Source: Reuters
* Controversial peace pact near collapse
* Residents flee town though warning withdrawn
* Zardari to meet Obama, Karzai
By Junaid Khan
MINGORA, Pakistan, May 5 (Reuters) - Hundreds of people fled from the main town in Pakistan's Swat valley on Tuesday after a government official urged residents in some neighbourhoods to seek safety as fresh fighting with Taliban militants could erupt.
A February peace pact aimed at ending Taliban violence in the Swat valley northwest of the capital has all but collapsed as the government comes under U.S. pressure to get tough with the militants rather than appease them.
President Asif Ali Zardari, former prime minister Benazir Bhutto's widower, is due to meet U.S. President Barack Obama and Afghan President Hamid Karzai in Washington on Wednesday for talks on the growing militant threat in the region. [ID:nN04433219]
The top government official in Swat, Khushal Khan Khattak, said militants had infiltrated five districts of Mingora, the main town in Swat, and begun attacking security forces and government installations.
He said security forces could soon attack the militants and urged people to get out of harm's way. But he later said the fear of fighting had passed and people could stay home, while the army said it was in control of the town.
That did not reassure the people cramming into and on top of buses to get out of Mingora, 130 km (80 miles) from Islamabad.
"I'm taking my family to Peshawar because if there's any fighting, no one can protect us," said Mohammad Karim, as he searched for a bus heading out of the valley to Peshawar, the main city in the northwest.
Some residents estimated thousands were fleeing.
Increasing violence and the Taliban's spread have raised alarm in the United States about the ability of the nuclear-armed country, whose help is vital in efforts to stabilise Afghanistan, to stand up to the militants.
Residents of Mingora said earlier militants had surrounded a paramilitary force base at a power station in the town and others had taken up positions on buildings and were patrolling streets.
"CIVILIAN SHIELD"
The military said in a statement security forces had beaten back an attack on the camp but a senior military official in the region said an operation might be launched to rescue 46 paramilitary soldiers besieged there.
"We're acting with restraint because they're using civilians as a shield but we'll go after them if the situation gets worse," said the military official, who declined to be identified.
Pakistani stocks <.KSE> ended up but off the day's highs as investors remained cautious amid mounting expectation the military would step up its operations against the militants. [ID:nISL80931]
"The market is jittery due to the worsening situation in Swat and surrounding areas," said Sajid Bhani, a dealer at brokers Arif Habib Ltd.
The February peace pact, under which authorities agreed to a Taliban demand for introduction of Islamic sharia law in the former tourist valley, led to accusations from critics both at home and abroad that the government was caving in to militancy.
The Taliban refused to give up their guns and pushed into Buner district, only 100 km (60 miles) northwest of Islamabad, and another district adjacent to Swat last month, intent on spreading their rule.
U.S. Secretary of State Hillary Clinton last month accused Islamabad of abdicating to the Taliban while Obama expressed grave concern the government was "very fragile" and unable to deliver basic services.
Amid the mounting concern, security forces launched an offensive to expel militants from Buner and another district on April 26. About 180 militants have been killed, according to the military, although there has been no independent confirmation.
The operation in Buner was going smoothly and troops were consolidating their positions, the military said.
At this week's Washington talks, Zardari is expected to do his utmost to convince Obama the government is on the right track and needs help. Obama will present Zardari and Karzai with his strategy for defeating al Qaeda.
Swat is not on the Afghan border. Even so Western countries with troops in Afghanistan fear the area could turn into a bastion for militants fighting in both Afghanistan and Pakistan. (For other stories on Pakistan click on [ID:nSP102615]) (Additional reporting by Kamran Haider; Editing by Robert Birsel and Jerry Norton)
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FACTBOX-Facts about conflict in Pakistan's Swat
05 May 2009 10:09:06 GMT
Source: Reuters
(For the main story, click on [ID:nISL504647])
May 5 (Reuters) - Pakistani authorities urged people on Tuesday in the Swat Valley's main town to leave their homes for safer places as security forces could soon launch an offensive against Taliban militants there.
