offensive against the Taliban rumbled on in nearby districts.
"Several locally-made bombs planted inside the school buildings went off late in the night," local government official Adalat Khan told AFP, adding that both schools were "completely demolished."
"They also bombed a boys' degree college in Mamond town."
Gul Rehman, a Bajaur education officer, said 44 schools had been bombed or set on fire in the past year in the district troubled by Taliban attacks.
Elsewhere in Bajaur on Friday, a roadside bomb exploded and wounded a tribal policeman while he was on patrol, an official said.
Bajaur lies just to the west of Dir and Swat districts, where the military is locked in a nearly two-month-long offensive against Taliban insurgents.
Militants in Swat have destroyed nearly 200 schools, mostly for girls, in the valley during a two-year campaign to enforce sharia law.
The army has said it is also poised to launch a fresh assault into the tribal areas along the Afghan border to track down the senior Taliban leadership.
Pakistan's northwestern tribal belt has become a stronghold for hundreds of extremists who fled Afghanistan after a US-led invasion toppled the hardline Taliban regime in late 2001
RabzonKhan
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Lashkar kills seven militants in Dir
By Syed Zahid Jan and Anwarullah Khan
Monday, 22 Jun, 2009
UPPER DIR/KHAR, June 21: Seven suspected militants were killed in a clash with a Lashkar in Patrak area of Upper Dir on late Saturday night.
Local people said the clash took place in Shekhan Khwar near Patrak town.
However, some of them said that 10 militants arrested earlier by Chitral police had been handed over to the Lashkar.
Two of those killed were identified as Fatehzar and his son Dilaram. One militant was injured and another ran away.
The shootout triggered a controversy and police denied having received 10 militants.
DPO Ijaz Ahmad said that the militants were killed in a clash between Taliban militants and armed villagers.
He denied reports that the militants were those who had been arrested in Chitral.
The 10 militants arrested in Chitral were not handed over to us so there is no question of killing them, he said.
After the incident, 20 militants came out in Bar Doog area and set on fire 130 logs owned by local people. They torched a house and kidnapped a man identified as Faqir Gul Mulla.
BAJAUR: About 27 militants, including a key Taliban commander, were killed when security forces attacked militants positions in different areas of Bajaur.
Military planes bombed Dara and Banda in Salarzai, some 33 kilometres from Khar.
Officials said the area was a Taliban stronghold and had a training camp, arms depot and bunkers.
The officials said an arms depot and four bunkers were destroyed by the bombing.
Fourteen militants, including a key commander, were killed in the attacks.
The commander, officials said, was an Afghan national and an explosives expert.
Thirteen militants were killed when security forces pounded their hideouts in Babra, Charmang, Hashim and Cheenar areas of Nawagai sub-division.
Sources said Taliban commander Qari Zaiur Rehman complained of indifferent attitude of TTP vice-chief Maulvi Faqir Mohammad and accused him of not helping them.
They said Maulvi Faqir hesitated in sending reinforcements because he was trying to enter into a peace deal with the government with the help of tribal elders.
Troops, meanwhile, advanced to Charmang and took control of Tangi and Kotki areas and set up checkposts.An ISPR press release said five soldiers were injured on Saturday and Sunday in Malakand.
It said that 15 small machineguns, one sniper rifle, one 8-MM rifle, communication equipment and grenades were recovered.
Troops secured areas around Peochar, Kharkai, Kharkarai and Biha.
A heavy exchange of fire took place between security forces and terrorists in Biha valley south of Chuprial.
Troops seized 20 small machineguns, a G-3 rifle, two launchers with seven rockets, rifles, two grenades and 6,000 rounds of SMG and two MM rifles.
Some foreign currency has also been found in terrorists hideouts in Biha.
Security forces secured areas around Barko Sar, Roringar,
Nalkot, Wainai towards Biha, Bartana and Pushtunat.
Troops are now trying to clear Tirang, Thana, Allahdand and Batkhela.
By Syed Zahid Jan and Anwarullah Khan
Monday, 22 Jun, 2009
UPPER DIR/KHAR, June 21: Seven suspected militants were killed in a clash with a Lashkar in Patrak area of Upper Dir on late Saturday night.
Local people said the clash took place in Shekhan Khwar near Patrak town.
However, some of them said that 10 militants arrested earlier by Chitral police had been handed over to the Lashkar.
Two of those killed were identified as Fatehzar and his son Dilaram. One militant was injured and another ran away.
The shootout triggered a controversy and police denied having received 10 militants.
DPO Ijaz Ahmad said that the militants were killed in a clash between Taliban militants and armed villagers.
He denied reports that the militants were those who had been arrested in Chitral.
The 10 militants arrested in Chitral were not handed over to us so there is no question of killing them, he said.
After the incident, 20 militants came out in Bar Doog area and set on fire 130 logs owned by local people. They torched a house and kidnapped a man identified as Faqir Gul Mulla.
BAJAUR: About 27 militants, including a key Taliban commander, were killed when security forces attacked militants positions in different areas of Bajaur.
Military planes bombed Dara and Banda in Salarzai, some 33 kilometres from Khar.
Officials said the area was a Taliban stronghold and had a training camp, arms depot and bunkers.
The officials said an arms depot and four bunkers were destroyed by the bombing.
Fourteen militants, including a key commander, were killed in the attacks.
The commander, officials said, was an Afghan national and an explosives expert.
