Karachi, 6 Feb. (AKI) - (by Syed Saleem Shahzad) - An Islamic state has been established in the tribal area of North Waziristan, or at least that's what the Taliban alleges in a new video obtained by Adnkronos International (AKI). In the video, the Taliban fighters also claim to have set up military bases in North and South Waziristan, the tribal region which lies on the border between Pakistan and Afghanistan, from which they regularly carry out attacks on US forces based in Afghanistan. The Pakistan army has been battling Islamic militants in the Waziristan region since Taliban and al-Qaeda fighters fled into the area after the American-led invasion of Afghanistan in 2001. Tens of thousands of Pakistani soldiers are deployed in the area.
The newly released video obtained by AKI, begins with footage of headless bodies of alleged criminals around the Miramshah Bazaar in North Waziristan. The criminals have been executed by the Taliban, who then come out into the open and appear to take over the control of North Waziristan. Thousands of people are then seen to be welcoming them as they announce the establishment of Islamic state. The second segment in the video revolves around the establishment of powerful bases by the Taliban. Thousands of young men wearing turbans are seen moving with their weapons. Their commanders select a squad among them to carry out a guerrilla mission to attack the US base in the south-eastern Afghan province of Khost. The men are seen wearing headbands bearing the slogan: "There is no God but one God, Mohammed is the messenger of God”.
The youths then emerge out from their bases in the night and attack a US base in Khost. After a 30-minute battle, the US base is in flames and the members of the squad return to their base. | Oh, it's science fiction? |
The video, which has been obtained in a CD format, is half in Pashtu and half in Urdu. The video claims that criminals controlled North Waziristan. These criminals were involved in a number of activities, it says, such as abducting and sexually abusing children and extorting money from shopkeepers, transport providers and even those who simply want to hold a wedding. The video claims that the criminal gangs are run by an Afghan, Hakeem Khan Zadran, and that the gangs have various sanctuaries where they take drugs, drink alcohol and keep the kidnapped men, women and children.
The Taliban video goes on to allege that the government of Pakistan pays these criminals so that they will stay clear of government officials who will then be able to continue their day-to-day activities. North Waziristan is part of Pakistan's Federally Administered Tribal Agency (FATA) where the government of Pakistan rules through a Political Agent (a standard practice since the days of the British Raj). The political agent is given an annual fund to distribute among tribal chiefs, local journalists and other influential people so that they will cooperate with government.
In explaining how the Taliban has cracked down on these criminal gangs, the video highlights an operation on December 6, 2005, when some Taliban fighters were heading to Khost to launch an operation. Some criminals stopped them and demanded a ransom before they would be allowed to pass. When the Taliban fighters refused to pay the money, the criminals did not insist and let them pass. However, a few kilometers away, they fired a rocket which destroyed the vehicle and killed four Taliban fighters who belonged to the local Wazir tribe.
The video describes how the incident became the turning point in the support among the local people for the Taliban. The local residents came out in support of the Taliban, it alleges. They converged near Miramshah and sent warnings from Shawal to Miramshah that people living close to the criminals should leave their homes. A raid was eventually conducted on a hideout. The battle lasted just 15 minutes in which several gangsters were killed, several were arrested and many fled. According to the video, it was three day operation, in which the Taliban managed to smoke out the criminals from their hideouts all over North Waziristan and they were then brutally executed in the Miramshah Bazaar. | We heard about this, they strung them up |
This incident highlighted in the video is perhaps important when viewed within the context of the formation of the Taliban movement in Afghanistan. The movement emerged in the same way in Zabul and Kandahar in the early 90s when a warlord abducted a girl and sexually abused her as well as another boy, something which was at the time a routine practice. The students in a few madrassas or Islamic seminaries came together under their teacher and leader Mullah Mohammed Omar, the founder of the Taliban moverment, and they publicly executed the warlords and released the kidnapped boys and girls. | And then proceeded to execute any one who dissagreed with them |
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