VZCZCXRO4557
OO RUEHLH RUEHPW
DE RUEHPW #0425/01 2190959
ZNY CCCCC ZZH
O 060959Z AUG 08
FM AMCONSUL PESHAWAR
TO RUEHC/SECSTATE WASHDC IMMEDIATE 7583
INFO RUEHIL/AMEMBASSY ISLAMABAD IMMEDIATE 4347
RUEHKP/AMCONSUL KARACHI IMMEDIATE 1588
RUEHLH/AMCONSUL LAHORE IMMEDIATE 1581
RUEHNE/AMEMBASSY NEW DELHI IMMEDIATE 0866
RUEHBUL/AMEMBASSY KABUL IMMEDIATE 1210
RUEHLO/AMEMBASSY LONDON IMMEDIATE 0626
RUEHBY/AMEMBASSY CANBERRA IMMEDIATE 0488
RUEHOT/AMEMBASSY OTTAWA IMMEDIATE 0578
RUEHTC/AMEMBASSY THE HAGUE IMMEDIATE 0536
RUEHNO/USMISSION USNATO IMMEDIATE 0489
RUEAIIA/CIA WASHDC
RUEKJCS/CJCS WASHINGTON DC
RUMICEA/USCENTCOM INTEL CEN MACDILL AFB FL
RUEHPW/AMCONSUL PESHAWAR 4610

C O N F I D E N T I A L SECTION 01 OF 07 PESHAWAR 000425 
 
SIPDIS 
 
E.O. 12958: DECL:  8/6/2018 
TAGS: PTER MOPS PGOV PK
SUBJECT: FATA AND NWFP: BI-WEEKLY INCIDENTS OF TALIBANIZATION:  JULY 
16-31 
 
REF: REFTEL: A) PESHAWAR 422, B) PESHAWAR 409 
 
CLASSIFIED BY: LYNNE TRACY, PRINCIPAL OFFICER, PESHAWAR, 
DEPARTMENT OF STATE. 
REASON: 1.4 (a), (b), (d) 
Introduction: 
------------- 
 
¶1. (C) As Prime Minister Gilani traveled to the United States in 
late July, many locals perceived that the military strikes and 
operations in Pakistan's Federally Administered Tribal Areas 
(FATA) and Northwest Frontier Province (NWFP) were tactically 
designed to appease the United States, but not strategically 
designed to achieve decisive victory against the militants. 
 
¶2. (C) PM Gilani met with a grand jirga of tribal elders 
throughout Pakistan's northwest on July 21 who promised him they 
were committed to peace.  Jirgas in Hangu, Orakzai, Malakand, 
and Lower Dir, declared a willingness to organize fighters to 
resist militants with force.  NWFP Governor Owais Ghani said 
that his government will more actively coordinate with tribal 
elders and hold jirgas in coming months to put "pressure" on the 
militants. 
 
¶3. (C) The security situation in the NWFP and FATA continues to 
be volatile.  Militant activity remains constant throughout 
Pakistan's northwest, with daily reports of killings, 
kidnapping, property destruction, and intimidation of the 
population.  GOP officials appear to be stepping up their 
efforts to maintain order.  But Ghani's prediction that the 
militants may be substantially beaten back in the next nine 
months may be overly optimistic.  The GOP may have a difficult 
time balancing its public commitment to peace agreements while 
carrying out sustained and aggressive military operations. 
 
¶4. (C) Continued declarations by GOP officials that the 
government remains committed to peace talks were severely tested 
with two major military operations in late July.  Both in Hangu 
and Swat, the GOP appeared to "react" to militant assaults 
rather than conduct planned offensives with a coherent strategy 
designed to permanently disrupt militant activity in FATA and 
NWFP.  Insecurity and fear spread throughout Swat (ref. A), with 
government forces killing more than 25 non-combatants, along 
with militants, making a decisive government victory not yet 
certain.  In Hangu, where the GOP seemed to defeat the militants 
without losing any of its soldiers, many militants simply fled 
into the mountains. 
 
