 PESHAWAR: Pakistani Taliban are in control of parts of the countryÂ’s tribal zones bordering Afghanistan, where they have established a reign of terror in the name of Islam, military and security sources said on Friday.
| Comes as a surprise, doesn't it? I know. It floored me, too... |
In Waziristan they have used force, threats and persuasion to create a rigid social order based on a strict interpretation of Islamic Sharia.
| Why argue with people and try to persuade them, when you're armed and dangerous? |
In several villages, witnesses say video cassettes had been burned and internet cafes destroyed. They said FM radio stations broadcast the orders of the Taliban and bodies had been found with notes saying: “American spy.”
| That flow of outside ideas is a dangerous thing. First you get bobbling Indian boobies. That's bad enough — causes otherwise solid bully boyz to go all turgid. But then they move on to the hard stuff: watching the news. Pretty soon people are forming opinions. Next thing you know, they're ignoring the local holy men. Contributions drop off, and you've got mullahs living in penury. Can't have that, y'know. |
“These local Taliban are a few local people, coming out of madrassas where they are misled by certain miscreant mullahs,” said Sikander Qayyum, the Peshawar-based security chief for the tribal zones.
| Have you considered tearing down the madrassahs and sowing the ground where they stood with salt? |
“They create an environment of fear, pretend they are in charge. We can’t let those Taliban impose what they want. That’s why in some places we used force.”
| "We're in charge! We say where the money goes! We'll do all the exploiting around here! They can have Afghanistan!" |
Qayyum said some 120 pro-government tribal chiefs were assassinated by Islamic extremists in recent months. In Peshawar, witnesses said the situation in the tribal areas was like that of southern Afghanistan during the 1996-2001 rule of the Taliban regime and even local journalists and humanitarian organisations were not allowed to enter. “I’ve been in Tank recently. Barbers are not allowed to shave beards. You can’t play music,” said a retired army colonel.
| Could that possibly be because it's the same people, doing the same things? |
Azmat Khan, a professor at Peshawar University, said a council of tribal elders recently met in a village. “The programme was destruction of TV sets.”
| "They got jiggling Indian boobies on 'em! Honkers, fergawdsake! And thighs! And rounded buttocks! And... And... Oh, Allah! Where is my gun? I must... I must... I must shoot off! My gun, that is..." |
The local Taliban were threatening tribal chiefs and pretending to fight crime in order to gain popularity, he said. A DVD filmed in Miranshah in December shows three corpses hanging from pylons. A Talib in traditional costume grabs some children to scare them. Contacted by telephone, a local tribal elder said the Taliban were in charge of maintaining order in the area. |