One side:
"Taliban commander in Pakistan confirms peace talks; Move threatens to strain tensions between US, ally" December 11, 2011|By Anwarullah Khan, Associated Press
PESHAWAR, Pakistan - The deputy chief of the Pakistani Taliban said yesterday that the militant group was in peace talks with the government and an agreement to end its brutal four-year insurgency was within striking distance.
The statement by Malvi Faqir Mohammad, which appeared timed to exploit tensions between the Pakistan Army and the United States, is likely to stoke further concerns in Washington over Pakistan’s reliability as a long-term partner in the fight against extremists.
It represented the first time a named Taliban commander has confirmed that the group is negotiating with the Pakistani government. Still, it was unclear whether Mohammad speaks for the entirety of the increasingly factionalized network, especially its leader, Hakimullah Mehsud.
Asked about the claim of negotiations, Prime Minister Yousuf Raza Gilani said that his government has followed a policy of “dialogue, deterrence, and development’’ to tackle militants who are based in the lawless Afghan border region.
“That is a continuing process,’’ he said.
Pakistani officials have earlier stated that they do not talk to militants unless they surrender.
Despite pushing for peace talks to end the related insurgency in Afghanistan, Washington is unlikely to support similar efforts to strike a deal in Pakistan. Ties between the two countries have been on a downward trend all year and were dealt a massive blow by an airstrike by US-led forces in Afghanistan two weeks ago that killed 24 Pakistani soldiers.
American forces and their NATO and Afghan allies regularly come under attack from Afghan militants and Al Qaeda operatives, who live alongside Pakistani Taliban militants in the border region. Previous peace deals in the northwest didn’t last long and gave militants time to rest and regroup, as well as space for foreign extremists to prosper....
After heavy US pressure and billions in aid, the Pakistani Army pummeled militants in the northwest over the past four years, helped greatly by American-fired drone strikes, killing many hundreds but falling well short of victory. Nevertheless, the pressure may have helped put the insurgents into talks or led factions to suggest a truce....
The Pakistani Taliban, closely allied with Al Qaeda, have been behind much of the violence tearing apart Pakistan over the last 4 ½ years. At least 35,000 people have been killed in suicide bombings, other insurgent attacks, and army offensives.
Despite the Taliban’s record of indiscriminate violence, much of it directed at civilians, there is political and public support for talks.
Meaning the PEOPLE WANT PEACE!
In September, the weak civilian government announced it was prepared to “give peace a chance’’ with militants, pandering to right-wing Islamist parties and their supporters.
I'm so sick of the war paper.
Many Pakistanis share the hard-line religious and anti-American views of the Taliban.
They believe the militants could be brought into the fold if Islamabad severed its alliance with the United States, which they blame for sparking the insurgency by invading Afghanistan after the Sept. 11, 2001 attacks.
That narrative has gained strength over the last year, during which an American CIA contractor killed two Pakistanis, a unilateral American raid killed Osama bin Laden and the airstrikes the deadly border attacks on Nov 26. Following each incident, the army whipped up anti-US sentiment among the public.
For those who don't know, Davis is the CIA agent who was caught trying to give "Al-CIA-Duh" nuclear and biological weapons.
Also see: Bin Laden Stories Show AmeriKan Media Not to be Believed
About that or anything else these days.
The army maintains the border strike was a deliberate attack by the US-led coalition. American officials deny that, saying it was tragic mistake. The army response has helped further popularize the narrative that America - not the Taliban - is the country’s enemy, giving militants and their supporters who have long argued along those lines fresh legitimacy.
“As Pakistan distances itself from a key ally in the war on terror, it is only natural that the Taliban should make its position flexible and reach out to it,’’ said Ishtiaq Ahmed, a professor of international relations at Quaid-e-Azam University Islamabad. “The timing is right, the political winds in Pakistan and crumbling relations between the United States are narrowing the space between the Taliban and the state.’’
Violence has dropped significantly over the last year, leading to speculation that some kind of peace talks were perhaps ongoing. This week, Pakistani Interior Minister Rehman Malik actually thanked the Taliban for acting on what he said was a “request’’ not to stage attacks during a Shi’ite Muslim festival.