¶5. (C) Economic hardship provided the backdrop to militancy in 
FATA and NWFP in late July.  Tehrik-i-Taliban (TTP) Pakistan 
used high prices as part of its anti-government propaganda. 
Prices of all basic items have doubled since February, 
exacerbating a local mood of economic despair and discontent 
with the government.  Particularly acute are shortages and high 
prices in Parachinar and Swat, where petrol, flour, wheat and 
other goods sell at least two times prices elsewhere. 
 
¶6. (C) A bitter rivalry between militant groups came to a climax 
in Mohmand in late July when TTP commander Omar Khalid defeated 
his rival Shah Khalid's militant group after several days of 
fierce battles.  After TTP executed Shah Khalid, his deputy, and 
two others, Baitullah Mehsud demanded that Omar Khalid explain 
why he executed his rivals and set up a probe committee into the 
executions.  Baitullah Mahsud ended the month by demanding an 
immediate settlement of the conflict between the two groups. 
Mahsud seems to have retreated from his demand that the ANP-led 
NWFP government step-down; he has not repeated the demand for 
over 10 days. See ref. B.  End introduction. 
 
Swat: Peace Agreement Falters 
----------------------------- 
 
¶7. (C) The following is a timeline of significant events 
according to local press and post contacts through July 31: 
 
July 16:  A government statement accused the Taliban of 
violating the May 21 peace agreement by kidnapping GOP officials 
and running eight militant training camps near Peochar.  Since 
the Swat peace agreement, the Taliban has allegedly attacked 
security personnel 13 times, killing ten. 
 
July 17: A government statement accused the Taliban of 
forcefully recruiting about 26 boys, between ages 13 and 18, 
 
PESHAWAR 00000425  002 OF 007 
 
 
into training camps to use arms and carry out suicide attacks. 
Parents do not report the disappearance of their children 
because they fear Taliban retaliation. 
 
July 18-19: Taliban chief Maulana Fazlullah presided over a two 
days of "war strategy" meetings with 50 commanders of 
Tehrik-i-Taliban Pakistan (TTP), Swat chapter.  Taliban 
spokesman Muslim Khan said TTP-Swat agreed to support Baitullah 
Mehsud's five-day ultimatum for the provincial government to 
resign, (Ref. B), and devised a war strategy to counter any 
government operations in Swat.  The group also complained that 
the government violated the May 21 peace deal by failing to 
withdraw soldiers from Swat. 
 
July 19: TTP Pakistan announced it will try two government 
officials in a Shari'a court for "character assassination" after 
the two had accused the group of training a mentally retarded 
boy for a suicide attack. 
 
July 20: The TTP stopped a smuggling convoy of three trucks 
loaded with wooden slippers and used the event to push 
anti-government propaganda.  TTP said it would continue its 
anti-bribery campaign and reduce prices after the drivers 
admitted they had to pay 2,000 rupees per truck to Pakistan Army 
personnel and 1,500 rupees per truck to Frontier Constabulary 
personnel for passage. 
 
July 23:  Militants ambushed and killed a man and two female 
relatives.  According to the local police chief, militants 
killed the three to undermine law and order in the region. 
Security forces also shot a person dead for violating curfew. 
 
July 24:  The provincial government released two more militants 
from jail, raising the number of released militants to 16. 
Maulana Fazlullah held a Shura meeting of local militants to 
prepare for another operation by security forces. 
 
July 25:  A girls' school and 13 shops were blown up.  Militants 
blew up or burned down 39 schools in Swat last month.  (Note: 
NWFP Minister for Schools and Literacy, Sardar Hussain Babak, 
said that 56 schools in total had been destroyed in Swat, and 
nine in Dir.  Babak said that 65% of local girls could not be 
admitted to schools.  End note.)  In addition, a barber shop was 
set ablaze, an electricity pylon was blown up, and a police 
checkpoint came under fire. 
 
July 28-31: After militants killed three intelligence officials 
in Swat and took 25 security forces hostage, the army launched 
an intense offensive against militant positions throughout Swat 
for several days.  Maulana Fazlullah held a press conference, 
after a year underground, and warned of suicide attacks against 
security forces throughout the country. (Ref. A). 
 
NWFP 
---- 
 
¶8. (SBU) The following incidents have occurred in the 
Provincially Administered Tribal Areas (PATA) and settled areas 
of the NWFP: 
 
July 16, Tank: Suspected militants threw a bomb at the press 
club that exploded without causing injury. 
 
