Pakistani tribes claim they will eject 'foreign fighters' from North Waziristan in 15 days

[Bilal.]

Military never bothered to use this channel in NW in the past, wont be bothered by this jirga in the upcoming days either. Operation has already been decided.
(The strings of this jirga are pulled in the background by hafiz gul bahadur)

So that means channel has been established with Hafiz Gul Bahadur. This is good news.

 

[waz]

It's plain and simple. These foreign devils are the monkey with a wrench. They will ruin any peace deal, they will scupper any Jigra, they will fight desperately as they have the MOST to lose. They know the tribal people are in their land and can negotiate with their own country, but they are seen as interlopers, terrorists or at the very least by the moronic TTP as overstaying guests. They have to be removed before serious talks begin and I hope the tribal elders can do so.

It's time for that idiot Gul to wake up and smell the coffee. Most of the senior commanders are dead and now he is now on borrowed time. He should not just expel them, but outright kill them and then serious discussions should go on.

 

[Shabaz Sharif]

I agree. Moreover, the bigger irritant for army is TTP than foriegn militants. Jirga didnt talk about TTP fighters, who are carrying out most of the attacks on army in NW. So operation is inevitable, even if foriegn militants are some how flushed out.

Well foreign terrorists have no stake in Pakistan unlike locals. There is huge difference.

 

[Donatello]

Good news. Locals have now realized that when you give sanctuary to these killers in the name of brotherhood, they will take ou down as well.

 

[airmarshal]

15 days might be too short but this what Imran Khan had been saying for a decade. Instead of military operation which creates alienation, let the tribes cleanse the tribal areas of foreign fighters. Empower them, have confidence in them.

 

[Shabaz Sharif]

15 days might be too short but this what Imran Khan had been saying for a decade. Instead of military operation which creates alienation, let the tribes cleanse the tribal areas of foreign fighters. Empower them, have confidence in them.

Tribes can't do that on their own. Terrorists are much better armed.

 

[Menace2Society]

15 days might be too short but this what Imran Khan had been saying for a decade. Instead of military operation which creates alienation, let the tribes cleanse the tribal areas of foreign fighters. Empower them, have confidence in them.

So you would send a bunch of Ak47 wielding amateurs to war? Security is armys job and for lasting peace army intervention is the only solution.

We need to restore the peace, not keep a awkward environment where terrorists can take over at any minute Operation will happen.

Then we can start empowering the locals and develop the area with schools, hospitals, water in homes, new market and roads. With no risk of terrorists interrupting the rise.

 

[general_yermolov_stalin]

Moral of the story : Collective punishment works on pashtun tribesmen. Mughals came up with this policy, they used to destroy and burn entire villages, trampled crops and poison wells....but at the same time they used to keep the door open for negotiations, bribes, treaties etc. Khattak tribe offered their services to mughals after taking a heavy beating. Son of khushal khan khattak agreed that he would arrest or kill his father for Aurangzaib. British studied the mughal policies about frontier pashtun tribes and carried on their legacy.

Collective punishment works very well with tribes that are extremely criminal minded and savage in their behavior. Russia used collective punishment against the chechens with considerable success.

But in other places,collective punishment with passive or obedient tribes or peoples will end in failure and likely cause a full scale revolt and can balkanize the nation.

Normally ,collective punishment should be last option ,but if the tribes are criminal minded and savage ,then the only way to put them in their place is to be much more savage than them.

So you would send a bunch of Ak47 wielding amateurs to war? Security is armys job and for lasting peace army intervention is the only solution.

We need to restore the peace, not keep a awkward environment where terrorists can take over at any minute Operation will happen.

Then we can start empowering the locals and develop the area with schools, hospitals, water in homes, new market and roads. With no risk of terrorists interrupting the rise.

Won't happen with the dollar reserve system. But should the yuan-rouble reserve system replace the dollar,pakistan will greatly benefit .

 

[Menace2Society]

Won't happen with the dollar reserve system. But should the yuan-rouble reserve system replace the dollar,pakistan will greatly benefit .

Not sure what you mean. S Waziristan is developing nicely.

Funds have set aside for development of N Waziristan as soon as we gain full control.

 

[tarrar]

What do they have to say about Afghanis? who are roaming everywhere & are the source of all the problems (terrorism, crimes, drugs, human trafficking & etc.)

 

[Devil Soul]

Eliminating militants may prove a task too big for NWA elders
By Zulfiqar Ali
PESHAWAR: Finally, the elders of Utmanzai tribe of North Waziristan Agency have been tasked to take the bull by the horns within 15 days. The helpless non-combatant residents have to eliminate hardcore foreign fighters from the area.

