Pakistan halts offensive for Ramadan

Pakistan halts offensive for Ramadan
By Zarar Khan - The Associated Press
Posted : Sunday Aug 31, 2008 14:02:11 EDT

ISLAMABAD, Pakistan — Pakistan said Sunday it was suspending a military operation against insurgents in a tribal region for the Muslim holy month of Ramadan, while a blast blamed on a missile reportedly killed four suspected foreign militants elsewhere in the northwest.

A Taliban spokesman welcomed the decision to halt the strikes in the Bajur tribal region, a rumored hide-out of Osama bin Laden, but government and military officials warned that any provocations by insurgents in the area would spark immediate retaliation.

Despite not committing to a formal end to the operation against insurgents, Interior Ministry chief Rehman Malik said people displaced from Bajur could return to the region “without any fear.” He said the suspension would take effect by early Monday, but army spokesman Maj. Murad Khan said by late Sunday the military had halted its activities.

American officials have pressed Pakistan to crack down on militants in its tribal regions, fearing Taliban and al-Qaida-linked fighters involved in attacks on U.S. and NATO forces in Afghanistan use those border areas as safe zones. The U.S. is suspected in a series of missile strikes targeting alleged militant compounds in Pakistan’s rugged tribal belt.

Pakistan’s five-month-old government at first tried peace talks with militants, but those efforts bore little fruit. It has turned to force in recent weeks, including using helicopter gunships and jets to strike insurgent hide-outs.


Rest of article at: http://www.armytimes.com/news/2008/08/ap_pakistan_083108/%2e