July 16, Malakand: A bomb destroyed a pool club and damaged 
several nearby buildings in Batkhela. 
 
July 16, Charsadda:  A bomb destroyed a pool club and a mobile 
phone shop in a Shabqadar market. 
 
July 17, Kohat: A bomb damaged the main gate of the Peshawar 
Electric Supply Company complaint office without causing injury. 
 
July 18, Tank: Two beheaded bodies and a third with bullet 
wounds were found near Manzai.  Local rumors suggested that the 
three men belonged to the Mahsud tribe and were spying on the 
Taliban commander Maulvi Nazeer-led militants. 
 
July 19, Kohat: At least five people were injured when suspected 
militants hurled a hand grenade at a cinema on a Saturday night. 
 
PESHAWAR 00000425  003 OF 007 
 
 
 
July 19, Batkhela: A bomb destroyed a shop owned by a retired 
army man at a bazaar in Malakand. 
 
July 19, Kohat: The Taliban renewed its threat to kill 29 
government officials who were recently taken hostage. 
 
July 25, Peshawar: Police reportedly took a 14-year-old boy into 
custody after his captors sent him back to his village because 
he was too young to understand the weapons and training required 
for a suicide bombing.  The boy said that militants kidnapped 
him from a religious school and threatened to kill him if he 
revealed anything. 
 
July 28, Peshawar: A report in the English language daily, The 
Statesman, concluded that "Taliban militants have tightened 
their grip on three sides of Peshawar, a strategic city of 3 
million people."  The report cites incidents of Taliban 
militants roaming the streets in pickup trucks at night and 
entering mosques and universities during the day. 
 
July 29, Kohat: A bomb attack on a police van, escorting a bus 
of prisoners, killed a pedestrian and inured 13 others, 
including five policemen. 
 
July 30, Dera Ismail Khan:  Four armed men killed a government 
worker riding in a rickshaw on his way to the office. 
 
FATA 
---- 
 
¶9. (SBU) The following is a roundup of incidents of 
Talibanization in the FATA's tribal agencies and frontier 
regions: 
 
July 16, Bajaur:  Militants near Khar reportedly established a 
Shari'a court to settle longstanding local disputes. 
 
July 16-29, Mohmand:  Tehrik-i-Taliban (TTP) commander Omar 
Khalid reportedly defeated his rival Shah Khalid's militant 
group after several days of fierce battles in Mohmand agency. 
TTP reportedly executed Shah Khalid, his deputy Qari Ubaidullah, 
and two others.  Conflicting reports indicate that about 10 
militants were killed and dozens injured in the clashes.  TTP 
also captured 118 of Shah Khalid's followers and said it would 
penalize them "in accordance with the Shari'a law."  The two 
groups were running separate training camps and roadside 
checkpoints.  Baitullah Mehsud later demanded that Omar Khalid 
explain why he executed his rivals.  TTP set up a probe 
committee into the executions and threatened that "action would 
be taken against [Khalid] if he failed to satisfy" its members. 
Mehsud also expressed "deep grief and sorrow" over the killing 
of about 10 people in the clashes.  He claimed that the dead 
from the Shah group had recently took an oath of allegiance to 
him and formally joined TTP.  A jirga of 10 religious scholars, 
led by Dr. Sher Ali Shah, secured the release of 28 men from the 
Shah group and sought the release of the remaining 50. 
Baitullah Mahsud reportedly demanded an immediate settlement of 
the conflict between the two groups. 
 
July 18, South Waziristan:  Three dead bodies were found near 
Wana with a note that said they were executed for being 
"American spies".  In another incident, a man was killed, and 
two injured, when Maulvi Nazir's Taliban group reportedly 
attacked a rival group which had supported Uzbek nationals in 
clashes last year. 
 
July 19-25, Khyber:  Ansarul Islam reportedly repelled an attack 
by its rival, Lashkar-i-Islam (LI), in a continuation of a 
weeks-long battle for control of the most strategic point along 
the Afghanistan border that has killed more than 100.  LI 
retreated after attacking the only entrance to Ansarul Islam's 
headquarters, surrounded by a gorge, in Maidan. One person was 
reportedly killed and three others injured.  AI later refused to 
cooperate with a peace jirga called by Jamiat Ulema-i-Islam-Fazi 
(JUI-F). 
 
