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| India-Pakistan |
| Taliban calls cease-fire in Pakistan's Swat |
| 2009-02-16 |
| Taliban insurgents announce a 10-day ceasefire in Pakistan's restive north-west Swat Valley after months of unrest, a militant spokesman says. "We're announcing ceasefire as a goodwill gesture to the ongoing talks between Maulana Sufi Mohammad and the government," Muslim Khan, a spokesman for the Taliban militants said. The ceasefire announcement comes amid talks between the North West Frontier Province's (NWFP) government and a pro-Taliban cleric, Sufi Mohammad, the leader of Tahrik-e-Nifaz Shariat. Sufi had dispatched hundreds of his men to fight in Afghanistan during the 2001 US-led invasion. He was released last year by Pakistani security forces after spending almost eight years in jail. Large numbers of the fearsome tribesmen he dispatched to fight the hated infidel now reside in the boneyard. Others had to be ransomed from the shipping containers that were their new homes. The peace agreement, which is expected to be announced on Monday, binds the provincial government to implement Taliban-style strict laws in the Malakand division, which comprises Swat and its adjoining areas. The Taliban spokesman said the decision for a 10-day ceasefire has been made in view of the ongoing efforts by its allied group for the enforcement of Taliban laws in the region, according to a Press TV correspondent. Meanwhile in an interview with US TV network CBS on Sunday, Pakistani President Asif Zardari said the Taliban had established presence across 'huge parts' of Pakistan. "We are aware of the fact that the Taliban are trying to take over the state of Pakistan," he said. "... which is why we surrendered Malakand to them." The Taliban militants have set up a parallel administration with courts, taxes, patrols and checkpoints in the troubled Swat region. Swat, once a popular destination for Pakistani and foreign holidaymakers, has descended into chaos in recent months, with pitched battles between insurgents and the Pakistani army. The ceasefire brings a pause in fighting between the Pakistani army and the insurgents in Swat that has raged since November 2007. The 900-square-km (3,500-square-mile) Swat Valley lies less than 160 km (100 miles) from the capital, Islamabad. About 1,500 Pakistani soldiers have been killed in fighting against militants since 2002. |
| Posted by:Fred |
| #2 It is Iran all over again, soon the quick collapse with the ISI agents roasted of spits...sweet justice!!! Unlikely. The civilian government will fall, but the ISI won't. |
| Posted by: Pappy 2009-02-16 10:05 |
| #1 Beginning of the end for Pakistan... Hussein Obama will have "lost" Pakistan, will he nuke it as promised? It is Iran all over again, soon the quick collapse with the ISI agents roasted of spits...sweet justice!!! |
| Posted by: Ming the Merciless 2009-02-16 00:28 |