Leaders of a tribe along the Pakistan-Afghanistan border say they are desperate to avoid bloodshed as a government deadline to turn over al-Qaeda suspects draws near and the Pakistan army tightens a cordon around their mud-brick compounds. Four elders of the Janikhel tribe told The Associated Press they are ready to negotiate with the military, although the leaders insist they arenât harbouring foreign terrorists and that their mountainous land is too forbidding for the likes of Osama bin Laden and his men.
The elders descended the rugged peaks of Shawal, in North Waziristan, to meet with AP this weekend and give their side of the conflict. The government has barred journalists from entering the tribal areas of North and South Waziristan since a March crackdown on a suspected al-Qaeda den, so the bearded old men travelled eight hours over dirt paths and rutted roads to reach Bannu. Clad in sandals, traditional tunics and starched yellow and white turbans, the elders all swore they would turn over any terrorists they found. "The government has put a huge number of troops on our land, and they tell us they are searching for al-Qaeda, but we want to make clear that there are no al-Qaida in Shawal," said Said Khan, one of 35 elders in the 30,000-strong Janikhel tribe. "If there are foreigners, we will turn them over. We cannot afford to punish all of our people to protect one or two outsiders.ââ Pakistani troops have sealed the main routes in and out of Shawal, but they have not moved against the tribesmen. Fighting-age men in the region carry AK-47 machineguns as a matter of routine, and many of the fortress-like compounds are stocked with mortars, grenades and rockets because of frequent inter-tribal clashes. The Janikhels are one of a dozen clans in the tribal belt, and their lands are among the least accessible. No Pakistani troops set foot in the region until 2002, and there are few roads, schools or medical facilities. Families are big, and most get by on about US $20-30 a month from farming or selling timber. Even tribesmen find it impossible to spend the winter in the Shawal mountains, descending during the cold season to a town near Bannu.
The government has shown little confidence in the tribal leadersâ pledges. Last week, 120-140 military vehicles and 4,000-6,000 troops moved into the Shawal region to put steel behind an April 20 deadline for the tribesmen to turn over terror suspects or face military action. The ultimatum was given by the governor last week to a council of tribal elders. The elders say they will get back to authorities before the deadline, but no dates are set for talks. Brig Mahmood Shah, chief of security for the tribal regions, said military action is a possibility. "We prefer a political solution, but at the same time, the threat of force is there and that is extremely important in the tribal areas," he told AP from his office in Peshawar. "Negotiations, threats and military action all go hand-in-hand."
The government fears some terror suspects who fled last monthâs military offensive near Wana, in South Waziristan, may have headed to Shawal, about 40 kilometres to the north. They are also searching for Janikhel tribesmen suspected of launching a March 18 rocket attack that killed four soldiers. The Janikhel insist they donât know of any foreign men on their territory, though they say other tribal lands were probably still home to a few hundred foreign fighters. "These outsiders were a gift from the Americans. They were brought here by the Americans and when they arrived we were told they were honourable holy warriors,ââ said Walayat Khan, a Janikhel businessman who hosted tribal leaders at his Bannu home on Saturday. "Theyâve been here so long they have married into our society and they have fully integrated themselves into our culture."
A grand jirga constituted with the task to unite different clans of Zalikhel Wazir for an effective action against foreign terrorists and wanted tribesmen, failed to make any progress on the fourth consecutive day Tuesday. The jirga is facing some difficulties while the political administration is pressing for clearing the area of foreign terrorists and handing over the wanted tribesmen to the administration. Elders of Kakakhel, Yargulkhel and Utmankhel tribes also met Assistant Political Agent Rahmatullah Khan Wazir in the presence of members of the grand jirga and conveyed him their old stance of inability to apprehend and hand over the wanted men. The Yargulkhel elders excused for their failure to reach out the most wanted tribesmen. Elders of Kakakhel and Utmankhel clans, however, rejected their excuse and said the Yargulkhel tribe was getting more incentives than other tribes and it would have to obey the government orders under the territorial responsibility.
Meanwhile, a pamphlet and an audio message has been received by the political administration through some members of the grand jirga. According to sources, the pamphlet is carrying the message of one Col (retd) Abul Hasan, pledging continuation of "jihad". The message said: "The Pak army jawans are our brothers, but those fighting against us at the behest of the United States are our enemies and we would continue our jihad against them." The message has come from the most wanted tribesmen through some jirga members from Azam Warsak, the sources said. However, the assistant political agent, when contacted denied receiving any such message. |
...Smallest of the agencies in FATA. The Agency administration is located in Khar. Bajaur is inhabited almost exclusively by Tarkani Pashtuns, which are divided into multiple bickering subtribes. Its 52 km border border with Afghanistan's Kunar Province makes it of strategic importance to Pakistain's strategic depth...
Mohmand Agency
SWAT/ BAJAUR: The Pakistan Army will not leave the Swat Valley until and unless complete, sustainable peace is established in the region, Chief of Army Staff (COAS) General Ashfaq Pervez Kayani said.
At least 16 Taliban and two civilians were killed when army helicopter gunships attacked Taliban hideouts in Bajaur Agency, officials said on Thursday. "Helicopter gunships pounded positions of militants in the Damadola, Shinkot areas from morning until evening, killing 16 Taliban and wounding 20 others, most of them civilians," a security official told AFP. Two civilians were also killed in the shelling, he said. Meanwhile, an 
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