Pakistani Truce Already Falling Apart

October 24, 2006 2:27 PM

Gretchen Peters Reports:

Pakistan_map_musharraf_nrU.S. military officials tell ABC News cross-border attacks by the Taliban are up "300 percent"  since President Musharraf declared a "truce" with tribal leaders in the troubled Northern Waziristan region that borders Afghanistan.

"Politically, it is very sensitive for us to raise this issue with Pakistan," said a senior NATO officer in Kabul. "But the facts are the facts."

Reports from the district capital Miram Shah say Taliban vigilantes now patrol the streets, while Pakistani government officials and the military are all but absent.

U.S. military officials say  militants are openly ignoring the truce's requirement that they lay down down their weapons.

NATO took over the Afghan coalition in early October, amid the fiercest fighting since the Taliban government was toppled five years ago. 

Senior NATO officials say there is growing fury among the 26-nation alliance that Islamabad is doing little to stem the violence coming from its border areas.

"If the Pakistan army is not willing to clean this up in a sustained manner," worries a top U.S. military official, "I just do not know what we are going to do."

Although the peace deal with Islamabad specifically forbade the Pakistani tribesmen from forming a parallel government, Taliban rulers in the region have issued a strict legal code, even announcing plans to begin taxing vehicles that pass through their district.

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October 24, 2006 | Permalink | User Comments (26)

User Comments

When Hillary gets in office, she'll know how to handle this. Just pull all troops out and let the taliban take control again!!!

Posted by: sport | Oct 24, 2006 3:32:10 PM

Hey Sport...do you care about keeping your freedoms or would you rather we all just go ahead and join the Taliban now? They obviously feel that what they believe in is worth dying for. Do you believe in anything that passionately? They will not stop until every last person on earth is either dead or believes like they do. Get a grip on reality. Hillary is not the answer. Neither is letting the Taliban have free reign.

Posted by: Badger | Oct 24, 2006 4:19:33 PM

Ah, the future!!! This is gonna be really bad...

Posted by: Johnboy | Oct 24, 2006 4:27:42 PM

You need to get a clue, sport ;-)

Posted by: rdf | Oct 24, 2006 6:10:20 PM

If only Saint Ronnie Reagan were around to tell the Taliban how great of "freedom fighters" they are.

Reagan funded them, we're now fighting them.

Posted by: Cynic | Oct 24, 2006 8:12:37 PM

hillary has no connection with Pakistan... the Bushies do ... how about the friendly comfort to keep Osama for a while //////

Posted by: makesenseofit | Oct 24, 2006 8:24:22 PM

This shows that at least the Taliban are taking the war on terror seriously.

Posted by: Mark | Oct 24, 2006 8:31:48 PM

So, Sport and company. Are you saying that you'll vote for McCain in '08 and stay the course in Iraq and continue to ignore Afghanistan the way Bush has? Will McCain roll over for Musharraf the way Bush has?

Hillary's not my Democratic choice for '08 (Eliot Spitzer) but in case you sharp, astute guys have missed it, Hillary has been quite the hawk on these matters.

Posted by: cal | Oct 24, 2006 8:43:28 PM

Sport, the question is what is Bush going to do since he is the president. From past experience I would guess spin, spin, spin...

Posted by: JPark | Oct 24, 2006 8:48:27 PM

They will not stop until every last person on earth is either dead or believes like they do.

When did the taliban say that. I keep hearing get out of Afghanistan. Badger if you believe that a few thousand Taliban is going to take over the earth. Which by the way has more then 5 billion people living on it. Then it use who needs to a grip on reality!!

Posted by: not | Oct 24, 2006 8:53:21 PM

Wow, a few thousand is going to take over the world. A world that is home to over 5 billion people. Talk about seeing reality.

Posted by: BOB | Oct 24, 2006 8:56:42 PM

What does Hillary have to do with a demonstrably bad Republican led foreign policy that has aided the enemies of the United States time and time again?

Posted by: GOPNightmare | Oct 24, 2006 10:11:54 PM

The biggest mistake in this war on terror is that the #1 sponsorer of terrorism, Pakistan has been treated with kid gloves since 9/11. Fix Pakistan and 90% of the world's terrorist problems will disappear.

Posted by: tvarad | Oct 24, 2006 11:17:25 PM

The biggest mistake in this war on terror is that the #1 sponsorer of terrorism, {[Iraq]} has been treated with kid gloves since 9/11. Fix {[Iraq]} and 90% of the world's terrorist problems will disappear.

Oh yes, we are so good at fixing other countries.

