Pakistan Facing Militants At Home-ground

Pakistan Facing Militants At Home-ground (NSI News Source Info) November 16, 2008: It is the new front line in Pakistan's battle against terrorism. The bucolic Swat Valley, just 90 miles from the capital Islamabad, was until eight months ago a popular tourist haven, but now it's a war zone, where Pakistan army has launched a stepped-up military campaign to confront a major threat from Islamic radicals. The militants have made major inroads, taking over villages that mount little or no resistance, kidnapping and beheading Pakistani soldiers, and promoting an extreme form of Islamic rule right on the Pakistani capital doorstep.

Pakistani troops patrol in Mingora, the main town of Pakistan troubled Swat valley, Sunday, Nov. 16, 2008. Pakistani helicopter gunships involved in a bitter offensive against militants in a northwestern tribal region struck targets in a neighboring area Sunday, a sign that the conflict may be widening to other parts of the rugged zone bordering Afghanistan.