* Militants attack Pakistan officer Oct 28, 2009
A policeman beats a man, who was fleeing a military offensive in South Waziristan, for jumping a queue while waiting with hundreds of others at a food distribution point for internally displaced persons in Dera Ismail Khan, Pakistan, yesterday. PHOTO: REUTERS. (Taipei Times, Taiwan -- World)
Pakistanis battle Taliban after diversionary raid Oct 27, 2009
Policemen push back men, fleeing a military offensive in South Waziristan, at a distribution point for internally displaced people (IDP) in the outskirts of Dera Ismail Khan, located in Pakistan's restive. . (AlertNet)
Pakistan forces bomb Taliban in South Waziristan Oct 26, 2009
Men, who fled a military offensive against Taliban militants in South Waziristan, line up to pick-up relief goods for internally displaced persons (IDPs) at a distribution point in Dera Ismail Khan. . (AlertNet)
* Pakistani forces recapture strategic town Oct 25, 2009
REUTERS, DERA ISMAIL KHAN, PAKISTAN Sunday, Oct 25, 2009, Page 4. A fierce battle was fought there and now our forces have taken control of the town and a mopping-up operation is going on. (Taipei Times, Taiwan -- Sports)
Pakistan troops retake Taliban stronghold in Waziristan Oct 25, 2009
DERA ISMAIL KHAN, Pakistan, Oct 24 (Reuters) - Pakistani forces backed by helicopter gunships and artillery recaptured a strategic town from Taliban militants after fierce fighting, officials said on Saturday. Kotkai town in South Waziristan has changed hands three times since the army launched a major offensive on Taliban strongholds a week ago, highlighting the difficulty of seizing territorial advantage in the rugged mountains and valleys near Afghanistan. (AlertNet)
South Waziristan: There they go again Oct 24, 2009
By the middle of this week over 17,500 now destitute families, an estimated 128,000 individuals, had registered as displaced people with the authorities in the towns of Dera Ismail Khan and Tank ... Moreover, the authorities have also tried hard to rid Dera Ismail Khan of the sectarian violence that usually plagues it ... For one elderly man who arrived in Dera Ismail Khan this week from the Ladha area of South Waziristan, this is the fourth time he has had to flee his home because of fighting... (The Economist)
Taliban dig in for fight before Pakistani surge Oct 24, 2009
(10-23) 04:00 PDT Dera Ismail Khan, Pakistan -- Residents fleeing a 6-day-old Pakistani army offensive in a Taliban stronghold along the Afghan border reported Thursday that the insurgents are digging in for a fight and travel the roads freely. More News. (San Francisco Chronicle)
* Army brigadier, soldier killed in Pakistan capital Oct 23, 2009
An internally displaced person, left, who fled the tribal area of Waziristan asks a police officer to let him enter a relief center to get food in Paharpur, near Dera Ismail Khan, Pakistan, yesterday ... Baton-wielding police beat back refugees crowding an aid distribution center run by Pakistani authorities in the town of Paharpur, some 45km outside Dera Ismail Khan, a key town near the tribal region. (Taipei Times, Taiwan)
Taliban dig in as Pakistani army slowly advances Oct 23, 2009
DERA ISMAIL KHAN, Pakistan (AP) Residents fleeing a 6-day-old Pakistani army offensive in a Taliban stronghold along the Afghan border reported Thursday that the insurgents are digging in for a fight and travel the roads freely ... Most are staying with relatives or in rented homes in Dera Ismail Khan and nearby districts ... In Paharpur town, some 30 miles outside Dera Ismail Khan, police clubbed refugees swarming an aid distribution center run by Pakistani authorities. (Florida Today)
Miss Ireland upstages lady in red Oct 23, 2009
Pakistan's military offensive has driven thousands of refugees to the frontier town of Dera Ismail Khan. Omar Waraich witnesses their plight. (Yahoo News -- Beauty Pageants)
Pakistan is slowly advancing on Taliban Oct 23, 2009
DERA ISMAIL KHAN, Pakistan - Residents fleeing a 6-day-old Pakistani Army offensive in a Taliban stronghold along the Afghan border reported yesterday that the insurgents are digging in for a fight and travel the roads freely. Tired and dusty refugees arriving in this northwestern town yesterday from different parts of South Waziristan reported intense army bombing by jets and helicopters but said they had seen no ground troops. (Boston Globe)
