The Long War Journal: Taliban, Army clash throughout Pakistan's northwest

Written by Bill Roggio on October 26, 2009 8:50 PM to The Long War Journal

Available online at: http://www.longwarjournal.org/archives/2009/10/taliban_army_clash_t.php

The Pakistani military and the Taliban have skirmished throughout the war-torn northwest over the past several days. Clashes in South Waziristan, Bajaur, and Hangu have reportedly killed 46 Taliban fighters and 12 soldiers.

In South Waziristan, where the Army has launched an offensive against the Movement of the Taliban in Pakistan in the Mehsud tribal areas, the military claimed success over the weekend after retaking the town of Kotkai. The town is the birthplace of Taliban commander Hakeemullah Mehsud and the hometown of suicide bomber trainer Qari Hussain Mehsud.

The Army first took Kotkai on Oct. 19 but lost it the next day in a Taliban counteroffensive. The Taliban claimed to have killed upwards of 45 soldiers in the battle, but the Army denied the report.

The military now says it has advanced a mile past Kotkai in its push toward the town of Sararogha, one of the main strongholds of the Taliban. Thirty-four Taliban fighters and six soldiers have been reported killed during fighting since Sunday.

The military is advancing on three fronts to reach the towns of Makeen, Ladha, and Sararogha. More than 30,000 Pakistani soldiers are battling an estimated 10,000 Taliban and 1,500 allied jihadis for control of South Waziristan.

Hangu

In Hangu, the military claimed 16 Taliban fighters were killed in the Tora Warai region. "Hundreds of militants of Tehrik-i-Taliban Pakistan [Movement of the Taliban in Pakistan] from Arakzai Agency and no-go areas of Hangu took part in the attack" on a security outpost, Dawn reported. One security official was killed in the assault.

The military also said that in addition to the Taliban killed, 23 Taliban were wounded and 54 more were captured during a counterattack.

The Taliban use the Tora Warai region in Hangu to move into neighboring North Waziristan, Dawn reported. Last weekend, the military destroyed a road in the region in an attempt to halt the flow of Taliban fighters from Arakzai through Hangu into North Waziristan.

Before commencing the present operation, the military signed an agreement with North Waziristan Taliban commander Hafiz Gul Bahadar to keep his forces from attacking military convoys and to not allow the Movement of the Taliban in Pakistan to transit through the region. The move by the government to destroy the road indicates, however, that the Taliban are still transiting through North Waziristan to fight in South Waziristan.

Bajaur

In Bajaur, the Taliban struck back against the military, which has been conducting an operation in the region. Four soldiers were killed in an ambush in the Mataak area yesterday. The military claimed six Taliban fighters were killed in retaliatory artillery strikes. On Saturday, the military lost three more soldiers after a helicopter transporting supplies crashed in Bajaur.