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Militants claim killing three soldiers in Swat clashes
Three soldiers were killed and several others were injured in fierce clashes between security forces and militants in Charbagh area of the troubled Swat Valley on Wednesday.Also, thousands of protesters set a three-day deadline to the government to implement the Shariah or they would march towards Islamabad. Sources said the militants besieged and attacked security forces' camp established in Darul Uloom Charbagh with heavy weaponry. The attack triggered a fierce gunbattle between the Army and militants, which continued till the filing of this report. Militants claimed that three security forces personnel were killed and several others sustained injuries in the fight while the camp building was also damaged. It was learnt that surrounding houses and shops were also damaged in the attack. The militants' sources claimed that they had inflicted heavy losses on security forces in Charbagh, but the Swat-based spokesman for the military rebutted the claim. When contacted by this correspondent to get official version about the losses, the spokesperson lost temper and said they knew about the sources dishing out the information, adding they would be eliminated soon. Meanwhile, Swat-based Taliban leader and FM radio presenter Maulana Muhammad Alam alias Khalil claimed during the address that Taliban had the addresses and names of children of the security forces personnel engaged in fighting with Taliban in Swat. He read out some of the names of officials, their addresses and names of their children and the educational institutes in which they were studying. Separately, militants kidnapped the provincial chief of the International Committee of the Red Cross along with others but freed them after investigation. The sources said the militants picked up the ICRC provincial chief, Daniel Romali, along with his teammates, during checking in Qambar area. However, they were later freed after questioning. Daniel Romali belongs to Switzerland while his other associates were Pakistanis. Also, the militants kidnapped the driver of Swat district and sessions judge, Sher Zaman, and shifted him to an undisclosed location. His vehicle was also seized by the militants. Meanwhile, thousands of residents staged a rally in favour of the Shariah implementation in Barikot. The protesters, who had come from surrounding villages and gathered in the Barikot Square, warned that if the Shariah law was not enforced within three days, they would march towards Islamabad on foot. The rally, led by Sharif Khan, Azizullah, Syed Ali Bacha and others, demanded immediate implementation of the Shariah, end to the military operation and lifting of curfew in the district. On the occasion, Barikot Union Council member Irfan Wadood resigned in protest against the military operation. Posted by: Fred 2009-02-12 |
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