Taliban will let guns do their talking

Source: Asia Times Online

Taliban will let guns do their talking
By Syed Saleem Shahzad

KARACHI - Amid a growing furor in Britain over the deaths in the past few days of eight British servicemen in Afghanistan, the initiative to seek dialogue with the Taliban at the highest level of their leadership is gaining pace.

Taliban leader Mullah Omar is now the focus of attention, with the Pakistan military reportedly saying that it is prepared to act as a middleman to help the administration of United States President Barack Obama in a "new diplomatic overture to find an end to the long-running conflict" in Afghanistan.

Mullah Omar, however, is not believed to be in any mood to talk. Over the past few months, he has consolidated his grip over the various scattered but powerful resistance groups across Afghanistan and in Pakistan's tribal areas. His ultimate objective, as it has been since the Taliban were ousted in the US-led invasion of 2001, is for military victory against foreign forces.

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In the provinces around the Afghan capital Kabul, the Taliban have once again established a firm grip in the vital provinces of Ghazni, Logar and Wardak, virtually paralyzing the control of the local administrations.

Read more: http://www.atimes.com/atimes/South_Asia/KG14Df01.html

I hope he won't be surprised when he gets a visit from a Predator.

How many was it last week? 25 or so?

40 so far this month, according to icasualties.org/oef

Lots of blowin' up goin' on over there.

Blast kills nine in Pakistan village
By South Asia correspondent Sally Sara

Posted Mon Jul 13, 2009 4:36pm AEST
Updated Mon Jul 13, 2009 5:51pm AEST

At least nine people have been killed and more than 50 injured in a blast at the home of a Muslim cleric in Pakistan. Dozens of houses were flattened by the blast east of the city of Multan in Punjab province.

The house was often used as a makeshift religious school and some reports said seven children were among the dead.

The blast left a crater 12 metres wide and more than 20 nearby houses collapsed.Witnesses say the ground shook like an earthquake.The cause of the explosion is unknown but police found rocket launchers at the scene and suspect there may have been an ammunition dump at the cleric's house.

Rescue teams are still digging through the rubble, searching for more victims.




http://www.abc.net.au/news/stories/2009/07/13/2624542.htm?section=justin