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Presence of ‘high value’ militants:

Major offensive in Waziristan soon

* Paramilitary forces to comb region ahead of ‘grand operation’

By Naveed Siddiqui

ISLAMABAD: The government has ordered the deployment of thousands of paramilitary personnel across the tribal areas ahead of a major offensive in the volatile South and North Waziristan agencies to hunt for “high value” terrorist targets, Daily Times has learnt.

Sources in the Interior Ministry said that the government had ordered the deployment of 2,000 personnel each of the Frontier Corps and Levies in Waziristan to comb the region ahead of the “grand operation”.

“Security forces are expected to begin a grand operation in the troubled Waziristan tribal region to hunt down al Qaeda and Taliban militants, including Baitullah Mehsud, who is holed up in the area,” the sources said, citing a decision made at a high-level meeting held late on Saturday night.

The meeting was held at the Interior Ministry with Interior Secretary Syed Kamal Shah in the chair. NWFP Governor Ali Muhammad Jan Orakzai, the States and Frontier Regions (SAFRON) secretary, Crisis Management Cell (CMC) Director General Brig Javed Iqbal Cheema and other senior officials of the Interior Ministry attended the meeting.

The sources said that the security forces and political administrations of these two tribal agencies had been asked to block all the entry and exit points and land routes leading to other agencies in the Federally Administered Tribal Areas (FATA) so that no militant could escape or sneak into settled areas.

The meeting also reportedly decided that the operation would be carried out solely by Pakistani security forces and the government would not seek assistance from US-led coalition forces in Afghanistan.

“Intelligence reports have pointed to the presence of high value militants like Baitullah Mahsud in the area,” said the sources. Mehsud was reportedly involved in the kidnapping and murder of two Chinese engineers along with their Pakistani driver working at the Gomal Zam Dam in 2004. His group has also been mentioned as the suspected perpetrators of a suicide attack on an army recruitment centre in Dargai late last year in which 42 cadets were killed.

The sources said that the government might give the status of nazim and deputy nazim to all former and present maliks to strengthen political agents. The government has trained over 2,000 men for the Levies force that will serve as the official force under the political agents.

Interior Minister Aftab Ahmed Sherpao did not confirm or deny the major development, saying such operations were carried out by the Pakistan Army.

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