Thirteen militants were killed when security forces pounded their hideouts in Babra, Charmang, Hashim and Cheenar areas of Nawagai sub-division.
Sources said Taliban commander Qari Zaiur Rehman complained of indifferent attitude of TTP vice-chief Maulvi Faqir Mohammad and accused him of not helping them.
They said Maulvi Faqir hesitated in sending reinforcements because he was trying to enter into a peace deal with the government with the help of tribal elders.
Troops, meanwhile, advanced to Charmang and took control of Tangi and Kotki areas and set up checkposts.An ISPR press release said five soldiers were injured on Saturday and Sunday in Malakand.
It said that 15 small machineguns, one sniper rifle, one 8-MM rifle, communication equipment and grenades were recovered.
Troops secured areas around Peochar, Kharkai, Kharkarai and Biha.
A heavy exchange of fire took place between security forces and terrorists in Biha valley south of Chuprial.
Troops seized 20 small machineguns, a G-3 rifle, two launchers with seven rockets, rifles, two grenades and 6,000 rounds of SMG and two MM rifles.
Some foreign currency has also been found in terrorists hideouts in Biha.
Security forces secured areas around Barko Sar, Roringar,
Nalkot, Wainai towards Biha, Bartana and Pushtunat.
Troops are now trying to clear Tirang, Thana, Allahdand and Batkhela.
RabzonKhan
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Thousands leave South Waziristan before new battle
June 23, 2009
ISLAMABAD: More than 45,000 people are leaving their homes even before the start of a military offensive in South Waziristan, and are heading for communities already stretched to the limit in terms of resources, officials said on Monday.
Col Waseem Ahmed, spokesman for a Pakistani government unit overseeing humanitarian affairs, said he expected the number to rise to at least 60,000. About 37,000 people had already left their homes in South Waziristan, said Manuel Bessler, head of the UN Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs, citing military figures.
Bessler said Pakistan presented a unique problem for humanitarian officials because 80 percent of the displaced were not in UN camps, but were staying with family and friends in host communities. reuters
21 Taliban killed after army bases attacked in Waziristan
June 23, 2009
PESHAWAR/RAWALPINDI: Jet planes bombed Taliban leader Baitullah Mehsuds positions on Monday and killed 21 Taliban after Taliban launched attacks on three military bases in North and South Waziristan with mortars, rockets and gunfire, military sources said.
The fighter jets pounded the Tiarza, Saleyrogha and Sararogha areas, hitting two houses in Saleyrogha and killing 21 Taliban, the sources told Daily Times. The bombings come as the military prepares for a decisive large-scale offensive against the Taliban leader.
Chief military spokesman Athar Abbas said 14 Taliban were killed during an operation in Malakand. Abbas added that Operation Rah-e-Rast in Swat and surrounding areas had entered into its final phase.
Also on Monday, Qari Hussain, a close aide of Mehsud, telephoned AP to say the military strikes had not weakened the Taliban in South Waziristan. Separately, four Taliban were killed and six injured when helicopter gunships and long-range artillery targeted them and their local facilitators positions in Bajaur Agency. staff report/ap
June 23, 2009
ISLAMABAD: More than 45,000 people are leaving their homes even before the start of a military offensive in South Waziristan, and are heading for communities already stretched to the limit in terms of resources, officials said on Monday.
Col Waseem Ahmed, spokesman for a Pakistani government unit overseeing humanitarian affairs, said he expected the number to rise to at least 60,000. About 37,000 people had already left their homes in South Waziristan, said Manuel Bessler, head of the UN Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs, citing military figures.
Bessler said Pakistan presented a unique problem for humanitarian officials because 80 percent of the displaced were not in UN camps, but were staying with family and friends in host communities. reuters
21 Taliban killed after army bases attacked in Waziristan
June 23, 2009
PESHAWAR/RAWALPINDI: Jet planes bombed Taliban leader Baitullah Mehsuds positions on Monday and killed 21 Taliban after Taliban launched attacks on three military bases in North and South Waziristan with mortars, rockets and gunfire, military sources said.
The fighter jets pounded the Tiarza, Saleyrogha and Sararogha areas, hitting two houses in Saleyrogha and killing 21 Taliban, the sources told Daily Times. The bombings come as the military prepares for a decisive large-scale offensive against the Taliban leader.
Chief military spokesman Athar Abbas said 14 Taliban were killed during an operation in Malakand. Abbas added that Operation Rah-e-Rast in Swat and surrounding areas had entered into its final phase.
Also on Monday, Qari Hussain, a close aide of Mehsud, telephoned AP to say the military strikes had not weakened the Taliban in South Waziristan. Separately, four Taliban were killed and six injured when helicopter gunships and long-range artillery targeted them and their local facilitators positions in Bajaur Agency. staff report/ap
RabzonKhan
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Battle for north tests Pakistans will
By Farhan Bokhari in Daggar
Published: June 22 2009 18:05 | Last updated: June 22 2009 18:05
The Taliban hoped to turn the town of Ambela into a graveyard for the security forces. We ended up making Ambela a graveyard for the Taliban, says Colonel Naseer Janjua, pointing towards a litter of burnt-out cars, trucks and buses.
The wreckage marks the site of a fierce battle that took place in Ambela when the army was ordered to retake control of Buner, a district adjoining the Swat valley in north-western Pakistan that had been invaded by the Taliban.
