This article is from the source 'nytimes' and was first published or seen on . It last changed over 40 days ago and won't be checked again for changes.
You can find the current article at its original source at http://www.nytimes.com/2014/01/22/world/asia/fatal-raids-as-pakistan-goes-after-militants.html
The article has changed 6 times. There is an RSS feed of changes available.
| Version 4 | Version 5 |
|---|---|
| Pakistan Goes After Militants in Northwest | Pakistan Goes After Militants in Northwest |
| (7 months later) | |
| ISLAMABAD, Pakistan — Pakistani jets pounded suspected militant hide-outs in North Waziristan on Monday night for the first time in years, signaling that the government was prepared to take the fight to the center of the insurgency that has racked Pakistan. There were at least 40 casualties in the airstrikes. | |
| The strikes appeared to be in retaliation for recent terrorist bombings in Bannu and in Rawalpindi, the site of the Pakistani military’s general headquarters. The two bombings killed at least 30 members of the security forces and put added pressure on the government of Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif to take a firmer stand against the militants, who have used the rugged tribal regions of the country’s northwest for years as a haven and base. | The strikes appeared to be in retaliation for recent terrorist bombings in Bannu and in Rawalpindi, the site of the Pakistani military’s general headquarters. The two bombings killed at least 30 members of the security forces and put added pressure on the government of Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif to take a firmer stand against the militants, who have used the rugged tribal regions of the country’s northwest for years as a haven and base. |
| Militant violence continued on Tuesday. Two buses full of Shiite pilgrims returning from Iran were attacked in Baluchistan Province in the southwest, leaving 18 people dead. Gunmen also attacked health workers administering polio vaccinations in various parts of the country; three workers were killed in Karachi in the south, including two women. | Militant violence continued on Tuesday. Two buses full of Shiite pilgrims returning from Iran were attacked in Baluchistan Province in the southwest, leaving 18 people dead. Gunmen also attacked health workers administering polio vaccinations in various parts of the country; three workers were killed in Karachi in the south, including two women. |
| Pakistan’s efforts to eradicate polio have repeatedly been hampered by militants, who say the vaccination program is a cover for spying. This month, the World Health Organization said that Peshawar, a city in the northwest, was the world’s largest reservoir of polio infection. | Pakistan’s efforts to eradicate polio have repeatedly been hampered by militants, who say the vaccination program is a cover for spying. This month, the World Health Organization said that Peshawar, a city in the northwest, was the world’s largest reservoir of polio infection. |
| Against this backdrop, there are growing calls within the country for Mr. Sharif to develop a coherent antiterror strategy. His government has shown an inclination toward peace talks with militants who are willing to lay down arms, and critics have accused it of vacillating on how to deal with those who do not. | Against this backdrop, there are growing calls within the country for Mr. Sharif to develop a coherent antiterror strategy. His government has shown an inclination toward peace talks with militants who are willing to lay down arms, and critics have accused it of vacillating on how to deal with those who do not. |
| American officials have long pressed the Pakistani military to take action against both local and foreign militants holed up in North Waziristan. Until now, however, officials here had usually balked, saying an attack would lead to more urban violence and to reprisal attacks against a military that is already spread thin in the restive tribal regions. | American officials have long pressed the Pakistani military to take action against both local and foreign militants holed up in North Waziristan. Until now, however, officials here had usually balked, saying an attack would lead to more urban violence and to reprisal attacks against a military that is already spread thin in the restive tribal regions. |
| Military and intelligence officials, speaking on the condition of anonymity, said the government had conducted the airstrikes in North Waziristan “after receiving actionable intelligence,” and denied that they were a preamble to a large-scale military operation in the region. | Military and intelligence officials, speaking on the condition of anonymity, said the government had conducted the airstrikes in North Waziristan “after receiving actionable intelligence,” and denied that they were a preamble to a large-scale military operation in the region. |
| “Militant hide-outs were bombed in Mir Ali and Miram Shah after we got reports” of the presence of senior militants, a security official said. | “Militant hide-outs were bombed in Mir Ali and Miram Shah after we got reports” of the presence of senior militants, a security official said. |
| “The militants were involved in bombings on a church in Peshawar and the latest attack in Bannu,” the official continued. | “The militants were involved in bombings on a church in Peshawar and the latest attack in Bannu,” the official continued. |
| Security officials said the people killed in the airstrikes were militants, but residents of Mir Ali and Miram Shah said that most of the casualties were civilians. Eight wounded women and children were taken to a hospital in Miram Shah, and several others to a hospital in Mir Ali, residents said, after jets and helicopter gunships struck positions within the town and in hilltop areas of nine other villages in the region. | Security officials said the people killed in the airstrikes were militants, but residents of Mir Ali and Miram Shah said that most of the casualties were civilians. Eight wounded women and children were taken to a hospital in Miram Shah, and several others to a hospital in Mir Ali, residents said, after jets and helicopter gunships struck positions within the town and in hilltop areas of nine other villages in the region. |
| Many families fled to the adjacent districts of Dera Ismail Khan and Lakki Marwat. Dozens of vehicles loaded with people could be seen moving out of the area of Mir Ali and Miram Shah, according to local officials. | Many families fled to the adjacent districts of Dera Ismail Khan and Lakki Marwat. Dozens of vehicles loaded with people could be seen moving out of the area of Mir Ali and Miram Shah, according to local officials. |
| “My family, which is consisted of 35 persons, is on its way to Peshawar to escape military bombardment,” Ahmad Jan Dawar, a resident of the village of Hassu Khel, near Mir Ali, said angrily by telephone. “Our village has now become a no-go area for us. Now, I am running like a mad dog to make arrangements for them.” | “My family, which is consisted of 35 persons, is on its way to Peshawar to escape military bombardment,” Ahmad Jan Dawar, a resident of the village of Hassu Khel, near Mir Ali, said angrily by telephone. “Our village has now become a no-go area for us. Now, I am running like a mad dog to make arrangements for them.” |