Let’s Talk Politics

The Taliban has issued an ultimatum to the political figures in Pakistan’s Malakand Province:  Resign, or the Taliban will arrest them and their families and destroy their property.  The Malakand region is home to the Swat Valley, the site of the Pakistani Army’s offensive against Taliban cells.

The leader of the offensive, Muslim Khan, spoke of the need for sharia law in the region and implored some smaller, more radical Pakistani parties to help them institute it.  The message was targeted to parties such as the Jamaat-i-Islami, a conservative party that has spoken out against the army’s offensive in the Swat Valley, but has stopped short of offering any public support for the Taliban.

Refugees fleeing the Swat Valley have told of Taliban atrocities in the region for over two years.  According to anonymous reports, the Taliban publicly beheads their government informants, apprehend and kill opponents of their cause, and bomb schools for girls.

The Taliban denies these accusations, explaining that their societal role is more like a gang of vigilantes, and not a group of terrorists. In a statement, Khan repled, “We are killing the people which are only no good for society, like thieves and people who are making problem for the poor people, like people who are working for army.”

The Taliban is also responsible for the attack against a NATO convoy that destroyed 10 trucks of supplies for anti-Islamist fighters in Afghanistan.   Because Afghanistan is a landlocked nation, supplies must be shipped into the country and the easiest route is through  Pakistan.  Attacks against the convoys are frequent and expected.

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