Wednesday, November 14, 2007

How to deal with the Taliban in Pakistan

Pakistani lawyers, human-rights activists and opposition-party members can scarcely ignore the irony of their situation: while thousands of them are being beaten and locked up under President Pervez Musharraf's newly declared state of emergency, his government has just let more than two dozen militant Islamists out of jail. Protesters might be even angrier if Musharraf disclosed the names of some of those freed militants. Taliban sources tell NEWSWEEK that the top man on the list was Mullah Obaidullah Akhund—the highest-ranking Taliban official ever captured by the Pakistanis. As one of Taliban leader Mullah Mohammad Omar's closest confidants and his defense minister until the post 9-11 invasion of Afghanistan, Obaidullah was No. 3 in the group's hierarchy and a member of its ruling 10-man shura (council).
For now, the people of Pakistan will have to take any comfort they can from knowing that Musharraf is protecting them from lawyers and human rights activists.

You can read more about the Machiavellian way how Musharrafs stays in power by reading the article below.
Newsweek.


1 comment:

Anonymous said...

Another failure of American foreign policy. But are we to blame for the mess over there?
Why can a country as India develop and Pakistan not while they get the full support of the USA?
Random thoughs on an average American morning.