Pakistan to pay hefty price for assault

http://atimes.com/atimes/South_Asia/SOU-02-230614.html



Pakistan to pay hefty price for assault
By Syed Fazl-e-Haider
Jun 23, '14

KARACHI, Pakistan - Following months of deliberation, Pakistan has launched what it hopes will be a comprehensive and decisive military operation against foreign and local terrorists in North Waziristan, a region in country’s northwestern tribal areas along the Afghanistan border which is branded by the US as a global headquarters for Taliban and al-Qaeda-linked militants.

The operation has been named "Zarb-e-Azb". Azb is an Arabic word - the name of the sword held by the Holy Prophet Muhammed (Peace be upon him). In the first four days of army action from June 15, more than 200 terrorists were killed. Among the dead were insurgents linked to recent Karachi airport attack that killed 38 people.

Pakistan took the difficult decision to undertake its first full-scale military operation against terrorists in North Waziristan after months of consideration. The decision was taken by the government of Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif, who has so far been reluctant to opt for a military solution to the militancy issue. The Pakistani Taliban had gained time and space to re-group, reorganize and re-strengthen its operational capacity during peace talks with the government in the six months preceding the strike.

The June 8 Karachi airport attack, claimed by the Tehrik-i-Taliban Pakistan (TTP), proved a game changer, with Pakistan’s political and military leadership taking a u-turn in its counter-terrorism strategy. Sharif has categorically declared that the military operation will not end until all terrorists are eliminated. The militants being targeted include locals and different foreign nationals including Chechens, Uzbeks, Turkmen, Tajiks and Uyghurs from western China.