According to official accounts, at least 23 vehicles laden with explosives were driven to Ambela by Taliban zealots in suicide missions designed unsuccessfully to deter the military by inflicting heavy casualties.
In nearby Daggar, the armys local headquarters, the sentries who peek through the sandbags surrounding the main camp of the Frontier Corps remain on alert.
The writ of the government has been established, says Colonel Janjua, speaking in the courtyard surrounding the FC camp.
The battle for Buner may have been won, but big questions remain, notably whether the Pakistani forces have the determination and the capability to defeat the militants in the wider Swat area, let alone in wilder frontier areas such as Waziristan.
The military has long been accused of having close ties to Islamic hardliners, including the Taliban, and of supporting some of these groups as part of a strategy of tying down Indian troops across the border in Indias predominantly muslim Kashmir region.
However, Pakistani leaders insist that the battle for Swat and its surrounding region, as well as the recent decision to extend the battle to Waziristan and other areas along the Afghan border, represents a significant policy shift towards a strategy of tackling the militants head.
Ahead of the battle, army leaders were horrified by photographs and video footage of their own men both officers and soldiers who had been beheaded or otherwise brutalised by the Taliban after being captured in the struggle.
These gruesome images make an important point; an army which so brutally lost its own will hardly have any sympathy for these [Taliban] elements, says a senior Pakistani minister, speaking on condition of anonymity.
However, the army has notably failed to capture or kill prominent Taliban leaders in Swat, such as Maulana Fazlullah, the hardline cleric widely reputed to have overseen the campaign of beheadings. Pakistani officials conceded for the first time on Monday that Mr Fazlullah may have fled to Afghanistan, although there were conflicting reports that he was surrounded by troops in the Swat valley.
Of course this is an important question over the big leaders, the senior minister says. But should we not ask ourselves if indeed this is as simple as people believe? Even the US with all its might has simply failed to successfully target Osama bin Laden, eight years after [the September 11 2001 attacks].
Generally, high-value militants are the best protected and typically the first to withdraw (from the battlefield).
Western diplomats in Islamabad say that the Pakistani military has done enough to establish that the generals are willing to take the fight to the militants, although it is not yet clear whether the campaign will be pursued to the bitter end.
Even if the wider battle can be won, however, many challenges remain to be overcome if these areas are to remain under long-term government control.
Every morning in Daggar soldiers replace batteries charged by carefully laid out solar panels on the front lawn. For the military, solar electricity is a vital security aid, lighting the camp through the hours of darkness and deterring further Taliban attacks.
But restoring mains electricity is essential if the estimated 350,000 Buner people who fled the fighting are to return.
Other key challenges also remain unresolved. Usman Ghani, the owner of a grocery shop who returned to Buner on Friday, complained about coming back to a land where there are no buyers. Everything is badly disfigured. The local economy is in ruins, he says, adding: It may be months before I can get back to any business.
Yahya Akhunzada, the District Co-ordination Officer of Buner the most senior civilian officer in the area, warns that people whose homes have been destroyed may have to live for a year or two in mud homes and depend on public funds for income.
Other challenges include restoring a civilian government structure and policing capacity which has been badly eroded in the past decade. We will have to start from scratch in rebuilding government, says Mr Akhunzada.
By Farhan Bokhari in Daggar
Published: June 22 2009 18:05 | Last updated: June 22 2009 18:05
The Taliban hoped to turn the town of Ambela into a graveyard for the security forces. We ended up making Ambela a graveyard for the Taliban, says Colonel Naseer Janjua, pointing towards a litter of burnt-out cars, trucks and buses.
The wreckage marks the site of a fierce battle that took place in Ambela when the army was ordered to retake control of Buner, a district adjoining the Swat valley in north-western Pakistan that had been invaded by the Taliban.
According to official accounts, at least 23 vehicles laden with explosives were driven to Ambela by Taliban zealots in suicide missions designed unsuccessfully to deter the military by inflicting heavy casualties.
In nearby Daggar, the armys local headquarters, the sentries who peek through the sandbags surrounding the main camp of the Frontier Corps remain on alert.
The writ of the government has been established, says Colonel Janjua, speaking in the courtyard surrounding the FC camp.
The battle for Buner may have been won, but big questions remain, notably whether the Pakistani forces have the determination and the capability to defeat the militants in the wider Swat area, let alone in wilder frontier areas such as Waziristan.
The military has long been accused of having close ties to Islamic hardliners, including the Taliban, and of supporting some of these groups as part of a strategy of tying down Indian troops across the border in Indias predominantly muslim Kashmir region.
However, Pakistani leaders insist that the battle for Swat and its surrounding region, as well as the recent decision to extend the battle to Waziristan and other areas along the Afghan border, represents a significant policy shift towards a strategy of tackling the militants head.
Ahead of the battle, army leaders were horrified by photographs and video footage of their own men both officers and soldiers who had been beheaded or otherwise brutalised by the Taliban after being captured in the struggle.
These gruesome images make an important point; an army which so brutally lost its own will hardly have any sympathy for these [Taliban] elements, says a senior Pakistani minister, speaking on condition of anonymity.
However, the army has notably failed to capture or kill prominent Taliban leaders in Swat, such as Maulana Fazlullah, the hardline cleric widely reputed to have overseen the campaign of beheadings. Pakistani officials conceded for the first time on Monday that Mr Fazlullah may have fled to Afghanistan, although there were conflicting reports that he was surrounded by troops in the Swat valley.
