As the Al-Qaeda-Taliban summer offensive against US and NATO troops gets underway in Afghanistan and the same groups threaten to resume their attacks on Pakistan's army, the newly elected government in Islamabad needs support, patience and even perhaps a guiding hand from the Bush administration to replace Washington's single-minded desire for military solutions.

Much has been made in the US media and the White House about the possibility that the newly elected coalition government, led by the Pakistan People’s Party (PPP), is about to cut a deal with Baitullah Mehsud, the leader of the Pakistani Taliban, who rule over much of Pakistan’s Federal Administered Tribal Areas (FATA).

Such a deal would free up Pakistani and Afghan Taliban for the summer offensive in Afghanistan.

FATA today houses almost the entire terrorist leadership of the world, while almost every global terrorist plot since 2004 – whether successful or not – has invariably been traced back to training, funding or material support from Al-Qaeda militants based in FATA.

The key to changing the status quo in FATA is major political reform. Instead of being governed by archaic British colonial laws that have created a no mans land, FATA needs a strategic vision and major political changes based on direct consultations with the people of FATA to bring it into the fabric of Pakistan's constitution and laws.

FATA's Pashtun tribes must be given the same political and social opportunities that are available to all Pakistanis.

The authority of the state must prevail. Such reforms may take time to implement, but ultimately the region’s people must decide their own future – whether the result is the establishment of a separate province or joining the neighbouring Pashtun dominated North West Frontier Province (NWFP).

Before she was assassinated last December, the PPP leader Benazir Bhutto spoke urgently about the need for political reform. Her party now rules in Islamabad with a coalition government.

Afsandyar Wali, the leader of the Awami National Party, a secular Pashtun party that swept to power in the NWFP during last February’s provincial elections, defeating Islamic fundamentalists, also campaigned for political reform.

In the short term, under the framework of major political reforms, the government could open a dialogue with all the tribes, Pashtun civil society and even members of the Taliban who want to lay down their weapons.

The government could play divide-and-rule among the tribes, cutting off the extremists from the less committed population, if it had a political future to offer the people of FATA.

Yet, now that the two parties are in power, they appear to be back-sliding on the need for political reform.

On one side, the PPP-ANP are being squeezed by the army, which wants a quick, localised peace-deal with the Pakistani Taliban to give troops a breathing space and, on the other, by the Bush administration, which looks suspiciously at any long-term political program and wants to beat FATA into submission by allowing US troops to hunt down extremists in the area.

At present, neither the government nor the US has articulated an over-arching strategic vision for the future of FATA.

Only the extremists have a clear political vision for FATA – they want a state ruled by Sharia (Islamic law) – independent of Pakistan – where Al-Qaeda and other extremist groups can congregate and undermine the region and the world.

The deal under discussion between the government and army on the one side and Baitullah Mehsud on the other is clearly inadequate.

The Pakistani Taliban would cease attacks on the army, free several hundred hostages who they are holding, including soldiers, but give no promises about stopping attacks in Afghanistan.

The government would largely relinquish control of major areas in FATA to the extremists and free Taliban leaders it is holding.

The Pakistani army has struck such accords several times in the past and naively been patted on the back by President Bush, even though these deals have collapsed and led to a further concentration of extremists in FATA.

So far, the PPP-ANP attempts at modifying any such deal have largely rested on a stepped up aid and development agenda – good in itself, but insufficient to provide the impetus for political change, reduce the grip of the extremists or provide security.

The key to having both a short term and long term strategy and to changing realities on the ground is the army.

Even though army chief General Ashfaq Kayani has expressed his willingness to adhere to the wishes of the civilian government, the army calls the shots in FATA, both in policy making and implementation.

It is impossible for the PPP-ANP to come up with a strategic vision for FATA if the army does not back it.

General Kiyani wants the political leadership to take ''ownership'' of the war on terror, but the army first needs to make several strategic changes for the good of the country and the region.

The first strategic decision it needs to take is to curtail the Afghan Taliban leadership who continue to enjoy sanctuary, supplies, recruits and support from elements within Pakistan.

The Afghan Taliban are playing a major leadership role in guiding the Pakistani Taliban in FATA and further south in Balochistan province, where the Afghan Taliban leadership is largely based.

Secondly, the army needs to accept that there can be no successful political process in FATA unless it is linked to a similar process in the Afghan provinces across the border where the same Pashtun tribes live.