July 19, Bajaur:  Militants kidnapped a member of the Bajaur 
Levies while he was shopping about 30 km from Khar. 
 
PESHAWAR 00000425  004 OF 007 
 
 
 
July 20, Mohmand:  Three kidnapped officials of the local 
accounts department were released after being held for 10 days. 
 
July 20, Khyber:  A newspaper reporter who visited Bara Bazaar, 
stronghold of Mangal Bagh of the Lashkar-i-Islam, wrote: "There 
was not a single security personnel present in the Bazaar 
although government officials make daily claims of 
re-establishing the writ of the government and clearing the 
areas of militants." 
 
July 21, Bajaur:  Militants shot dead pro-government tribal 
elder Malik Shah Jehan near Khar after ambushing his car.  His 
driver and another chief traveling with him were seriously 
injured.  They were on their way to Peshawar to attend a grand 
jirga of tribal elders of all seven tribal agencies called by PM 
Gilani. 
 
July 21:  Prime Minister Gilani said he received an intelligence 
estimate that there were about 8,000 foreign militants in FATA. 
Rahman Malik, Gilani's interior advisor, said that there were no 
more than 1,000.  President General Musharaff had stated, from 
2004-2007, that foreign militants in FATA numbered from 500 to 
¶600. 
 
July 21, Kohat:  Militants blew up the last remaining 
Khassadar's post in the region, near Darra Adamkhel, after the 
Khassadar vacated the post for the evening. 
 
July 22, Bajaur:  Militants vowed to set up more Sharia courts 
for residents to settle their disputes. 
 
July 24, Bajaur:  Militants attacked two checkposts of the 
Bajaur Levies.  At one attack site, a large number of Levies 
personnel were present at post, but only one of them resisted 
the attack.  Militants kidnapped the Levy. 
 
July 25, Lakki Marwat: A local court ordered the release of 
militant leader Qari Sarfaz.  Sarfaz was arrested May 19, 2007, 
for "promoting militancy in the region." 
 
July 25, Khyber:  Gunmen fired on a US container heading from 
Karachi to Bagram, Afghanistan, near Landi Kotal, injuring one. 
 
July 25, Bajaur: Dozens of militants took control of four 
security posts vacated by the Frontier Corps (FC) when they 
relocated positions.  The FC destroyed the infrastructure before 
leaving the posts and claimed they had no strategic importance. 
 
July 26, North Waziristan:  Ismatullah Moavia, leader of 
Jaish-i-Mohammad in Miranshah, reportedly ordered the execution 
of a messenger who had come from Islamabad to explain ongoing 
dialogue with the government over the Red Mosque.  Moavia 
reportedly became angry when he suspected the messenger's group 
of negotiating with the government for the "selfish objectives" 
of getting the madrassa restored and the cleric, Maulana Abdul 
Aziz, released from custody.  The messenger was overpowered, 
tied, tortured and executed. 
 
July 26, Hangu:  Militants kidnapped the brother of a Hangu 
official along with his three friends.  Militants also attacked 
the house of a police official who played a key role in the 
counter-attack against militants in the Hangu operation.  His 
boundary wall was damaged, but nobody was injured. 
 
July 28, Kohat: Militants blew up a cellular phone tower. 
 
July 28, Khyber: Mangal Bagh reportedly made his first 
appearance since the government launched a 13-day operation 
against him on June 28.  Bagh's militants still hold complete 
control over most of the areas in Khyber Agency, as they did 
before the operation. 
 
July 29, North Waziristan:  Militant commanders met to express 
anger over US missile attacks. 
 
July 30, Mohmand: Local militants reportedly put locks on more 
than a half dozen computer and mobile phone shops for spreading 
vulgarity and obscenity and directing the young against Islam. 
 
PESHAWAR 00000425  005 OF 007 
 
 
 
July 30, North Waziristan:  Militants reportedly killed a woman 
after accusing her of spying for US forces across the border in 
Afghanistan.  A note found near Gulzada Bibi's body said she was 
killed while talking to her US contacts by satellite phone. 
 
