Pakistan Security Brief

Pakistan Security Brief - September 28, 2009�

Multiple suicide bombings occurred over the weekend in the NWFP areas of Peshawar and Bannu; an outspoken anti-Taliban tribal elder was killed in Bannu along with several bodyguards on Monday; residents of the Mehsud areas in South Waziristan were reportedly urged by the government to evacuate the area; the Pakistani military shelled militant strongholds in Orakzai and Waziristan on Monday killing more than two dozen suspected militants; a drone strike near Mir Ali in North Waziristan reportedly missed its target on Monday.� �

• Two suicide bombings occurred on Saturday in the NWFP cities of Peshawar and Bannu resulting in multiple casualties.� Eleven were killed in Peshawar when an explosive laden vehicle was detonated in a bank parking lot.� Tehrik-e-Taliban Pakistan (TTP) commander Qari Hussain claimed responsibility for a similar attack that occurred earlier that day at a police station in Bannu that left fifteen dead.� Hussain cited the recent death of Beitullah Mehsud as motivation for this attack.[1]
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• A missile allegedly fired by a U.S. drone struck a village close to Mir Ali in North Waziristan Agency on Monday; however, the missile is believed to have missed its target and no casualties have been reported.[2]
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• Pakistani troops clashed on several occasions with Taliban militants in the FATA on Monday. One soldier was killed in a Taliban rocket attack on a military camp in an unidentified city; Pakistani security forces responded by shelling militant strongholds in North and South Waziristan, allegedly killing eighteen militants. Elsewhere, in Orakzai Agency, Pakistan army gunships struck suspected militant hideouts killing ten.[3]
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• Residents of Mehsud areas of South Waziristan Agency began fleeing their homes following a government radio announcement urging them to do so. Residents saw the announcement as an indication of imminent military operations in the area, however, military spokesman Major General Athar Abbas responded in a statement that the Pakistan Army has not finalized plans for an operation into South Waziristan.[4]
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• Abdul Hakeem, an anti-Taliban elder, was killed along with three bodyguards on Monday in another suicide bombing in Bannu.� Hakeem was an outspoken critic of the Taliban and recently issued a statement condemning the Taliban's use of suicide bombings.[5]