Of course this is an important question over the big leaders, the senior minister says. But should we not ask ourselves if indeed this is as simple as people believe? Even the US with all its might has simply failed to successfully target Osama bin Laden, eight years after [the September 11 2001 attacks].
Generally, high-value militants are the best protected and typically the first to withdraw (from the battlefield).
Western diplomats in Islamabad say that the Pakistani military has done enough to establish that the generals are willing to take the fight to the militants, although it is not yet clear whether the campaign will be pursued to the bitter end.
Even if the wider battle can be won, however, many challenges remain to be overcome if these areas are to remain under long-term government control.
Every morning in Daggar soldiers replace batteries charged by carefully laid out solar panels on the front lawn. For the military, solar electricity is a vital security aid, lighting the camp through the hours of darkness and deterring further Taliban attacks.
But restoring mains electricity is essential if the estimated 350,000 Buner people who fled the fighting are to return.
Other key challenges also remain unresolved. Usman Ghani, the owner of a grocery shop who returned to Buner on Friday, complained about coming back to a land where there are no buyers. Everything is badly disfigured. The local economy is in ruins, he says, adding: It may be months before I can get back to any business.
Yahya Akhunzada, the District Co-ordination Officer of Buner the most senior civilian officer in the area, warns that people whose homes have been destroyed may have to live for a year or two in mud homes and depend on public funds for income.
Other challenges include restoring a civilian government structure and policing capacity which has been badly eroded in the past decade. We will have to start from scratch in rebuilding government, says Mr Akhunzada.
kidwaibhai
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i find it very strange that no one questions the us military in their operations in Afghanistan or even Iraq. i mean when have they killed the top leadership of the taliban and how long did it take them to Abu musab massawi.
i am really getting tired of these journalist always questioning our resolve. it is very hard to kill top leadership because they are the top leadership. i mean god damn
i am really getting tired of these journalist always questioning our resolve. it is very hard to kill top leadership because they are the top leadership. i mean god damn
RabzonKhan
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Pakistani assault hurting Taliban: US officer
Wednesday, 24 Jun, 2009
WASHINGTON, June 23: The Pakistan militarys offensive against the Taliban has cut insurgent attacks across the border in eastern Afghanistan, depriving them of a cheap supply of arms, a senior US officer said on Tuesday.
I think theres a definite impact, US Colonel John Spiszer, commander of a brigade combat team in northeast Afghanistan, told reporters.
As a result of Pakistani operations against Taliban militants in Bajaur and other areas near the Afghan border, Col Spiszer said: The activity in this area has declined. And not just declined, weapons are drying up, moneys drying up.
The colonel, whose forces are part of the US First Infantry Division, said the Pakistani armys operations meant the Taliban needed weapons for its battle against the Islamabad government, driving up the price of arms for their comrades across the border.
We have pretty good evidence that... weapons and ammu- nition (prices) have almost doubled since last sum- mer, he said by video link from Jalalabad in Afghanistan.
Thats a great sign because theres only so much that they can do. If they cant pay their fighters, if they cant buy weapons, he said.
Pakistani troops are wrapping up an almost two-month-long operation against Taliban rebels in the northwest Swat valley, and are preparing to launch a second front against feared Taliban chief Baitullah Mehsud and his network along the rugged tribal belt.
Worsening Taliban-linked attacks have killed almost 2,000 people in the country since July 2007.AFP
Wednesday, 24 Jun, 2009
WASHINGTON, June 23: The Pakistan militarys offensive against the Taliban has cut insurgent attacks across the border in eastern Afghanistan, depriving them of a cheap supply of arms, a senior US officer said on Tuesday.
I think theres a definite impact, US Colonel John Spiszer, commander of a brigade combat team in northeast Afghanistan, told reporters.
As a result of Pakistani operations against Taliban militants in Bajaur and other areas near the Afghan border, Col Spiszer said: The activity in this area has declined. And not just declined, weapons are drying up, moneys drying up.
The colonel, whose forces are part of the US First Infantry Division, said the Pakistani armys operations meant the Taliban needed weapons for its battle against the Islamabad government, driving up the price of arms for their comrades across the border.
We have pretty good evidence that... weapons and ammu- nition (prices) have almost doubled since last sum- mer, he said by video link from Jalalabad in Afghanistan.
Thats a great sign because theres only so much that they can do. If they cant pay their fighters, if they cant buy weapons, he said.
Pakistani troops are wrapping up an almost two-month-long operation against Taliban rebels in the northwest Swat valley, and are preparing to launch a second front against feared Taliban chief Baitullah Mehsud and his network along the rugged tribal belt.
Worsening Taliban-linked attacks have killed almost 2,000 people in the country since July 2007.AFP
RabzonKhan
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Waziristan uncertainty
Dawn Editorial
Wednesday, 24 Jun, 2009
QARI Zainuddin, a militant commander and rival of Baitullah Mehsud, has been assassinated by his bodyguard in Medina Colony in D.I. Khan. According to Qari Misbahuddin, the younger brother of Qari Zainuddin, the guard, Gulbuddin Mehsud, had been working with the family for six years and was one of the most trusted employees in the familys pay. However, on Tuesday morning after Qari Zainuddin and Baaz Muhammad, a close aide of Zainuddins, retired to their living quarters after morning prayers Misbahuddin opened fire on the two men, killing Zainuddin and injuring Baaz Muhammad. The FIR registered by Baaz Muhammad alleges that the killer acted on behalf of Baitullah Mehsud. That is possible. In recent days, Qari Zainuddin had come out publicly against Baitullah and accused him, among other things, of having links with India and Israel and working against Islam. This against the backdrop of an impending military operation in South Waziristan Agency, Operation Rah-i-Nijaat, targeted against Baitullah.