Posted by: el presidente | Oct 25, 2006 9:25:11 AM

I have been saying this for the last 5 years, US must get it's own military in Pakistan's bordering region with Afghanistan, then only this war will be won. Pakistan will continue to object to such a move by US, but there is no other choice. Get US military out of Iraq ASAP and get them into this region. This region is the epicenter of world's terrorism.

Posted by: Raju Vallamulai | Oct 25, 2006 9:52:46 AM

Biggest mistake is not backing our allies who are fighting the war on terror for us, we have left Britain, Italy, Pakistan, Australia, Malaysia to fend for themselves and they are all hurting becuase they backed us in our time of need. We need to stick by our friends something we havent done.

Posted by: Bobby | Oct 25, 2006 10:06:57 AM

My question is what candidate promises to bring back an updated version of the " NEW DEAL" as well as criminal prosecutions of the massive corruption in all three branches of govt???? we need a new truman and church commission with no blocking...

Posted by: Truth Seeker | Oct 25, 2006 10:25:27 AM

We should have stratically nuked Afghanistan after 9/11. Had we done this we would not be in the situation we are today with the ongoing war in Afghanistan and the war in Iraq.Saddam would have welcomed U.N. inspectors and allowed them all the access they needed to prove there were no WMD'S or connections to Al Queda.Instead we have a whimpering,coniving president and V.P. that allowed these multiple situation's evolve along with N.Korea and Iran.

Posted by: Dennis | Oct 25, 2006 10:32:51 AM

"Biggest mistake is not backing our allies who are fighting the war on terror for us, we have left Britain, Italy, Pakistan, Australia, Malaysia to fend for themselves and they are all hurting becuase they backed us in our time of need. We need to stick by our friends something we havent done"

With the exception of Britain, Canada is one of the leading fighters in Afghanistan. I don't understand how some people fail to remember that. We are the ones doing the heavy fighting in Khandahar, while other NATO countries won't chip in to help with security. What a great organization (with the exception of Poland). Well, I'll be signing up soon to do my part.

Posted by: Mike | Oct 25, 2006 12:16:02 PM

"When Hillary gets in office, she'll know how to handle this. Just pull all troops out and let the taliban take control again!!!"

Pulling troops out isn't the answer. That will just show the rest of the radical terrorist organizations and dictator governments that the free world won't put up a fight. If we back out now the lives of the fallen soldiers are forfeit, and I don't know about you but Im not about to give up my brothers and sisters because you or anyone else feel that the U.S. and it's NATO allies freeing a country from its terrorist leadership was the wrong course of action. I am willing to defend freedom and men and women standing beside me helping me do that, maybe you should rethink your priorities.

Posted by: Danny | Oct 25, 2006 1:42:01 PM

As Lewis Black once said. The Republican are a party of bad ideas, but the Dems are a party of no ideas....at least the Reps are doing something. Does anyone know what the Dems would do? I mean specifically? Nope!

Posted by: Matt | Oct 25, 2006 2:44:14 PM

Reality check people:terrorism is not going away until we as a nation get together and stop using middle eastern crude oil and that just i'snt going to happen anytime soon.Why?you may ask.Well it's because oil men are calling the shots and they are destroying our country at the same time.Of course they don't care about that because they have theres and screw the rest of you peasants.Wake up America!But alas it may already be to late.

Posted by: MATTHEW | Oct 25, 2006 4:14:18 PM

One thing for sure, Hillery can't screw it up any worse than the republicans already have. They have had complete control for the last 6 years and look at where we are at. What right do we have to militarly force another country to conform with our way of thinking? The third world countries do not live like we do, most are just trying to get drinking water and food for the day. I guess the Bush approach is to kill several hundred thousand of them and then there will be more food and water for the fittest survivors.

Posted by: Charlie Ellenburg | Oct 26, 2006 8:43:32 AM

"When Hillary gets in office, she'll know how to handle this. Just pull all troops out and let the taliban take control again!!!"

OK Sport, in case you didn't notice, the article is about how the Taliban is taking control now because of the brilliant leadership of GWB.

Posted by: Spoton | Oct 26, 2006 4:45:04 PM

GW BUSH our selected one keeps confusing OSAMA with SADDAM.The Chicken Hawks er draft dogers destroyed the WRONG country.Vote for all Democrates in November and 08 and fumigate the White House.

Posted by: hobojo | Oct 26, 2006 5:26:56 PM

they will take it over as the good people are like sheep,waiting to be slaughtered by the evil.

Posted by: rugby | Nov 21, 2006 9:47:07 PM

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