Afghan President Hamid Karzai is also trying, unsuccessfully, to woo the Afghan Taliban, but both countries have to make a single, joint effort.

Delivering development programs to FATA has to be linked to similar programs on the Afghan side.

This obviously requires a far more improved relationship between Pakistan and Afghanistan than has existed since 2001, when President Pervez Musharraf rather than build bridges with Afghanistan sought strategic influence there in order to keep India out of Afghanistan.

Fortunately, the PPP-ANP government has a good relationship with Kabul, but the army needs to back a major improvement in relations.

The Afghan side also needs to reciprocate by recognising the Durand Line, the border between the two countries which no Kabul government has ever acknowledged.

Thirdly, the army needs to make clear its support for political reform in FATA and to protect anti-Taliban tribal leaders and Pashtun civil society there.

Since 2004, the army has failed to protect tens of thousands of FATA residents who have fled their homes rather than live under the Taliban. Hundreds more have been executed by the Taliban – the victims of Taliban ethnic cleansing – to clear out Pashtuns who do not support them.

The army must help these refugees return home and protect them while the government provides economic backup. Only then can the state create a serious Pashtun lobby in FATA to work towards political changes.

With its massive military aid to the army, the Bush administration is in a position to encourage the army to take such decisions, while also encouraging the army and the civilian government to promote an effective plan for FATA.

Instead, the Bush administration is pushing once again on a single front – that of military action –, a course that will further alienate the Pashtuns, weaken an already fragile civilian government and absolve the army of taking these vital strategic decisions.

Ahmed Rashid is the author of Taliban and Jihad. His new book, Descent into Chaos, US Policy and the Failure of Nation Building in Afghanistan, Pakistan and Central Asia, will be published in June by Viking.

Revealed: Afghan plane hijacker is now working as a cleaner at Heathrow

Afghan hijacker Nazamuddin Mohammidy

Airport security was condemned as a joke after an Afghan involved in the Stansted hijacking was found to be working at Heathrow as a cleaner.

Police arrested Nazamuddin Mohammidy at Terminal 5 where he showed his British Airways pass allowing him access to secure areas.

The Tories said it was a breathtaking breach of security and demanded immediate action from the Government.

Mohammidy, 34, was one of nine Afghans who won the right to live in Britain after hijacking a passenger flight in Afghanistan in 2000. The Boeing 727 was flown to Stansted in Essex where the captors threatened to kill the 160 passengers unless they were granted asylum.

The gang was jailed but later released and given the right to remain in Britain rent-free, receiving £150,000 a year in benefits.

It emerged police pulled over Mohammidy as he was driving round Terminal 5 because they thought he was an unlicensed cab driver. He told them he worked at the airport and they were stunned when they checked out his story and found he was a former hijacker.

Mohammidy hijacked this internal Afghan flight and landed it at Stansted airport in 2000. He was escorted off the plane after a 4-day siege

Mohammidy works for a contractor used by British Airways to clean its offices and training centre at Heathrow.

The airline insisted he did not have an "airside" pass which would let him near planes, but his BA credentials did grant him access to restricted areas, it is understood.

One of the armed hijackers, faced covered with a balaclava, patrols the tarmac at Stansted in 2000

Yesterday Shadow Home Secretary David Davis said: "It is clear the Government do not have a grip on airport security.

"This individual should patently not be permitted access to secure locations at our airports, and immediate checks must be made on all other employees."

Tory aviation-spokesman Julian Brazier has written to Transport Minister Jim Fitzpatrick describing the breach as "beyond parody."

After police pulled in Mohammidy at Terminal 5, they also discovered he was in breach of bail conditions over an assault charge.

He is accused of beating up a former landlord and is due before magistrates on Monday.

Earlier this week Mohammidy, who has been living in Hounslow, West London, appeared in court over the bail breach but magistrates in Uxbridge bailed him again.

Scotland Yard confirmed the incident in which he was stopped at Heathrow.

A spokesman said: "In December 2007 officers stopped and searched a man under section 44 of the Terrorism Act at Terminal 5. Inquiries revealed he was in breach of bail."

British Airways said in a statement: "We have been helping the police with their inquiries into a man who is employed by our cleaning contractors. He does not work at the airport and does not hold an airside pass. He works at one of our properties about a mile away."

Another potential juror was excused for suggesting that Kelly "led the Taliban in attacking us on 9-11".

