Taliban withdraw from Buner after PA warning

[asaeed]

I just do'nt understand why Paramiliatary forces are always being sent to deal with the scum,what is the regular army thinking about.Get in there and make them dead for crying out loud.

 

[Armchair General Bob]

Al Jazeera English - CENTRAL/S. ASIA - Pakistan Taliban 're-enters' Buner

Turns out it wasn't a withdrawal after all.
They probably just left something back home.

This is why I always recommend making a list before going on any trip.

BB

 

[Xeric]

I just do'nt understand why Paramiliatary forces are always being sent to deal with the scum,what is the regular army thinking about.Get in there and make them dead for crying out loud.

Tomorrow you may ask to send in the Army even if your house is robbed!

It is the Army, not a private militia that can be sent anywhere, as of yet no military action has been ordered, so why the hell would the Army go in?

Moreover, it is the Provincial and the Central govt that has to deal with the issue first, they have to make use of what they have in their kitty-the Police, FC and Rangers etc. When the situation is deemed untenable they Army is then called in.

You might argue that isn't the situation untenable as yet, it might be but is there a decision about a proper military action as of yet? No, so Army will stay put unless asked to do so!

i hope you got the point.

 

[Rabbit.Rabbit]

This is incomprehensible - can somebody shed some light on what exactly is going on down there?

 

[blain2]

The Taliban have accomplished a great deal: everyone is thankful at the "withdrawal" and nobody is talking about their failure to disarm.

Withdrawal is specific to Buner, disarmament for Swat valley. And yes people are talking about their disarmament and the survival of the peace deal in Swat is incumbent upon them laying down arms in Swat valley.

 

[S-2]

Well should anybody care to remember this is the second withdrawal from Buner in two weeks.

Initially arriving, I believe two weeks ago with some fights against some local militias and also the killing of two police. Shortly thereafter, Sunday or so, they ostensibly withdrew on a one-for-one basis to be replaced by local recruits (more taliban but homeboys brought into the fold).

Then the latest re-entry and, again, "withdrawal?".

Just getting everybody used to their presence.

"Killing you softly with boredom, walking among you till we're known. Killing you softly..."

I LOVE Roberta Flack.

I dunno. If I'm them, I slow the game down and play by the rules a bit while doing some recon and continuing their world-class I.O. campaign to prep the psychic battlefield.

May already have their recon done and know what they want. We'll see how well they're "seeded" or networked as they move progressively out of their home turf. They'll need a LOT of local assistance to maintain momentum if that's their intent.

That may not be there without some government assistance.

Meanwhile, this is all through your north. The Islamic Emirate of Waziristan has, supposedly 20,000 guys directly under Mehsud's control. There are guys with Bahadur and Nazir, though both are more committed to the afghan war. Apparently, there's a large contingent of uzbeks in this area affiliated or under the operational control of, I believe, Mehsud.

What's up with them and why haven't we seen Mehsud support his TTP-S affiliates in the north with a complementary movement? The dangers and beckoning prizes here seem greater if they, too, move east, do they not?

 

[Solomon2]

It occurs to me that one reason for PA inaction is that they never had a plan for deploying troops to protect the interior provinces, so now they are developing one. (Which is no excuse, of course, for if they don't have one, that means they never planned for an Indian invasion that could capture Islamabad.)

 

[blain2]

It occurs to me that one reason for PA inaction is that they never had a plan for deploying troops to protect the interior provinces, so now they are developing one. (Which is no excuse, of course, for if they don't have one, that means they never planned for an Indian invasion that could capture Islamabad.)

The issue is not one of protecting interior provinces. Its one of weaning people off an ideology. Very big difference. All units have certain areas of responsibility given the fact that Army is often called to the aid of the civil power in both Pakistan and India.

 

[RabzonKhan]

Nuclear fears prompt Pakistan to prepare attack on Taleban

Zahid Hussain, Islamabad
April 25, 2009

Thousands of Pakistani troops were massing for an assault on Taleban positions 65 miles from the country’s capital last night after giving the insurgents 24 hours to withdraw from their advanced positions or face attack.

The threat of force follows a stern warning from American policymakers that Islamabad was doing too little to stem a growing militant insurgency.

Richard Holbrooke, the special US envoy for the region, called Pakistan’s President Zardari on Thursday to convey Washington’s concern. Hillary Clinton, the US Secretary of State, accused Pakistan this week of “abdicating to the Taleban”, which “poses a mortal threat to the security and safety of our country and the world”.

The US considers rooting out militant sanctuaries in Pakistan critical to success in the Afghan war. Washington is also worried about the security of Pakistan’s nuclear weapons.

Mrs Clinton’s remarks followed a recent deal between Mr Zardari and the Taleban in the Swat Valley, allowing them to establish a fundamentalist enclave in the former tourist area in exchange for laying down their arms.

The Taleban have not disarmed, and this week its fighters poured out of Swat into the neighbouring district of Buner, taking control of government buildings and digging in at strategic positions around the major towns.

The threat from the army has so far been enough to encourage some insurgents to start pulling out of Buner, but other fighters were holding positions in the hills.

Local government officials said that militants were seen leaving a high-walled villa that served as their headquarters in Buner, in the foothill of the Karakoram mountains. The black-turbaned fighters carrying automatic weapons and rocket-propelled grenades clambered into several trucks and minibuses before driving away.

Taleban commanders insisted that their fighters had been preaching peacefully for Islamic law. Muslim Khan, a spokesman for the Taleban, said the fighters were leaving “of their own accord, not under any pressure”.

There was no indication that the insurgents were willing to give up control of the mosques and seminaries that they have been using to recruit local youths. A senior officer said that troops had been ordered to eliminate insurgents who refused to surrender.

In an unusually tough statement General Ashfaq Kayani, the head of the army, declared that the military was determined to root out the menace of terrorism and would not allow the militants to dictate terms to the Government or impose their way of life on the civil society of Pakistan.

“The army will fight to eliminate the militants who endanger the security of the country,” he said, addressing senior commanders in Rawalpindi.

 

[muse]

Taleban commanders insisted that their fighters had been preaching peacefully for Islamic law. Muslim Khan,

Well, as is clear, Pakistan cannot act against these Talib, they were "peaceful" and are "democratic" (even though they despise democracy and claim it un-Islamic")