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Pakistan: Govt claims Lower Dir under control
[ADN Kronos] Pakistan's interior minister Rehman Malik said late on Monday that security forces had gained complete control of the restive Northwest Frontier Province district of Lower Dir, but that Islamic militants were still active in NWFP's Buner district. Addressing a seminar, Malik categorised the Taliban elements, who were active in Buner and Lower Dir as extremist and said: "We will not tolerate them anymore." However he added that there had been an attack on border police in the past 24 hours and there had been reports of shops being looted. Malik stopped short of calling the militants terrorists and said that there are moderate Taliban and extremist Taliban. "Some of the Taliban were forcing the villagers to join them," he said. He added that all efforts are being made to contain the activities of these extremists who are threatening the villagers about imposing their system by force. Rehman Malik said a befitting response was being given to the militants who carried out attacks by breaking into paramilitary Frontier Corps camps . "No one will be allowed to challenge the writ of the government," Malik warned. He said that the announcement has already been made by Pakistan's prime minister and reiterated that if peace was not restored in the region, the controversial Swat Peace agreement signed in February between Taliban-led militants and the NWFP government would be scrapped. A spokesman for Sufi Muhammad, the cleric who negotiated the Swat peace deal, announced on Monday the Taliban's talks with the NWFP government had been suspended amid the army operations against militants in Lower Dir. Posted by: Fred 2009-04-29 |
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