Cleric's exit imperils Pakistan peace deal (with Taliban) [View All]

Source: Associated Press

ISLAMABAD (AP) — A hard-line cleric who negotiated a peace accord that halted fighting between the Taliban and security forces in part of northwest Pakistan said Thursday he is leaving the region to protest the government's failure to impose Islamic law.

The announcement casts serious doubt on the durability of a cease-fire in the Swat valley that U.S. officials worry will create another sanctuary for allies of al-Qaida responsible for a rising tide of violence in the nuclear-armed country.

Imposing Islamic law in Swat, a one-time tourist haven, was the key plank of an accord worked out in February between the provincial government and Sufi Muhammad, a cleric who once led thousands of volunteers to fight U.S. forces in Afghanistan but has since renounced violence.

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But the militants have retained their arms and this week pushed into a neighboring area just 60 miles (100 kilometers) northwest of the capital, Islamabad, where they fought deadly gunbattles with villagers and police.



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