Suicide attack kills 7 near N-linked complex in Pak Oct 23, 2009
Tired and dusty refugees arriving Thursday in the northwestern town of Dera Ismail Khan from different parts of South Waziristan reported intense army bombing by jets and helicopters but said they had seen no ground troops ... Most are staying with relatives or in rented homes in Dera Ismail Khan and nearby districts. (India Times, India)
Fresh Attacks Hit Pakistani Capital Oct 22, 2009
Pakistani displaced families who fled Waziristan due to the fierce fight between security forces and militants, arrive in Dera Ismail Khan, Pakistan on Wednesday, Oct. 21, 2009. (AP Photo/B.K. Bangash). (CBS News)
Pakistan offensive against Taliban creates angry refugees Oct 22, 2009
A policeman keeps guard over men who fled a military offensive in South Waziristan as they wait to registrater as internally displaced persons in Dera Ismail Khan, Pakistan, on Wednesday ... Dera Ismail Khan, Pakistan - Antimilitary feelings are running high among refugees in this town just outside South Waziristan, where more than 100,000 Pakistanis have fled from an Army offensive aimed at destroying the Pakistani Taliban network ... North West Frontier Province governor Owais Ghani reiterated... (Christian Science Monitor -- World)
Reports: 2 soldiers killed in Pakistan capital Oct 22, 2009
Associated Press writers Zarar Khan in Islamabad, Ishtiaq Mahsud in Dera Ismail Khan, Riaz Khan in Peshawar and Rasool Dawar in Mir Ali contributed to this report. AP Photographer Hasbunallah Khan also contributed from Miran Shah. (Atlanta Journal-Constitution -- World)
Maulvi Nazir, Gul Bahadur to allow army movement through their lands Oct 21, 2009
DERA ISMAIL KHAN: The army, in the midst of an operation in South Waziristan, has struck deals to keep two powerful, anti-US tribal chiefs from joining the battle against the government, officials have said. Under the terms agreed to about three weeks ago, Taliban renegades Maulvi Nazir and Hafiz Gul Bahadur would stay out of the parts of South Waziristan controlled by the TTP.. (Daily Times, Pakistan)
All or nothing, say Pakistanis fleeing Taliban offensive Oct 21, 2009
DERA ISMAIL KHAN, Pakistan (Reuters) - The Pakistan government needs to finish off Taliban militants once and for all in an offensive on their South Waziristan stronghold or risk them returning stronger and in greater numbers, residents say ... "They have built bunkers and caves that cannot be hit even by bombing from the air," said Mohammed Jameel Mehsud, 75, registering at a site for displaced people this week at Dera Ismail Khan, in neighbouring North West Frontier Province. (The Star Online, Malaysia)
Pakistan hits Taliban, urges NATO to seal border Oct 21, 2009
DERA ISMAIL KHAN, Pakistan, Oct 21 (Reuters) - Pakistani helicopter gunships attacked Taliban bases near the Afghan border on Wednesday as the army urged NATO forces to seal the frontier to stem cross-border movement of militants ... Eight soldiers wounded in overnight fighting were evacuated to the nearby town of Dera Ismail Khan. (AlertNet)
Taliban retakes strategic Pakistani town Oct 21, 2009
DERA ISMAIL KHAN, Pakistan - Taliban militants attacked Pakistani forces and recaptured a strategic town on Tuesday while two suicide bomb blasts at an Islamic university in the capital killed six people and wounded at least 20, officials said. The government made an immediate link between the university attack and an offensive against the Taliban, with Interior Minister Rehman Malik saying "all roads are leading toward South Waziristan.". (MSNBC -- International)
Pakistani military offensive could uproot 170,000 Oct 20, 2009
The Pakistani authorities report that there are now a total of 106,800 internally displaced persons (IDPs) registered in the districts of Dera Ismail Khan and Tank in North West Frontier Province (NWFP). "The humanitarian community estimates that over 170,000 people may be displaced as a result of the new military operations, which could bring the total number of IDPs to up to 250,000," said the OCHA.. (Xinhuanet, China)
Pakistan Cuts Deal with Militants Oct 20, 2009