A February peace pact aimed at ending Taliban violence in the Swat valley northwest of the capital has all but collapsed as the government comes under U.S. pressure to get tough with the militants rather than appease them.
President Asif Ali Zardari, widower of former prime minister Benazir Bhutto, is due to meet U.S. President Barack Obama and Afghan President Hamid Karzai in Washington on Wednesday for talks on the growing militant threat in the region, and Swat is likely to be a topic.
Here are some facts about Swat and the insurgency there.
* Swat, about 130 km (80 miles) northwest of Islamabad, is not on the Afghan border. Nevertheless Western countries with troops in Afghanistan fear the area could turn into a bastion for militants fighting in both Afghanistan and Pakistan.
* Islamist militancy emerged in Swat, an alpine beauty spot and former tourist favourite, in the 1990s when cleric Sufi Mohammad took up arms to impose sharia law in Swat and neighbouring areas of the Malakand region.
* Mohammad was arrested after he returned to Pakistan having led thousands of fighters to Afghanistan in 2001 in a vain attempt to help the Taliban resist U.S.-backed forces.
* Pakistani authorities released him in 2008 in a bid to defuse another uprising, led by his son-in-law cleric Fazlullah, who has ties with other Pakistani Taliban factions and al Qaeda.
* Fazlullah called his men to arms after a military assault on the Red Mosque in Islamabad in mid-2007 to put down an armed movement seeking to impose Islamic law. Fazlullah used illegal FM radio to propagate his message and became known as Mullah Radio.
* The army deployed troops in Swat in October 2007 and used artillery and gunship helicopters to reassert control. But insecurity mounted after a civilian government came to power last year and tried to reach a negotiated settlement.
* A peace accord fell apart in May 2008. After that hundreds, including soldiers, militants and civilians, died in battles.
* Militants unleashed a reign of terror, killing and beheading politicians, singers, soldiers and opponents. They banned female education and destroyed nearly 200 girls' schools.
* About 1,200 people were killed since late 2007 and 250,000 to 500,000 fled, leaving the militants in virtual control.
* Pakistan offered on Feb. 16 to introduce Islamic law in the Swat valley and neighbouring areas in a bid to take the steam out of the insurgency. The militants announced an indefinite ceasefire after the army said it was halting operations in the region. President Asif Ali Zardari signed a regulation imposing sharia in the area last month.
* But the Taliban refused to give up their guns and pushed into Buner, only 100 km (60 miles) northwest of Islamabad, and another district adjacent to Swat, intent on spreading their rule.
* Amid mounting concern at home and abroad, security forces launched an offensive to expel militants from Buner and another district near Swat on April 26.
* A Taliban spokesman said on Monday the peace pact would end unless the government halted its offensive. (Editing by Robert Birsel and Jerry Norton)
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Q+A-What is Pakistan doing about the Taliban threat?
05 May 2009 09:37:31 GMT
Source: Reuters
(For a related story, click on [ID:nISL504647])
By Zeeshan Haider
ISLAMABAD, May 5 (Reuters) - Pakistani authorities urged people on Tuesday in the Swat Valley's main town to leave their homes for safer places as security forces could soon launch an offensive against Taliban militants there.
A February peace pact aimed at ending Taliban violence in the Swat valley northwest of the capital has all but collapsed as nuclear-armed Pakistan comes under U.S. pressure to get tough with the militants rather than appease them.
President Asif Ali Zardari, widower of former prime minister Benazir Bhutto, is due to meet U.S. President Barack Obama and Afghan President Hamid Karzai in Washington on Wednesday for talks on the growing militant threat in the region.
Here are some questions and answers about the issues in Swat and the surrounding region.
WHAT IS AT STAKE?
