Swat Operation II

[IceCold]

Dear IceCold:
You probably have an exaggerated view of the effectiveness of SSG. SSG has been misused and abused in almost every operation in FATA and Bajaur. The last time they were used for their true purpose was in 1971, with lack luster results.

Really! I do not have an exaggerated view of SSG, i know what they are capable of doing. There mission in simple words is to "Search and Destroy". The more boots we put on the ground, the more there is a chance of military casualties and besides their presence becomes aware to the taliban and air strike is not an option because of collateral damage.
On a side note SSG is not being abused in FATA or Bajur, if other wise please prove it with a valid link and not your personal assessment.

 

[Pk_Thunder]

TTP contacts Swat Taliban on girls’ education ban​

Anwarullah Khan
KHAR: Tehrik-i-Taliban Pakistan (TTP) , a proscribed organisation, has said they were not against the education of boys and girls and have contacted the Swat Taliban to reconsider their decision of banning girls’ education.
Maulvi Omar, TTP’s spokesman, while talking to journalists on phone from an undisclosed location, said that the TTP has contacted the Taliban in Swat on the issue of banning girls’ education on Friday.
The negotiations with Mullah Fazlullah’s spokesman are going on in an effort to convince them to reconsider their decision of banning girls’ education which was enforced from Jan 15, a deadline announced by the Taliban in Swat.
He said Taliban leadership has expressed concern on hearing the news. It has not only stressed that the Swat Taliban should take back this decision but also wanted them to announce it on the FM radio in Swat.
'The majority of Swat Taliban shura members have agreed with us. Soon they will reach a decision on the issue after consultations,' Maulvi Omar said.
The TTP believes that boys and girls both have the right to education and Swat Taliban should take back the ban on girls’ education, he said.
'The people of Swat will soon hear the good news. We are trying to speak to Mullah Fazlullah’s spokesman about taking back the decision immediately,' Maulvi Omar said.
Maulvi Omar warned the government that if torture on the Taliban imprisoned in the Central Adiala Jail was not stopped then TTP would start killing government officials and security personnel in its custody.
'The Taliban leadership has decided that if the government did not stop torturing Taliban prisoners, those in custody of the TTP would also be killed one by one.'
TTP leader Baitullah Mehsud and his spokesman condemned the 'inhuman treatment' of imprisoned taliban at the hands of jail staff and security personnel. Some prisoners have started hunger strike to protest against the torture.
Mehsud's spokesman said the Taliban had several government officials, majority of them security personnel, in their custody.
'We have neither tortured them nor were the captured persons mistreated by the Taliban. They are being treated as prisoners of war (POWs) and are provided with basic necessities of life including contact with their families through telephone.'

 

[Anwar2]

Dear Ice Cold:

I guess we are all free to express our views at this forum as long as we stay within the bounds of decency.

Misuse or abuse of SSG in FATA is in the context of their mission. Was the SSG raised to fight solely on Pakistani territory? If not, please compare a listing of their operations against India to those conducted in Balochistan, NWFP, FATA and one time in Sind. Statistics will tell you the true story.

The last use of this outfit in “true anger” was in Siachin 1988. The most daring was the Dras Airfield / Kargil 1971.

The most unfortunate misuse of SSG was during the Lal Masjid operation. From that fateful night in 2007 inwards the once “elite” outfit is being viewed in the prism of Indian Army in Kashmir and Israeli Army in Palestine. This is great injustice to the elite arm painstakingly raised by Abu Bakr Usman Mitha and later by Tariq Mehmood. .

 

[swatay007]

I have been reading many threads in this forum about swat and unfortunately i found out that all of you are distracted from the point. what the true reality is ? No one out of you Know.

I dont blame you because you dont live in swat. and you dont suffer. while we reside in swat and we know whats going on.
Swat State Was the most well developed state in this whole region.
Pakistan is trying to bult schools in whole country after every five kilometers, Swat state has obtained this Goal even before it Joined Pakistan officially on 28th July 1969 after which the first and only thing that is made in swat is the now being built Cancer Hospital By the federal Govt and thats all.