Soldiers of Pakistani security force check search people who fled Waziristan, where Pakistan security forces are fighting with al-Qaida activists and Taliban militants, arrive at Dera Ismail Khan on Monday, Oct. 19, 2009 Ishtiaq Mahsud / AP ... (DERA ISMAIL KHAN, Pakistan) Pakistan's army, in the midst of a major new offensive against Taliban militants, has struck deals to keep two powerful, anti-U.S. tribal chiefs from joining the battle against the government, officials said Monday ... "There... (Time.com)
Pakistan targets key Taliban town Oct 20, 2009
Hundreds of people continue to arrive in Dera Ismail Khan to escape fighting ... Fighting is continuing across the South Waziristan area and both sides are using heavy weapons to bombard each other's positions, the BBC's Syed Shoaib Hasan in the nearby town of Dera Ismail Khan says. (BBC News -- South Asia)
Explosions Rock Pakistan University Oct 20, 2009
People who fled Waziristan where Pakistan security forces are fighting with al Qaeda activists and Taliban militants, arrive at Dera Ismail Khan, Oct. 19, 2009 in Pakistan. (AP Photo/Ishtiaq Mahsud). (CBS News -- 60 minutes II)
* Pakistani military to target Taliban leadership Oct 20, 2009
ON THE MOVE: Concerns are mounting that the offensive in South Waziristan will spark another refugee crisis after 100,000 civilians fled to nearby Dera Ismail Khan AFP, ISLAMABAD AND PESHAWAR, PAKISTAN Tuesday, Oct 20, 2009, Page 1. Internally displaced civilians fleeing from military operations against Taliban militants in South Waziristan sit in a queue outside a registration office in Dera Ismail Khan, Pakistan, yesterday ... Some of the 100,000 people who have fled to Dera Ismail Khan, on... (Taipei Times, Taiwan)
US, Pakistan agree to disagree on Waziristan offensive Oct 20, 2009
Some 160,000 people are now registered as displaced, according to Faiysal Khan, director of FIDA, an aid organization based in the town of Dera Ismail Khan, where most residents have fled. Mr. Khan told the Monitor that the influx of refugees was placing a burden on the impoverished town that's already low on food and water and that the construction of refugee camps which the government failed to prepare despite months of publicity surrounding the operation now seems likely. (Christian Science Monitor -- World)
WAZIRISTAN PUSH Oct 20, 2009
DERA ISMAIL KHAN, Pakistan, Oct 20 (Reuters) - Pakistani forces attacking Taliban militants in their South Waziristan stronghold have captured a town on the approach to one of the insurgents' main bases, security officials said on Tuesday ... A boy carries a rooster as he walks while a girl runs behind near a checkpoint along the road leading from South Waziristan to Dera Ismail Khan in Pakistan's North West. (AlertNet)
Taliban vows to defeat Pakistan Oct 20, 2009
AP Pakistani tribal people, who fled their villages because of a military offensive, register themselves for relief aid Sunday at a registration center in Dera Ismail Khan, Pakistan ... DERA ISMAIL KHAN, Pakistan (AP) - Pakistani troops and the Taliban fought fierce battles Sunday in a militant sanctuary near the Afghan border, with both sides claiming early victories in an army campaign that could shape the future of the country's battle against extremism. (Jefferson City News Tribune, MO)
Pakistan presses ahead on border offensive Oct 20, 2009
DERA ISMAIL KHAN, Pakistan (AP) Troops fought militants on three fronts and fighter jets bombed insurgent positions near the Afghan border Monday as Pakistan pressed ahead with an assault on the country's main Taliban and al-Qaeda stronghold ... "The situation in Waziristan is getting worse and worse every day," said Haji Sherzad Mehsud as he lined up for aid in Dera Ismail Khan, a town near South Waziristan ... Pakistani tribal families who fled Waziristan, where Pakistan security forces are... (Florida Today)
Soldiers, militants die in Pakistan fighting: officials Oct 20, 2009
Some of the 100,000 people who have fled to neighbouring Dera Ismail Khan, on foot and stuffed into pick-up trucks weighed down with bedding and animals, spoke of intensifying fighting and air strikes targeting villages. "I decided to leave when my neighbour's house was destroyed by jet fighters," said Rahim Dad Mehsud, a labourer from Tiarza who said he walked three days to leave South Waziristan with 12 relatives. (Sydney Morning Herald -- World)
