FATA AND NWFP: WEEKLY INCIDENTS OF TALIBANIZATION, JANUARY

C O N F I D E N T I A L SECTION 01 OF 02 PESHAWAR 000010 SIPDIS E.O. 12958: DECL: 1/14/2019 TAGS: PTER MOPS PGOV PK SUBJECT: FATA AND NWFP: WEEKLY INCIDENTS OF TALIBANIZATION, JANUARY 1 - JANUARY 8 CLASSIFIED BY: Lynne Tracy, Principal Officer, Peshawar, Department of State. REASON: 1.4 (a),(b),(d) Introduction: -------------- ¶1. (SBU) Fighting continued at a slow pace in Bajaur during the first week of the year, with three militants reported killed and a local militant leader claiming that his supporters would not resist if government forces entered Mamond area. ¶2. (SBU) In Swat, at least 32 people were reportedly killed in the first week of the year, including seven security force personnel and a local leader of the Awami National Party (ANP). Militants also burned more girls' schools as the militant-declared January 15 deadline banning girls' education after grade four approached. ¶3. (C) In Orakzai Agency and the Hangu area, militants killed three policemen, abducted three others, and reportedly announced the establishment of Shari'a courts and complaint centers throughout the agency via loudspeakers during Friday sermons, in addition to banning women from visiting bazaars, and closing-down TV, CD and video stores. ¶4. (C) The Pakistani Army took over security operations in Shi'a-populated Hangu and imposed a curfew on January 7 as the Shi'a Muharram commemoration approached. Bajaur -------------- ¶5. (U) The following is a summary of events in Bajaur Agency, where the Pakistani military has been conducting military operations since August 2008: January 7: Government forces reportedly killed three militants and injured six others. January 4: A local militant leader reportedly said his supporters would not resist if the security forces entered Mamond area. January 2: Militants killed an elder of the Mamoond tribe in Kalan village. January 1: Militants fired at least six rockets at Khar's Civil Colony during a jirga between the agency administration and elders of the Mamond tribe, reportedly killing four civilians and wounding 16. One of the rockets reportedly hit the office of the FATA Rural Development Program. Security forces reportedly responded by continuing to target militant hideouts in various parts of the agency. NWFP -------------- ¶6. (U) The following incidents have occurred in the Provincially Administered Tribal Areas (PATA) and settled areas of NWFP: January 8, Peshawar: A bomb exploded at a CD center in the Chamkini area of the city, causing damage, but with no casualties reported. January 7, Kohat: Militants fired rockets at a heavily guarded Shi'a Imam Bargah, damaging two nearby homes. January 6, Swat: Militants reportedly blew up the house of a local journalist. Elsewhere, two local militants were reportedly killed in Minogora. January 5, Swat: Militants reportedly beheaded two Frontier Corps personnel and three policemen in Matta tehsil, days after kidnapping them. In Khwazakhela, militants burned another government girls' high school. January 5, Peshawar: Militants reportedly destroyed a police checkpost on the Indus Highway with rockets. PESHAWAR 00000010 002 OF 002 January 4, Dera Ismail Khan: Two bomb explosions killed ten, including four policemen, and injured 27 others, near the Polytechnic College. January 4, Bannu: A suicide bomber reportedly killed himself and injured two others near a checkpost. January 2, Swat: Eight people, including two security personnel and a prominent female dancer were killed near Mingora. Militants also killed Gul Deedar, a leader of the ANP. January 1, Bannu: A bomb killed two policemen while they were trying to defuse it. Seven other squad members of the bomb-disposal unit were injured in the explosion. January 1, Peshawar: A policeman was killed in an explosion at a police post. FATA -------------- ¶7. (U) The following is a roundup of incidents of Talibanization in the FATA and Frontier Regions: January 8, North Waziristan: Militants reportedly killed two government employees in a car ambush 35 km south of Miranshah. January 7, Orakzai: Militants reportedly killed three policemen and abducted three others when they attacked a police checkpost. January 6, Mohmand: Security forces reportedly killed two militants and injured five others near a Frontier Constabulary camp at Bhaizai. January 5, Mohmand: Militants reportedly kidnapped 11 members of the Mandel tribe of Bajaur who were visiting Mohmand to persuade militants there to stop rocket attacks on villages near Khar. January 5-7, North Waziristan: Militants reportedly killed seven accused of spying for the U.S. January 5, North Waziristan: Militants reportedly warned at mosques during Friday prayers in Miranshah that all co-educational schools in the region must be closed. January 2, Orakzai: Militants reportedly announced the enforcement of Shari'a in Hangu and throughout the agency via loudspeakers during Friday sermons, banning women from visiting bazaars, and closing-down TV, CD and video stores. January 2, Mohmand: Militants attacked a security forces checkpoint in Lakaro tehsil, with no casualties reported. January 1, Kurram: Militants publicly hanged a man they accused of kidnapping in Lower Kurram. Government Response -------------- ¶8. (U) This is a summary of government responses to "creeping Talibanization" according to press and consulate contacts: January 4, Khyber: Security personnel reportedly discovered a van packed with 400 kgs of explosives and arrested six suspects. January 3, Peshawar: Police reportedly arrested Ustad Mohammed Yasir, former spokesman for Afghanistan's Taliban leader, Mullah Omar. January 1, Peshawar: Police reported that they successfully defused a bomb. TRACY