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Bugtis surround 300 Frontier Corps men
Dien Bien Phu at Dera Bugti? Is Sgt. Arsicaud on his way?
Bugti tribesmen have surrounded some 300 Frontier Corps (FC) personnel and government officials at a base in Dera Bugti area where fears of fresh fighting between the tribesmen and troops have forced thousands of residents to flee for safety, Balochistan Governor Awais Ahmed Ghani said on Sunday. The tribesmen have set up roadblocks and dug trenches along roads into Dera Bugti, the governor said, AP reported. Helicopters were airlifting supplies to the troops to avoid travelling by road and confrontation with the tribesmen, he told reporters in Quetta. More than 3,000 government employees and their families escaped on Saturday in vehicles under FC escort from Dera Bugti after a 16-hour battle in the town last week. The governor said up to 45 people, including eight soldiers, were killed in the fighting.

On Sunday, about 3,000 people, mostly women and children of local Bugti tribesmen, also left the town because they fear fresh fighting, Dera Bugti DCO Abdul Samad Lasi said. They were camped in the open outside Dera Bugti or sheltering with relatives in neighbouring towns, he added. "The situation in Dera Bugti is very tense. You can expect anything (to happen)," Lasi said by satellite telephone from the town. A cease-fire has been holding since early Friday.

Citing intelligence information, Lasi said about 5,000 armed Bugti tribesmen had taken up position on mountains near the town and that FC personnel were ranged against them. "If they (the Bugti tribesmen) make any move, if they open fire or attack, the government will give full response," he added. Army spokesman Maj Gen Shaukat Sultan said additional army troops had been sent to the gas fields at Sui to strengthen security, but denied the army was involved in an operation against the Bugti tribesmen.
Posted by: Fred 2005-03-21
http://www.rantburg.com/poparticle.php?ID=59418