Since President Obama’s new 2009 U.S/NATO offensive in Afghanistan, forces have pushed the Taliban further into Pakistan. Afghanistan’s former ruling sect has consolidated control over large areas of the Pakistani region of North West Frontier Province. The Organization has fought the Pakistani military to a stand-still, forcing it’s withdrawal in many areas. In these areas the Taliban has become a virtual government, enforcing its own laws, running public services and collecting taxes. Recently the Taliban has pushed east, contesting for power in Pakistan’s fourth largest city located next to the North West Frontier, Peshawar (which was the base for Afghan refugees and fundamentalist fighters armed and trained by the US to fight the Soviet Union during the 1980s). The Taliban has been mounting regular attacks in and around the city. Local citizens report that the Pakistani government and military have done nothing to respond. They have formed militia groups to fight back. As the US/NATO assault continues on the Pakistan/Afghanistan border and the Pakistani government turns a blind eye, a de facto civil war is underway in Peshawar and North West Frontier Province.
Sources
Cyril Almeida, “A Resilient City Fights Back,” March 20, 2011
http://www.dawn.com/2011/03/20/a-resilient-city-fights-back.html
AFP, “Lashkar Kalachnikovs no match for Taliban rockets,” March 13, 2011
http://www.dawn.com/2011/03/13/lashkar-kalashnikovs-no-match-for-taliban-rockets.html
Imtiaz Gul,”The Most Dangerous Place in the World,” June 10, 2010, Christian Science Monitor
http://www.csmonitor.com/Books/Book-Reviews/2010/0610/The-Most-Dangerous-Place
Student Researchers:
Kat Smith, Lela Mayfield, Monique Larkins-Funches, Sabree Gemel (Niagara University)
Faculty Evaluator: Brian Martin Murphy (Niagara University)