Operation triggered by Taliban plan to take over Buner

ISLAMABAD: Security forces launched a major operation in Buner on Tuesday after intelligence agencies intercepted a telephone conversation of Swat Taliban chief Maulana Fazlullah with his ‘commanders’ which revealed their plan to take over the area after faking a withdrawal.

The operation led by the inspector general of Frontier Corps (FC) was being backed by army troops and air force jets, Inter-Services Public Relations (ISPR) Director General Maj-Gen Athar Abbas said at a press briefing.

He said the operation in Lower Dir had been completed, around 70 militants had been killed and others flushed out of the area. He said there were some pockets of resistance which would be cleared soon.

He said the militants who had entered Buner early this month were involved in kidnapping and killing policemen and forcibly recruiting youths for training in Swat. They started building bunkers in the mountains and terrorising and intimidating local people without any justification.

He said the government had exercised restraint and demonstrated patience and warned the militants to leave the area and launched a full-scale operation as the last option.

Maj-Gen Abbas expressed the hope that the operation, launched at about 4pm on Tuesday, would be completed in one week.

The announcement came an hour after Interior Minister Rehman Malik said around 450 militants had been spotted in Buner and warned them to leave the area.

‘I warn Baitullah Mehsud that enough is enough,’ he said while talking to reporters. The minister ruled out any possibility of Taliban reaching the Margalla hills.

The ISPR chief said the objective of the operation was to eliminate and expel militants from Buner and ensure that the people of the area lived in peace without being subjected to oppression.

The recording of the conversation of Maulana Fazlullah, which was played at the briefing, indicated that the militants had no plan to move out of Buner and that they were gearing up for a showdown with security forces using mines, rockets and other weapons.

Answering a question, Maj-Gen Abbas said the terrorists posed no threat to the federal capital. ‘Distance is not the only component to measure the level of threat. Counter-capacity has to be kept in mind.’

He termed the statements expressing concern over a threat of Taliban marching on Islamabad as alarmist and said the security forces were fully capable of eliminating the terrorists.

He said there was no evidence about any foreign link of Sufi Mohammad, but heavy weapons, communication equipment and finances were reaching him.

He said security personnel were moving from various positions, adding that combat helicopters were facilitating their movement.

He declined to divulge the number of personnel taking part in the operation, saying that operational details might benefit the other side.

Maj-Gen Abbas confirmed reports about the spread of Talibanisation in southern Punjab and said the situation was being closely monitored.

He said the nuclear weapons of the country were in safe hands and there was no possibility of extremists laying their hands on them.

Meanwhile, Chief of Army Staff Gen Ashfaq Parvez Kayani called on President Asif Ali Zardari. It is believed that they discussed the operation in Buner, situation in Swat and adjoining areas and other issues concerning national security. According to sources, the forthcoming US visit of President Zardari also came under discussion.