The immediate result of the assassination is likely to be demoralisation in the Qari Zainuddin camp. The group has quickly appointed Qari Misbahuddin as its new amir in a bid to keep themselves organised, but there is little doubt that losing their leader on the eve of serious fighting is a big blow. The truth is though little is known about what exactly is going on in South Waziristan Agency, who is fighting whom and why, and what is likely to happen in the days and weeks ahead. What is clear so far is that the security forces are squeezing Baitullah Mehsuds strongholds by cutting off the three main routes that lead to them and pounding targets from the air. Reports suggest several militants from the Baitullah camp have been killed so far, but this has not been verified independently. Meanwhile, drones continue to strike targets in South Waziristan Agency, but once again it has not been possible to independently verify who has been killed.
Then in the last few weeks, Qari Zainuddin and Haji Turkistan, former allies of Baitullah, had suddenly emerged in the national media to denounce the strongest warlord in Waziristan. It is suspected that the two were encouraged by the state to turn up the heat on Baitullah. Questions are now being asked about who put up Zainuddin in the house in Medina Colony and what he was doing in D.I. Khan. Questions are also being raised about wheels within wheels: Zainuddin appeared to have taken on the mantle of Abdullah Mehsud, another militant commander from South Waziristan who was killed in 2006, and was quoted in a recent interview as saying that the infidels and foreign troops in the neighbouring country [Afghanistan] needed to be attacked. Smoke and mirrors everywhere it seems.
Dawn Editorial
Wednesday, 24 Jun, 2009
QARI Zainuddin, a militant commander and rival of Baitullah Mehsud, has been assassinated by his bodyguard in Medina Colony in D.I. Khan. According to Qari Misbahuddin, the younger brother of Qari Zainuddin, the guard, Gulbuddin Mehsud, had been working with the family for six years and was one of the most trusted employees in the familys pay. However, on Tuesday morning after Qari Zainuddin and Baaz Muhammad, a close aide of Zainuddins, retired to their living quarters after morning prayers Misbahuddin opened fire on the two men, killing Zainuddin and injuring Baaz Muhammad. The FIR registered by Baaz Muhammad alleges that the killer acted on behalf of Baitullah Mehsud. That is possible. In recent days, Qari Zainuddin had come out publicly against Baitullah and accused him, among other things, of having links with India and Israel and working against Islam. This against the backdrop of an impending military operation in South Waziristan Agency, Operation Rah-i-Nijaat, targeted against Baitullah.
The immediate result of the assassination is likely to be demoralisation in the Qari Zainuddin camp. The group has quickly appointed Qari Misbahuddin as its new amir in a bid to keep themselves organised, but there is little doubt that losing their leader on the eve of serious fighting is a big blow. The truth is though little is known about what exactly is going on in South Waziristan Agency, who is fighting whom and why, and what is likely to happen in the days and weeks ahead. What is clear so far is that the security forces are squeezing Baitullah Mehsuds strongholds by cutting off the three main routes that lead to them and pounding targets from the air. Reports suggest several militants from the Baitullah camp have been killed so far, but this has not been verified independently. Meanwhile, drones continue to strike targets in South Waziristan Agency, but once again it has not been possible to independently verify who has been killed.
Then in the last few weeks, Qari Zainuddin and Haji Turkistan, former allies of Baitullah, had suddenly emerged in the national media to denounce the strongest warlord in Waziristan. It is suspected that the two were encouraged by the state to turn up the heat on Baitullah. Questions are now being asked about who put up Zainuddin in the house in Medina Colony and what he was doing in D.I. Khan. Questions are also being raised about wheels within wheels: Zainuddin appeared to have taken on the mantle of Abdullah Mehsud, another militant commander from South Waziristan who was killed in 2006, and was quoted in a recent interview as saying that the infidels and foreign troops in the neighbouring country [Afghanistan] needed to be attacked. Smoke and mirrors everywhere it seems.
RabzonKhan
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US missile strikes kill 51 in South Waziristan
June 24, 2009
PESHAWAR: Two suspected US missile strikes killed at least 51 Taliban in South Waziristan on Tuesday, where the army is poised for an attack on Baitullah Mehsud, officials said.
A security official told Reuters on condition of anonymity a drone fired three missiles, killing six and wounding seven. As the Taliban gathered for funeral prayers of those killed later in the day, another drone aircraft fired three more missiles, officials said. A security official told AFP 11 Taliban were confirmed dead, with dozens wounded. Intelligence officials told Reuters 45 people had been killed in the second bombing
June 24, 2009
PESHAWAR: Two suspected US missile strikes killed at least 51 Taliban in South Waziristan on Tuesday, where the army is poised for an attack on Baitullah Mehsud, officials said.