From Swat the militants had moved into neighbouring Buner area, just 100 km (60 miles) northwest of Islamabad. Failure to stem the Taliban's creeping advance from enclaves in ethnic Pashtun tribal areas on the Afghan border sparked worry among both Pakistanis and Western allies that militants were close to the gateways to Islamabad.
A military spokesman said a few hundred militants in the mountains never posed a real threat to the capital. But some security analysts said the guerrillas could have used Buner as a jumping-off point to strike at Tarbela, a dam that provides water and electricity to much of the country. The militants had also moved closer to a road running north to China.
Before the military offensive in Buner, Western allies, who need Pakistani help to defeat al Qaeda and stabilise Afghanistan, worried the government seemed too willing to appease militants.
While Swat, about 130 km (80 miles) northwest of Islamabad, is not on the Afghan border, Western countries with troops in Afghanistan fear the area could become a bastion for militants fighting in both Afghanistan and Pakistan.
Obama said last week he was confident about the security of Pakistan's nuclear arsenal but the New York Times reported growing U.S. concern militants might try to snatch a weapon in transit or insert sympathisers into laboratories or fuel-production facilities.
ARE THE MILITARY ACTIONS A RESPONSE TO U.S. PRESSURE?
The military moves in Buner and subsequent actions in Swat itself came on the heels of a visit to Islamabad by Admiral Mike Mullen, the chairman of the U.S. Joint Chiefs of Staff, who may have played a role in persuading the weak civilian-led government to act, and before the talks in Washington where Zardari is likely to press for more U.S. military and economic aid.
Washington is considering rushing hundreds of millions of dollars in emergency aid, the U.S. Senate's second-ranking Republican, Jon Kyl of Arizona, told reporters.
U.S. officials have applauded the military action in Buner and urged the Pakistan military to keep the Taliban on the run.
Army chief General Ashfaq Kayani has said the military halted its operations in Swat early last year in order to give politicians space to negotiate, but added the army would not allow militants to impose their will on the country.
Kayani has to counter a general perception the army, whose main focus has been a perceived threat from old rival India, is demoralised and reluctant to fight Pakistani Muslims in Swat, although security forces defeated the Taliban in the Bajaur tribal area on the Afghan border in March.
WHAT WAS BEHIND THE SWAT PEACE DEAL?
Many people from Swat were caught up in the siege of Islamabad's Red Mosque in July 2007, which commandos stormed to put down a militant movement, resulting in at least 100 deaths.
Violence flared in Swat later that year, and while military operations pushed the Taliban back, they regrouped as soon as the army relented to allow politicians space to negotiate a peace.
The North West Frontier Province government led by the Awami National Party (ANP), an ethnic Pashtun party allied to Zardari, struck a deal with a radical cleric in February to impose sharia law in the hope of ending violence.
Zardari sanctioned the imposition of Islamic law in Malakand after parliament passed a resolution last month. Days later, Taliban fighters entered Buner and nearby Shangla district, raising alarm at home and in the West.
Aides say Zardari was reluctant to sign the deal and referred the issue to the parliament after the ANP threatened to leave the federal coalition government. (For other stories on Pakistan and Afghanistan click on [ID:nSP102615) (Editing by Robert Birsel and Jerry Norton)
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RPT-Q+A-Why the Obama attention on Afghanistan and Pakistan?
05 May 2009 11:41:16 GMT
Source: Reuters
(Repeats to fix story cross-reference with no changes in text)
(For the main story, click on [ID:nN04433219])
By Jerry Norton
ISLAMABAD, May 5 (Reuters) - U.S. President Barack Obama presents his strategy for defeating al Qaeda to the leaders of Afghanistan and Pakistan on Wednesday as U.S. concern grows it is losing the Afghan war and neither country is a reliable ally.
The White House meetings with Pakistani President Asif Ali Zardari and Afghan President Hamid Karzai will be Obama's first face-to-face sessions with the two men.
