In Pictures: Extremist leaders in Pakistan’s Khyber agency

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Click to view images of the senior leaders of the extremist groups operating in the Khyber agency.

The Pakistani military has launched an operation against extremist groups in the Khyber agency. On June 29, the military said it was directly targeting the local extremist groups of Ansar-ul-Islam, Lashkar-e-Islam, and the Promotion of Virtue and Suppression of Vice. The groups have been outlawed by the government after a request from the commander of the paramilitary Frontier Corps, which is leading the operation in Khyber.

The operation in Khyber appears to be limited in scope. The military and the government have said the operation would last no longer than a week. While the extremist groups have been outlawed, few of their fighters and leaders have been killed or captured. The leaders of Lashkar-e-Islam ordered their followers not to oppose the operation and have pushed for a peace agreement.

One metric of the government’s seriousness in taking on the extremists in Khyber is the killing of the group’s leaders. Capturing these commanders will mean little as the government has a poor track record of keeping Taliban leaders in custody. Sufi Mohammed, the leader of the radical Tehrik Nifaz-e-Shariah Mohammed based in northwestern Pakistan, was released during peace negotiations this spring. Scores of mid-level and senior Taliban commanders, including members of the Taliban Shura, or leadership council, in Afghanistan have been set free by the Pakistani government.

Bill Roggio is a Senior Fellow at the Foundation for Defense of Democracies and the Editor of FDD's Long War Journal.

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2 Comments

  • Jerjes Talpur says:

    Re-Posting
    1st of all let me clear one thing, it is not necessary to abuse power, or show strength , if things without abusing power can get ok than why should we attack and spread war, and disturb peace.
    Which country or government would love to disturbs its own country or government ?
    Being Pakistani we are ourselves fed up of these illiterate poor extremist tribal people who has got support of Taliban.
    Taliban would not finish unless these tribal people would stay away from them and stop supporting them.
    How will they stop support ? When they will have future and healthy peaceful luxurious life.
    They main problem of extremism is poverty, and we are working on it, to stop more extremism, by educating people, by teaching them how we all are connected to each other in this world, why peace is more important.
    That doesn’t mean we will leave all of them, we will only leave those who we thing are able to gain which we are trying to spread in that area, and that is enlighten moderation,but who are against this will be completely finished from that area by Target killing.
    This is our war on terror, and we have that way of winning war, instead wasting money energy and reputation like NATO forces.
    I am sure soon these tribal people will stop supporting talibans and would stand against terrorism and will support UN for peace.
    They all need Brain and eduction, would surely fill that gap between them and to the civilized world.
    War is not necessary for them because they can not afford it even they are not capable for it.

  • Rosario says:

    “All that’s necessary for the forces of evil to win in the world is for enough good men to do nothing.”
    Edmund Burke – 1729-1797

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