Its a pity that till last week the media ignored swat. The were paid by the agencies.

Swati people have helped the Pakistan Army in every aspect.

we helped and our relatives died in getting the now called Azad KAshmir
we helped and our relatives died in the 1971 war.
we helped and our relatives died in the 1965 war.
we helped and our relatives died in even the Kargil Conflict. General Musharraf in his book have called them as Mujahideens in his book "In the line of fire"

But what army and intelligence is doing to us is shameful.
They thereselves have started this drama and and now they and the so called Taliban are killing civilians. They are killing each and every person who is damaging their drama.

At first people were very happy after the arrival of Pak Army in swat. But as time passed on we all understood that this game has actually started by the Intelligence.

We used to ask the army why are you not taking action? and their answer was always like this. WE DONT HAVE ORDERS.

The people then approached the army and asked for weapons so that they by themselves could Finish the violence but again the army denied. mean while people were being killed everyday and school were been burnt and blasted.

we ourself witnessed once when the taliban were burning and blasting a school and the army check post was a mere 100 meters away and they didnt even bother to retaliate. Taliban stood there for one hour and when the school was completely destroyed they then left.

Its amazing that anyone who contact the army secretly and tells them taliban positions , he is killed and beheaded the next day. This means only one thing. TALIBAN AND THE HIGHER ARMY RANKS ARE ONE.

To block an FM radio Merely cost less then a Lac . Taliban FM radio channel is still on air even after the passage of One and a half year. Why is the govt Not blocking it... pretty obvious...

People say that Pakistan Gets Money from America in the name of Swat by saying that these people are terrorist and we are fighting them. At first i didnt believed it but now i am sure of it.

What makes me worry is that in their race of getting money from America they have and are further damaging the Reputation of Islam. They have made a "monster" of Islam. today even the local pakistani thinks that sharia means to force people not to shave beared and to force women not to study etc etc But i an all the people of swat know it better that This is not Islam. This may be the propaganda of Intelligence or americans or even indian but this is not Islam.

I live in swat my whole family lives in swat. Two of my sisters are doctors. they too live in swat. we gave our sisters their due share in inheritance. we follow islam. Yes our women Observe Parda. My sisters too observe parda. But still they are Doctors now.

has all this stopped us from moving further in the community. NO.

I request all of you to be clear in your mid that What Talibans are doing is somthing else and what is called "Sharia Laws" are somthing else.

I also request all of you to dufferenciate between Mullah And Aalims and Mufti.

Aalim gets the degree of aalim when he after doing his F.A or FSC he study for Eight years in a dar-ul-ullom.

And when the Aalim further studies three more years he then after passing his Exam is given the degree of Mufti.

That becomes a total of 11 years of education after doing F.A or FSC.
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How can You Help us.????

There is no doubt that the people of swat Love Islam and they want the implementation of islamic laws instead of the laws gifted to us bu the British Rulers.

You can help us by approaching the leading Mufti's from the prestigeous Dar-ul-ulloms like Dar-ul-uloom Karachi, Jamia Binoria , Binori Town, Jumia Tur Rasheed and many more and bring them togather to formulate Sharia laws for implementation in swat.

In this was the terrorist would then no longer have any reason to kill people and burn schools and prepare innocent youngsters for suicide bombings etc.

 

[acidwolf]

i totally agree with you brother.... its all drama... i m an electronic engineer and in my final year project i made a device in which i could stop all the mobile network connections and all it cost me to buy equipments was 20 pounds which is like 3000 rupees. but the army who got billions of rupees cant even stop one FM channel? how pitty....if they cant do it then they should hire me atleast. lol

 

[Omar1984]

Reading your post made me very upset. I dont know anyone personally living in Swat so didnt know what the local people think about the entire situation. How can Pakistani army not protect the citizens of Pakistan?

