Now The Pakistanis Recognize Their Mistake
No one likes to say "I told you so," but, well, we did tell you so. And now the Pakistanis are admitting that this peace accord between the government and the tribal leaders--granting the Taliban's and al-Qaeda's remanants sanctuary in South Waziristan--was not such a hot idea:
Hat-Tip: Allah @ Hot-Air
Islamic militants are using a recent peace deal with the government to consolidate their hold in northern Pakistan, vastly expanding their training of suicide bombers and other recruits and fortifying alliances with Al Qaeda and foreign fighters, diplomats and intelligence officials from several nations say. The result, they say, is virtually a Taliban mini-state.
The militants, the officials say, are openly flouting the terms of the September accord in North Waziristan, under which they agreed to end cross-border help for the Taliban insurgency that revived in Afghanistan with new force this year.
The area is becoming a magnet for an influx of foreign fighters, who not only challenge government authority in the area, but are even wresting control from local tribes and spreading their influence to neighboring areas, according to several American and NATO officials and Pakistani and Afghan intelligence officials.
This year more than 100 local leaders, government sympathizers or accused “American spies” have been killed, several of them in beheadings, as the militants have used a reign of terror to impose what President Pervez Musharraf of Pakistan calls a creeping “Talibanization.” Last year, at least 100 others were also killed. ...
...American military officials say they believe much of the training in Waziristan is taking place under the aegis of men like Jalaluddin Haqqani, once one of the most formidable commanders of the anti-Soviet mujahedeen forces who joined the Taliban in the 1990s.
He has had a close relationship with Arab fighters since the 1980s, when Waziristan was his rear base for fighting the Soviet occupation. Arab fighters had joined him there in the struggle, among them Mr. bin Laden.
Mr. Haqqani later became the Taliban’s minister of tribal affairs and was the main protector for the foreign fighters on their exodus from Afghanistan in 2001 and 2002. He and his son, Sirajuddin Haqqani, remain the most important local partners for Al Qaeda in Waziristan. ...
... “There are clearly very substantial training facilities that are still operating in Waziristan, both north and south, and other parts of FATA and Baluchistan,” said a diplomat in Kabul, referring to the region by the acronym for its formal name, the Federally Administered Tribal Areas.
“Even more worrying is the continued presence of the Taliban and Haqqani leadership networks,” the diplomat said, dismayed at what he characterized as Pakistani passivity in breaking up the networks.
“They haven’t been addressed at all on the Pakistani side,” he added. “They haven’t been pursued.” ...
... “From the start the agreement was not good because there are too many concessions and no clauses that are binding,” said Brig. Mahmood Shah, who served as secretary of the Federally Administered Tribal Areas until 2005. “This agreement is not going to work, and if it is working, it is working against the government interest.”
Afrasiab Khattak, a local politician and spokesman for the Awami National Party in Peshawar, also criticized the agreement. The militants rather than the traditional tribal leaders have the power now, he said.
“They have imposed a new elite in Waziristan,” he said. “More than 200 tribal chiefs have been killed, and not a single culprit brought to justice." ...
... Some Pakistani officials admit they have made a serious mistake in allowing the militants so much leeway, but only if they will not be quoted publicly.
Afghan and Pakistani Taliban leadership networks run training camps in various parts of the 500-mile length of the tribal areas, from Baluchistan in the south to the hub of North and South Waziristan, and farther north to Bajaur, said a Western diplomat in Kabul.
A diplomat who visited Wana, the capital of South Waziristan, said the government had almost no control over either of the Waziristans.
“They are absolutely not running the show in North Waziristan, and it runs the risk of becoming like South Waziristan,” he said. “In South Waziristan the government does not even pretend to have a remit that runs outside of its compounds.”
Ladies and gentleman, I suggest you go read the whole thing. It is well worth the read, and should serve as the only lesson needed that appeasement of our enemy does not curtail them. It emboldens them because they see that if you are willing to give a little, they can seize a lot more. They were supposed to remain in South Waziristan, and they have expanded their operations to the North. They are gathering foreign fighters to the area in the same regard that the Islamicists in Somalia are.
And it is especially distressing that the Pakistani officials refuse to go on the record to admit they made a mistake.As Allah pointed out, when Musharraf was here in Spetember, he stated that this deal would be a victory for Pakistan, and he promised that an al-Qaeda element would not be in the Waziristan region:
Number one, there will be no al Qaeda activity in our tribal agency or across the border in Afghanistan. There will be no Taliban activity in our tribal agency or across in Afghanistan. There will be no Talibanization, which is an [obscurantist] way of life — no Talibanization. All these three have been agreed by the tribal elders who signed that deal. And when they signed the deal, they are honor-bound, and they have already strict honor code to not only abide by it, but also that whoever violates it, they’ll move against them.
