THE British general commanding Nato troops in Afghanistan is to confront PakistanÂ’s president over his countryÂ’s support for the Taliban. Among the evidence amassed is the address of the TalibanÂ’s leader in a Pakistani city. Lieutenant-General David Richards will fly to Islamabad tomorrow to try to persuade Pervez Musharraf to rein in his military intelligence service, which Richards believes is training Taliban fighters to attack British troops. He will request that key Taliban leaders living in Pakistan be arrested.
The evidence compiled by American, Nato and Afghan intelligence includes satellite pictures and videos of training camps for Taliban soldiers and suicide bombers inside Pakistan. Captured Taliban fighters and failed suicide bombers have confirmed that they were trained by the Pakistani intelligence service, known as the ISI. The information includes an address in Quetta where Mullah Omar, the Taliban leader, is said to live.
Musharraf had publicly acknowledged “a Taliban problem on the Pakistan side of the border”, said Richards. “Undoubtedly something has got to happen,” he added. “We’ve got to accept that the Pakistan government is not omnipotent and it isn’t easy but it has to be done and we’re working very hard on it. I’m very confident that the Pakistan government’s intent is clear and they will be delivering on it.”