A security official told Reuters on condition of anonymity a drone fired three missiles, killing six and wounding seven. As the Taliban gathered for funeral prayers of those killed later in the day, another drone aircraft fired three more missiles, officials said. A security official told AFP 11 Taliban were confirmed dead, with dozens wounded. Intelligence officials told Reuters 45 people had been killed in the second bombing
muse
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Editorial: Baitullah Mehsud and America
As Tehreek-e-Taliban Pakistan (TTP) comes under pressure from the military operations launched in its stronghold, deserters from its rank and file are making revelations that belie some of the sacred beliefs the media has allowed to become common analytical currency. One big diversion from the truth is the discovery that Baitullah Mehsud, the leader of the TTP, is an agent of the United States and India wreaking havoc in Pakistan to fulfil the US design to establish the hegemony of India in South Asia and to facilitate the elimination by the US of Pakistans nuclear arsenal.
Who has proof of all this? Who inside the government has spread this information without giving sufficient proof? If you ask the state functionaries they insist they have not planned any such massive disinformation. Yet one has to recall that some spokesmen have vaguely named agencies on the other side of the border, but again without tangible proof. This, however, convincingly looks like a part of the strategic decision that the presence of NATO in Afghanistan is not in Pakistans interest and that Indias presence in Afghanistan is hostile to the interests of Pakistan. Some Pakistani analysts have now started questioning the logic behind the stringing together of these tales of TPP-Indian and TTP-American collusion.
Logic is the first casualty. There are a number of statements of Baitullah Mehsud on record vowing revenge on the Americans for their invasion of Afghanistan, recalling his own time spent in that country fighting alongside the Taliban. His men have preyed on the trucks that take provisions to the NATO troops through Pakistan and for which the Americans bypassed the Pakistan government and made independent arrangements with various private hauling companies and warehouse owners. The TTP now has a good supply of high quality combat vehicles and other military supplies. How does one reconcile this with the fact that Mehsud is actually working for the Americans?
The willingness to believe Mehsud rather than the government was in evidence in the media after the assassination of Ms Benazir Bhutto in December 2007. Mehsuds telephonic conversation with the mastermind of the suicide attack was intercepted and made known by Pakistans intelligence establishment. However when he declared that he had not carried out the attack, Mehsud was immediately believed. Now that deserters from the TTP have revived the truth that Baitullah Mehsud actually planned the killing and personally sent off the attackers to Rawalpindi there is a silence of embarrassment in Pakistan. Had the fact been accepted in 2008 when the gang of assassins was apprehended, we would not have horribly falsified the evidence that linked the killing to Al Qaedas understanding of Ms Bhutto as an American asset in Pakistan.
Then in 2008 came the Mumbai attacks. The Indians reacted by rattling the sabre. Suddenly, India was the enemy and Mehsud a patriot. A disenchanted Pakistani analyst sought answers to such newspaper reports as the one quoting an army official saying that Baitullah Mehsud and Fazlullah were patriots. Another was reported as saying that in case of an Indian invasion the TTP will fight shoulder to shoulder with the Pakistani troops to save Pakistan.
From that to what is being said now is a big leap of the imagination. Such leaps are usually called fantasy. Now Mehsud is the paid agent of the Indians. Analysts appearing on TV have gone so far as to say that the Taliban inflicting savage cruelty on the people of Swat were actually Hindus! Everyone has forgotten about the 5,000 plus foreigners Uzbeks, Arabs, Chechens and Uighurs sheltered by Mehsud on behalf of Al Qaeda. One deserter has thrown in the red herring about how India trains its Hindu agents in the intricacies of Islamic learning till they become ulema before being sent into Pakistan looking like the Taliban!
So buried are we in our narcissistic obsessions that the world now rebukes us for living on the basis of contradictions. Foreign commentators now ask: If you hate the US so much and know that it is helping the Taliban to create chaos in Pakistan as a prelude to grabbing your nuclear weapons, why do you go asking Washington for money? They also say: If India is destroying Pakistan through the Taliban why are you seeking a composite dialogue with it instead of going to war with it?[/I] *
As Tehreek-e-Taliban Pakistan (TTP) comes under pressure from the military operations launched in its stronghold, deserters from its rank and file are making revelations that belie some of the sacred beliefs the media has allowed to become common analytical currency. One big diversion from the truth is the discovery that Baitullah Mehsud, the leader of the TTP, is an agent of the United States and India wreaking havoc in Pakistan to fulfil the US design to establish the hegemony of India in South Asia and to facilitate the elimination by the US of Pakistans nuclear arsenal.
Who has proof of all this? Who inside the government has spread this information without giving sufficient proof? If you ask the state functionaries they insist they have not planned any such massive disinformation. Yet one has to recall that some spokesmen have vaguely named agencies on the other side of the border, but again without tangible proof. This, however, convincingly looks like a part of the strategic decision that the presence of NATO in Afghanistan is not in Pakistans interest and that Indias presence in Afghanistan is hostile to the interests of Pakistan. Some Pakistani analysts have now started questioning the logic behind the stringing together of these tales of TPP-Indian and TTP-American collusion.
Logic is the first casualty. There are a number of statements of Baitullah Mehsud on record vowing revenge on the Americans for their invasion of Afghanistan, recalling his own time spent in that country fighting alongside the Taliban. His men have preyed on the trucks that take provisions to the NATO troops through Pakistan and for which the Americans bypassed the Pakistan government and made independent arrangements with various private hauling companies and warehouse owners. The TTP now has a good supply of high quality combat vehicles and other military supplies. How does one reconcile this with the fact that Mehsud is actually working for the Americans?