Yep, that's true. R. Kelly did lead the Taliban in the 9-11 attacks. (via kottke)

"We confirm that the two missiles were fired from a drone which belongs to coalition forces deployed in Afghanistan," Pakistan's chief military spokesman Major General Athar Abbas told AFP, referring to Wednesday's strike.

"We have conveyed our protest and waiting for response by the coalition forces," Abbas added.

He said the attack killed 14 people but gave no further details on exactly who launched the strike. There is a US-led coalition in Afghanistan, and a separate NATO coalition.

Taliban spokesman Maulvi Omar on Thursday blamed the United States for carrying out the missile strike and vowed to avenge the attack.

A senior security official in Islamabad said two houses belonging to local Taliban militant leaders were the target of the attack, which destroyed the buildings.

Read the rest:
http://news.yahoo.com/s/afp/20080516/wl_afp/pakistan
afghanistanunrest_080516193802

The suspected strike Wednesday destroyed a compound in Damadola village, a militant stronghold in the Bajur tribal region near the border with Afghanistan. A similar attack in 2006 reportedly missed al-Qaida's No. 2 leader Ayman al-Zawahri.

Neither the US nor Pakistan's military have confirmed the incident and the death toll was unclear. But residents said they saw a US aircraft flying in the area before two explosions rocked the village. The US is believed to operate unmanned drones out of Afghanistan.

Source

John McCain same day announce his predictions for his first term in office. He said that Iraq war will be won, troops will come home, Iran will give up its nuclear program, Osama Bin Laden will be killed or captured, Taleban will lose their strength and these countries will have the democracy.

These are the most stupid speeches delivered by the President of US and GOP Presidential candidate. How McCain is going to achieve all this when he don't believe in having any kind of negotiations with Iran? John McCain must be planning attack on Iran. John McCain is old man loosing his bearings who sing "bomb bomb Iran" does not believe in diplomatic talks.

The war in Iraq is already lost, it is now the matter of time when US troops will withdraw. The situation in Iraq look stable because US is paying lots of money to Sunni resistance and it now look like they have cut the same deal with Mehdi Army which will bring down the violence. This does not mean that Iraqis had started to like the US occupation military.

The CIA don't have any knowledge about Osama Bin Laden whereabouts, how he will get killed or captured? Taleban will not give up their resistance until all the foreign troops withdraw their military from Afghanistan.

These stupid speeches will play important part in US elections because very large group of ill informed voters will vote for John McCain without actually analyzing the facts.

John McCain will not be different than Bush and Osama Bin Laden wants someone like him in White House so they keep the fight alive. I will not be surprise if Osama Bin Laden video release before US election endorsing Barak Obama just like 2004 elections. I am not sure where these Osama Bin Laden tapes are made but these tapes always surface whenever Republicans are in trouble politically.

Osama Bin Laden message, infact hit the air in time, giving John McCain and George W. Bush enough material to scare US citizens for the coming election in November.

By Shaheen Buneri

Peshawar, Pakistan (CNSNews.com) - Taliban militants have vowed revenge against the United States after an apparent missile strike reportedly killed up to 14 people in Pakistan's restive tribal region.

Thousands of people, some chanting anti-U.S. slogans, attended funeral services Thursday in the Damadola area of the northwestern Bajaur tribal district that borders Afghanistan's Kunar province.

Reports in the U.S. citing unnamed officials said that among the dead was a high-value terrorist target, while Taliban representatives said the dead included women and children.

There was no comment from U.S. forces in Afghanistan, and the Pakistan foreign ministry in Islamabad said the explosion was under investigation.

But local tribesmen and representatives of religious political parties accused the U.S. of responsibility, saying the missile had been fired late Wednesday from a unmanned U.S. drone. A similar attack in 2006 reportedly targeted but missed al-Qaeda's second-in-command, Ayman al-Zawahiri.

At a press conference in Peshawar, capital of North West Frontier Province (NWFP), Siraj ul-Haq, provincial president of the Jamaat-e-Islami party, called the incident an assault on Pakistan's sovereignty and demanded that the U.S. ambassador be expelled.

"This is the third time that U.S. drones crossed into our space," he said. "In 2006 they killed 83 students of a religious seminary."

Haq said it was time for religious scholars to educate the people and call for jihad against "the aggressor."

