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Mehsud buying child bombers?

WASHINGTON: Tehreek-e-Taliban Pakistan chief Baitullah Mehsud is buying children – as young as seven – to serve as suicide bombers, United States and Pakistani officials said on Thursday. A Pakistani official told the Washington Times the going price for child bombers was Rs 500,000 to Rs 1 million. “[Mehsud] has turned suicide bombing into a production output, not unlike [the way] Toyota outputs cars,” a US defence official said. The US official said the price depends on how quickly the bomber was needed and how close the child was expected to get to the target. He added, “[Mehsud] produces these suicide bombers, which are sold or bartered, which can be used by ... other groups.” In some cases, he said, the children were kidnapped. Using child suicide bombers “is the grim reality of the Taliban Frankenstein that now threatens to overwhelm the Pakistani state,” said Bruce Riedel. A former Afghan militant said, “Fighting is not the issue… What is unusual is making these young fighters into suicide bombers… It is a crime against God.” On Sunday, Pakistan announced a reward of about Rs 50 million for information leading to his capture, dead or alive. The US has offered a bounty of $5 million for Mehsud. daily times monitor

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