But the New York Times report states that the Taliban and al-Qaeda people have slaughtered over 200 tribal leaders since the deal was struck. So it does not appear that the tribal people can contain the "Talibanization" of the region. It looks as though the radicals ae in charge, and no one seems to have the rocks to confront the problem. It will not take them long to go after Musharraf, and bring him down if this continues. The Pakistanis have only two options, and neither one is going to be nice.
Either they move in and deal with these animals, as they were the fools who struck this deal. It is, technically, their problem, and they have done nothing to contain it.
Or, they can ask for help from the coalition, and we can lead strikes int the regiuon to go after them. BUT, if that is their choice, then we will need help from them. The elements there will have to be contained--no one leaves, and no one enters the region--and we can deal with them. Also, if they do ask for coalition/NATO assistance, the request and operation must be carried out covertly. There are elements with the Musharraf government that are sympathetic to the terrorists, and would be more than willing to tip off the terrorists before either group moves in. This could be the only chance we have to nail both bin Laden and al-Zawahiri, but it will only happen if we go in. We cannot trust the Pakistanis to hold either of them.
In addition, there is one person we are very interested in, and we know he is there. That would be Adam Gadahn. Michelle has all the relevant links to the information surrounding the man recently indicted for treason. the last intelliugence reports we received, he was pinpointed in the South Waziristan region, under the protection of the Taliban fighters there.
Needless to say, we told you so. The moment this deal emerged, we knew that it was not only a fool's delusion that the animals would abide by the deal, but it was also too dangerous for the Musharraf government to be negotiating such a deal. We have said it countless times that our enemy will not honor any sort of deal negotiated because they do not recognize any authority other than Allah and Mohammed. They despise this modern world, and are working to destroy it. And based on recent events, one would almost think and/or believe that James Baker negotiated this accord. After all, the ISG believes we can negotiate with our enemies, so why would they think any differently about this sort of deal?
Marcie
No one likes to say "I told you so," but, well, we did tell you so. And now the Pakistanis are admitting that this peace accord between the government and the tribal leaders--granting the Taliban's and al-Qaeda's remanants sanctuary in South Waziristan--was not such a hot idea:
Hat-Tip: Allah @ Hot-Air
Islamic militants are using a recent peace deal with the government to consolidate their hold in northern Pakistan, vastly expanding their training of suicide bombers and other recruits and fortifying alliances with Al Qaeda and foreign fighters, diplomats and intelligence officials from several nations say. The result, they say, is virtually a Taliban mini-state.
The militants, the officials say, are openly flouting the terms of the September accord in North Waziristan, under which they agreed to end cross-border help for the Taliban insurgency that revived in Afghanistan with new force this year.
The area is becoming a magnet for an influx of foreign fighters, who not only challenge government authority in the area, but are even wresting control from local tribes and spreading their influence to neighboring areas, according to several American and NATO officials and Pakistani and Afghan intelligence officials.
This year more than 100 local leaders, government sympathizers or accused “American spies” have been killed, several of them in beheadings, as the militants have used a reign of terror to impose what President Pervez Musharraf of Pakistan calls a creeping “Talibanization.” Last year, at least 100 others were also killed. ...
...American military officials say they believe much of the training in Waziristan is taking place under the aegis of men like Jalaluddin Haqqani, once one of the most formidable commanders of the anti-Soviet mujahedeen forces who joined the Taliban in the 1990s.
He has had a close relationship with Arab fighters since the 1980s, when Waziristan was his rear base for fighting the Soviet occupation. Arab fighters had joined him there in the struggle, among them Mr. bin Laden.
Mr. Haqqani later became the Taliban’s minister of tribal affairs and was the main protector for the foreign fighters on their exodus from Afghanistan in 2001 and 2002. He and his son, Sirajuddin Haqqani, remain the most important local partners for Al Qaeda in Waziristan. ...
... “There are clearly very substantial training facilities that are still operating in Waziristan, both north and south, and other parts of FATA and Baluchistan,” said a diplomat in Kabul, referring to the region by the acronym for its formal name, the Federally Administered Tribal Areas.
