| Pakistan Army says it is preparing to flush out 'hardcore' Taliban from Swat valley after regaining control of Mingora. "We are going after the leadership and we are going to take care of all the militants in the valley," spokesman Maj Gen Athar Abbas told the BBC. Abbas said essential services were being restored to the city, home to 300,000 people before the operation. Doctors had arrived to re-open the main hospital, gas had been restored and mobile generators would help restore the water system, he said. He suggested that it would still take at least two weeks to restore the electricity network. Eventually, local defence committees would be set up to stop Taliban returning. Troops now have Charbagh in their sights. Helicopters are said to be dropping leaflets advising residents to leave. Soldiers continue to patrol Mingora's largely deserted streets and check houses for booby-traps. |