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| India-Pakistan |
| 11 more gunnies hang it up... |
| 2002-06-05 |
| Another 11 militants handed themselves over to the civil and police authorities in Kashmir on Wednesday and surrendered their arms and ammunition, an army spokesman said. The surrender ceremony, the second in five days, was organised by the Indian army in the northern Kashmir district of Kupwara. On Saturday, 21 rebels gave themselves up at a similar function in Kupwara. Who wants to be the last guy killed in a war you've lost? The militants are members of the pro-Pakistan militant groups Hizbul Mujahideen, al Barq, Zarb-e-Islam and al Fateh, the spokesman said. In all, they surrendered 11 AK-47 assault rifles, two dozen grenades, a landmine and two grenade launchers, besides other arms and ammunition. The Hizbul gunnies are suffering internal splits. Al Barq and Fateh are both scheduled to be cannibalized for parts to build the new, improved, longer, lower, leaner, wider Kashmir Resistance Force. The spokesman said efforts by the army, police, intelligence agencies and the families of the militants all combined to persuade the militants to surrender. "There is a latent groundswell within the public against terrorism which could, sooner rather than later, manifest itself," he said. More likely their jobs were reorged out of existence and they don't feel like starting over again from the bottom in a flat market. The army officers present during the surrender ceremony said the militants had expressed a desire to shun violence and lead a normal life instead of as fugitives in the forests. "They were either duped or coerced into joining militancy," said Brigadier B.S. Ghotra. "This action of surrender is likely to give impetus to others to follow suit and thereby bring normalcy to the state." If the Paks really do cut off the money, there will be quite a few more who just decide to retire, at least until the money and arms start flowing again — which they will. |
| Posted by:Fred Pruitt |