The South Waziristan Agency has been cleared of the Taliban and there are no more insurgent hideouts in the tribal region, a private television channel quoted Pakistan Army's operations commander in South Waziristan, Major-General Nawaz Khan, as saying on Thursday.
| Nothing left but farmers. Simple farmers. Simple, heavily-armed farmers ... |
Briefing the media at the Rata Kulachi Stadium in Dera Ismail Khan, the operations commander said that foreign forces were responsible for the situation that had developed in the region, adding that the Pakistan Army had also arrested foreigners and seized foreign-made arms and ammunition from their possession. After the successful completion of operation Rah-e-Nijat, the political administration of the region was responsibly fulfilling its duties, he said, according to the channel.
The operations commander also surveyed the ongoing activities at a registration camp for the internally displaced persons (IDPs), and said that the process of the IDPs repatriation was progressing along the right track. He said that the repatriated IDPs would be provided with all necessary facilities. The operations commander said that development and rebuilding of infrastructure was underway in South Waziristan, adding that the schools and roads were also being rebuilt in the region, the channel reported. |