And if there were any attacks there is no doubt in my mind it was "Al-CIA-Duh."
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Now the other:
"Pakistani Taliban spokesman denies peace talks; Conflicting claims show cracks in militant group" by Rasool Dawar | Associated Press, December 12, 2011
PESHAWAR, Pakistan - A Pakistani Taliban spokesman yesterday denied an earlier announcement by the militant group’s deputy chief that it was holding peace talks with the government.
The conflicting claims are a clear sign of splits within the movement, which could make it harder for Islamabad to strike a deal to end the violent insurgency gripping the country. At the same time, the cracks could make it easier to suppress the insurgency militarily.
Meanwhile, the Pakistani government said the United States vacated an air base that had been used by American drones. Islamabad had ordered the Americans out in retaliation for US airstrikes last month that accidentally killed 24 Pakistani soldiers along the Afghan border.
Was it an accident?
Was it an accident?
The relationship suffered a severe blow when NATO airstrikes killed 24 Pakistani soldiers at two army posts along the Afghan border Nov. 26.
Pakistan retaliated in several ways, including by giving the United States until yesterday to vacate the Shamsi Air Base used by American drones in southwestern Baluchistan Province.
The Pakistani military said the last flight carrying US personnel and equipment left Shamsi yesterday, and the base was taken over by the army.
Pakistan also retaliated for the deaths of its soldiers by closing its Afghan border to supplies meant for NATO troops in Afghanistan.
Suspected militants torched four fuel tankers yesterday near Quetta, the capital of Baluchistan, that were headed south to Karachi, said Azim Lehri, a local government official.
Four other tankers were hijacked near Quetta, but two of them were subsequently recovered by police, said Saeed Ahmed, a spokesman for the paramilitary Frontier Corps.
You never see much about supply line problems in the AmeriKan media.
Pakistan’s conflict with its branch of the Taliban is closely linked to the American-led war in Afghanistan.
Past informal cease-fires have made it easier for Afghan militants sheltered by their Pakistani counterparts to attack US forces across the border - making potential peace talks between Islamabad and the Pakistani Taliban a possible cause of concern in Washington.
Yeah, ANY TALK of PEACE at all is a CONCERN!
From Islamabad’s perspective, rising anger against the United States increases the incentive to cut a deal with the Pakistani Taliban, as many blame the conflict on their government’s alliance with Washington.
However, the government’s ability to negotiate with the clandestine militant movement will be made vastly more complicated by the Taliban’s murky command structure and the difficulty in telling whether commanders who say they are willing to make peace actually have any authority on the ground....
Translation: Some are working for the CIA!
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Others are not:
"Taliban in Pakistan declare a cease-fire; Uncertain if all militant factions will participate" November 23, 2011|By Ishtiaq Mehshud, Associated Press
PESHAWAR, Pakistan - The Pakistani Taliban have declared a cease-fire to encourage nascent peace talks with the government, a senior commander said, a move that appears to show the group’s willingness to strike a deal.
It was unclear yesterday whether all the militants who say they are under the Taliban banner would obey the directive, which the commander said had been in effect for a month. The Pakistani Taliban are believed to be divided into many factions. There has also been significant militant violence in the country in recent weeks....
Above I was told violence is down (sigh).
The Pakistani Taliban, allied with Al Qaeda and based in the northwest close to the Afghan border, have been behind much of the violence tearing apart Pakistan over the last four years. At least 35,000 people have been killed in guerrilla attacks and army offensives.
The Taliban want to oust the US-backed government and install a hardline Islamist regime. They also have international ambitions and trained the Pakistani-American who tried to detonate a car bomb in New York City’s Times Square in 2010.
Related: Times Square
The United States, which has pounded the Taliban with missiles fired by drones, wants Pakistan to keep the pressure on insurgents and would probably be concerned about any effort to strike a deal. Many of America’s fiercest foes in Afghanistan - as well as Al Qaeda operatives from around the world - live alongside the militants in the Pakistani region of North Waziristan....
