BUNER: Tense calm prevailed as armed militants expanded their activities to
Bagra and Kalabatt areas of Buner on Wednesday despite repeated calls by the
Quami Jirga to vacate the district.
The militants, after consolidating their positions in Gokand valley, claimed
more territory by occupying Kalabatt village (some two kilometers from Pacha
Bazar) the, strategic Bagra police post and a government-run school on
Wednesday. They also established their base-camp on the roadside in the area,
just four kilometers from district headquarter Daggar.
The militants handed over dead bodies of two Lashkar men and three police
personnel to a third party in Barwazee area after talks with renowned religious
figure Shiekhul Hadiath Maulana Waliullah Kabalgrami.
The bodies were brought to civil hospital Pacha for autopsy and were handed over
to their relatives for burial.
The deceased Waseem Khan and Peer Mohammad Khan were bodyguards of a key leader
of Qaumi Lashkar. The militants reportedly torched several houses and took
control of a petrol pump of the Lashakar leader on Tuesday evening.
A large number of residents left Sultanwas village and shifted to safer places
due to fear of militants attack.
The local jirga elders and district administration officials through
reconciliatory committee including leaders of Tehrik Nefaz-i-Shariat Muhammadi (TNSM)
held several rounds of talk with Taliban to convince them to leave the area by
giving safe passage to them. But the militant commander was of the view that
Tehrik Taliban high command has ordered their Tashkeel (stay) in the area and
they would leave after holding a peace march and visit to six killed Taliban in
Shalbandi.
Malakand commissioner Mohammad Javed Khan, Taliban commander Mehmood Khan, TNSM
vice chief Maulana Mohammad Alam, district chief Maulana Salar and others
visited Dara Gokand on Tuesday to calm tensions.
They held several rounds of talks with the Taliban commander Rizwan Bacha of
Puechar, Swat. The dialogue continued till late on Tuesday evening but no
breakthrough was reported.
Sources close to Taliban said that the militants are in no mood to leave the
area. They have declared their headquarters in Buner district and were bent on
holding peace march in the district and to monitor the affairs in accordance
with the Nizam-i –Adl Regulation.
The reconciliatory committee members and a delegation including commissioner
Malakand Mohammad Javed, TNSM vice chief Maulana Mohammad Alam and Taliban
commander Mehmood Khan has failed to resolve the crisis.
As a last ditch effort to avoid bloodshed in the once a peaceful Buner district
a delegation of local religious leaders led by Maulana Waliullah was in talk
with the elders of Quami jirga at Madrassa Taleem ul Quran at Adalat Chowk
Daggar. He has earlier held dialogue with Taliban commander Rizwan Bacha of
Peuchar in Gokand Valley.
