 Despite tall claims of eliminating Al-Qaeda from the troubled Northern areas, Pakistanâs General Pervez Musharraf has, in practice, handed over the once hotbed of foreign militants, the South Waziristan Agency, to a former Taliban Commander, until recently a wanted terrorist by the Army. Ubaidullah Mahsood, who had a head money of several hundred thousand rupees is now running his own Government in the Agency, and in Taliban style.
| That'd be Baitullah Mehsud, Abdullah's brother, who "surrendered" to the Pakalonians... |
And to facilitate âCommanderâ Ubaidullah Mahsood, General Musharraf has withdrawn all Pakistan Army troops from the area under Mahsoodâs control. âThe Taliban militia is back in power, now inside Pakistan and is transforming the area into its fiefdom,â a tribal elder told this correspondent from Dera Ismail Khan on telephone. The elder, who wanted to remain anonymous for obvious reasons, described the situation in the agency as âatrociousâ like it was in pre-September 2001 Afghanistan, under the Taliban rule.
| That's because the Taliban originated right there, and their regime was an expression of peculiarly Pashtun values. |
Ubaidullah Mahsood has banned television, satellite dishes, music and videos declaring them un-Islamic. Kids cannot play cricket as it is described as the game of infidels. Shops are forced to close during the prayer timings, and those who try to skip the prayers are forced to proceed to the mosques. Women have been asked not to dress other than the local traditional cloths. Common people are asked to contact the local Taliban commander to resolve their personal disputes. Groups of Taliban carrying AK-47 rifles and rocket launchers are being sent to remote villages with the orders of their hard line leaders. These Taliban call jirgas in village mosques and do not tolerate defiance. Warnings have also been issued to criminals. âAny one found involved in a crime including theft, robbery or drug trade will face cutting of the hand, the punishment prescribed in Sharia laws.â There are reports that some of the criminals were arrested, paraded in public and taken away to unknown place.
| See what I mean? Though I think the peculiar resonance between the worst of Arab culture and the run-of-the-mill Pashtun culture probably results in something that combines the worst elements of both. The two seem to feed each other... |
What has stunned the local population is the sudden transformation of fortunes of the former Taliban leaders and supporters and how those who were until recently hunted by the Pakistan Army for months, had gained legitimacy and returned to power. The Army operation in South Waziristan had claimed hundreds of lives and Pakistan Army had suffered heavy casualties as well. Thousands of inhabitants were displaced from their native villages and are still forced to live in tough conditions elsewhere, either in Tribal Areas or adjacent cities of Tank and Dera Ismail Khan. Life marginally started improving in Mahsood territories of South Waziristan Agency when Ubaidullah and his followers entered into a peace dialogue with the Pakistan Army, responding to a general amnesty offered by General Musharraf. A ceasefire was announced on February the 2nd this year in a crowded signing ceremony attended by Corps Commander Peshawar and Ubaidullah Mahsood. Both sides stopped attacking each other. Army started pulling back the troops as displaced locals started returning to their homes. Tribal leaders guaranteed law and order in their part of agency.
| The Pak army withdrew, so Mehsud took it as an abandonment of the field, which it apparently was... |
Waziri militants were also given millions of rupees that they demanded to pay back their Al-Qaeda masters, the advance they had taken to resist the Army operation. In an indirect way, Pakistan Army paid millions to Al-Qaeda which could be used at other places, at another time.
| Well, no. Not indirect. I don't think I'd call it that. |
But all this is now coming to naught. According to tribal sources despite the agreement with the Pakistan Army, Ubaidullah Mahsood helped the most wanted militant in Waziristan, the fugitive and defiant Abdullah Mehsud, to escape from South Waziristan Under the Administration of Ubaidullah Mahsood, targeted killings of many of those who helped the Pakistan Army during the summer operation have been reported.
| I thought Abdullah was titzup? Or did they forget to drive a stake through his heart? |
More than 36 such killings have been witnessed only in South Waziristan and many others have received warnings. The same trend was observed in North Waziristan where bodies of victims were found on road side or deserted places with messages that âthose who will spy for infidel Americans will meet this fate.â The killers did not even hide their identities but authorities did not arrest a single person. |