Pakistani troops freed by tribe

Central & South Asia

Prisoner swap with tribal fighters ensures freedom for 211 captured soldiers.

Last Modified: 04 Nov 2007 20:39 GMT

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The security situation in Pakistan has sharply deteriorated since July [AFP]

Tribal fighters have released 211 Pakistani troops captured near the Afghan border more than two months ago.

Fighters handed the soldiers over to tribal elders on Sunday in the South Waziristan province, where they were seized on August 30 after their supply convoy was trapped by a landslide.

Major-General Waheed Arshad, a military spokesman, said: "The soldiers have returned to their camp in South Waziristan."

Maulana Siraj-ud-din, head of the group of negotiating tribal elders, said the troops were handed over to authorities in Wana, the main town in South Waziristan.

Fighters led by Baitullah Mehsud, commander of the Waziri Mehsud tribe, had demanded the release of some captured comrades and the withdrawal of troops from their tribal lands in exchange for the soldiers' freedom.

Arshad said South Waziristan authorities had released some people detained under tribal laws, but that paramilitary troops were still deployed in the area.

Reuters news agency quoted intelligence officials in the area saying that 25 people had been released in exchange for the troops.

Increasing lawlessness

The soldiers' release came a day after General Pervez Musharraf, the Pakistani president, imposed a state of emergency in Pakistan, citing rising terrorism and extremism among his reasons.

Pakistan's security has deteriorated sharply since July, when commandos stormed the Red Mosque in the capital, Islamabad, to crush a "Taliban-style" movement there. The raid resulted in a peace treaty with tribal leaders in the Afghan border breaking down.

Nearly 800 people have been killed in violence since then.

Source:

Agencies

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