ID :
11071
Sun, 06/29/2008 - 04:59
Auther :
Shortlink :
http://m.oananews.org//node/11071
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Pak troops launch crackdown on militants in tribal areas
Islamabad, June 28 (PTI) Pakistani security forces Saturday launched a crackdown on militants in the restive tribal belt bordering Afghanistan as Prime Minister Yousuf Raza Gilani warned that strict action will be taken against those disrupting peace in the country's northwest.
Paramilitary forces blew up the main base of the Lashkar-e-Islam militant group in Bara area of Khyber Agency near the North West Frontier Province capital of Peshawar. An indefinite curfew was imposed in Bara as security forces stepped up patrolling and blocked all entry and exit roads.
The security forces acted after several days of clashes between fighters of Lashkar-e-Islam and Ansar-ul-Islam that killed 52 people and injured 45. Four persons were killed and three injured in fresh clashes Saturday, TV channels reported.
Meanwhile, reports said Pakistan's top Taliban commander Baitullah Mehsud has suspended peace talks with the government due to the fresh attack by troops on the militants. Mehsud has been accused by Pakistani authorities of being involved in the assassination of former premier Benazir Bhutto.
Prime Minister Gilani, who travelled to Charsadda in North West Frontier Province (N.W.F.P.) to condole the death of the brother of Awami National Party chief Asfandyar Wali Khan, told reporters that strict action would be taken against those disrupting peace.
Though the use of force will be the last option for maintaining peace and tranquillity, the government's writ in the N.W.F.P would be ensured at any cost, he said. Gilani assured the N.W.F.P. government that lawlessness would be eliminated and that elements challenging the government's writ would face "stern action".
Hundreds of additional Pakistani paramilitary Frontier
Constabulary troops have already been deployed in Peshawar to cope with the possible fallout of operations in Khyber Agency. Police stations in the Pakistani city have been fortified and barricades erected at strategic locations.
Lashkar-e-Islam chief Mangal Bagh has been trying to enforce Taliban-style laws in Khyber Agency. In recent months, his fighters had made forays into Peshawar to tell people to close down music shops. They recently kidnapped 16 Christians and held them briefly before releasing them.
A blast destroyed a barber's shop in Peshawar Saturday morning though there was no loss of life. Police said unknown persons planted an explosive device in the shop in Pushtkhara area of the city. Militants have repeatedly warned barbers to close down their shops, saying shaving beards is "un-Islamic".
Meanwhile, violence has continued in the Swat valley of N.W.F.P. despite a decision Thursday by the provincial government and local Taliban to adhere to a peace agreement signed last month. Saturday morning, four bodies were found in the Kabal area of Swat, which is a stronghold of Taliban fighters led by Maulana Fazlullah. Three of the bodies were bullet-riddled while the fourth was headless.
On Thursday, militants set on fire a ski lift and a sprawling motel of the Pakistan Tourism Development Corporation at Malam Jabba, the country's only ski resort. The structure, built with the help of the Austrian government, was completely destroyed.
Security forces were unable to put out the fire at the motel as the area is completely under the control of militants. P.T.D.C. had withdrawn its staff and abandoned the motel late last year.
Paramilitary forces blew up the main base of the Lashkar-e-Islam militant group in Bara area of Khyber Agency near the North West Frontier Province capital of Peshawar. An indefinite curfew was imposed in Bara as security forces stepped up patrolling and blocked all entry and exit roads.
The security forces acted after several days of clashes between fighters of Lashkar-e-Islam and Ansar-ul-Islam that killed 52 people and injured 45. Four persons were killed and three injured in fresh clashes Saturday, TV channels reported.
Meanwhile, reports said Pakistan's top Taliban commander Baitullah Mehsud has suspended peace talks with the government due to the fresh attack by troops on the militants. Mehsud has been accused by Pakistani authorities of being involved in the assassination of former premier Benazir Bhutto.
Prime Minister Gilani, who travelled to Charsadda in North West Frontier Province (N.W.F.P.) to condole the death of the brother of Awami National Party chief Asfandyar Wali Khan, told reporters that strict action would be taken against those disrupting peace.
Though the use of force will be the last option for maintaining peace and tranquillity, the government's writ in the N.W.F.P would be ensured at any cost, he said. Gilani assured the N.W.F.P. government that lawlessness would be eliminated and that elements challenging the government's writ would face "stern action".
Hundreds of additional Pakistani paramilitary Frontier
Constabulary troops have already been deployed in Peshawar to cope with the possible fallout of operations in Khyber Agency. Police stations in the Pakistani city have been fortified and barricades erected at strategic locations.
Lashkar-e-Islam chief Mangal Bagh has been trying to enforce Taliban-style laws in Khyber Agency. In recent months, his fighters had made forays into Peshawar to tell people to close down music shops. They recently kidnapped 16 Christians and held them briefly before releasing them.
A blast destroyed a barber's shop in Peshawar Saturday morning though there was no loss of life. Police said unknown persons planted an explosive device in the shop in Pushtkhara area of the city. Militants have repeatedly warned barbers to close down their shops, saying shaving beards is "un-Islamic".
Meanwhile, violence has continued in the Swat valley of N.W.F.P. despite a decision Thursday by the provincial government and local Taliban to adhere to a peace agreement signed last month. Saturday morning, four bodies were found in the Kabal area of Swat, which is a stronghold of Taliban fighters led by Maulana Fazlullah. Three of the bodies were bullet-riddled while the fourth was headless.
On Thursday, militants set on fire a ski lift and a sprawling motel of the Pakistan Tourism Development Corporation at Malam Jabba, the country's only ski resort. The structure, built with the help of the Austrian government, was completely destroyed.
Security forces were unable to put out the fire at the motel as the area is completely under the control of militants. P.T.D.C. had withdrawn its staff and abandoned the motel late last year.
