Pakistan Taleban break off talks as army assault gains momentum

[seemslikeadream]

http://www.timesonline.co.uk/tol/news/world/asia/article6182007.ece

The Taleban suspended talks with Pakistan’s Government yesterday, declaring negotiations to be worthless as clashes between militants and the army forced thousands of civilians to flee their homes.

The military offensive in Lower Dir on the North-West Frontier came as Gordon Brown made a brief visit to Pakistan and Afghanistan, branding the volatile frontier between the two countries a “crucible of terrorism”.

A military spokesman said that more than 46 militants had been killed in the fighting in Dir, west of Swat, where the Government signed a contentious deal with the Taleban to introduce Sharia in return for an end to the insurgency. Under pressure from the US, Pakistani troops have launched an operation in the area to confront an advance by militants toward the capital, Islamabad.

Helicopter gunships and artillery have attacked militant hideouts in the villages of Lal Qala and Islam Qala. “Search and cordon operations are being carried out to capture or flush out militants,” a military spokesman said. Muslim Khan, the chief spokesman for the Taleban, denounced the operation as a violation of the Swat pact. “The agreements with the Pakistan Government are worthless because Pakistani rulers are acting to please Americans,” he said.