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| India-Pakistan |
| Massive military operation in Waziristan on the cards |
| 2008-01-06 |
| ISLAMABAD- A large-scale military operation is on cards in the restive tribal belt of Waziristan to stamp out the ‘local Taliban’ led by Baitullah Mehsud, who is blamed by the government for most of the recently carried out suicide blasts including one that killed the former Prime Minister Benazir Bhutto. 34-year old militant commander Baitullah Mehsud, as his name suggests, belongs to the Mehsud tribe in South Waziristan, a troubled region, which is now considered to be the safe haven for al-Qaeda and Taliban. Baitullah Mehsud, according to security officials here, has played a major role in the expansion of militants’ writ and control in Waziristan besides, extending support to the militants in other tribal areas as well as the district of Swat. “Pakistan’s top security brass believes that Mehsud is the most important militant leader in the current scenario and in order to eradicate the scourge of terror, a full-fledged military operation against him and the militants being led by him is a must,” said a senior official here on Saturday requesting anonymity. He said that new military offensive could be launched any time soon to crush the militants in Waziristan and in this regard preparations were being carried out. He was of the view that the resignation of Governor NWFP, Lt Gen (Retd) Ali Mohammad Jan Aurakzai also showed that the government had made up its mind to flush out al-Qaeda and Taliban in the rugged mountainous region with full force. Aurakzai became the Governor of NWFP in May 2004. He is known to be the architect of September 5, 2006 agreement between the government and militants in North Waziristan |
| Posted by:john frum |