The willingness to believe Mehsud rather than the government was in evidence in the media after the assassination of Ms Benazir Bhutto in December 2007. Mehsuds telephonic conversation with the mastermind of the suicide attack was intercepted and made known by Pakistans intelligence establishment. However when he declared that he had not carried out the attack, Mehsud was immediately believed. Now that deserters from the TTP have revived the truth that Baitullah Mehsud actually planned the killing and personally sent off the attackers to Rawalpindi there is a silence of embarrassment in Pakistan. Had the fact been accepted in 2008 when the gang of assassins was apprehended, we would not have horribly falsified the evidence that linked the killing to Al Qaedas understanding of Ms Bhutto as an American asset in Pakistan.
Then in 2008 came the Mumbai attacks. The Indians reacted by rattling the sabre. Suddenly, India was the enemy and Mehsud a patriot. A disenchanted Pakistani analyst sought answers to such newspaper reports as the one quoting an army official saying that Baitullah Mehsud and Fazlullah were patriots. Another was reported as saying that in case of an Indian invasion the TTP will fight shoulder to shoulder with the Pakistani troops to save Pakistan.
From that to what is being said now is a big leap of the imagination. Such leaps are usually called fantasy. Now Mehsud is the paid agent of the Indians. Analysts appearing on TV have gone so far as to say that the Taliban inflicting savage cruelty on the people of Swat were actually Hindus! Everyone has forgotten about the 5,000 plus foreigners Uzbeks, Arabs, Chechens and Uighurs sheltered by Mehsud on behalf of Al Qaeda. One deserter has thrown in the red herring about how India trains its Hindu agents in the intricacies of Islamic learning till they become ulema before being sent into Pakistan looking like the Taliban!
So buried are we in our narcissistic obsessions that the world now rebukes us for living on the basis of contradictions. Foreign commentators now ask: If you hate the US so much and know that it is helping the Taliban to create chaos in Pakistan as a prelude to grabbing your nuclear weapons, why do you go asking Washington for money? They also say: If India is destroying Pakistan through the Taliban why are you seeking a composite dialogue with it instead of going to war with it?[/I] *
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Disclaimer: I'm a huge fan of Mr. Quraishi, however; there is much to criticize in the particular manner in which he has chosen to weave the piece below, he has posed no serious question and has chosen to craft questions which suggest he is unwilling to challenege his reader, for instance he asks, in conspiratorial terms, why Google, facebook and twitter and added Farsi translation when no profit is involved - but there is profit involved, it goes by the number of hits and that means advertising $$ -- Why attack Chinesed and Lankans in Pakistan?? Because it shows the people of Pakistan. China and Lanka, that the govtof Pakistan is not in control, it cannot protect them - does that not mean it mustr be Indians, Americans,, better yet, Israelis? or some combination of these and extra terrestrial aliens? -- no it means, in ALL insurgencies, it is imperative to rob the govt, any govt, of it's aura of command and show it to be powerless and lost and by doing so, to loosen domestikc and international support -- real conspiracies do exists and do threaten Pakistan and others, however; not every instance of failure is a result of conspiracies:
Nabbing Baitullah alive
Wednesday, June 24, 2009
Ahmed Quraishi
Pakistan will probably never catch terrorist leader Baitullah Mehsud alive. Why? For the same reason that we will never really know why alcoholic beverages were found from some of their hideouts. Or why citizens of China and Sri Lanka – two close military allies of Pakistan – were attacked on Pakistani soil by people claiming to be fighting America.
Similarly we will never know why listed companies like Google and Facebook are speeding up Persian translations of their sites when no profit is involved. (Will their stockholders accept democracy instead of profits?) And why the government did not object when the US and other allied donors tried to create a special fund for Balochistan and NWFP with the condition that it operate outside Pakistan's control.
The popular Pakistani understanding of the battle against Baitullah Mehsud is more American than Pakistani. This prevents us from accepting that this insurgency is wrapped in multiple layers of deceit. The entire prevailing narrative of the situation is exclusively American, tailored to suit Washington's worldview. It talks about a uniform threat of the Taliban and Al Qaeda with no distinction made between the Afghan Taliban and the new Pakistani version; the American narrative does not explain how or why the ranks of the Pakistani Taliban have been swelling steadily when the Afghan Taliban are not experiencing a similar surge; and why the American narrative suppresses any discussion of Pakistani grievances about an organised anti-Pakistan terror wave emanating from Afghanistan. The Pakistani counter-narrative is missing on the government level and is probably limited to some circles within the Pakistani strategic and intelligence communities. The impression that one gets is that the Pakistani government is essentially bartering silence for US aid. And this is a dangerous bargain.
It means that Pakistani officials are unlikely to take a stand on the use of Afghan soil to export terror to Pakistan. In fact, there are strong grounds to conclude that while other parts of the US government engage Pakistan, freewheeling elements within the CIA are probably conducting their own foreign policy on the ground in the region. The simultaneous trouble in both the Pakistani and Iranian parts of Balochistan is but one case in point.
Another downside to our enthusiasm for American aid money at any cost is our waning ability to resist the upcoming American plan to install India as the resident guardian over Pakistan and Afghanistan. A senior US national security official is expected to bring this plan to Pakistan in the next few days. Islamabad's obsession with US aid while staying mum on vital Pakistani interest is absurd. Why is Prime Minister Gilani complaining now about the US 'surge' in Afghanistan when Mr Zardari and his foreign minister wasted no time in warmly welcoming it when Mr Obama unveiled the plan in March?
