socialmedian: Baitullah Mehsud is dead, long live Pak Taliban

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Baitullah Mehsud is dead, long live Pak Taliban

Source: INDIA ALERT

Oct 27, 2009

Summary

Wilson John
22 August 2009

The killing of Baitullah Mehsud, head of Tehrik-e-Taliban Pakistan, early this month is undoubtedly a major victory for the Pakistan security forces but, in the overall context of the Af-Pak strategy, it only merits to be termed as a short ‘operational pause’1 .

There is no doubt that Mehsud’s death will weaken the cabal of Talibanised tribal leaders and their supporters in Waziristan and nearby areas but the real question is its impact on the al Qaida’s plans for Pakistan and its neighbourhood.

It would be useful to begin by exploring the importance of Baitullah Mehsud. Mehsud, till early 2007, was an anonymous diabetic gym instructor from the Mehsud tribe, one of the two prominent tribes (other being the Waziris) which hold sway over large parts of the tribal areas straddling Pakistan and Afghanistan. Six years after the Taliban were forced to flee from their new found home in Afghanistan, Mehsud, who had taken part in the Afghan jihad, gave them shelter and protection and in turn became a trusted aide and commander of the Taliban i ...Read the full article

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