Print

Mail

wiki links

Pakistan militants sign peace accord

Pro-Taliban militants encouraged by tribal elders have signed an agreement with Pakistan's government to ensure "permanent peace" in this volatile northwestern tribal region near the Afghan border, intelligence officials said.

Under the agreement, which is likely to be unveiled by the government next week, no militant will attack government officials or security forces, and in return the army deployed in North Waziristan "will not carry out operations against them," an area intelligence official said on Saturday on condition of anonymity because he was not authorized to speak to the media.

"This is a good development because the Taliban have promised to stay away from militancy," said the official, adding "the Taliban have also agreed to distance themselves from foreign militants."

The official gave no further details, but a second area intelligence official -- who also didn't want to be named because of the sensitive nature of the issue -- said the accord was signed at a seminary near Miran Shah, the main town in North Waziristan where the military has carried out several operations against militants in recent years.

Residents have welcomed the ceasefire and urged the government to take steps for lasting peace.

Meanwhile, a bomb damaged a gas pipeline yesterday in southwestern Pakistan, cutting supplies to thousands of homes but causing no injuries in an area tense after a popular local rights activist died in a battle with government forces.

The blast damaged less than a meter of the 45cm-wide pipeline in the mountainous area of Lakpass south of Quetta, capital of Baluchistan Province, said area police official Hamid Shakil.

No one was reported hurt, but the blast disrupted gas supplies to about 2,000 homes and businesses in Mastung and Kalat districts, Shakil said.
This story has been viewed 1526 times.