Pakistani military has 'degraded' Taliban groups: US general

[David]

WASHINGTON (AFP) – Pakistani military operations have "significantly degraded" Taliban groups in recent months, the senior US commander in the region told lawmakers on Wednesday.

General David Petraeus said the military campaign has boosted US efforts against the Al-Qaeda network but Islamabad has yet to go after sanctuaries used by the Afghan Taliban leadership, a distinct group from the so-called Pakistani Taliban.

[darrels joy]

Quetta shura no longer poses threat: Ahmad Mukhtar

Friday, 11 Dec, 2009



Mullah Omar not in Pakistan, Taliban commander says




QUETTA: The government has admitted the existence of the Afghan Taliban's Quetta shura for the first time, and says it has taken them on.

In an exclusive interview with DawnNews, Defence Minister, Ahmad Mukhtar said security forces have taken on the Quetta shura and have damaged it to such an extent that it no longer poses any threat.

A recent report by General Stanley McChrystal, the top US Commander in Afghanistan, alleged that the top Taliban leadership was in Quetta and that they were master-minding attacks on international forces in Afghanistan.

However, until this admission by the Defence Minister — the government has so far denied the existence of any Taliban leadership or the Quetta shura — in Balochistan's capital. — DawnNews

http://www.dawn.com/wps/wcm/connect/...-mukhtar-qs-04