This explains why the president signed an American-proposed agreement to give India overland trade routes to Afghanistan. There are also fresh questions on the extent of support the United States is getting from two of its closest allies, India and Israel, in Afghanistan. There are credible reports that Indian and Israeli intelligence involvement in US-controlled Afghanistan has deepened in the past seven years.
Some US military and intelligence officials are impressed with the record of both countries in fighting Islamic groups, especially the Indian experience in occupied Kashmir. The Israelis have invested heavily in establishing schools that study the art of Islamic indoctrination. These schools were used to learn how clerics can brainwash recruits and then exploit them politically. Israeli spymasters have used this knowledge to penetrate Mideastern Islamic groups. They have passed this technique to the Indians to help them counter pro-Pakistan religious groups in Kashmir.
The mess in Pakistan's western border areas is not just a battle with religious extremism. A larger part is a battle of proxies. None of this means that we should treat Washington as an enemy. But it does have an agenda that is increasingly diverging from Pakistan's strategic interests.
The writer works for Geo TV. Email: aq@ahmedquraishi.com
Mr. Quraishi is unwilling to acknowledge that it is significant, that Qari Zainuddin was assasinated not in the wilds of Waziristan but a govt controlled city - He is further unwilling to acknowledge that this assination is a failure of consolidating policy inside intelligence services ( you will note the assasin "got away" - in a govt controlled city) - are we therefore to credibly believe that Baitullah is in the service of foreign powers? Should we not believe that elements inside the intlligence servcies are less than professional and not all aree on board??
Nabbing Baitullah alive
Wednesday, June 24, 2009
Ahmed Quraishi
Pakistan will probably never catch terrorist leader Baitullah Mehsud alive. Why? For the same reason that we will never really know why alcoholic beverages were found from some of their hideouts. Or why citizens of China and Sri Lanka – two close military allies of Pakistan – were attacked on Pakistani soil by people claiming to be fighting America.
Similarly we will never know why listed companies like Google and Facebook are speeding up Persian translations of their sites when no profit is involved. (Will their stockholders accept democracy instead of profits?) And why the government did not object when the US and other allied donors tried to create a special fund for Balochistan and NWFP with the condition that it operate outside Pakistan's control.
The popular Pakistani understanding of the battle against Baitullah Mehsud is more American than Pakistani. This prevents us from accepting that this insurgency is wrapped in multiple layers of deceit. The entire prevailing narrative of the situation is exclusively American, tailored to suit Washington's worldview. It talks about a uniform threat of the Taliban and Al Qaeda with no distinction made between the Afghan Taliban and the new Pakistani version; the American narrative does not explain how or why the ranks of the Pakistani Taliban have been swelling steadily when the Afghan Taliban are not experiencing a similar surge; and why the American narrative suppresses any discussion of Pakistani grievances about an organised anti-Pakistan terror wave emanating from Afghanistan. The Pakistani counter-narrative is missing on the government level and is probably limited to some circles within the Pakistani strategic and intelligence communities. The impression that one gets is that the Pakistani government is essentially bartering silence for US aid. And this is a dangerous bargain.
It means that Pakistani officials are unlikely to take a stand on the use of Afghan soil to export terror to Pakistan. In fact, there are strong grounds to conclude that while other parts of the US government engage Pakistan, freewheeling elements within the CIA are probably conducting their own foreign policy on the ground in the region. The simultaneous trouble in both the Pakistani and Iranian parts of Balochistan is but one case in point.
Another downside to our enthusiasm for American aid money at any cost is our waning ability to resist the upcoming American plan to install India as the resident guardian over Pakistan and Afghanistan. A senior US national security official is expected to bring this plan to Pakistan in the next few days. Islamabad's obsession with US aid while staying mum on vital Pakistani interest is absurd. Why is Prime Minister Gilani complaining now about the US 'surge' in Afghanistan when Mr Zardari and his foreign minister wasted no time in warmly welcoming it when Mr Obama unveiled the plan in March?
This explains why the president signed an American-proposed agreement to give India overland trade routes to Afghanistan. There are also fresh questions on the extent of support the United States is getting from two of its closest allies, India and Israel, in Afghanistan. There are credible reports that Indian and Israeli intelligence involvement in US-controlled Afghanistan has deepened in the past seven years.
Some US military and intelligence officials are impressed with the record of both countries in fighting Islamic groups, especially the Indian experience in occupied Kashmir. The Israelis have invested heavily in establishing schools that study the art of Islamic indoctrination. These schools were used to learn how clerics can brainwash recruits and then exploit them politically. Israeli spymasters have used this knowledge to penetrate Mideastern Islamic groups. They have passed this technique to the Indians to help them counter pro-Pakistan religious groups in Kashmir.
The mess in Pakistan's western border areas is not just a battle with religious extremism. A larger part is a battle of proxies. None of this means that we should treat Washington as an enemy. But it does have an agenda that is increasingly diverging from Pakistan's strategic interests.
The writer works for Geo TV. Email: aq@ahmedquraishi.com
Mr. Quraishi is unwilling to acknowledge that it is significant, that Qari Zainuddin was assasinated not in the wilds of Waziristan but a govt controlled city - He is further unwilling to acknowledge that this assination is a failure of consolidating policy inside intelligence services ( you will note the assasin "got away" - in a govt controlled city) - are we therefore to credibly believe that Baitullah is in the service of foreign powers? Should we not believe that elements inside the intlligence servcies are less than professional and not all aree on board??
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