Many members raise concerns on Pakistan Army capability of fighting insurgency, WSJ a reputed source had claimed Pakistan has raised a special commando force to fight the insurgency in the tough mountainous terrain. These soldiers are not in hundreds but thousands.
Great work done by Pak Army, :jhanda:
Pakistani Commandos Raid Taliban Stronghold in Swat
Source: Pakistani Commandos Raid Taliban Stronghold in Swat - WSJ.com
ISLAMABAD – Pakistani army commandos on Tuesday landed in the high mountains of the Swat Valley where top militant commanders were believed to be hiding, a significant new move in a conflict the army says has created 800,000 new refugees.
The commandoes of the newly trained elite counterinsurgency force were dropped behind the Taliban line in the Piochar region, 40 miles from Mingora, Swat’s main town. It was the first time helicopter-borne troops have been involved in fighting since the latest offensive in the valley began more than a week ago, after a peace deal in Swat between the Taliban and the government broke down.
The greater involvement of ground troops could bring higher army casualties – a major concern for Pakistan’s military command, which restrained past efforts in Swat to avoid that outcome.
Government troops have been using heavy artillery, helicopter gunships and fighter jets to attack militant positions.
Maj. Gen. Athar Abbas, chief military spokesman, told reporters the army had yet to begin fighting for Swat’s towns, where the Taliban are still deeply entrenched. He said 751 militants had been killed in recent fighting in Swat and neighboring districts, and 29 soldiers had died.
Pakistani officials said the number of refugees who have fled northern conflict zones since August has risen to 1.3 million. That includes 800,000 who have fled the latest offensive in Swat and neighboring districts – an area with a population of around 2.7 million – as well as more than 500,000 dislocated from Bajaur and other tribal regions along the Afghanistan border to the west and southwest of Swat.
About 30% of those have found their way to refugee camps; the rest have been given accommodation by residents of nearby areas outside the conflict zone, or else been taken in by relatives in Pakistan’s cities, government officials say.
Pakistan launched a full-scale assault on Swat and surrounding districts last week after the Taliban tried to extend their control beyond Swat, in the direction of the capital, Islamabad.
According to the military, around 5,000 Taliban fighters were battling for control of Swat, a former mountain retreat. Around 15,000 regular army troops are taking part in the biggest counterinsurgency operation Pakistan has undertaken since joining the U.S. war on terror after 2001.
Pakistan has raised a special commando force to fight the insurgency in the tough mountainous terrain. Thousands of troops have been trained under a new program designed to increase the nation’s counterinsurgency capability.
Pakistan has also deployed the U.S.-trained Frontier Corps, a special paramilitary commando force to which the U.S. has given counterinsurgency training and equipment.
The strong military response has won praise from U.S. officials who had earlier expressed concern that Pakistan lacked the will or ability to contain the Taliban in the northwestern region that borders Afghanistan.
Also Tuesday, a suspected U.S. missile attack flattened a house and killed at least eight people in another militant stronghold near the Afghan border, according to the Associated Press.