Pakistan army is out to secure Orakzai

By Kamran Haider
ISLAMABAD (Reuters) - Pakistani forces, backed by tanks, artillery, helicopter gunships and fighter jets, have stepped up an offensive to root out Taliban militants from the lawless northwestern region of Orakzai.

The top government official in Kalaya, the region's main town, said last week that government troops had control of more than 90 percent of the territory, which is considered a sanctuary for the Pakistani Taliban.

He said 235 militants had been killed and many hideouts destroyed in the latest assault, launched March 23. Ten soldiers have also died in the fighting. There is no independent confirmation of these figures.


GEOGRAPHICAL LOCATION:

Orakzai is one of seven semi-autonomous regions in Pakistan's northwest but unlike other ethnic Pashtun lands, it does not border Afghanistan.

Instead, the rugged mountainous territory borders Khyber and Kurram in north and west, and Peshawar and Kohat cities in northeast and south. According to the 1998 census, its population is about 750,000.
HUB OF MILITANTS

Orakzai was the original base of Pakistani Taliban chief Hakimullah Mehsud, who is widely believed to have been killed in January in a U.S. drone attack in North Waziristan region near the Afghan border.

Before moving to South Waziristan, a safe heaven for al Qaeda and Taliban militants, as chief of the Pakistani Taliban, Mehsud commanded Islamist insurgents in Kurram and Khyber. The Taliban in Khyber frequently attacked Western convoys bound for Afghanistan, endangering the vital supply route.

The government's military drives in the northwestern Swat Valley, Bajaur and South Waziristan forced many militants, including foreign fighters, to take refuge in Orakzai.

According to security officials, militants continue to use the region to launch attacks on Peshawar, the capital of North West Frontier Province, and other neighbouring towns.

A top military spokesman said military operations were stepped up in the region to protect Peshawar.