Pakistan Security Brief

Pakistan Security Brief - September 14, 2009

Pakistani Security Forces operations in Swat and Malakand killed fourteen militants on Monday; the U.N. estimates that at least fifty-six thousand residents have been displaced due to the army initiative in Khyber Agency; ISPR spokesperson Gen. Abbas announced imminent commencement of military ground operations in Waziristan; the third U.S. drone strike to hit North Waziristan this week killed eight militants near Mir Ali; Pakistan's interior minister claimed Sunday that the army was closing in on capturing Swat Taliban commander Maulana Fazlullah.�

• The latest round of Pakistani Security Forces operations in Swat and Malakand Monday night left fourteen militants dead following exchanges of fire in the Batkhela and Matta areas.[1]
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• A United Nations spokesman estimated that between fifty-six and one hundred thousand people have been forced to flee their homes in Khyber Agency as a result of escalating violence between the Pakistani army and local Taliban-affiliated militants. Northwest Frontier Province officials have reported that over a hundred thousand people, many of them displaced, have arrived in Peshawar since the military offensive began on September 1.[2]�
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• Inter-Services Public Relations (ISPR) director Major General Athar Abbas announced on Monday that the Pakistani military has been given the go ahead to commence ground operations in Waziristan and is now looking for a "suitable time" to move into the region.[3]�
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• A U.S. drone strike outside Mir Ali, North Waziristan, killed at least eight on Monday. The strike, which is the third to hit North Waziristan in a week, reportedly targeted a house in the village of Khushal Tori Khail and a vehicle suspected to be carrying militants. Local sources have reported that all of the casualties were Taliban affiliates.[4]
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• Pakistani Interior Minister Rehman Malik announced Sunday that the military has intensified its operations to capture the Swat Taliban leader Maulana Fazlullah, and that there was little chance of the militant escaping their grasp.[5]

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