Central to U.S. concerns are the activity of al Qaeda and its leader, Osama bin Laden, held responsible for the Sept. 11, 2001, attacks on the United States, and of the hard-line Islamist Taliban who give al Qaeda shelter and support.
Just a week ago Obama said "it is my job to make sure that bin Laden and his cronies are not able to create a safe haven with which they can kill another 3,000 Americans or more".
But preventing another attack on U.S. soil is not simply a matter of pouring more troops into Afghanistan, nor is that the only concern of the United States in the region. Here are some other considerations.
WHAT ABOUT THE NEIGHBOURS?
India and China have their own problems with Islamic militants they do not want supported from Afghanistan and Pakistan, with whom they share common borders. India or China might be tempted to act if U.S. leadership is ineffective in controlling the situation. So might Shi'ite Muslim Iran, which has its own differences with the militantly Sunni al Qaeda, and is unhappy over a domestic drug problem linked to supplies from Afghanistan. Russia is also worried about the flow of drugs and militancy from the region. Washington does not want Afghanistan and Pakistan as bases for trouble in the wider region, or give others an excuse for intervention.
HOW DOES PAKISTAN FIGURE IN THE AFGHANISTAN WAR?
The U.S.-led invasion in 2001 threw the Taliban out of Kabul and forced their and al Qaeda's remnants into the most remote and rugged parts of Afghanistan and the Pakistan border region. But the United States then turned its attention to Iraq. The forces devoted to Afghanistan not only failed to finish off the militants but could not stop their resurgence. Violence in Afghanistan is at its highest levels since the Taliban were driven from power. The insurgents' ability to rest and regroup in Pakistan has been an important factor in their rebound.
WHAT DOES THE U.S. WANT FROM PAKISTAN?
The United States wants Pakistan to crack down hard on al Qaeda and Afghan Taliban sheltering in the border areas. It is also concerned about growing violence within Pakistan against the government. Indigenous Pakistani Taliban effectively control the Swat valley, and last month moved into the neighbouring Buner area, just 100 km (60 miles) northwest of Islamabad. While the military has since been pushing them back, its past offensives have been followed by peace deals allowing the militants to rearm and increase their strength. They have been able to pull off suicide and other attacks across Pakistan, raising fear about government stability. U.S. Secretary of State Hillary Clinton has accused Islamabad of abdicating to the Taliban by agreeing to Islamic law in Swat and Obama has expressed concern the government is "very fragile".
IS THE U.S. WORRIED ABOUT PAKISTAN'S NUCLEAR WEAPONS?
If one believes the public words of Obama and top U.S. military officer Admiral Mike Mullen, no. Within the last week, for example, Obama said: "I'm confident that we can make sure Pakistan's nuclear arsenal is secure". But other U.S. officials have been quoted anonymously as being less optimistic. The New York Times has reported growing U.S. concern militants might try to snatch a weapon in transit or insert sympathisers into laboratories or fuel-production facilities, especially given what some call Pakistan's "creeping Talibanisation". For its part, Islamabad insists the weapons are safe.
WHY ELSE ARE AFGHANISTAN AND PAKISTAN IMPORTANT?
Afghanistan produces 90 percent of the world's opium, and Clinton said it had become a "narco state" in her confirmation hearings. Much of the output comes from Taliban-controlled areas.
Much of the material for U.S.-led forces in Afghanistan is unloaded in Pakistan's main port of Karachi and transported by land into Afghanistan. Increase militancy and political turbulence in Pakistan threaten those supplies.
Given peace and security, Pakistan and Afghanistan have the potential to be an "energy corridor" with pipelines carrying natural gas from the Middle East and Central Asia to the growing economies of India, China and other Asian countries. (For related stories click on [ID:nSP102615]) (Editing by Robert Birsel)
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Obama wants alliance with Afghan, Pakistan heads
06 May 2009 12:00:17 GMT
Source: Reuters
(Repeats with no change in text)
* Meetings part of Obama's strategy to defeat al Qaeda
* Obama to urge all to work together for mutual benefit
* Sessions could produce accord on policing, border issues
By David Alexander
WASHINGTON, May 6 (Reuters) - U.S. President Barack Obama will urge the leaders of Pakistan and Afghanistan to put aside a history of mistrust and join Washington in an alliance against Islamic extremists at a White House meeting on Wednesday, senior administration officials said.
