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Exile For Collaborators With U.S. Forces: Pakistani Tribal Leaders
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Pakistanis
protest U.S. presence in Pakistan
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By
Hosbanullah Mutawakil, IOL Central Asia correspondent
PESHAWAR,
Pakistan, May 12 (IslamOnline) – The Pakistani tribes in the
northern state of Wazirustan have agreed to exile, fine, and burn down
the home of anyone who helps American forces in their hunt for
Al-Qaeda and Taliban elements in the area.
The
leaders of Bakakhil, Jannikhil, and Kabulkhil tribes have agreed that
all who helped American commandos in the Showal jungles in Wazirustan
will be fined 5 million Pakistani Rupees payable to the tribal
council. Punishment will also include burning the house of the
culprit, as well as exiling him from the area.
This
comes after the failure of the Pakistani government to convince the
leaders of these tribes to cooperate in anti-Taliban and
Al-Qaeda operations in the Showal jungles.
Tribal
leaders had placed conditions on the government’s appeal, saying
that they would only cooperate if the U.S. forces in the area left.
This condition was rejected.
The
U.S. presence in Wazirustan, and the U.S.-led raids on religious
schools in the Pakistani tribal region faces the collective opposition
of the people of the region.
Mass
demonstrations were held Friday, May 10, in many Pakistani cities to
denounce American intervention and Pakistani President General Pervez
Musharraf’s government policies.
Demonstrators
held placards demanding, “Death to America”, and called on the
government to expel U.S. forces from Pakistan.
Maulana
Fadlurahman, the leader of Ulama’ul-Islam group spoke to
demonstrators in Bagh Crawend Pemardan, telling them that “the
Americans must listen carefully, and hear that we want security and
peace in our country. And whoever sets our country on fire, let him
know that his country will not remain safe and secure.”
He
added that U.S.-led operations in the tribal region was offensive, and
that it was the duty of the Pakistani government to take wise
decisions regarding this.
Referring
to the Karachi bus blast Wednesday, May 9, in which 11 French
nationals working on a submarine project for the Pakistani navy were
killed, Fadlurahman expressed his regret over the killing of
foreigners in Pakistan.
“Foreigners
who live in Pakistan are our guests. Our religious duty is to defend
them. We must search for the people who really benefited from this
incident, especially since these foreigners were working for the
modernization of the Pakistani defense system.”
Fadlurahman
stressed the importance of searching for the motives behind the blast,
adding that the perpetrators were clearly enemies of Pakistan.
Maulawi
Jawhar Shah told the demonstrators in Jarseda, a city in northern
Peshawar, “We will not tolerate American intervention in our
country.”
However,
Iftikhar Hassan Shah, the ruler of Sarhad province denied the presence
of U.S. soldiers in his province.
“Everything
that was published in the newspapers about U.S. intervention, and the
searching of religious schools are lies and rumors… The Pakistani
government would not allow a foreign army to carry out operations in
the border areas.”
He
added, “The Pakistani government has undertaken all measures in its
border areas to prevent Al-Qaeda and Taliban elements from entering
Pakistani lands.”
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