Money is not more important than Pakistani lives, and there'll be more harm than good if Pakistani army are not protecting the citizens of Pakistan in all areas of Pakistan.
Why bring this to the beautiful valley of Swat.
Swat is not Waziristan, Swat is more beautiful and the economy of Swat was much better off than other areas of Pakistan. Pakistan gains nothing by this war in Swat.

 

[swatay007]

This is an excerpt from Daily Times
Source: Daily Times

80,000 female students bear brunt of Taliban ban in Swat

* Govt, private schools unlikely to reopen after winter vacations
* 8,000 female teachers go unemployed after closure

By Saleem Athar

MINGORA: Government and private schools across Swat are unlikely to reopen when the winter vacations end after a Taliban deadline expired on Thursday – with around 80,000 female students facing a year without classes.

Last month, the Taliban threatened to kill any girl attending classes after January 15, and to blow up any schools where girls are enrolled.

The expiry of the deadline – which did not apply to girls below grade five – has been followed by the closure of around 400 schools in Swat, leaving the education of around 80,000 female students and the careers of about 8,000 female teachers in jeopardy.

Residents are complaining that the government has not responded to the situation. They say the closure of schools has left some parents with no option but to migrate, but the majority cannot afford such a move.

District education officials also said the government had not yet come up with a solution.

The district administration had asked private schools to continue classes, but the request has been turned down. A spokesman for an association of private schools told AFP the resumption of classes was in doubt. “The government has assured us it will provide security, but it is a question of the lives of the students ... we cannot take a risk.” The Swat Taliban have already destroyed 122 girls’ schools.

 

[Omar1984]

This is an excerpt from Daily Times
Source: Daily Times

80,000 female students bear brunt of Taliban ban in Swat

* Govt, private schools unlikely to reopen after winter vacations
* 8,000 female teachers go unemployed after closure

By Saleem Athar

MINGORA: Government and private schools across Swat are unlikely to reopen when the winter vacations end after a Taliban deadline expired on Thursday – with around 80,000 female students facing a year without classes.

Last month, the Taliban threatened to kill any girl attending classes after January 15, and to blow up any schools where girls are enrolled.

The expiry of the deadline – which did not apply to girls below grade five – has been followed by the closure of around 400 schools in Swat, leaving the education of around 80,000 female students and the careers of about 8,000 female teachers in jeopardy.

Residents are complaining that the government has not responded to the situation. They say the closure of schools has left some parents with no option but to migrate, but the majority cannot afford such a move.

District education officials also said the government had not yet come up with a solution.

The district administration had asked private schools to continue classes, but the request has been turned down. A spokesman for an association of private schools told AFP the resumption of classes was in doubt. “The government has assured us it will provide security, but it is a question of the lives of the students ... we cannot take a risk.” The Swat Taliban have already destroyed 122 girls’ schools.

I dont understand why our Pakistani army is letting this happen

 

[linkinpark]

I dont understand why our Pakistani army is letting this happen

It could be because of two reasons, either the army is utterly incompetent or army is cahoots with Taliban. If you go by recent reports in Pakistani media, it seems many swati people feel that it is the latter that is happening in Swat.

 

[highlander]

Swat diary: 'Taleban rule now'

Munir (not his real name), an administrator in the Swat region of north-west Pakistan, describes the challenges of daily life in his valley as the Taleban and the army vie for influence. In recent weeks, he says, the Taleban have gained the upper hand and are making their presence felt in brutal fashion.

I know I always say the situation is terrible. And each time I find myself saying it, I am aware it has got worse.

Over the last five to six days 13 bodies have been found in our area. In Mingora [capital of Swat] bodies are laid out in the square called Green Chowk. Hundreds come and look at the dead bodies.

Sometimes they have been beheaded, sometimes they are just shot.

Over the last few months the number of people killed in my village alone is in double digits. Some of them are villagers, others are frontiers corps and sometimes we see total strangers just lying there.

But recently there was a terrible death in our village. It happened while I was away. It was a prominent man who spoke against the Taleban and tried to unite people against them. He was shot dead.

