Pakistan Security Brief – June 11, 2009 

Aid groups face funding shortages and security concerns following fighting in Swat and violence in Peshawar; local anti-Taliban militias claim to have cornered militants in Upper Dir; Pakistani military officials claim to kill scores of militants in reactive operations in district bordering Taliban stronghold, where the army reportedly fought off militant attacks on military forts; a grenade-and-bomb suicide attack struck Peshawar days after a hotel bombing. 
  • Major aid agencies warn that the relief efforts in Pakistan face a funding crisis that is endangering their ability to assist the IDPs fleeing the fighting in Swat. The nine major charities say they need “$42 million in order to provide emergency supplies for 2.5 million displaced people.” It is feared the coming monsoon season could worsen the humanitarian crisis. This news comes as the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR), the World Food Program (WFP), the American Consulate in Peshawar and other aid agencies suspended their activities in Peshawar following the bombing of the Pearl Continental hotel in which two foreign aid workers were killed.[1]
     
  • The armed tribal militia fighting the Taliban in the Doog Dara area of Upper Dir has advanced to the village of Shatkas. The use of heavy weapons and government assistance against Swat Taliban fighters has reportedly assisted in keeping militants at bay. Residents of the area claim the militia has pushed the Taliban to its last strongholds in the Kandao area of Ghazigay.[2]
     
  • The Pakistani army claims to have killed seventy militants in reactive military operations in the Bannu district bordering North Waziristan. The army attacked militants in the Jani Khel areas of Bannu and reportedly destroyed the house of a local Taliban commander. Reports say 500 to 600 militants attempted to infiltrate the area, adjacent to a Taliban stronghold in Waziristan, to stop the army’s advance.[3]
     
  • In nearby South Waziristan, the army repelled an attack by 400 militants on two forts in Jandola and Siplatoi. The army reports that is lost three men in the fighting but were able to kill twenty two enemy fighters in the exchange. In Orakzai agency, military forces used artillery and planes against a militant stronghold killing at least 5. Until a year ago, militants did not maintain a significant presence in the agency.[4]
     
  • Just two days after a suicide bombing at a Peshawar hotel, another grenade-and-bomb suicide attack in Peshawar killed at least one and injured eight at a police checkpoint on Thursday.[5]          
                 
[1] “Aid warning amid Pakistan unrest”, BBC, June 11, 2009. Available at http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/south_asia/8094439.stm
Javed Aziz Khan, “Foreign missions suspend activities in Peshawar”, The News Online, June 11, 2009. Available at http://thenews.com.pk/top_story_detail.asp?Id=22666.
[2] Delawar Jan, “Dir Lashkar pushes Taliban to last hideout”, The News Online, June 11, 2009. Available at http://thenews.com.pk/top_story_detail.asp?Id=22670.
[3] Abdus Salam, “Troops kill 70 militants in Bannu attacks”, Dawn News Online, June 11, 2009. Available at http://www.dawn.com/wps/wcm/connect/dawn-content-library/dawn/the-newspaper/front-page/troops-kill-70-militants-in-bannu-attacks-169
[4] Adil Khan, “Pakistan kills scores of Taliban in new combat zones”, Reuters, June 11, 2009. Available at http://www.reuters.com/article/worldNews/idUSTRE5542HC20090611
[5] “New attack rocks Pakistani city”, BBC, June 11, 2009. Available at http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/south_asia/8096202.stm.
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