The incident comes at a time when authorities have been attempting to negotiate peace deals with militant factions including the Pakistan Taliban Movement (TTP), an umbrella group set up under the leadership of Baitullah Mehsud. The newly-elected central and provincial governments have vowed to pursue peace talks, saying the military option hasn't worked.

The U.S. government has taken a dim view of previous such agreements, including one struck between Pakistan President Pervez Musharraf and some militants in 2006. U.S. Deputy Secretary of State John Negroponte earlier this month reiterated that Washington expects "Pakistan's civilian and military leadership to be strong partners against violent extremists in Pakistan's frontier areas."

The U.S. says Taliban and al-Qaeda use Pakistan's lawless north-west as a base for attacks inside Afghanistan against Afghan, NATO and U.S. forces. Islamabad's official position is that it does not allow U.S. forces to operate on its territory.

TTP spokesman Moulvi Omar charged that the strike in Bajaur was an attempt to sabotage the peace process.

"We have realized that a hidden hand is behind the attack but it will not deter us from our talks with the government," he said, adding, "We will avenge the U.S. for this."

Mian Iftikhar Hussain, information minister in the NWFP government, also condemned the attacks and vowed to continue with the negotiations, despite the hurdles.

Hussain said the provincial government was not negotiating with the Taliban in the interests of the U.S. but in order to put an end to the violence that followed U.S. military actions in Afghanistan after 9/11.

The surge of anti-American fervor could inflame an already volatile situation in NWFP and the neighboring tribal areas, where militant leaders are expected to exploit the sentiment for political ends.

Khalid Aziz, a political analyst and former chief secretary of NWFP, said the government faced a dilemma. It had to meet its commitments in the war against terror but at the same time needed to bring peace that it has so far failed to achieve through military means.

"The U.S. thinks that striking a peace deal with Taliban will put her interest at stake," he said. "Pakistan thinks that bringing militants to the negotiating table will curtail violence and help in re-establishing government authority in the tribal region."

Aziz said that the Taliban for ideological reasons would never tolerate the presence of U.S. troops, either in Pakistan or Afghanistan.

"The situation is really worrying. More attacks from across the border will lead to more violence and hence more militancy that is dangerous not only for Pakistan but also for Afghanistan and the U.S. forces fighting Taliban for the last six years," he said.

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[quote by act4america] Brigitte Gabriel urges concerned citizens
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"Talks are being held behind closed doors," a senior government official told AFP. "Some progress has been made," he said but did not elaborate.

A source close to the Al-Qaeda linked Mehsud confirmed that both sides were engaged in talks to restore peace in the region.

As part of the peace process, some 30 tribesmen held in various prisons were freed Tuesday in return for the release of 55 soldiers detained by pro-Taliban militants, a senior security official said on condition of anonymity.

He said troops were also moved from two villages in rugged South Waziristan tribal district in connection with the peace talks.

Read the rest:
http://news.yahoo.com/s/afp/20080515/wl_sthasia_afp/pakistanafghanistan
unrestpeace_080515053401

Provincial officials negotiating with representatives of militant leader Maulana Fazlullah said they had agreed in principle to implement previously drafted regulations allowing Islamic scholars to offer guidance to judges in the Malakand and Swat areas. The decision did not specify the extent to which Islamic law would be promoted or required in courts, and officials said they would work out details later.

Although many media headlines blared, "Shariah Law in Swat Agreed," a development that is significant in light of the secular party currently in power, Afrasiab Khattak, a senior official of the NWFP's ruling Awami National Party, was quick to assure reporters, "We are not introducing any new law...These will be same courts like anywhere in Pakistan, headed by normal civil and district judges." The NWFP Senior Minister Bashir Ahmad Bilour has noted the Shariah-compliant system would be enforced in Swat within one month. Despite the assurances from the ANP, the advent of Shariah law in some capacity is arguably problematic for this region. However, the establishment of Islamic law in Swat, as well as the release of prisoners taken into custody during the insurgency, and the withdrawal of Pakistani troops from the area are some of the main demands of the negotiating militants.