The deadline of 15 January that the Taleban have set for girls schools to close down is a false deadline. Schools have already closed.

Dozens have been burned to the ground. My two nieces were going to school and now they just stay at home. Nobody dares to educate girls now.

People are very sad about this but they are more sad about the dead bodies. People are really becoming very upset about this problem.


'Beatings'

And the Taleban are taking power, they are going up in the world.

Last night I saw for myself in my village that they had painted on walls signs saying: "Do not smoke" and "do not sell hashish". It is frightening to see these things painted around your home.

In a village close by militants entered people's homes and broke television sets and beat the owners using terrible force on them.

They walk about warning people not to smoke and sell cigarettes or hashish. Some people in our village smoke hashish and opium.

The people who were seen smoking during Ramadan were taken by the Taleban, beaten and their mobiles were broken.


'People leaving'

Most of the Taleban in my area are local villagers, I have come to believe now. Or at least people who were close friends of the Taleban.

Things have changed a lot recently as the Taleban have gained more power in this region. They have guns, weapons, they have got everything. So I think this makes people want to become one of them.

Some people are leaving. My uncle's old home has been occupied by the Taleban. They have total control of his village. Many of the homes there were razed to the ground when the Taleban battled the army - but the Taleban are still there, although many villagers have left.

Here, nobody really fully knows who belongs to the Taleban. The militants are obvious, the sympathisers are not. There is no trust. The issue becomes complicated when reporters come to the district. Nobody is willing to talk to them.

Everyone is scared.

BBC NEWS | South Asia | Swat diary: 'Taleban rule now'

 

[waraich66]

It could be because of two reasons, either the army is utterly incompetent or army is cahoots with Taliban. If you go by recent reports in Pakistani media, it seems many swati people feel that it is the latter that is happening in Swat.

What ever is going on in SWAT is due to interference and support of india and local mullahs are playing in their hand .What method they are using to implement islam by force is not allowed and totally illegal.Islam can not forced with gun in one day just like some body ask some one that engineering or medicine will be forced on you in one day.

Implementation of islam is long process which need continues struggle but not through war these jehadi mullahs actually distroying the image of islam.

 

[Beskar]

SWAT would soon be restored back to it's original beauty. Tourism will once again flourish in the region InshAllah. We Pakistanis have so many memories attached to that place. I bet there isn't one pakistani who hasn't been to SWAT as a tourist.

Pakistan Army is doing all it can to tackle the challenge we face and InshAllah they'll succeed.

 

[RedBaron]

What ever is going on in SWAT is due to interference and support of india and local mullahs are playing in their hand .

Ah, I see you're hinting at the USA-UK-Israel-India axis again....

But the reality is much simpler. Swat Taliban is an offshot of Tehrik-i-Taliban. In fact, as the below DAWN report suggests, TTP is now pressurizing Swat Taliban to stop burning girls schools and announce it on their radio.

DAWN.COM | NWFP | TTP contacts Swat Taliban on girls? education ban

And why is the army not acting in Swat? One reason could be they fear that Mehsud's TTP would then kill soldiers and govt officials held hostage by them as threatened in the article. After all TTP and Swat Taliban seem to be brother organizations.

 

[linkinpark]

What ever is going on in SWAT is due to interference and support of india and local mullahs are playing in their hand

Pakistan is a Utopian country and whatever bad happens in it is because of external forces. By the way, what is your army doing?. What happened to all the talk of sovereignty, when taliban is encroaching upon Pakistan's writ day by day.

 

[waraich66]

Pakistan is a Utopian country and whatever bad happens in it is because of external forces. By the way, what is your army doing?. What happened to all the talk of sovereignty, when taliban is encroaching upon Pakistan's writ day by day.

Army action can not be effective when local population and terrorist mullahs fighting together.There is need to isolate these jehadi mullahs from local support.
PA know this satuation very well hopefully jehadi mullahs will be eliminated soon through by our cammandos ,they only understand their language.