http://www.bloomberg.com/apps/news?pid=20601080&sid=aFs9_V.mNIj8&refer=asia
Taliban Increase Cross-Border Attacks, Gates Says (Update2) By Ed Johnson Jan. 17 (Bloomberg) -- Cross-border attacks by Taliban and al-Qaeda insurgents in Afghanistan are increasing as terrorists use Pakistan's tribal regions as a base, U.S. Defense Secretary Robert Gates said. ``The border area is a problem,'' Gates said at a news conference in the Afghan capital, Kabul, yesterday following talks with President Hamid Karzai. ``There are al-Qaeda networks operating on the Pakistan side of the border.'' An agreement between the Pakistani government and tribal leaders that aims to curb Taliban infiltration isn't working well and al-Qaeda continues to use the mountainous frontier region as a training and recruiting ground, Lieutenant General Karl Eikenberry, the outgoing U.S. commander in Afghanistan, told reporters traveling with Gates. Pakistan became a key U.S. ally in the war on terrorism in 2001 after President Pervez Musharraf withdrew support for the Taliban regime that sheltered al-Qaeda. Taliban fighters killed more than 3,700 Afghans in the first 11 months of 2006, four times more than in 2005, according to the United Nations and Karzai's government. John Negroponte, the U.S. director of national intelligence, said Jan. 11 that the al-Qaeda network has a ``secure hideout'' in Pakistan. Prime Minister Shaukat Aziz rejected Negroponte's remarks and said in a Jan 14. interview with Cable News Network that Pakistan is committed to fighting terrorism. Border Security Musharraf has deployed about 90,000 troops along the 2,430- kilometer (1,510-mile) border to tackle insurgents. The military attacked three terrorist camps with helicopter gunships in the South Waziristan tribal region yesterday, killing most of the 25-30 insurgents training there, the army said in a statement. Pakistan signed accords with tribal leaders in 2004 in South Waziristan and in September 2006 in North Waziristan aiming to cut support for the Taliban and al-Qaeda fighters. The agreements gave ``pro-Taliban elements a free hand to recruit, train and arm,'' the International Crisis Group said in a report last month, adding that security checks were disbanded and fighters released from custody. The Brussels-based group describes itself on its Web site as an independent, non-profit, advocacy group that aims to prevent and resolve conflicts. The number of attacks along the Waziristan border is up 200 percent compared with a year ago, Eikenberry said yesterday, according to the Pentagon news service. ``The enemy uses both sides of the border, and they use Pakistan for command and control,'' he said. ``They have senior leaders that operate on both sides of the border.'' Taliban Offensive Insurgents are expected to mount a fresh offensive when spring arrives in Afghanistan and will try to attack the southern city of Kandahar and other centers, Eikenberry added. The North Atlantic Treaty Organization commands a 31,000- strong international force in Afghanistan, which is drawn from 37 nations and includes 11,250 U.S. soldiers. The U.S. has another 10,000 military personnel in Afghanistan under separate American command on counter-terrorism operations, which include the hunt for al-Qaeda leader Osama bin Laden. Eikenberry said he supported a plea by U.K. Lieutenant General David Richards, commander of the NATO-led International Security Assistance Force, for a reserve infantry battalion of 1,000 to 1,200 soldiers. ``We're not talking about a large number of forces in order to have the margin of victory,'' he said. ``This is not a strong enemy. Small numbers of forces can be decisive.'' U.S. Reinforcements Gates, who flew by helicopter to a military post on the southeastern border with Pakistan, said he is ``strongly inclined'' to recommend increasing the number of U.S. troops if commanders request them, the Associated Press reported. Musharraf rejects accusations by Karzai that he is failing to control the frontier. His government says it is strengthening the border and two days ago ordered customs officers to screen and document every crossing, the official Associated Press of Pakistan reported. NATO troops and Afghan police captured a suspected Taliban commander today in the Gereshk district of southern Helmand province in the first joint operation of its kind, ISAF said in a statement. ``Despite trying to hide within the community, he has been arrested without resistance,'' said ISAF spokesman Squadron Leader Dave Marsh in the e-mailed statement. Afghan authorities arrested a purported Taliban spokesman as he crossed the border from Pakistan, AP reported. Muhammad Hanif and two other people traveling with him were apprehended by agents at the border town of Torkham two days ago, AP said, citing the Afghan intelligence services' spokesman Sayed Ansari. To contact the reporter on this story: Ed Johnson in Sydney at [EMAIL PROTECTED] . Last Updated: January 16, 2007 23:27 EST +++ -------------------------- Want to discuss this topic? Head on over to our discussion list, [EMAIL PROTECTED] -------------------------- Brooks Isoldi, editor [EMAIL PROTECTED] http://www.intellnet.org Post message: osint@yahoogroups.com Subscribe: [EMAIL PROTECTED] Unsubscribe: [EMAIL PROTECTED] *** FAIR USE NOTICE. This message contains copyrighted material whose use has not been specifically authorized by the copyright owner. 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