Offering billions of dollars in U.S. military and civilian aid, Obama will warn that al Qaeda and its Taliban allies pose an existential threat and press Pakistani President Asif Ali Zardari and Afghan President Hamid Karzai to toughen their response, the officials said.
"He's going to make the obvious general points that have to be said and carry such enormous weight when they are said by the president of the United States -- that these two countries have to work together for their mutual benefit, despite their history, despite the suspicions," said one official.
The White House gathering, part of Obama's new strategy for the U.S. war against al Qaeda, could produce specific agreements for cooperation on policing and border issues, the officials said.
Meetings between the three delegations begin on Wednesday morning at the State Department and continue in the afternoon with heads of government sessions at the White House. Obama will hold separate meetings with each of the leaders as well as a joint session.
Meetings continue on Thursday, with many U.S. Cabinet officials -- including interior, intelligence and agriculture -- hosting their counterparts in what one official described as an "exceedingly intensive" U.S. government involvement with Afghan and Pakistani leaders.
"Our goal is to get the two countries to work more closely together. You can't succeed in this war given the geography unless they cooperate," the official said.
"We'd like an alliance with these two countries against this kind of (extremist) threat," another official said. "It's very simple ... but quite profound."
The gathering comes as the United States is pressing Zardari to deal more aggressively with the threat from the Taliban, whose movement into the Buner valley 60 miles (97 km) northwest of Islamabad prompted a military offensive to eject them.
"Pakistan must demonstrate its commitment to rooting out al Qaeda and the violent extremists within its borders," Richard Holbrooke, the U.S. special representative for Afghanistan and Pakistan, said on Tuesday in prepared congressional testimony.
The Taliban was driven out of Afghanistan, where it once hosted al Qaeda, by the United States and its allies after the Sept. 11, 2001, attacks.
The group, once nurtured by Pakistan's military and intelligence services, moved into the lawless region along Pakistan's frontier and his been expanding its influence in that country as well as in Afghanistan.
NUCLEAR ARSENAL SAFE?
The United States has been pressing Pakistan to adopt a counterinsurgency approach combining both military and civilian efforts to weaken Taliban influence. That would require Pakistan to shift military focus away from its traditional enemy India.
Obama has urged the U.S. Congress to provide $1.5 billion annually for five years to help Pakistan develop roads, schools, clinics and other civilian infrastructure.
The Taliban advance toward Islamabad has alarmed U.S. officials and raised concerns about the security of Pakistan's nuclear arsenal, but Zardari said on Tuesday the atomic weapons were safe.
Zardari told CNN he would ask Obama to let Pakistan purchase pilotless U.S. drones for his military arsenal. He said he did not want Washington to use the weapons to carry out attacks on his soil and Pakistan did not need a U.S. troop presence.
U.S. forces have used drone aircraft against suspected al Qaeda leaders in Pakistan, but the attacks often kill civilians and many Pakistanis are angry the Obama administration continues to use them.
"I will request the president of the United States to give it a thought that we own them (drones), then we take out our targets rather than somebody else coming and do it for us," Zardari told CNN.
U.S. officials have criticized Zardari for the weakness of his government and have met with his political opponents. But Holbrooke sent an unambiguous signal of support for the president, the widower of former Pakistani Prime Minister Benazir Bhutto who was assassinated in 2007.
"We have the highest strategic interests in supporting this government," Holbrooke said in his congressional testimony. "Our goal must be unambiguously to support and help stabilize a democratic Pakistan headed by its elected president, Asif Ali Zardari," he said.
(Editing by Vicki Allen)
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