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Taliban set up office in Miranshah

By Iqbal Khattak

PESHAWAR: Three tribes along with the local Taliban have set up office in Miranshah to fight crime in the city, tribal sources said on Wednesday. “The Darpakhel, Burakhel and Miranshah tribes along with the Taliban have set up an office in Miranshah to bring law and order under control,” sources close to the Taliban told Daily Times. A senior leader of the Jamiat Ulema-e-Islam (Fazlur Rehman) denied reports that the Taliban alone opened the office in violation of the peace agreement which aimed at preventing the Taliban from running a parallel administrative system.The office was opened on Wednesday and local residents expressed fears that the growing Taliban influence would undermine the tribal code of life. The locals criticised the government for “completely disappearing from the streets”. “There is no police to provide security which is why the crime rate has increased,” a resident of Miranshah told Daily Times. A pamphlet was distributed in the bazaar inviting residents to lodge their complaints with the office. It is not clear what role the office will play in maintaining law and order and whether the office will hand over criminals to the political administration. Residents said the opening of the office meant “Miranshah has been handed over to the Taliban”. Local militants have set up similar offices in the major towns of South Waziristan where they take up civil and criminal cases. Meanwhile, the 10-member monitoring committee for the peace accord will meet Dr Fakhre Alam, political agent of North Waziristan, to discuss the fate of 10 tribesmen arrested in connection with attacks on coalition forces inside Afghanistan.

Reuters adds: A pamphlet distributed in the Miranshah bazaar said clerics would be collecting funds to pay for a force aimed at protecting people from criminals. Reuters rang the telephone number on the leaflet, and was told by Maulvi Nizamuddin Borakhel: “We opened the office to take action against masked men who are criminals.” “We want the pact with the government to be enforced completely, but these people are creating mischief against the country,” he said. The leaflet said people could always shoot dead any masked men who attacked them. “There are some crazy people, especially youngsters, who want to show-off their power,” said Shah Zaman Khan, spokesman for a department dealing with tribal affairs in Peshawar.

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