US pushing Pak to continue operation against Taliban

October 11th, 2009 KABUL - The Afghan troops have captured a Taliban spokesman during an operation in the country's Herat province, the Online news agency reported Sunday citing the army. Taliban spokesman Bashir Qinaat and four of his associates were captured in Gazara district of the province, Afghan army spokesman Abdul Basir Ghori said.

August 24th, 2009 WANA - Tehreek-e-Taliban Pakistan (TTP) chief Baitullah Mehsud wants the Taliban council to choose their new head within THE next five days, according to commander Waliur Rehman. Talking to a foreign news agency, Tehreek-e-Taliban Pakistan (TTP) South Waziristan Amir Waliur Rehman said, "We have thousands of suicide attackers, who can destroy their targets anywhere." Waliur Rehman added that Baitullah Mehsud is alive; but is seriously ailing.

July 24th, 2009 SWAT - A spokesman for the Pakistani Taliban has said militant leader Maulana Fazlullah is in good health, rejecting the claims by security forces that he was wounded in a military offensive in the country's northwest, the Online news agency reported. Pakistan military spokesman Maj.

July 7th, 2009 LONDON - The US marines along with Afghan troops have not received much resistance from the Taliban since the allied force launched a massive operation named Khanjar, or 'sword strike' against the insurgents in the southern Helmand river valley of Afghanistan, but now the Taliban has vowed to teach the security forces a lesson. The operation, which was launched five days ago, hardly saw the Taliban resisting the 5000 men strong allied force, and US Commanders hoped that the massive push will force the extremists to enter talks with the government, but the Taliban has some other plans.

July 2nd, 2009 KABUL - Almost 4,000 United States Marines, backed by helicopter gun ships, are attempting to regain control of the volatile Helmand River valley in southwestern Afghanistan, which currently is occupied by the Taliban. The valley is known for its poppy harvests and opium smuggling.

July 1st, 2009 ISLAMABAD - Pakistan President Asif Ali Zardari said Wednesday the military operation against the Taliban will continue till the militants are eliminated from the country. Zardari made the comments during a meeting with Prime Minster Yousaf Raza Gilani and Chief of Army Staff Gen Ashfaq Pervez Kayani at Aiwan-e-Sadr.

June 27th, 2009 KARACHI - Pakistani Prime Minister Yousuf Raza Gilani said the military operation in the Swat Valley is nearing end as the top rung militants there have been killed and the government would now focus on the development of the region, the Online News Agency said Saturday. He made the remarks while inaugurating a Textile City here.

June 18th, 2009 ISLAMABAD - At least 34 Taliban militants were killed and seven others captured in an operation carried out by the Pakistani Army in North West Frontier Province (NWFP), the army said in a statement Thursday. The army said five soldiers were also injured in the operation in Malakand Division of the NWFP in the past 24 hours to Thursday evening.

June 16th, 2009 ISLAMABAD - The Pakistan Government's decision to launch an operation in Waziristan to catch Baitullah Mehsud could provide the Taliban the fillip to regroup in Malakand, warned former interior minister Aftab Ahmad Khan Sherpao. "Complete success in Malakand would demoralised Taliban ahead of fresh operation in Waziristan.

June 14th, 2009 LONDON - Pakistan's cricketer-turned-politician Imran Khan has expressed fear that the ongoing military operation against the Taliban in Swat could backfire and fuel extremism and terror attacks in the country. "Pakistan is on a suicidal course," said Khan, the chairman of the Pakistan Tehreek Insaf (PTI) party was quoted by Online news agency Sunday.

June 7th, 2009 LAHORE - Pakistan's political and defence analyst Ejaz Haider has predicted that the Pakistan Army would soon launch a military operation in Waziristan, the "centre of gravity" for the Taliban. The Daily Times quoted Haider as saying that the military operation is inevitable, as it is essential to neutralize the Taliban's power in the tribal agencies of North and South Waziristan.

June 4th, 2009 PESHAWAR - The Pakistan Army might be claiming success in its operation in the Swat Valley, but a large number of people, who have been forced to flee the region due to the military operation, have put a question mark over the offensive, saying no key Taliban leader has been nabbed or killed so far. Internally Displaced Persons (IDPs), who have fled the valley and have taken refuge in government schools here, are skeptical about the authenticity of the military offensive, The Daily Times reports.

May 30th, 2009 RAWALPINDI - The Pakistan Army has claimed that it has pushed the Taliban out of Bahrain and Peochar village in the Swat Valley, killing at least 28 insurgents including a top commander Khush Mir Khan alias Abu Huzaifa in the process. Security forces have also arrested seven Taliban from different areas of the valley.

May 24th, 2009 ISLAMABAD - The Taliban has threatened Pakistan President Asif Ali Zardari, Prime Minister Yousuf Raza Gilani and other top Pakistan Peoples' Party (PPP) leaders, saying they would face dire consequences if the military offensive is not discontinued immediately. In a letter to the PPP Information Secretary Fouzia Wahab, the Tehreek-e-Taliban Pakistan (TTP) warned that the country's leadership would be targeted if the operation against them is not stopped.

April 30th, 2009 ISLAMABAD - The Taliban has said that the military operation in Buner is an attempt by the Pakistan government to pacify the United States. Spokesman of the Taliban's Swat chapter Muslim Khan said the Taliban would not retaliate to the ongoing military offensive, and it would abide by the peace accord it has inked with the provincial government.