A mission which could not be fully accomplished by over one division army, thousands of paramilitary troops of the Frontier Corps and big spy network in over eight years has now been handed over to civilians to take on these well-trained fighters. Even US drones could not deter these foreign and local militants.

In other words, the state passed the buck to the people of Utmanzai tribe who have badly suffered physically, mentally, socially and economically because of the eight years long volatile situation in the area.

Provision of security to its citizens is the prime responsibility of the state and the government, but taking advantage of the Frontier Crimes Regulation (FCR) Governor Sardar Mehtab Ahmad Khan and Corps Commander Lt-Gen Khalid Rabbani gave the task to the tribesmen.

Govt needs to initiate joint action against undesired elements
If the tribesmen alone can do this job within two weeks then why the government wasted time and resources on talks and agreements with the Taliban. Instability and uncertainty prevailed in North Waziristan Agency since the government entered into a peace deal with Commander Hafiz Gul Bahadur and Utmanzai tribe in 2006.

The six-point agreement could not produce the desired results though the government and Gul Bahadur stuck to this “sacred document.” Civilians, soldiers and officers have been killed in acts of sabotage despite peace agreements and talks with the militants.

One of the main points of the peace agreement was that outsiders would not be allowed to stay in North Waziristan and despite that the area remained a safe haven for foreigners and their influx into Waziristan continued unabated.

Miramshah, its administrative headquarters, and Mirali have turned into a “multi-cultural society” due to presence of Arabs, Uzbeks, Chechens, Turkish, Afghans, Chinese, Europeans, Punjabis, etc and it was the most accessible area for outsiders. The government’s writ eroded while the political administration has no control even in Miramshah Bazaar.

Much water has flown under the bridge and peace talks between the government and Taliban committees have reached the logical end. Self-declared ‘Father of the Taliban’ Maulana Samiul Haq and his lieutenant Maulana Yousaf Shah seem to have given up efforts to put talks back on the track.

Now the ball has been thrown in the court of Utmanzai elders. The government has used tribes in the rest of tribal agencies to subdue militants. Lashkars were raised and volunteers obtained arms and ammunition.

This strategy was first time put in place in South Waziristan Agency in 2004 and people destroyed hideouts of militants.

Elders who had supported the government and security forces paid a heavy price. Former Senator and federal minister Faridullah Khan was the first to fell victim for supporting Shakai Agreement in 2005.

Hundreds of elders and volunteers of the peace committees from South Waziristan up to Bajaur Agency have been killed in targeted action and improvised explosive devices’ blasts.

Their houses came under attacks and families were forced to leave their areas, but not a single culprit has been arrested so far.

When peace talks between the government and TTP stalled, chief of Waziristan Malik Qadir Khan was gunned down near Miramshah. Speaking at a joint jirga held recently in Governor’s House, he had strongly opposed mechanism of the peace talks with TTP and demanded to engage local elders instead of bureaucrats.

Jingoists conveyed a stern message to people not to indulge themselves in this game otherwise they would bear consequences like Malik Qadir.

A tribal journalist said that over 40 elders have already been killed in North Waziristan Agency. Tribal people are caught between the devil and the deep blue sea.

Media reports about 15-day deadline spread like a jungle fire in the area. People are fleeing Waziristan. Miramshah and Mirali have been deserted. Residents say that militants, including foreigners, have vacated area ahead of the deadline. There are unconfirmed reports that foreigners have either moved across the Afghan border or to Syria.

Instead of delegating the responsibility of flushing out militants from North Waziristan to the tribal people, the government needs to initiate a joint action against the undesired elements challenging its writ.

The government should exploit the differences among the militants and replicate the strategy which was adopted in Ahmadzai Wazir area of South Waziristan in 2007. The security forces had backed Maulvi Nazir group against foreigners and other local troublemakers in Wana. Large-scale displacement and collateral damage could be avoided through this strategy.

Published in Dawn, June 8th, 2014

 

[Multani]

@Azlan Haider what is your view on this peace initiative by JUI Fazlul rahman group leader Pir Aqil Shah of North Waziristan?

 

[Zhukov]

I think it is a positive news. 15 days are not enough for a regrouping tactic or something bybTTP. But it may be enough for Gulbahadur Khalid Sajna Mehsuud and other local factions to persue Foreigners and Hardliners to leave FATA and move into Afghanistan.
If that happens then there will not be any need for an operation and spilling of precious soldier and civilian Blood.
Army ahould give them these 15 days or even a month. Tribals are indeed feeling the heat of wrath of raheel shareef and his determination.
If tribal elders can do this miracle then its a win win for all of us.

 

[faisal6309]

15 days???

I don't think they can accomplish this in 15 days...

 

[My-Analogous]

15 days is not so much and Govt & Army must give them a chance