(NSI News Source Info) April 11, 2009: The Pakistani Taliban have begun enforcing Islamic law in the Bajaur tribal region even as scores of militants consolidated their hold on Buner district, located just 100 km from the federal capital.
Maulvi Faqir Mohammad, the militant commander in Bajaur Agency and a deputy of Tehrik-e-Taliban Pakistan chief Baitullah Mehsud, announced the decision to enforce Shariah in the region during a broadcast on his illegal FM radio station on Friday.
Mohammad also barred women from stepping out of their homes without male relatives, banned shaving of beards and warned people against availing assistance from the Benazir Income Support Programme, a government project to provide financial aid to women.
During a 40-minute speech on radio, Mohammad said he and his fighters would spare no effort to strictly implement Islamic laws in the region.
The Taliban have formed an "action group" to ensure the enforcement of Shariah and to punish people who violate their edicts.
Mohammad said that shaving of beards and men not wearing skull caps are "practices of Jews and their followers" which the Taliban would not allow in Bajaur. People who listened to his radio broadcast described Mohammad's tone as "aggressive".
The militant commander also said people supporting the Benazir Income Support Programme and NGOs would be produced before Shariah courts. 
Pakistan's army soldiers patrol a road in Loisam town, in the Bajaur tribal region. Pakistani forces have turned the corner in the country's main front in its war against militancy with the capture of the strategically important village after heavy fighting, the commander of the operation said on Saturday.
Meanwhile, scores of Taliban fighters from Swat who entered Buner district, located just 100 km from Islamabad, have begun consolidating their hold on the region and taking control of more areas, including the shrine of Sufi saint Pir Baba.
Earlier, following peace talks with a tribal jirga, the militants had announced that they would pull out of Buner. The security forces offered no resistance as the militants took over more areas, the Dawn newspaper reported.
"They have taken control of vast areas in Buner. They are freely moving around while police and other law enforcement personnel remain confined to their posts," said a man who lives near the shrine of Pir Baba.
He said the militants had earlier announced that they would leave after holding a march in the area.
Local residents said the militants had occupied the homes of influential people organising an anti-Taliban lashkar or militia and were patrolling the road leading to Daggar, the headquarters of Buner district.
Militants set on fire TV sets, pictures and paintings and audio and video cassettes before Friday prayers. They locked the shrine of Pir Baba and stopped followers of the saint from visiting the site.
The militants also delivered sermons in village mosques. 
A Pakistan's army soldier walks past damaged houses in Loisam town in the Bajaur tribal region. Pakistani forces have turned the corner in the country's main front in its war against militancy with the capture of a strategically important village after heavy fighting, the commander of the operation said on Saturday.
"We have been asked by our seniors not to interfere with the Taliban," an officer of the Pir Baba police station told Dawn.
He said the Taliban had advanced weapons, some of which he had "never seen before".
The officer said the militants had not harmed anyone so far. "Their prime targets have already fled," he added.
A militant spokesman announced that people who had fled the area should return to their homes. He warned that those who had taken up arms against the Tailban would not be spared.
Local residents said the militants met hundreds of local people, especially youths, who remained with them the whole day. The Taliban were also seen patrolling several parts of Buner in vehicles they had captured. 
People flee from the troubled Bajaur region in Pakistan. About 100,000 Pakistani villagers have fled clashes between security forces and militants in the northwestern region raising the danger of a big humanitarian problem, a government official said on Friday. Security forces and militants have been fighting in the Bajaur region on the Afghan border, a known sanctuary for al Qaeda and Taliban fighters, since the militants attacked a security post last week.
An official at the commissioner's office at Saidu Sharif in Swat had said on Thursday that the Taliban had agreed to leave Buner after talks with a peace mission of tribal elders.
However, sources privy to the talks between the militants, administration officials and a local jirga said no agreement had been reached. :
Pakistan's army soldiers patrol a road in Loisam town, in the Bajaur tribal region. Pakistani forces have turned the corner in the country's main front in its war against militancy with the capture of the strategically important village after heavy fighting, the commander of the operation said on Saturday.
Meanwhile, scores of Taliban fighters from Swat who entered Buner district, located just 100 km from Islamabad, have begun consolidating their hold on the region and taking control of more areas, including the shrine of Sufi saint Pir Baba.
Earlier, following peace talks with a tribal jirga, the militants had announced that they would pull out of Buner. The security forces offered no resistance as the militants took over more areas, the Dawn newspaper reported.
"They have taken control of vast areas in Buner. They are freely moving around while police and other law enforcement personnel remain confined to their posts," said a man who lives near the shrine of Pir Baba.
He said the militants had earlier announced that they would leave after holding a march in the area.
Local residents said the militants had occupied the homes of influential people organising an anti-Taliban lashkar or militia and were patrolling the road leading to Daggar, the headquarters of Buner district.
Militants set on fire TV sets, pictures and paintings and audio and video cassettes before Friday prayers. They locked the shrine of Pir Baba and stopped followers of the saint from visiting the site.
The militants also delivered sermons in village mosques. A Pakistan's army soldier walks past damaged houses in Loisam town in the Bajaur tribal region. Pakistani forces have turned the corner in the country's main front in its war against militancy with the capture of a strategically important village after heavy fighting, the commander of the operation said on Saturday.
"We have been asked by our seniors not to interfere with the Taliban," an officer of the Pir Baba police station told Dawn.
He said the Taliban had advanced weapons, some of which he had "never seen before".
The officer said the militants had not harmed anyone so far. "Their prime targets have already fled," he added.
A militant spokesman announced that people who had fled the area should return to their homes. He warned that those who had taken up arms against the Tailban would not be spared.
Local residents said the militants met hundreds of local people, especially youths, who remained with them the whole day. The Taliban were also seen patrolling several parts of Buner in vehicles they had captured. People flee from the troubled Bajaur region in Pakistan. About 100,000 Pakistani villagers have fled clashes between security forces and militants in the northwestern region raising the danger of a big humanitarian problem, a government official said on Friday. Security forces and militants have been fighting in the Bajaur region on the Afghan border, a known sanctuary for al Qaeda and Taliban fighters, since the militants attacked a security post last week.
An official at the commissioner's office at Saidu Sharif in Swat had said on Thursday that the Taliban had agreed to leave Buner after talks with a peace mission of tribal elders.
However, sources privy to the talks between the militants, administration officials and a local jirga said no agreement had been reached. :
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