July 31, Bajaur: Around 70 militants reportedly occupied a 
television relay center and a security post near Khar. 
 
July 31, South Waziristan:  The government abandoned a 
British-era fort it has occupied for decades as a convoy of 
around 30 trucks moved troops to Wana, triggering speculations 
of a major offensive against Baitullah Mahsud.  Mahsud's forces 
occupied the fort a few hours after the government left.  The 
government faced difficulty re-supplying the fort with food and 
ammunition.  Reports also indicate tribal people witnessing an 
increase in flights of unmanned US drones. 
 
Government Response 
------------------- 
 
¶10. (SBU) This is a summary of government responses to "creeping 
Talibanization" according to press and consulate contacts: 
 
July 16-23, Hangu: The Pakistani Army launched a week-long 
operation to establish the writ of the government in Hangu after 
militants killed 17 soldiers and jirga talks faltered. 
According to DG ISPR Maj-Gen Athar Abbas, the operation 
succeeded, with 20 militants killed and 60 others arrested, 
including Amjad, a member of al-Qaeda.  Abbas said that five 
government troops were injured.  For additional details, see 
ref. A. 
 
July 16, Kurram: A government sponsored jirga established a 
five-day ceasefire to ongoing sectarian clashes on the 
Pakistan-Afghanistan border.  Hours earlier one of the tribes 
kidnapped two Levy personnel and one local official. 
 
July 19, Swat:  Security forces arrested a suspected militant 
during a routine search at a checkpoint near Mingora. 
 
July 19, Lakki Marwat:  A police bomb disposal squad defused an 
explosive device placed in a bag near a tube-well. 
 
July 19-20, Orakzai:  Militants began to leave Orakzai after a 
grand jirga of 18 tribes, presided over by political agent 
Kamran Zeb, threatened to force them out.  The Taliban abandoned 
several check-posts and schools.  The tribal elders agreed that 
they would not allow "a state within the state."  Zeb influenced 
the tribal elders by threatening military and police action. 
The grand jirga promised to support the government, refuse 
shelter to foreigners, and to fight them if they tried to 
disturb law and order.  One tribe, the Aakhel, refused to 
cooperate, because it had signed an agreement with the Taliban 
three months earlier. 
 
July 20, Hangu:  Members of Karbogha union council announced 
that anyone who provided shelter to the fleeing militants would 
be fined two million rupees. 
 
July 20, Swabi:  The Awami National Party (ANP) and the Pakistan 
People's Party (PPP) coalition government in NWFP asked the 
federal government to increase funding for the police.  NWFP 
wants 7,500 new police to cope with growing militancy in the 
settled districts. 
 
July 21, Peshawar:  Prime Minister Gilani hosted a grand tribal 
jirga at the Governor's House and called upon tribal elders to 
cooperate with the government in the war against militancy and 
extremism.  He announced a 30% increase in the annual 
development budget for FATA and promised to build one 
engineering college and one cadet college. 
 
July 22, Bara:  The Khassadar Force in Jamrud seized a car laden 
with explosives.  The Khassadars believed that terrorists wanted 
to explode the car in Peshawar. 
 
July 22, Mingora: Security forces repelled a militant attack on 
one of its bunkers by killing two militants and injuring several 
 
PESHAWAR 00000425  006 OF 007 
 
 
others. 
 
July 25, Peshawar: The provincial government allocated 10 
billion rupees for NWFP police it its annual budget.  The police 
funds will be spent on constructing 12 police lines, 60 police 
stations, and 100 police posts, along with paying police 
salaries. 
 
July 25, Swat:  Security forces arrested 10 suspected militants 
during a search and cordon operation that was executed with a 
5-7 pm curfew on a major road. 
 
July 25, Hangu:  The district administration held a 
reconciliatory jirga of religious scholars, elected 
representatives and political leaders to negotiate between the 
government and militias. 
 
July 28, South Waziristan: Well-publicized air strikes 
reportedly killed al-Qaeda operative Abu Khubab al-Masri, along 
with five others.  Taliban chief Hafiz Gul Bahadar held a jirga 
of 120 figures and accused PM Gilani of killing innocent 
tribesmen to receive American approval during his visit to the 
United States. 
 
