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| India-Pakistan |
| Pak troops exchange fire with somebody |
| 2003-07-03 |
| Pakistani troops at a remote northwestern tribal region along the Afghan border came under attack from unidentified forces in Afghanistan, sparking an exchange of fire, but neither side suffered casualties, Pakistan's military and officials said Wednesday. The gunbattle occurred Monday at the village of Yaqoobo, 100 kilometers northwest of Peshawar, the capital of Pakistan's deeply conservative North West Frontier Province, where a pro-Taliban religious coalition is in power. It wasn't immediately clear who initiated the conflict. There were no Pak casualties, so it wasn't us. Maybe some tribal types who don't like government troops snooping around. Pakistan's military in the capital, Islamabad, confirmed the shootout, but said it was just a minor clash. "We did not suffer any casualties," spokesman for Pakistan's military Gen. Shaukat Sultan told The Associated Press. However, Mohammed Iqbal, a government official in the Mohmand tribal region of the province, said Pakistan has sent extra troops. The situation is well under control, Iqbal said. "Nothing to see here, move along." Pakistan, a key ally in the US war on terror, deployed troops in its tribal region last month to prevent insurgents from launching cross-border attacks against coalition and government forces in Afghanistan. It was the first time since Pakistan's creation in 1947 that soldiers were deployed in the region, where tribes have traditionally enjoyed great autonomy. At the time of the initial deployment, armed tribesmen shot and killed one soldier and wounded three others. Some tribesmen were also killed in the fighting. After talks with the troops, tribal elders agreed to provide access to the Pakistani forces in their regions, thought to provide hideouts for suspected Taliban and al-Qaida fugitives. Most tribesmen in the region share the Taliban's interpretation of Islam, which largely reflects their tribal traditions rather than the tenets of Islam. "We don't need islam to teach us to beat our wives and shoot people, it's a tradition here." |
| Posted by:Steve |