As the talks have continued, several of these demands have already been addressed. On Wednesday, media outlets, including the Daily Times, reported that the Pakistan Army exchanged prisoners with the local Taliban in South and North Waziristan. Military spokesman Gen. Athar Abbas told the news agency, "Twelve security personnel - five army jawans and seven Frontier Corps personnel - were swapped for over 30 Taliban prisoners." The News reported, " [Abbas] said the government had already accepted the major demands of the militants, including the removal of all roadside checkpoints, withdrawal of the Pakistan Army from the tribal areas, Darra Adamkhel and Swat, compensation to the affected people and release of all the suspected militants held during the military operations." He added the government had already begun calling back Army troops from the "[Beitullah] Mehsud-inhabited hilltops" in the frontier areas. The AFP, in its coverage, noted the Pakistani military termed the movement a "readjustment" of forces, rather than a "withdrawal," adding, "The moves were mainly to facilitate the return of people who had fled the area due to previous unrest." The AFP added that Abbas "declined to comment on whether the troop moves were linked to the peace talks with militants."

In its report, the Associated Press underlined the reactions of American, British, and NATO officials to these developments. According to the news agency, "Washington and London are co-funding a plan to flood the impoverished tribal belt, a possible hiding place for al-Qaida chief Osama bin Laden, with development aid in a bid to dry up support for extremism." However, they view past peace agreements with militants as failures and warn that any future accords must be strictly enforced. The AP also cited statements made by NATO spokesman James Appathurai, who told reporters in Brussels, "The principle concern is ... the deals being struck between the Pakistani government and extremist groups in the tribal areas may be allowing them ... to have safe havens, rest, reconstitute and then move across the border." Although he asserted that NATO did not want to engage in the internal policies of Pakistan, they "have every right to and will convey our concerns about what is happening inside Afghanistan," where attacks in the eastern regional command of the country were up 50 percent in April.

An alleged U.S. missile strike in Pakistan's FATA yesterday that killed 12 people could be further problematic for anti-American perceptions in the region. Today, Pakistani militants vowed to avenge the attack, blaming the incident on the United States. According to an AP report, "Residents said they saw a U.S. aircraft flying in the area before two explosions rocked the village." A photographer from the AFP said more than 1,000 tribesmen gathered to bury eight people in Damadola, while four more were buried in neighboring villages. The news agency reported, "Shouting 'Death to America' and waving klaashnikovs, the mourners vowed they would avenge the attacks from the U.S. forces across the border, the photographer witnessed." Such reactions are certain to influence the already-poor perceptions of the United States in the region and may have further consequences for foreign troops located across the border. [Image from the Associated Press]

Five police officers died in the attack, which happened in the Del Aram district attack in Farah province. Seven civilians were killed, said Ali Khan Hussainzada, police chief of criminal investigations in western Afghanistan.

There have been conflicting reports about the identity of the bomber. Police chief Hussainzada said the attack was carried out by a woman, while the Taliban, which claimed responsibility, said the bomber was a man.

In an operation on Wednesday in southern Afghanistan, troops killed a militant and detained 13 others, the U.S.-led coalition said. The incident took place in Helmand province.

Source

Un suicida, con una bomba adosada al cuerpo, ha matado a 15 personas (3 policías y 12 civiles) y ha dejado heridos a otras 22 en uno de los mercados con mayor afluencia del suroeste de Afganistán.

Afganistán está combatiendo una insurrección violenta contra los talibán. Al menos ya han muerto unas 1.200 en la insurgencia desde que comenzó 2008. Según la ONU, desde 2007 han muerto más de 8.000 personas.

Desde que murió Alejandro Magno (323 a.C.), y durante 7 conflictivos años los mongoles (1221-1227), nadie ha podido controlar el país. Los ingleses después de tres guerras en 80 años no consiguieron mantener el protectorado. La URSS con envío de tropas y recursos no pudo acabar con los insurgentes. EEUU, con ayudas económicas (en la, mal llamada, Guerra Fría) o militares (actualmente) tampoco a logrado estabilizarlo. Es una región seca y montañosa que siempre ha contado con numerosos grupos rebeldes. La violencia solo dará como resultado una mayor inestabilidad acompañada de más violencia.

“Jika istri saya pergi ke pasar tanpa izin, saya akan membunuhnya. Ini budaya kami,”kata Qayum menegaskan,”Ini Afganistan, bukan Amerika.”

LELAKI pemerkosanya itu dipenjara 20 tahun karena pembunuhan, tetapi nasib Rukhma berakhir di bui jua.

“Mengapa saya di sini ?” Saya tak bersalah,”kata Rukhma, perempuan Pakistan berjilbab hitam itu, sambil menangis dan menimang bayinya yang dilahirkan di penjara.