July 28, Peshawar: Police announced they will begin publishing a 
list of the most wanted kidnappers and terrorists in newspapers 
and provide 14.5 million rupees for information. 
 
July 28, South Waziristan: The government launched a three-day 
polio drive where 175 mobile teams will immunize more than 
130,000 children up to age five. 
 
July 29, North Waziristan: Several hundred security forces, 
backed by helicopter gun-ships, raided a madrassa run by Maulvi 
Jalaluddin Haqqani.  This was the eighth time his madrassa was 
raided and searched. 
 
July 29, Peshawar:  Police reportedly registered terrorism cases 
against two tribesmen who possessed hand grenades and 
Kalashnikov rifles. 
 
July 30, Peshawar:  Police reportedly seized a stolen car from 
Islamabad loaded with explosives that they claim was intended 
for a suicide mission. 
 
July 30, Peshawar:  NWFP Minister for Elementary and Secondary 
Education Sardar Hussain Babak announced that over 400 community 
schools will be opened next year, along with providing them with 
qualified teachers and books.  (Note: Babak stated that 2.6 
million children under age nine could not attend school because 
none was available.  Babak said the province needs 22,000 more 
primary schools.  End note.) 
 
July 31, South Waziristan: Security forces reportedly arrested 
three suspected militants during a roadblock operation. 
 
Grass Roots Efforts to Halt Talibanization 
------------------------------------------ 
 
¶11. (SBU) The following events are examples of activities taken 
by local communities to halt the spread of Talibanization: 
 
July 16, Hangu: Locals in the Dalan and Naryab areas reportedly 
formed a group of 300 men to protect their area from militant 
incursion.  Elders declared that they would prevent people from 
entering these areas without proper license plates and vowed to 
support security force efforts in the area. 
 
July 17, Peshawar:  The FATA Grand Alliance, an umbrella 
organization of lawyers, social workers and tribal elders, 
demanded changes in the existing administrative, legal and 
political structures in the tribal areas. 
 
July 21, Peshawar: Tribal elders assured Prime Minister Gilani 
of their full support in the fight against terrorism.  PM Gilani 
stated that "99% of the tribal people are sincere and committed 
to the country." 
 
July 21, Peshawar:  A student wing of Jamiat-i-Islam staged a 
 
PESHAWAR 00000425  007 OF 007 
 
 
peace rally to press the government to resist foreign 
intervention and to stop military operations in the tribal areas 
and settled districts. 
 
July 22, Nowshera:  Villager Daud Khan killed five militants 
when they came to his house and warned him to stop giving out 
loans on interest. 
 
July 25, Kohat: Two days after the military ended operations in 
Hangu, a group of tribal elders convinced militants to release 
eight hostages they have held for nearly two weeks.  Dozens of 
other paramilitary troops and government officials remain 
captive. 
 
July 28, Hangu: A jirga of at least eight tribes agreed not to 
give shelter to outsiders and pledged to cooperate with the 
local government. 
 
July 27, Peshawar:  A grand jirga of Islamic scholars, lawyers, 
businessmen and students, organized to demand the release of 
Shakir Ishaq, kidnapped by four armed men in University Town on 
April 18. 
 
July 30, Dir:  A jirga decided it will not allow criminals or 
militants to operate in their area and asked the government not 
to establish any check-posts in the district. 
 
July 30, Hangu: In talks with the Hangu district administration, 
a jirga of elders asked the government to pull out its troops 
from Hangu.  The government sought release of its 50 abducted 
officials and a promise from the militants to stop attacks, 
kidnappings, and propaganda. 
 
July 30, Kurram:  A cross-border jirga between approximately 200 
tribal elders from Paktia and Kurram agreed to ensure the safety 
of those traveling in and through their areas. 
 
July 30, Orakzai:  A tribal jirga secured the release of two 
hostages.  Militants kidnapped the two along with eight 
government workers on June 30 and still hold 23 people. 
 
July 31, Malakand: A jirga of political leaders, religious 
scholars, and social workers vowed not to allow either militants 
or the army to operate in its region. 
TRACY