“Even more worrying is the continued presence of the Taliban and Haqqani leadership networks,” the diplomat said, dismayed at what he characterized as Pakistani passivity in breaking up the networks.
“They haven’t been addressed at all on the Pakistani side,” he added. “They haven’t been pursued.” ...
... “From the start the agreement was not good because there are too many concessions and no clauses that are binding,” said Brig. Mahmood Shah, who served as secretary of the Federally Administered Tribal Areas until 2005. “This agreement is not going to work, and if it is working, it is working against the government interest.”
Afrasiab Khattak, a local politician and spokesman for the Awami National Party in Peshawar, also criticized the agreement. The militants rather than the traditional tribal leaders have the power now, he said.
“They have imposed a new elite in Waziristan,” he said. “More than 200 tribal chiefs have been killed, and not a single culprit brought to justice." ...
... Some Pakistani officials admit they have made a serious mistake in allowing the militants so much leeway, but only if they will not be quoted publicly.
Afghan and Pakistani Taliban leadership networks run training camps in various parts of the 500-mile length of the tribal areas, from Baluchistan in the south to the hub of North and South Waziristan, and farther north to Bajaur, said a Western diplomat in Kabul.
A diplomat who visited Wana, the capital of South Waziristan, said the government had almost no control over either of the Waziristans.
“They are absolutely not running the show in North Waziristan, and it runs the risk of becoming like South Waziristan,” he said. “In South Waziristan the government does not even pretend to have a remit that runs outside of its compounds.”
Ladies and gentleman, I suggest you go read the whole thing. It is well worth the read, and should serve as the only lesson needed that appeasement of our enemy does not curtail them. It emboldens them because they see that if you are willing to give a little, they can seize a lot more. They were supposed to remain in South Waziristan, and they have expanded their operations to the North. They are gathering foreign fighters to the area in the same regard that the Islamicists in Somalia are.
And it is especially distressing that the Pakistani officials refuse to go on the record to admit they made a mistake.As Allah pointed out, when Musharraf was here in Spetember, he stated that this deal would be a victory for Pakistan, and he promised that an al-Qaeda element would not be in the Waziristan region:
Number one, there will be no al Qaeda activity in our tribal agency or across the border in Afghanistan. There will be no Taliban activity in our tribal agency or across in Afghanistan. There will be no Talibanization, which is an [obscurantist] way of life — no Talibanization. All these three have been agreed by the tribal elders who signed that deal. And when they signed the deal, they are honor-bound, and they have already strict honor code to not only abide by it, but also that whoever violates it, they’ll move against them.
But the New York Times report states that the Taliban and al-Qaeda people have slaughtered over 200 tribal leaders since the deal was struck. So it does not appear that the tribal people can contain the "Talibanization" of the region. It looks as though the radicals ae in charge, and no one seems to have the rocks to confront the problem. It will not take them long to go after Musharraf, and bring him down if this continues. The Pakistanis have only two options, and neither one is going to be nice.
Either they move in and deal with these animals, as they were the fools who struck this deal. It is, technically, their problem, and they have done nothing to contain it.
Or, they can ask for help from the coalition, and we can lead strikes int the regiuon to go after them. BUT, if that is their choice, then we will need help from them. The elements there will have to be contained--no one leaves, and no one enters the region--and we can deal with them. Also, if they do ask for coalition/NATO assistance, the request and operation must be carried out covertly. There are elements with the Musharraf government that are sympathetic to the terrorists, and would be more than willing to tip off the terrorists before either group moves in. This could be the only chance we have to nail both bin Laden and al-Zawahiri, but it will only happen if we go in. We cannot trust the Pakistanis to hold either of them.
In addition, there is one person we are very interested in, and we know he is there. That would be Adam Gadahn. Michelle has all the relevant links to the information surrounding the man recently indicted for treason. the last intelliugence reports we received, he was pinpointed in the South Waziristan region, under the protection of the Taliban fighters there.
Needless to say, we told you so. The moment this deal emerged, we knew that it was not only a fool's delusion that the animals would abide by the deal, but it was also too dangerous for the Musharraf government to be negotiating such a deal. We have said it countless times that our enemy will not honor any sort of deal negotiated because they do not recognize any authority other than Allah and Mohammed. They despise this modern world, and are working to destroy it. And based on recent events, one would almost think and/or believe that James Baker negotiated this accord. After all, the ISG believes we can negotiate with our enemies, so why would they think any differently about this sort of deal?
Marcie
posted by Syd And Vaughn | 2:24 PM
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