Have you had enough war propaganda yet because I have?
Much remains unclear about the nature of the reported talks and their potential. Both the army and the militants have previously engaged in misinformation....
Once again we have a pot-hollering kettle of a press.
Army offensives against the Taliban are unpopular among many Pakistanis, many of whom view the militants as misguided brothers rather than terrorists. Right-wing and Islamist parties that support their aims have long called for a peace deal.
Me, too.
This view appeared to get traction in September when government leaders, opposition politicians, and other national figures met in Islamabad and produced a vague resolution in support of peace moves with militants....
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"Head of Taliban school offers to help peace talks" November 25, 2011|By Chris Brummitt, Associated Press
AKORA KHATTAK, Pakistan - At the hard-line Islamic school that spawned a generation of Afghan Taliban leaders, the top cleric still lectures his students to go to Afghanistan to fight Americans. But privately, he says he is willing to help bring insurgents to peace talks.
The offer by the influential “father of the Taliban’’ raises some hope for American attempts to find a negotiated end to the 10-year-old war - not necessarily because he will indeed be brought in as a mediator, but more because it gives a sign that there is a willingness among the Taliban and their allies to talk, something that has been thrown in doubt by months of setbacks in efforts to start negotiations.
“There must be some way out,’’ said the cleric, Maulana Sami-ul-Haq. “A way out that can also give America a respectable exit. Bloodletting is not a solution.’’
America’s public commitment to peace talks is stronger then ever as it works to bring the bulk of its troops home from Afghanistan by 2014. It has called on Pakistan to bring insurgents into the process, but there has been little progress. American officials believe greater military pressure against the insurgents is still needed - through operations in Afghanistan and drone strikes in the Pakistan border region, an approach it calls “fighting and talking.’’
“We are pounding them, and there is some evidence that people would like to come to an agreement,’’ said a senior US official, who did not give his name because of the diplomatic sensitivities surrounding the reconciliation process.
And here I was told the strikes had slowed down.
In a new pressure move, the United States has designated Mali Khan, a commander in the militant Haqqani network, as a specially designated global terrorist. The designation freezes any assets or property he may have in US jurisdictions and bars Americans from providing him with material support.
Haq, in his 70s, is a respected figure among militants on both sides of the border. His religious school, Darul Uloom Haqqania, counts among its graduates the head of the Taliban, Mullah Omar, as well as leading figures in the Haqqani network, the militant group based in the Pakistan border region that the United States counts as its most dangerous opponent. The family that heads the network took its name from the school.
Related: Haqqani Ha-Ha
It really is just not funny anymore.
On a recent day, Haq walked across his campus to deliver a lecture to about 500 young men set to graduate soon. The students sat on the floor in rows in a cavernous hall as he urged them “to make preparations for jihad’’ in Afghanistan.
As Haq left the hall, hundred of students crowded around him to shake his hand, a measure of the regard he is held in. The school, which was founded in 1947 and has about 3,000 students, has a hard-line curriculum, instilling not only calls for jihad but also the extreme puritanical strain of Islam that the Taliban imposed on Afghanistan.
Haq said ongoing resistance to the United States and its allies in Afghanistan was justified, and he said he and other Taliban supporters are deeply suspicious of the peace process. He said many militants believe that US moves for talks aim to weaken the insurgency by dividing it into different, competing factions.
Haq said neither the government nor the army had asked him to mediate, but that he would if asked.
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Yup, we all know about Pakistan's schools:
"Pakistan texts teach intolerance, study says" November 09, 2011|Associated Press
ISLAMABAD - Textbooks in Pakistani schools foster prejudice and intolerance of Hindus and Christians, while most teachers view religious minorities as “enemies of Islam,’’ according to a study by a US government commission released today.
What a surprise.
The findings indicate how deeply ingrained hard-line Islam is in Pakistan and help explain why militancy is often supported, tolerated, or excused in the country.
In an AmeriKan school the recruiting office is just down the hall.
