Militant leader asks govt to take practical

The News Mushtaq Yusufzai Tuesday, September 17, 2013 PESHAWAR: It seems the latest high-profile killing of Maj Gen Sanaullah Khan in Upper Dir district of the troubled Malakand region disturbed the Pakistani Taliban headed by Hakimullah Mahsud as they are now arguing the incident would never have happened had the government declared a ceasefire before the opening of formal peace talks with them. The militant leadership has a feeling that the killing of the two-star general along with two other military personnel may overshadow the prospects of proposed negotiations and the government may launch a meaningful and long-awaited military offensive against them. The Tehrik-e-Taliban Pakistan (TTP) that claimed responsibility for killing Maj Gen Sanaullah Khan and two other officials is now angry at the journalists and analysts for giving their opinions in TV talks shows regarding a division in militant groups on talks with the government and diminutive prospects of purposeful negotiations with them especially now when they have killed the in-charge of the Pakistan Army in the Malakand region. As the Taliban confirmed themselves that the government had approached them through some tribal elders and religious scholars but no formal session had taken place yet as neither they nor the government chosen negotiating team. There were also reports, which some insiders in the militants have confirmed, that militant groups had some internal differences over conditions of talks with the government, the latest incident, they feel could further derail the peace process. A top Taliban commander, known as a right hand man of TTP chief Hakimullah Mahsud, called this correspondent and insisted that kidnapping or killing of senior military officials were always on top of their agenda. He had no excuse for killing the top military official and rather complained that some people, particularly analysts were trying to sabotage the peace process by making it an issue. Pleading anonymity, he said it was not true that militant groups are divided over talks with the government. “Look, how can one group sit with the government to sign peace deal without taking the entire leadership into confidence as that agreement would not help restore peace,” the Taliban leader noted. Denying reports that the Swat Taliban led by Maulana Fazlullah and his men, based in Afghanistan’s Kunar and Nuristan provinces, organised the attack on Pakistani general to spoil the peace talks, he claimed the entire TTP leadership, including Maulana Fazlullah and his men, were taken onboard before acceptance of offer for peace talks with the government. “No doubt their case is different and the government and military leadership may not allow them to return to their native Swat but we have a clear-cut policy that we will not sign any peace accord if members of our organisation are not willing,” the TTP commander maintained. He said the government would have to sign peace agreement with all members of the TTP in case it wanted talks to prosper.