Nobody knows how many Taliban militants have been killed in the battle to regain control of the mountain valley of Swat in Pakistan's North West Frontier province. The interior minister Rehman Malik claimed yesterday that 700 had been killed - over 200 more than the previous figure from the army. If Mr Malik is right, about 15% of the fighters estimated to be in the region have already died from aerial bombardment alone, which would be unlikely. Nor is it known whether all the dead are militants. What is clear is that the battle is getting bigger.
Yesterday a suicide bomber killed two paramilitary soldiers and six civilians at a checkpoint on the outskirts of Peshawar, while the commander of the Frontier Corps told the Guardian to expect many more. He said Taliban militants backed by their al-Qaida trainers, mainly Tajiks and Uzbeks, had launched several suicide attacks and one large-scale assault on the Frontier Corps along the border to divert resources from Swat. The commander admitted the Taliban advance in Swat, Buner and Dir had caught him by surprise, and predicted that the fighters would melt away into the fleeing crowds of civilians or disperse in the surrounding valleys, rather than put up a big fight for Mingora, the town which they have mined. All of which means that the army offensive is only in its earliest and easiest days. A special session of the national assembly which began last night is unlikely to voice much dissent. Only a month ago it rubber-stamped President Asif Zardari's plan for a peace deal with the militants in Swat. But almost every major politician supports fighting the Taliban, and even the Islamist parties in Punjab are holding fire.
No one should confuse this relative silence for solidarity. The political pact with the 13-month-old government is tenuous, tentative and temporary. There have been no major civilian casualties; nor has the army suffered significant losses. But if these facts change, the political mood could swing too.
Most of the refugees from Swat and Dir have headed for the cities of Mardan and Swabi, which traditionally have been able to absorb them. But as more than 360,000 civilians have fled the fighting in the past 12 days alone, the ability of families to take in more relatives may be exhausted. Many face a summer in hot camps with inadequate sanitation. These are not foreign refugees but fellow Pakistanis, with property in Swat that they expect their government to protect. So the political temperature could rise fast. The Taliban have overreached themselves in the eyes of many, and this operation enjoys public support not seen in the past decade. But nor is Pakistan prepared for the long fight that a definitive assault could entail.
Your IP address will be logged
Your IP address will be logged
Loading 0% complete
Loading comments...
Go to all comments on one page
In order to post a comment you need to be registered and signed in.
Register | Sign in
Go to all comments on one page
In order to post a comment you need to be registered and signed in.
Register | Sign in
In order to see comments, please turn JavaScript on in your browser.
Sorry, commenting is not available at this time. Please try again later.
Apologies, something has gone wrong and this action cannot be completed. Please try again later.
${comment.PostedAtTime|formatDateTime:MessageTime}
${comment.PostedAtTime|formatDateTime:MessageTime}
You have characters left
Please read our community standards.
Loading...............
Closing this window without pressing "Post your comment" will result in your words being lost. Are you sure?
Thank you for your comment. This has been submitted for moderation.
Your comment has been successfully posted.
Sorry, something has gone wrong and this action cannot be completed. Please try again later.
Close
Please choose a problem:
Comment: (optional)
You have 5000 characters left
Logged in as
Your email address: (optional)
Loading...............
Closing this window without pressing "Report" will result in your words being lost. Are you sure?
Thank you
Sorry, something has gone wrong and this action cannot be completed. Please try again later.
${blog_item.article.title} (${blog_item.linkcount}{if blog_item_index == 0} technorati links{/if})
Loading …
More
Today's rising blog posts from
The classic fairy tales from the 1960s, back to terrify a new generation.
From: £17.99
Nesrine Malik: When television writers are looking for a pop-up misogynistic template, an Indian family is their first choice
Erwin James: The station's success at the Sony awards highlights the good that constructive, creative activity can bring to prisons
Seth Freedman: We've all got scapegoat flu
Arianna Huffington: The paywall is history
George Monbiot: These men would've stopped Darwin
Browse all jobs
dragonfly. exhibition sales executive - fashion event. £23000 - £25000 per annum + Bonus.
general dental council. london. £23k.
bristol city council. bristol. £31,439 - £34,207.
Browse all jobs
${ result.snippet } ${ result.state }
jobs by
Benazir Bhutto's funeral
28 Dec 2007: Mourners pay tribute to the assassinated former Pakistani prime minister Benazir Bhutto, who was buried in her family's mausoleum at Garhi Khuda Baksh
Markus Daechsel: The idea that Pakistan is being 'Talibanised' is a narrative that helps stifle dissent and protect privilege
Lahore attack on Sri Lanka team: profiles of Kumar Sangakkara, Ajantha Mendis, Thilan Samaraweera, Tharanga Paranavitana and Thilan Thushara
Pakistan reinstates judges sacked by Musharraf
Read Full Article »