- Reaction score
- 0
- Points
- 210
Pakistani Gunships Pound Al-Queda Amid US Pressure
Shared in accordance with fairdealings of the copyright act
Article Link: http://ca.news.yahoo.com/s/afp/070810/world/pakistan_afghanistan_unrest
Source: Yahoo News
MIRANSHAH, Pakistan (AFP) - Helicopter gunships pounded suspected Taliban and Al-Qaeda hideouts in northern Pakistan, as the United States called for even greater efforts in the battle against the militants.
The military said at least 10 militants were killed in the attack, which also involved ground forces, on a pro-Taliban district in the restive North Waziristan region near the Afghan border on Thursday.
Military spokesman Major General Waheed Arshad told AFP the strike was launched after several roadside bomb attacks earlier in the day in the same region wounded four soldiers.
In a separate incident in South Waziristan 16 soldiers were missing and believed kidnapped by militants.
The fiercely-independent tribes of the Waziristan region have been accused of giving shelter to Taliban and Al-Qaeda militants blamed for plotting bombings and other attacks in Pakistan, Afghanistan and around the world.
The new Pakistani raid came two days after a helicopter strike killed at least 13 militants in Waziristan, and while tribal leaders from Afghanistan and Pakistan meet in Kabul to discuss Islamic militant violence in the region.
However elders from North and South Waziristan, two of Pakistan's seven tribal regions along the Afghan border, are boycotting the "peace jirga".
The strike also came as US President George W. Bush again urged Pakistani President Pervez Musharraf to do more to track down Al-Qaeda leaders hiding in the tribal regions.
"I have made it clear to him that I expect that there be full cooperation in sharing intelligence" and "swift action" against Al-Qaeda inside Pakistan if solid intelligence emerges about their whereabouts, Bush said Thursday.
Bush was also careful to express respect for Pakistan's sovereignty, following Islamabad's publicly expressed anger over calls for unilateral US action to target Osama bin Laden and Al-Qaeda.
According to US intelligence reports Al-Qaeda leaders are sheltering in lawless tribal regions.
Islamabad has been angered in recent weeks by what it called "irresponsible and dangerous" warnings by US officials on the supposed Al-Qaeda haven in the tribal belt.
It points out that more than 90,000 Pakistani troops have been deployed in the tribal regions since early 2002 to hunt down Al-Qaeda and Taliban militants fleeing Afghanistan in the aftermath of the September 11 attacks.
Pakistan also says more than 700 soldiers and 1,000 militants have been killed in clashes since 2004.
Musharraf on Thursday decided not to impose a state of emergency in Pakistan, ignoring the advice of aides who wanted strong action to prevent more instability in the troubled nation.
Since Pakistani troops stormed Islamabad's Red Mosque on July 10-11 to dislodge militant gunmen, there has been a steady uptick in attacks on troops in the tribal zones as well as suicide bombings and other attacks across Pakistan.
On July 15 pro-Taliban militants in Waziristan tore up a peace deal with government forces, further fuelling the violence.
The seven northern tribal areas have been largely outside of the control of Islamabad ever since Pakistan was founded 60 years ago, and the military's attempts to hunt down foreign militants have been fiercely resisted by the Pashtun tribes.
Shared in accordance with fairdealings of the copyright act
Article Link: http://ca.news.yahoo.com/s/afp/070810/world/pakistan_afghanistan_unrest
Source: Yahoo News
MIRANSHAH, Pakistan (AFP) - Helicopter gunships pounded suspected Taliban and Al-Qaeda hideouts in northern Pakistan, as the United States called for even greater efforts in the battle against the militants.
The military said at least 10 militants were killed in the attack, which also involved ground forces, on a pro-Taliban district in the restive North Waziristan region near the Afghan border on Thursday.
Military spokesman Major General Waheed Arshad told AFP the strike was launched after several roadside bomb attacks earlier in the day in the same region wounded four soldiers.
In a separate incident in South Waziristan 16 soldiers were missing and believed kidnapped by militants.
The fiercely-independent tribes of the Waziristan region have been accused of giving shelter to Taliban and Al-Qaeda militants blamed for plotting bombings and other attacks in Pakistan, Afghanistan and around the world.
The new Pakistani raid came two days after a helicopter strike killed at least 13 militants in Waziristan, and while tribal leaders from Afghanistan and Pakistan meet in Kabul to discuss Islamic militant violence in the region.
However elders from North and South Waziristan, two of Pakistan's seven tribal regions along the Afghan border, are boycotting the "peace jirga".
The strike also came as US President George W. Bush again urged Pakistani President Pervez Musharraf to do more to track down Al-Qaeda leaders hiding in the tribal regions.
"I have made it clear to him that I expect that there be full cooperation in sharing intelligence" and "swift action" against Al-Qaeda inside Pakistan if solid intelligence emerges about their whereabouts, Bush said Thursday.
Bush was also careful to express respect for Pakistan's sovereignty, following Islamabad's publicly expressed anger over calls for unilateral US action to target Osama bin Laden and Al-Qaeda.
According to US intelligence reports Al-Qaeda leaders are sheltering in lawless tribal regions.
Islamabad has been angered in recent weeks by what it called "irresponsible and dangerous" warnings by US officials on the supposed Al-Qaeda haven in the tribal belt.
It points out that more than 90,000 Pakistani troops have been deployed in the tribal regions since early 2002 to hunt down Al-Qaeda and Taliban militants fleeing Afghanistan in the aftermath of the September 11 attacks.
Pakistan also says more than 700 soldiers and 1,000 militants have been killed in clashes since 2004.
Musharraf on Thursday decided not to impose a state of emergency in Pakistan, ignoring the advice of aides who wanted strong action to prevent more instability in the troubled nation.
Since Pakistani troops stormed Islamabad's Red Mosque on July 10-11 to dislodge militant gunmen, there has been a steady uptick in attacks on troops in the tribal zones as well as suicide bombings and other attacks across Pakistan.
On July 15 pro-Taliban militants in Waziristan tore up a peace deal with government forces, further fuelling the violence.
The seven northern tribal areas have been largely outside of the control of Islamabad ever since Pakistan was founded 60 years ago, and the military's attempts to hunt down foreign militants have been fiercely resisted by the Pashtun tribes.
