Taliban On the Move

Hello, I’m Charlotte Bellis, and you’re watching Newsy.com.

“60 miles, that’s all that separates the Taliban from the Pakistani capital of Islamabad.  This is unbelievable.”  “Do you realize how bad this is?  We were better off with them taking Afghanistan.  They take Pakistan, they have nuclear weapons.” (FOX News)

The Taliban has moved into the Buner region of Pakistan, suppressing government police forces and enforcing sharia law.  

Three policemen have been killed so far in the conflict.

Pakistan’s GEO TV talked to a government official, who denied that the Taliban are a threat to the government.

“‘It is not possible for the barbaric people with medieval mindset to seize Islamabad,’ she ruled out, adding it is not a peace of cake to gain control over Islamabad.” (Geo TV)

A local politician told the New York Times why locals aren’t resisting the invasion.

“…people were initially determined to resist the Taliban in Buner, but that they were discouraged by the deal the government struck with the Taliban in Swat.” (The New York Times)

The Pakistani government has deployed paramilitary police forces to the region, but CNN notes that other areas of Pakistan need better security as well:

“In a reminder that this is more than just a one-front conflict, on the western side of Pakistan, in the city of Peshawar”  “Police in Peshawar say that militants attacked fuel trucks that were going to carry fuel to American/NATO forces in Afghanistan.” (CNN)

Government and Taliban forces are currently in negotiations.  A Taliban spokesperson told the UK’s the Guardian that Western solutions won’t work in the Middle East:

“Democracy is a system for European countries. It is not for Muslims,” he said. “This is not just about justice. It should be in education, health, economics. Everything should be under sharia.” (The Guardian)

Is the Pakistani government doing enough? Is this a case for international intervention?