US leaders visit Pakistan as it wages offensive Oct 19, 2009
DERA ISMAIL KHAN, Pakistan - Pakistani soldiers killed at least eight advancing Taliban fighters as they waged a major offensive against militants along the Afghan border Monday, intelligence officials said, while a top U.S. senator and general met with officials in the nuclear-armed nation. Both the Pakistani army and the Taliban have claimed early victories in the clashes in South Waziristan, a tribal region that al-Qaida ( | ) and other Islamist extremists use as a base to plot attacks on the... (ABC 7 News, DC)
Pakistanis Kill 60 Taliban in Push Against Home Base in South Waziristan Oct 19, 2009
About 24,000 people left their homes in South Waziristan for the two neighboring districts of Dera Ismail Khan and Tank last week in anticipation of the offensive against the Taliban, the said Oct. 16. South Waziristan is a mountainous land of 6,620 square kilometers (2,550 square miles) with a population of about 500,000. (Bloomberg -- Asia)
Pakistan's army operation kills 60 militants Oct 19, 2009
Women fleeing a military offensive in South Waziristan are guarded by a soldier as they await their turn at a registration point for internally displaced persons (IDPs) in Dera Ismail Khan, located in Pakistan's restive North West Frontier Province October 18, 2009. (Xinhua/Reuters Photo). (Xinhuanet, China)
PAKISTAN: Thousands flee South Waziristan as army offensive begins Oct 19, 2009
As with previous waves of displacement from parts of NWFP, most of the displaced are staying with relatives or in rented accommodation, mainly in NWFP's Dera Ismail Khan and Tank districts, neighbouring South Waziristan ... "There has been growing unrest and even bombardment for weeks. I felt I had to take my family away," said Ehsanullah Wazir, who is now in Dera Ismail Khan staying with his cousin ... "We hope we will not have to stay for long. I am already concerned about the livestock I have... (AlertNet)
Best from Sunday Oct 19, 2009
DERA ISMAIL KHAN, Pakistan - Pakistani soldiers attacked militant bases in the main al-Qaida and Taliban stronghold along the Afghan border Saturday as the nuclear-armed country launched its most critical offensive yet against insurgents threatening its stability. RIO DE JANEIRO - Drug traffickers shot down a police helicopter and killed two officers in a burst of drug-based violence just two weeks after the city won the 2016 Olympic games. (Athens Banner-Herald)
Pakistan Offensive: Both Sides Claim a Win Oct 19, 2009
DERA ISMAIL KHAN, Pakistan, Oct. 19, 2009 ... People who fled Waziristan where Pakistan security forces are fighting with al Qaeda activists and Taliban militants, arrive at Dera Ismail Khan, Oct. 19, 2009 in Pakistan. (CBS News -- Politics)
Factors in fighting the Taliban Oct 19, 2009
By Syed Shoaib Hasan BBC News, Dera Ismail Khan ... " However, at the moment the government seems to be doing the exact opposite. As thousands of tribal families flee South Waziristan, all measures in nearby Dera Ismail Khan suggest the authorities are least bothered about the looming humanitarian crisis. The tribesmen, mostly ethnic Mehsud, have cried themselves hoarse for help, but have received a largely unsympathetic hearing from the local administration. 'Dangerous approach'In fact, some... (BBC News -- South Asia)
Taliban vow to defeat Pakistan offensive Oct 19, 2009
DERA ISMAIL KHAN, Pakistan - Pakistani troops and the Taliban fought fierce battles in a militant sanctuary near the Afghan border, with both sides claiming early victories in an army campaign that could shape the future of the country's battle against extremism. A Taliban spokesman vowed the Islamist militants would fight to "our last drop of blood" to defend their stronghold of South Waziristan, predicting the army would fail in its latest attempt to gain control over it. (MSNBC -- International)
Pakistan Pounds Taliban as Petraeus, Kerry Visit Oct 19, 2009
DERA ISMAIL KHAN, Pakistan Pakistani soldiers killed at least eight advancing Taliban fighters as they waged a major offensive against militants along the Afghan border Monday, intelligence officials said, while a top U.S. senator and general met with officials in the nuclear-armed nation. Both the Pakistani army and the Taliban have claimed early victories in the clashes in South Waziristan, a tribal region that Al Qaeda and other Islamist extremists use as a base to plot attacks on the... (Fox News)
