Tuesday, May 26, 2009
ISLAMABAD (AP) — The Taliban on Monday urged civilians to return to the Swat Valley’s main city, promising they would not attack security forces battling for control out of concern for the safety of trapped residents.
Pakistan’s military dismissed the gesture as a ploy that would allow the militants to blend in with the residents of Mingora, and said it had no intention of halting its offensive in the valley.
More than 2 million civilians have fled Swat and nearby districts, making it easier for the army to single out insurgents, but returning civilians could further complicate the battle
The appeal also appeared designed to play off the growing public concern for thousands still stuck in Mingora amid shortages of food and water.
The U.S. has strongly backed Pakistan’s month-old offensive in the northwest valley and neighboring districts. U.S. officials want Pakistan to root out hide-outs used by al-Qaida and Taliban fighters to plan attacks on Western troops in nearby Afghanistan, and Swat is considered an important test of the Muslim nation’s ability and willingness to do so.
Taliban spokesman Muslim Khan told The Associated Press late Sunday and Monday afternoon that the Taliban’s pledge was not a formal cease-fire offer and that the Islamist militia’s “aides” would stay in the city.
“I would like to appeal to the people of Mingora to get back to their homes and start their routine life as we will not fire even a single shot,” Khan said in a phone call from an undisclosed location.
The army says it secured several major intersections in Mingora, a key commercial hub that under normal circumstances is home to at least 375,000 people. Many of the extremists were fleeing Mingora for Kabal, a town to the west that security forces were also trying to secure, the army said in a statement Monday.
Troops also have secured Malam Jabba — a ski resort that militants wrecked last year — which the army said the Taliban were using as a training center and logistics base.