#3 This guy Fazal Rabbi Khan or is it a common name?
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WANA: Eleven people including nine security personnel were injured during US air strike in Angoor Ada area near Wana. According to sources, US jets carried out bombardment in Angoor Ada area on Thursday night. Nine security officials and two civilians were injured whereas four vehicles were destroyed in the airstrike. The injured were shifted to Wana hospital.
A private TV channel reported that at least nine people, seven of them soldiers, were injured overnight in a mortar attack in a Pakistani tribal area bordering Afghanistan, a security official said Friday. A market and a Frontier Corps camp in the Angoor Ada area of South Waziristan came under attack from across the border, following an assault by Taliban insurgents on a camp of US-led coalition forces in Afghanistan. Many mortars were fired from across the border, which hit a market and the Frontier Corps camp, injuring two civilians and seven soldiers, a local security official told AFP on condition of anonymity. According to a private TV channel, the rockets and shells were fired by US forces from Machidad camp which was attacked by Taliban. After the attack carried out by Taliban on Machi-dad camp, allied forces fired more than sixty shells on Pakistan's soil.
Ten mortar shells have also been fired from the Afghanistan side, which landed in Angor Adda, Baghar and Mousa Naka, the locals said.
According to the local people, rockets are being fired on daily basis in Pakistani area, which created sense of harassment among the inhabitants and started migration to safer areas.
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It was further learned that the native tribal masses held a local jirga that was attended by 30 tribal notables who register protest in the traditional way by beating drums with specific tune and while addressing the Jirga Malik Nur Zada a tribal notable informed that the tribal masses were severely disturbed with spying planes flights due to their heavy noise.
any way a speaker on a predator could play those drum licks?
US gets ready for ‘hot pursuit’
Hafiz Sanaullah
PESHAWAR: Perhaps Pakistanis are taking it light but Washington means it. Nobody knows whose fault it is behind the spill over of the US war on terror from the bordering Afghanistan to the tribal areas of Pakistan. The Washington-Islamabad-Kabul troika must be blamed for its failure in coordination at least. Several past attempts against terrorism resulted in split because of lack of confidence coupled with suspicion against each other. The US is suspicious of Pakistan. Washington believes its more calls went unheard by Islamabad. Why not more calls for Karzai? one wonders. Kabul is playing blame game. Karzai has thrown the entire dirt on Islamabad bothering little about his own responsibility. Pakistan is feeling uneasy amidst its sacrifices as frontline ally, doing more than more without recognition. Karzai thinks it is he to rule Kabul and Pakistan to fight militants. Pakistan says Karzai should act on its own side of the border and let Pakistan do so on its side of the border. Once little mouth became louder mouth when Karzai declared Afghan forces would enter into the tribal areas of Pakistan and themselves pick Baitullah Mehsood and Maulana Fazlullah and others. Pakistanis raised their eyebrows over such a statement from a person who was provided bread and butter with shelter for over twenty years in a country whom Karzai declared his second home. But some Pakistanis believe and rightly believe it was not Karzai. It was his master's voice.
Of late, a threat came from Americans. The hot pursuit chorus voices, calling for operation against the militants inside the tribal areas, are growing day by day. Three US congressmen revealed that American commandos are ready to raid the tribal belt in hot pursuit. President Bush has gone too far. He gave the line to the next US president saying that Pakistan would be a challenge for him and not Iraq and Afghanistan. The increase in the strength of American marines to 40,000 is nowadays talk of the day since Afghanistan based NATO forces chief expressed inability to fight against Taliban with the existing strength of force. Pakistan opted for and initiated dialogue with the militants which the US and west opposed. Pakistan says talks are on with those Taliban who are willing for peace accord. Protagonists of dialogue believe the militants would be binding under the accord to desist from attacks. The US and west say talks would refresh the militants for more attacks on their interest. Pakistan gave second thought to dialogue and planned to carry out operation to wipe out the militants from their hideouts. But the missile attack by the US drone in Mohmand tribal agency on June 11 killing 11 Pakistani security personnel and eight civilians raised the morale of the militants for strengthening the backing of the masses. Pakistan described this attack as cowardly. The US regretted but not apologized. However, Washington assured such attack would not be repeated. The US does not seem to be serious. Its drones' intrusion into the space territory of tribal areas has become daily routine, panicking the tribesmen in the tribal belt. The US led forces advanced and concentration on the Pakistani tribal border must be embarrassing the newly elected democratic govt. Just on the night between Thursday and Friday, a Pakistani check post came under mortar shelling attack in Zaira Laita in Angur Adda, 25 kilometer west of Wana, headquarters of South Waziristan, wounding eight Pakistani security personnel. Moreover, 10 mortar shells were fired on the mountains inside Pakistan from Barmal area of Afghanistan and these mortar shells burst with a big bang in Angur Adda, Baghar and Musa Neka creating great panic in these three areas. Unilateral US action inside Pakistan would, no doubt, inflame the Pakistanis at the public level both in settled and tribal areas and trigger retaliatory attacks.
Amidst blame game of Karzai and US threats, NWFP remained in the grip of militancy. The uncertain situation of insecurity was so escalated that even Peshawar, the provincial capital was threatened to be occupied by the militants. The kidnapping of 16 Christians from the heart of Peshawar worked. Islamabad initiated military operation, and blew over two dozens hideouts of Mangal Bagh, chief of Lashkar-e-Islam in Bara. His house was turned into debris. He and his volunteers quietly slipped into deep remote and inaccessible valley of Tirah. A tribal jirga intervened and made Mangal Bagh binding to accept the government terms.
This followed Hangu operation at the pattern of Bara operation. The troubled Doaba was occupied by the militants as they besieged the police station to free their over half a dozen militants including their commander. However, the military cleared the area from the militants.
The US must give Islamabad free hand to initiate tackling with the militants in its own way. It should also ask the same to Kabul and keep Karzai's mouth shut against Pakistan. Islamabad know that the moment suicide bomb explosion shook the Indian Embassy in Kabul, it was Karzai who phoned the Indian prime minister holding Pakistan responsible for it even before letting the dust to settle. It was another matter that India evaded blaming Islamabad. Pakistan denied involvement and White House supported.
Analysts say the US should refrain from physically entering into Pakistan in hot pursuit and leave it to Islamabad to clear the mess. The US is in haste which won't work.
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Unmanned United States drones armed with missiles have stepped up patrols over villages along the Pak-Afghan border, hunting for Taliban and Al Qaeda militants and fraying nerves below. 