“Teaching discrimination increases the likelihood that violent religious extremism in Pakistan will continue to grow, weakening religious freedom, national and regional stability, and global security,’’ said Leonard Leo, the chairman of the US Commission on International Religious Freedom.
Then we better just invade the place, huh?
Pakistan was created in 1947 as a homeland for the Muslims of South Asia and was initially envisaged as a moderate state where minorities would have full rights. But three wars with mostly Hindu India, state support for militants fighting Soviet-rule in Afghanistan in the 1980s, and the appeasement of hard-line clerics by weak governments seeking legitimacy have led to a steady radicalization of society.
The ORIGINAL "Al-CIA-Duh!"
Religious minorities and those brave enough to speak out against intolerance have often been killed, seemingly with impunity, by militant sympathizers. The commission warned that any significant efforts to combat religious discrimination, especially in education, would “likely face strong opposition’’ from hard-liners.
The study reviewed more than 100 textbooks from grades 1-10.
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Actions speak louder than words, right?
"23 die in Pakistan as troops, militants clash" October 18, 2011|Associated Press
PESHAWAR, Pakistan - Paramilitary forces raided a militant hideout in Pakistan’s rugged tribal region near the Afghan border yesterday, sparking fighting that killed nine soldiers and 14 insurgents, officials said.
Clashes are common in the area, but the death toll from the fighting was unusually high on the Pakistani side....
Another military official said helicopter gunships were called in to support the troops after the fighting escalated....
On Sunday, Pakistani intelligence officials said a recent US missile strike in Pakistan’s tribal region killed three Egyptians linked to the Haqqani network, including one who played a key role in handling the militant group’s finances.
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"Taliban suicide bomber kills 6 Pakistani soldiers" December 24, 2011|Rasool Dawar and Ishtiaq Mahsud, Associated Press
A Pakistani Taliban suicide bomber rammed a car filled with explosives into a paramilitary camp in northwestern Pakistan on Saturday, killing six soldiers in the second attack in as many days meant to avenge the slaying of a senior commander in a U.S. drone strike.
That's all my printed Globe gave me on Christmas Sunday.
The bombing against the Frontier Corps camp in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa’s Bannu town caused part of a building to collapse and wounded at least 19 soldiers, said local police officer Tahir Khan.
A Pakistani Taliban spokesman, Ehsanullah Ehsan, claimed responsibility for the attack in a phone call to The Associated Press. He said it was meant to avenge the death of commander Taj Gul in a U.S. drone strike in October in the South Waziristan tribal area, a key sanctuary for the militants.
Gul was the Pakistani Taliban’s operational commander in South Waziristan and was responsible for many attacks against security forces.
On Friday, around three dozen Pakistani Taliban fighters armed with assault rifles attacked a paramilitary camp in Tank district near South Waziristan before dawn, killing one soldier and kidnapping 15 others.
Ehsan, the Taliban spokesman, said Friday that attack was also meant to avenge Gul’s death. The militants targeted the soldiers because of Pakistan’s alliance with the United States, he said.
Ehsan pledged they would kill the kidnapped troops, saying “we are going to cut these soldiers into pieces one by one, and we will send these pieces to their commanders.’’
The Pakistani Taliban has waged a fierce insurgency in Pakistan over the past four years, killing tens of thousands of security personnel and civilians. Their aim is to topple the civilian government, partly because of its alliance with the U.S., and impose Islamic law throughout the country.
Pakistan has launched a series of military offensives against the Pakistani Taliban in the northwest along the Afghan border, including in South Waziristan.
Analysts say the operations, combined with hundreds of U.S. drone attacks, have contributed to a significant decline in violence in Pakistan this year. But militants still carry out attacks almost daily that have killed more than 2,300 people through November, according to the Pak Institute for Peace Studies....
Violence is down, violence is up -- just like the drones.
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"British Red Cross worker abducted in Pakistan; 15 officers killed in retaliation for army operation" by Abdul Sattar and Munir Ahmed | Associated Press, January 06, 2012
QUETTA, Pakistan - Armed men kidnapped a British Red Cross worker from the southwestern Pakistani city of Quetta yesterday, police and the Red Cross said, highlighting the fragile security situation in the country.
