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January 10, 2006
Pakistan: 7 Soldiers, 14 Islamist Rebels Killed In North Waziristan
News from Dawn and the Daily Times states that seven soldiers and 14 Islamists have been killed in fighting which took place in the very earliest hours of Tuesday.
The incident took place in North Waziristan, a region which is currently home to ex-Taliban and al-Qaeda Islamists who live on the border with adjacent Afghanistan. Thousands of soldiers, who have been here since 2003, are also posted in the region to seek out the militants.
Just after midnight, a rebel rocket attack killed two army troops and five paramilitaries at a check-point at Sarbandki, located on a mountain spur two miles east of Mirinshah, the regional capital. Three rockets were fired, but one hit the check-point, causing the fatalities. Their colleagues from other check-points then retaliated with a four hour gunfight. Among the dead was a local Taliban commander named Bilal, and also foreigners.
The North Waziristan authorities imposed a curfew following the attack, and a jirga (meeting) announced the setting up of village committees to protect homes from attack by militants. They also planned to hold another jirga on January 16 to review the situation. One tribal elder who attended the jirga, Malik Khan Marjan, said he feared "much bloodshed" in the coming days.
The curfew is strict, warning of "serious consequences" for infringements. The actual figure for the dead militants is, according to Dawn, disputed, with "independent reports" claiming only three Islamists died.
Residents of Mosaki village, 29 kilometers (13 miles) east of Miranshah have claimed that on Saturday, a gunship helicopter attacked the house of an Islamic scholar who is a supporter of the Taliban guerillas. At a briefing yesterday, Pakistan's foreign ministry spokeswoman, Tasnin Aslam, said the US authorities had denied any of their troops' involvement, adding that the Pakistanis were investigating reports that a "foreign helicopter" had landed on the Pakistani side of the border.
In December, Islamist students from madrassas in the region, who appear to support the Taliban, have engaged in clashes with people they call bandits.
The story of the helicopter gunship attack is familiar. On December 1, an explosion occurred in a house at the village of Haisori, outside Miranshah. It later transpired, through DNA evidence that one of the victims was al-Qaeda's third in command, Egyptian-born Abu Hamza Rabia.
The Pakistani authorities maintain that the Haisori explosion was caused by accidental detonation of a bomb by its manufacturers, but villagers claimed they had seen a US Predator drone launch a missile attack on the house. A local journalist photographed shrapnel from the scene which bore English wording.
Reuters AlertNet states ominously that the journalist who photographed the shrapnel who lived locally, Hayatullah Khan, was kidnapped by unidentified gunmen. He has not been heard from since then.
Posted by Giraldus Cambrensis at January 10, 2006 9:12 PM
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