Chaos continues in northwestern Pakistan as Taliban militia engage
Pakistani forces. The violence, stemming from an influx of Taliban
influence in the region and a failed armistice in February, has
displaced about 1.5 million Pakistanis and devastated the once-peaceful
Swat Valley. Amidst the Pakistani government’s cries for humanitarian
and military assistance, foreign powers worry about the possible
repercussions of Taliban aggression in an unstable Pakistan.
The
conflict in the Swat valley region of Pakistan can be traced back to
almost five years of fighting between Pakistani troops and warlike
tribesmen believed to be allied with the Taliban and Osama bin Laden.
Tensions came to a head in 2008 when militant Taliban groups conducted
strikes of terror demanding the imposition of Islamic Sharia law on the
region. In February of 2009, the Pakistani government signed a peace
deal with the pro-Taliban militants: in exchange for cessation of
hostilities, Sharia law would be instated in the Pakistan’s northwest.
Various foreign observers labeled the pact a weak-kneed capitulation on
the part of the Pakistani government, a face-saving attempt to soften
the image of the Pakistani Army. However, despite the signing of the
armistice, militant terrorism continued; by late April, pro-Taliban
forces had exerted control beyond the Swat valley into towns and
villages as near as sixty miles to Pakistan’s capital city of
Islamabad. Pakistani forces engaged the militants as they advanced,
attempting to push them back to northwest. Analyzing the situation,
Brigadier Mehmood Shah of Peshawar argues that in continuing the
conflict, “the Taliban have exposed their real intention—not the
implementation of Sharia law, but to seize power in Pakistan.” Swat
Taliban spokesman Muslim Khan confirmed Shah’s suspicions in a
statement in late April: “The more they [Pakistani troops] carry out
operations the more we will expand across Pakistan. God willing, one
day we will touch its last boundary.”
Foreign powers have
expressed much consternation over the possible repercussions of
increased Taliban control in Pakistan. The United States, which views
Pakistan as essential in its plans to combat al Qaeda in Afghanistan,
has demonstrated particular concern. US commentators have called the
current struggle in northwestern Pakistan as an “existential” threat to
the nation’s stability. Additionally, the prospect of Taliban forces
seizing control of Pakistan’s nuclear warheads has lead foreign
countries to fear a worst-case scenario. Although both the American and
Pakistani governments maintain faith that such fears are “alarmist” and
irrational—US Secretary of State Hillary Clinton said she could not
“even contemplate” the possibility—the situation still causes many a
furrowed brow amongst international leaders.
War in the
Pakistani northwest has had disastrous effects on local populations.
The Taliban’s seizure of the Swat and districts main town of Mingora
prompted a mass exodus from the region as Pakistanis fled the violence.
Initial estimates for the number of displaced Pakistanis hovered around
500,000 in early May; by the end of the month, that figure had
skyrocketed to 1.5 million. As refugees clamored out of the region,
Pakistani leaders quickly declared a humanitarian crisis and sent
desperate pleas for foreign aid. Various international organizations,
including the World Health Organization, have been quick to come to the
aid of the refugees. The UN especially has exerted itself to alleviate
the humanitarian crisis: the UN Food Program, UNICEF, and the UN
refugee agency have all been mobilized to deal with the situation.
According to BBC News, international donors have pledged $224 million
for the relief and rehabilitation of those displaced in Pakistan’s
North Western Frontier Province, $110 million of which coming from the
US. However, acting UN humanitarian coordinator Martin Mogwanja has
told reporters and diplomats that a sum total of $543 million in
assistance will be required until the end of December of 2009 in order
to deal with the crisis.
Print
E-mail
