I have a couple of concerns about the Swat operation.
I hope they don’t violate the zero tolerance policy or make me unpatriotic.
Are the army tactics likely to be counterproductive? The army is using the tactics of ‘fighting from a distance’ using long-range artillery and air power. This will take a heavy toll on the civilian population. The Taliban, on the other hand, can minimize their losses by dispersing. Will these tactics eventually end up alienating the local population and strengthening the Taliban?
Is the army sincere in defeating the taliban or is this a show for american aid? In the past the army has let the Taliban grow unchecked and failed to do simple things like jamming their radio. Now, with aid on the table, a big operation is launched. Will it be business as usual later?
In different articles I read army announces evacuation orders for civilians to leave and give them time and opportunity, hence you see them fleeing areas where operation then begins.
Are the army tactics likely to be counterproductive? The army is using the tactics of 'fighting from a distance' using long-range artillery and air power. This will take a heavy toll on the civilian population. The Taliban, on the other hand, can minimize their losses by dispersing. Will these tactics eventually end up alienating the local population and strengthening the Taliban?
That's not accurate. The army is doing a combined air-ground attack - the casualty rate amongst soldiers is already very high. Air and artillery are used in areas where the army is fighting to support their attacks, rather than to simply hit at a distance.
Is the army sincere in defeating the taliban or is this a show for american aid? In the past the army has let the Taliban grow unchecked and failed to do simple things like jamming their radio. Now, with aid on the table, a big operation is launched. Will it be business as usual later?
Even the pakhtoon Awami National Party, which won the NWFP on the promise of negotiating a peace, now concedes that the attack on the Tlaiban is required. The ANP has nothing to gain from US aid, which goes to the federal government not provincial.
This is unlikely to be business as usual because for the first time, all the major political parties (PPP, PML, ANP) are aligned that the Taliban need to be dealt with. Before, the army could do what it pleased because there was discord.
For the first time, the political party that leads Sindhis and Balochis (PPP) , the party that lead Punjabis (PML-N), and the party that leads the Pakhtoon (ANP) are aligned that the only way to deal with the Taliban is force.
Regardless of whether you view the deposal of Musharraf as a good or bad thing, it did show then then the Pakistani people unite not even the army can stand in their way.
Today, with the people united behind the government and the army, it doesn't matter what business before was like. We now live in a new era of national unity and the government, not the army, is for now in charge.
I have a couple of concerns about the Swat operation.
I hope they don't violate the zero tolerance policy or make me unpatriotic.
Are the army tactics likely to be counterproductive? The army is using the tactics of 'fighting from a distance' using long-range artillery and air power. This will take a heavy toll on the civilian population. The Taliban, on the other hand, can minimize their losses by dispersing. Will these tactics eventually end up alienating the local population and strengthening the Taliban?
If that was the case, then our soldiers should be dying in numbers every day.
2) Most of time the army launches an operation in Pakistan, its a disaster, and it either ends up with the country split into half or very disgruntled people who start leading separatist movements.
3) Lots of dislocated refugees, and they will now be flooding into other cities of Pakistan, slums, shanty towns, crimes will go up
4) The fact that our country spends almost all its resources on army; we cant afford a war, especially in the economic dire straits we are in.
5) Oh and last but not least, the civilian casualties, which of course is the BIGGEST concern
I am not sure which world some of you are living in ..
90% of the wars in this world start when some other country backs up, support or encourages one of the parties, so if Pakistan got into it, why is it a problem. Would this war be justified if Pakistan made that decsion on her own? No country in her right mind gets into the war without consulting other countries and want to see if the decsion makes sense by having other countries on her side.
No Army is not sincere, they are ready to get killed, have Pak land destroyed and ruled by immigrant terrorist from west border and this is all a show to get more dollars (in case you did not notice, this was a sarcasm).
I am not suppose to post this using my real nick but because this is in agreement with our official policy on this matter, I dont mind saying it .
And to Pakistan the consequences of not fighting amount to loss of large parts of NWFP and FATA to Taliban advance, which would finally spread to all pashtun dominated areas of the country and then to seraiki areas - from there it would be collapse of the state.
My concerns are on tactics being used which are meant for conventional wars and not counter insurgency and the long term ability for the public to handle civilian deaths (they already don't care about army, police or FC deaths by taliban).
Some of us dont buy that western propoganda of those bearded maulanas descending from the hills of Margalla hills and taking over Islamabad lol.
So TLK what are you views on the operation against the MQM and also the operation against East Pakistan. Please just say you support them or you dont. A yes or a no will do.
I am not suppose to post this using my real nick but because this is in agreement with our official policy on this matter, I dont mind saying it .
So the forum policy dictates whether we support the war or not? Come on now, this is too much. I mean yes we support our troops even if we agree or disagree with a war but we should be free to decide whether we support the war or not. When VNam happened, what do you think those millions of protesters were doing? They were not defaming the soldiers, they were protesting against the decision of the Govt.
Some of us dont buy that western propoganda of those bearded maulanas descending from the hills of Margalla hills and taking over Islamabad lol. **
Just like some of you didn't buy that taliban could hurt any pakistani, could burn any school, could do suicide bombing against pakistan, could attack any pakistani military base, could attack visiting sri lankan players, could bomb mariott, could take over any area of pakistan outside of FATA etc. etc.
The goals posts for what the taliban can do keep moving after each of their new advances. Tomorrow the goal post will change to "sure they can attack islamabad in large numbers, but look they couldn't occupy it" etc.
how can anyone here question army's tactics if they're not even in the army? has anyone here ever lead an armed operation anywhere not counting command and conquer video games? better yet, has anyone here even made any kind of a big life decision aside from I dont want karealay gosht for dinner? half of the people here would be pissing and ****ting their pants if they're given a loaded weapon to fire, let alone facing one. Let professional people do what they're trained to do and if you still feel their tactics are questionable then instead talking about it from your from your safe corners of the world, go and take part in the operation and correct the questionable tactics.
An operation in karachi was perhaps necessary previously, but not how it was conducted against one political and ethnic group and the tactics that were used.
actually, I would ask the moderators of the forum to exercise the zero tolerance policy and close/delete the thread on the basis that no one here is in the armed forces in any rank to inform us what right tactics should be deployed, what right course of action should be taken since the thread is questioning army's tactics. or are we to listen to monday quarterbacking of civilians who probably just hit lv 44 in call of duty 4 and who have absolutely no idea what they're talking about anyway. thank you.
^ Bhai merey cool down. A soldier is a soldier, they are doing their jobs and while we may or may not agree with the war they are fighting, full points for them to be following orders and doing what is required of them. There are legitimate concerns about ANY war, and theres nothing wrong with discussing those concerns, and discussing them does not make anyone pretend they are experts at military tactics.