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Tribesmen will counter Taliban activities in Dir
A grand peace jirga consisting of elders of major tribes of Upper Dir on Sunday unanimously decided that the people of the district will resist militant activities and that action will be taken against those providing shelter to militants or anti-state elements.The jirga vowed to strongly counter any militant activity meant to damage public or private property, government installations or to kill innocent people. The decisions were taken during a jirga of Sulthankhel and Payandakhel tribes held at the Government Higher Secondary School Wari in Dir Upper. The jirga asked people to keep monitor movements of suspected persons to avoid any untoward incident in the wake of the Marriott Hotel suicide bombing in Islamabad. The jirga said that they will help the government in eliminating 'anti-state elements'. Lashkar: It was decided that a 'laskhar' will patrol restive areas to counter illegal activities besides helping the law enforcement agencies in maintaining law and order in the district. Peace committees at the village level will be set up to monitor the situation and compile reports about the presence and activities of 'non-locals' in the district. The committees will subsequently submit their reports to the jirga. The jirga unanimously decided to continue to co-operate with the government in its efforts against militant activities and decided that the lashkar would continue to take action against perpetrators who harbour militants. The speakers said the militants had destroyed the peaceful atmosphere of Swat. They said that entry of unwanted elements into Dir district will be strongly resisted. They said that the jirga had been convened to inform and mobilise people against militants who were trying to destroy the peace of the district, which was unacceptable to them. Posted by: Fred 2008-09-22 |
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