“Betapa kejinya menyaksikan putramu dibunuh di depan matamu dan kemudian kamu yang dipenjara,”katanya sambil duduk di lantai penjara yang bau itu pada April lalu.

Dia bercerita, di Pakistan, dulu dia dinikahkan dengan seorang lelaki yang suka memukul—ketika usianya masih belasan tahun. Dari lelaki itu dia melahirkan Bilal, putra pertamanya, tiga tahun lalu. Dia kemudian menceraikannya dan menikah dengan lelaki lain, yang membuatnya hamil tahun lalu.

Seorang perempuan tetangganya lantas menculik dan membawa Rukhma melintasi perbatasan ke Afganistan bersama Bilal. Dia dijual ke Yarul, lelaki Afganistan yang mengklaim Rukhma sebagai istrinya dan memperkosanya selama tiga bulan.

* * *

SUATU hari Rukhma mendengar Yarul akan menjualnya ke lelaki lain, yang menginginkan dirinya tapi tak menghendaki putranya. Takut kehilangan Bilal, suatu malam pada musim panas tahun lalu dia kabur. Tapi Yarul menemukan dan menyeretnya pulang. Ia memukuli Rakhma dan Bilal berkali-kali.

Bocah itu terbaring di bawah selimut, setengah sadar, dengan darah mengucur dari mulutnya. Ketika Rukhma mengangkat selimut itu, Bilal menatapnya. “Saya mengerti itulah napas terakhirnya dan kemudian dia meninggal. Itulah terakhir kalinya kami saling menatap,”kata Rukhma.

Polisi kemudian datang dan menahan Yarul, juga Rukhma. Perempuan malang itu dihukum 5 tahun penjara pada 5 Desember tahun lalu karena berzina dan kabur dari rumahnya di Pakistan.

Jaksa penuntut kasus ini, Abdul Qayum, mengakui Rakhma diperkosa Yarul, tapi tetap menyalahkannya. “Dia tinggal beberapa malam dengan lelaki itu. Dia telah berzina. Pemerkosaan terjadi, tapi perempuan itu juga bersalah,”katanya.

* * *

JATUHNYA pemerintahan Taliban enam tahun lalu telah memberi hak-hak baru bagi kaum perempuan di sana, seperti bersekolah atau bekerja, yang dilindungi konstitusi.

Di sebagian wilayah Afganistan dan Pakistan dengan adat sosial yang ketat, perempuan yang meninggalkan rumah tanpa izin keluarganya lazim dicurigai telah berselingkuh, dan dapat didakwa berzina.

Komisi Independen Hak Asasi Manusia Afganistan mencatat 2.374 kasus pengaduan kekerasan terhadap perempuan pada 2007 dan 1.051 pada 2008. Kamala Janakiram, pejabat hak-hak asasi PBB di Afganistan bagian timur, mengatakan 70-80 persen kasus yang dia saksikan merupakan kasus perempuan yang mengalami kekerasan domestik, tapi dihukum karena kabur dari rumah.

“Jika istri saya pergi ke pasar tanpa izin, saya akan membunuhnya. Ini budaya kami,”kata Qayum menegaskan,”Ini Afganistan, bukan Amerika.” (Koran Tempo, 13 Mei 2008)

