The intensity of fighting as of yesterday..
Waziristan clashes death toll rises
16 troops, 23 military vehicles lost; two Tehsildars, some militiamen missing; families flee
By Rahimullah Yusufzai &
Sailab Mahsud
PESHAWAR/WANA: Military and civil officers belatedly conceded on Wednesday that 15 Frontier Corps militiamen instead of the eight they had previously announced died in Tuesday’s clashes with foreign and local militants in South Waziristan tribal agency.
A Pakistan Army soldier, Mir Zaman, was also reported to have died in the fighting. It raised the death toll for government forces to 16. Another 22 sustained injuries, some critically.
Of greater concern for the government was the whereabouts of 19 Frontier Corps personnel, who were reportedly made hostage by the militants near Kaloshah village in the Azam Warsak area. Government officials either denied it or declined to comment on reports about the missing militiamen. Some reports said militants drove them away in pick-up vehicles from near Kaloshah Wednesday morning to an unknown destination.
Two tehsilders, who wield immense powers in the administrative set-up in Fata, and four khassadars, recruited from among the tribes to maintain law and order in the tribal areas, have also gone missing. Mir Nawaz Marwat, tehsildar for Wana area, and Matiullah Burki, tehsildar for Birmal, were not traceable after getting caught in the fighting on Tuesday.
Officials in Peshawar and Wana claimed the six men had taken refuge in the homes of sympathetic tribesmen and were waiting for an opportunity to seek a safe passage to Wana, headquarters of South Waziristan. Brig (retd) Mahmud Shah, secretary (security) for Fata, said the tehsildars would be safely recovered soon.
There were unconfirmed reports about negotiations between emissaries of the government and the militants for arranging a possible swap of the prisoners and of the bodies of those killed in action.
The government’s claim about the killing of 24 "foreign terrorists" and their Pakistani accomplices in Tuesday’s clashes remained unsubstantiated. The authorities admitted that they were in possession of bodies of only two militants, both foreigners and ostensibly Chechens. The remaining 22 bodies were unaccounted for, raising doubts if that many militants were killed. Tribal sources said only six militants, including the two Chechens, were killed.
The others were local tribesmen. The Chechens, or Uzbekistanis as some tribal sources wanted us to believe, reportedly had belts of explosives tied to their waists. Many tribesmen claimed they were blown up when the explosives went off.
The government forces arrested 16 men during their search operations. Tribal sources said Tila Mohammad, an Afghan refugee belonging to the Kharoti tribe, and Atta Mohammad, from Lahore, was among those apprehended. All of them were undergoing interrogation in Wana.
The number of military vehicles destroyed on Tuesday explained the intensity of the fighting and the ferocity of the ambush by the militants. Eyewitnesses said 13 Hino military trucks, three pick-up trucks, three armoured personnel carriers (APCs) and four mortars abandoned by the retreating Frontier Corps personnel were found burnt on the road leading to Kaloshah. The militants allegedly put the vehicles and mortars on fire after seizing them in Tuesday’s fighting.
Cameramen shot the burnt out vehicles on Wednesday and sent the footage to foreign television companies. Eyewitnesses said they saw three charred bodies of militiamen in those vehicles.
Two tribal journalists, Mujibur Rahman Wazir and Mohammad Yunis, were detained by the troops while filming them and the site of fighting on Tuesday. They were freed on Wednesday after the intervention of the political authorities. The Tribal Union of Journalists condemned their detention and demanded unhindered access to the place of action.
Tribal elders and commoners, who requested anonymity, said the militants displayed exceptional fighting skills when they besieged the Frontier Corps troops that were moving towards Kaloshah to raid the homes of wanted tribesmen, Nek Mohammad and Nur Islam. They said four well-trained fighters on two motorcycles lobbed hand grenades into trucks carrying the militiamen and fired at them before fleeing. They said the Frontier Corps personnel were harassed and ambushed at Zha Ghundai hill while returning to Wana.
Meanwhile, families were leaving villages in Azam Warsak area and shifting to safer locations due to growing fears that the Pakistan Army could send warplanes to bomb the place. Many tribesmen feared the US warplanes too could take part in the bombing of their villages. Eyewitnesses said households were using trucks, tractor-trolleys and other vehicles to shift their more precious belongings to places in Wana and beyond.
Another disturbing news was the rocketing of a Frontier Corps fort in Tiarza area in the Mahsud tribe’s territory in South Waziristan. The Mahsud area has remained largely peaceful at a time when the Ahmadzai Wazir tribal territory from Wana to the Angoor Adda on Afghanistan’s border has witnessed violent clashes involving the militants and Pakistani troops.
Tribal sources said unknown persons fired 15 rockets at the fort but all missed the target. One of the rockets hit the house of a tribesman, Wazir Jan, and demolished his wall. No loss of life was reported.
The 15 Frontier Corps militiamen whose death was confirmed by the authorities were identified as Zakir Hussain, Syed Jaffar Hussain, Salim Khan, Gohar Ali, Lal Mir, Ghazi Marjan, Ashfaq, Haya Khan, Awwal Badshah, Khan Wali, Tikka Khan, Neknam, Rafiq Khan, Sulaiman, and Israel Khan. Their bodies were brought to the hospital in Wana Tuesday and Wednesday and their Nimaz-i-Janaza was held in the Scouts Camps. Later, the bodies were sent to their respective villages for burial.
APP adds: Interior Minister Faisal Saleh Hayat has said no military personnel were among those martyred in Wana operation on Tuesday. The operation was conducted by paramilitary forces and eight Jawans of Frontier Corps have been martyred, the Minister told BBC Radio.
He denied the impression that people of Wana were fleeing from their homes. He said the place where operation started Tuesday is about ten to twelve kilometers from Wana. He said the local population has nothing to worry about the operation which is focused against terrorists only.
Sana adds: Director General of Inter Services Public Relations Maj Gen Shaukat Sultan has said operation in Wana would continue. Talking to BBC, he said many foreigners were arrested in operations in South Waziristan in recent past but the government was not disclosing their names and nationality because it did not want to spoil its relations with these countries. |
