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| Friday, 13 February 2004 |
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Tribesmen vow to hunt foreign militants MIRANSHAH, Pakistan, Thursday (Reuters) A tribal council in remote western Pakistan is to raise a militia to hunt down foreign Islamic militants hiding in the rugged region, local officials said. Pakistan's mountain region bordering Afghanistan is thought to be a haven for al Qaeda and Taliban fugitives, including Osama bin Laden, because they enjoy massive support among the local Pashtun population. Hundreds of Utmanzai tribesmen held a traditional jirga, or council meeting, in the town of Miranshah in North Waziristan and decided to form the group. "They have vowed to catch al Qaeda and Taliban men in the area and hand them over to the government," top local official in North Waziristan Sherzada Khan told Reuters. A similar militia was set up in neighbouring South Waziristan region last month, where the Pakistani army said it killed eight al Qaeda or Taliban suspects in an operation in October. Officials later said among those killed in that operation included Ahmed Saeed Khadr, an Egyptian-born Canadian thought to be an al Qaeda financier, and top Chinese Islamic militant Hasan Mahsum. Sherzada Khan said the North Waziristan council also decided to demolish the houses of those giving sanctuary to the foreign militants and impose a fine of five million rupees on their tribe. Fugitives who Pakistani, U.S. and Afghan officials believe could be hiding in the border area include bin Laden, the world's most wanted man. |
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