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Read more here:Sky News

MAY 15, 2008

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By our correspondent PESHAWAR: Amid denials by the authorities concerned, the government and the Baitullah Mehsud-led militants swapped prisoners � 25 suspected militants and 12 security personnel � in the South Waziristan Agency (SWA) on Wednesday. A Jirga had earlier decided that the government would release 55 militants while the militants would set free 10 security personnel and government officials. The top military spokesman, Maj-Gen Athar Abbas, who is also the ISPR DG, when reached by telephone confirmed the release of five Army soldiers and seven FC men. However, he said he was not aware of further details of the reported peace agreement between the government and the militants. �Actually, the government is involved in negotiations with the militants and that�s why the people in the government may be aware of the details decided by the Jirga,� remarked the military spokesman. Asked how many soldiers were still in the militants� custody, Gen Abbas said, �Yes, there are still some soldiers in their custody, and I hope they will also be released very soon.� Among the released soldiers, five belonged to the Pakistan Army while the rest were serving under the paramilitary Frontier Corps (FC), kidnapped by militants from South Waziristan, Bajaur, Mohmand agencies, Darra Adamkhel and Swat. The five Army men including three officers were identified as Captain Sachal, Capt Faisal, Capt Safdar, Lance Naik Munsif Khan and Sepoy Din Mohammad. Similarly, the seven FC personnel set free by militants were Lance Naik Jan Khan Afridi, Lance Naik Zulfiqar Khan Tori, Lance Naik, Shabbir Hussain, Sepoy Mohammad, Sepoy Naeem Bhittani and Sepoy Kalimullah Bhittani. Among the released militants, five each belonged to Bajaur, Mohmand, Swat and the remaining were Mehsud tribal militants, hailing from South Waziristan. A Jirga member said the government, in the next phase, would release another 30 militants while the Taliban would set free 15 security personnel. Similarly, he said the government had already accepted major demands of the militants, including the removal of all roadside checkpoints, withdrawal of the Pakistan Army from the tribal areas, Darra Adamkhel and Swat, compensation to the affected people and release of all the suspected militants held during the military operations. He said the government had also started calling back regular Army troops from hilltops in the Mehsud-inhabited areas like Ladha, Makeen and Mohammad Nawaz Kot to Spinkai Raghzai town near Jandola in Frontier Region of Tank. According to the understanding or verbal agreement, the sources said the government would start the troop withdrawal on May 16 from Spinkai Raghzai, which would be completed by May 19. The Jirga members said though there was no written agreement as the government was not in its favour, yet the two sides had agreed that it should be considered as peace agreement between them. Meanwhile, a tribal Jirga, which had been involved in a series of hectic negotiations between the government and the tribal militants, surprisingly brought together the erstwhile rivals at a totally unexpected venue of Razmak, North Waziristan tribal agency, to sign yet another peace agreement for promotion of peace in the militancy-torn tribal regions and the Swat district. The Pakistan Army has huge presence in Razmak, a picturesque mountainous spot, situated on the border between South and North Waziristan tribal regions. The Jirga was earlier scheduled to be held in Makeen, South Waziristan, but later due to reasons best known to the authorities concerned, the venue was changed and the Jirga members and prisoners were taken to Razmak in military choppers. Again, the two pro-militants tribal elders-cum-clerics � Haji Ikramuddin and Malik Amir Mohammad � played a pivotal role in the peace agreement between the two sides. The two Mehsud elders had already played a key role in the release of 300 Pakistan Army soldiers, kidnapped by Baitullah Mehsud from Ladha, South Waziristan. Besides, some of the key players in the peace truce were Afghan Taliban commanders, but they wanted to remain behind the scene. Senior military official and government people represented the government side while Baitullah Mehsud had sent his deputy commander Maulvi Noor Said and a few other senior commanders to represent him in the crucial Jirga meeting. Other representatives of Baitullah Mehsud-led Tehrik-e-Taliban Pakistan (TTP), the umbrella organisation of all the militant groups operating in the seven tribal regions and 24 settled districts of the NWFP, were also present on the occasion.

Source

"Fifteen days," an Afghan farmer told a Canadian soldier yesterday, when asked about how long he expected it will take to clear his field. As the farmer talked, he carefully cut open a bulb the size of a walnut and scooped out the oozing sap.

In nearby fields, the harvest could be finished as early as Friday.

Canadian soldiers patrolling areas southwest of Kandahar are closely watching the calendar, as they prepare for a renewed Taliban offensive after the fields are cleared.

Source

The coalition said in a statement that its troops opened fire and called in air strikes Monday after observing militants trying to set up an ambush. A dozen militants were killed, the statement said.

The troops also discovered weapons and ammunition in a search of compounds in the area, the statement said.

Newly deployed U.S. marines pushed into the town of Garmser late last month aiming to cut Taliban supply lines in the heart of the insurgency.

About 1,200 families — an estimated 7,000 people — have left their homes in recent weeks because of the fighting in Garmser, said Mohammad Nader Farhad, spokesman for the UN High Commissioner for Refugees.

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The order is the last in a wave of curbs that the resurgent militants have announced in areas they are active.

A senior Afghan information ministry official, Najib Manelai, said that dozens of masked men with weapons entered mosques in Logar province at the weekend and threatened residents against watching television

"They threatened the people that 'if you do not give up watching televisions, you will face violence'," Manelai told Reuters.

Media reports quoted residents as saying that the Taliban imposed the ban because TV networks were showing programs that were "un-Islamic and anti-Afghan culture."

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