The kidnapping took place hours after Islamist militants elsewhere in the country killed 15 Pakistani security officers they seized last month close to the Afghan border, leaving their naked, bullet-riddled bodies sprawled on the ground.
Given the secret memo and the air strikes I would say this was an "Al-CIA-Duh" job.
Police officer Nazir Ahmed Kurd said the man was taken from a vehicle in an upscale housing complex in Quetta. The assailants bundled him into their car and drove off. Kurd said the man was visiting a local school.
In a statement, she said despite the incident, the Red Cross would continue its humanitarian work in Pakistan. She called for a “rapid and unconditional release’’ of Dale.
Baluchistan Province is home to Islamist militants and separatist insurgents.
Both groups have kidnapped foreigners and locals in the region before.
Another officer, Ahsan Mahboob, said the British man was traveling with a Pakistani doctor and a driver who were not abducted.
In 2009, an American working for the United Nations refugee agency in the city was kidnapped from the same district as the British aid worker. John Solecki was held for two months by the separatist Baluchistan Liberation United Front before he was released.
Related: Hidden Hostages in the Hindu Kush
Taliban Will Take Your Head
Zionist MSM Propaganda Reaches Peak on Pakistan
The 15 Pakistani officers from the paramilitary Frontier Constabulary were killed in retaliation for an army operation on Jan. 1 in northwest Pakistan that killed several militants, including a prominent commander, according to a statement from the Pakistani Taliban.
It alleged that troops also killed a woman and arrested others, “something that was forbidden and illegitimate in Islam as well as against tribal traditions.’’
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In recent months, some militant commanders and intelligence officials have claimed that peace talks with the Pakistani Taliban, one of the largest and most brutal militant groups, were underway. But other Pakistani Taliban commanders have dismissed this, and sporadic attacks have continued.
Tribal leaders and analysts speculate that the group, which has been pounded by Pakistani Army offensives and American missile strikes over the last few years, is riven with internal splits.
Also yesterday, the Taliban freed 17 Pakistani boys after holding them for four months in neighboring Afghanistan, said Islam Zeb, a government administrator in Pakistan’s troubled Bajur tribal region.
He said others were still in the custody of Taliban, who seized a group of 40 boys in September. The boys went to Afghanistan’s Kunar Province when a man invited them to play in a river there....
???????????
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"Ex-Pakistan envoy denies link to coup memo" January 10, 2012
ISLAMABAD, Pakistan - Government officials said yesterday that Islamist militants killed 10 paramilitary soldiers they had been holding hostage since last month, the second time the insurgents have killed security force captives close to the Afghan border in a week.
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"Truck bomb in Pakistan kills 2 dozen" New York Times, January 11, 2012
PESHAWAR, Pakistan - More than two dozen people, including women and children, were killed yesterday by a truck bomb that a senior government official said appeared to target a progovernment group in western Pakistan as an act of reprisal for the recent death of a militant leader.
The bombing appeared to have been carried out by Tehrik-i-Taliban, an umbrella organization of Pakistani militant groups, against the Zakhakhel tribe, which has formed a militia in support of the government, said Mutahir Zeb, administrator for the Khyber tribal region.
Otherwise known as the CIA's wing of the Taliban.
Zeb said the militant group sought to avenge the death of Qari Kamran, a local Taliban commander, by security forces last week in an area occupied by the Zakhakhel.
Yesterday’s bombing fit a pattern of previous revenge attacks, Zeb said. In August, militants struck a mosque in the region, killing 51 people to punish a progovernment Kukikhel tribe. The new year has begun with increased violence across the Khyber region and Pakistan’s lawless tribal regions.
No group immediately claimed responsibility for yesterday’s attack, but the Tehrik-i-Taliban group has said it carried out at least two operations against Pakistani forces during the past week, killing 25 security officers in North Waziristan and the Orakzai tribal region.
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Related: Car bomb in Pakistan kills 10