Pakistani army pushes into militant stronghold Oct 19, 2009
Boys crowd the back of a truck while fleeing a military offensive against Taliban militants in Dera Ismail Khan, located in Pakistan's North West Frontier province. . (Florida Today)
Pakistan pounds militant targets Oct 19, 2009
At least 20,000 people have fled the area over the last week to the nearby Dera Ismail Khan ... Clashes between security forces and the Taliban have continued throughout the night across the South Waziristan region, the BBC's Syed Shoaib Hasan reports from neighbouring Dera Ismail Khan ... Syed Shoaib Hasan, BBC News, Dera Ismail Khan At the moment, the situation is a stalemate as the army tries to use ground troops backed by heavy weapons and air power to push back the Taliban. (BBC News -- South Asia)
Why is Pakistan attacking in the region? Oct 18, 2009
Boys crowd the back of a truck while fleeing a military offensive against Taliban militants in Dera Ismail Khan, located in Pakistan's North West Frontier Province on October 17, 2009. Pakistani. (AlertNet)
Militants Killed in New Pakistan Offensive Oct 18, 2009
DERA ISMAIL KHAN, Pakistan, Oct. 17, 2009. Militants Killed in New Pakistan Offensive. (CBS News)
Pakistan starts ground assault in Taliban region Oct 18, 2009
DERA ISMAIL KHAN, Pakistan, Oct 17 (Reuters) - Pakistani forces launched a ground offensive against Taliban militants in South Waziristan on the Afghan border on Saturday, with soldiers advancing from three directions, officials said ... "There was heavy firing from both sides and people are fleeing," villager Alluddin Mehsud told Reuters after arriving in the safety of Dera Ismail Khan city, east of Waziristan ... Boys crowd the back of a truck while fleeing a military offensive against Taliban... (AlertNet)
Curfew imposed in region, all link roads to and from Waziristan blocked Oct 18, 2009
Curfew: The government imposed a curfew in the region late on Friday, shutting down all link roads to and from Waziristan and jamming the mobile and telecommunication systems in Dera Ismail Khan, Tank, Lakki Marwat and Bannu districts ... Authorities have set up registration camps for these internally displaced persons (IDPs) in Tank and Dera Ismail Khan. (Daily Times, Pakistan)
Pakistan Launches Offensive Oct 18, 2009
DERA ISMAIL KHAN, Pakistan Pakistani soldiers attacked militant bases in the main Al Qaeda and Taliban stronghold along the Afghan border Saturday as the nuclear-armed country launched its most critical offensive yet against insurgents threatening its stability. Five soldiers and 11 militants were killed as the more than 30,000 troops deployed to the region met stiff resistance in parts of South Waziristan, a possible hide-out of Osama bin Laden and a base for jihadists bent on overthrowing the... (Fox News)
At war's edge Oct 18, 2009
By Syed Shoaib Hasan BBC News, Dera Ismail Khan, South Waziristan border. Fleeing civilians have made the town of Dera Ismail Khan their destination ... "There are bombs going off everywhere - you must tell the world what is happening," Sher Gul, a terrified resident of Tiarza in South Waziristan told the BBC after arriving in Dera Ismail Khan. (BBC News -- South Asia)
Taliban resist Pakistan onslaught Oct 18, 2009
There is a huge army presence on the road between Tank and Dera Ismail Khan, says the BBC's Islamabad correspondent Shoaib Hasan, near South Waziristan. The army has been massing troops near the militants' stronghold for months - ever since the governor of Pakistan's North West Frontier Province announced a ground offensive in South Waziristan on 15 June. (BBC News -- South Asia)
Pakistan Battles Taliban in South Waziristan, Aims to Dismantle Network Oct 18, 2009
About 24,000 people left their homes in South Waziristan for the two neighboring districts of Dera Ismail Khan and Tank last week in anticipation of the offensive against the Taliban, the said Oct. 16. Refugees Fleeing. (Bloomberg -- Asia)
Pakistani troops, Taliban in heavy clashes Oct 18, 2009
Pakistani officials say the number of displaced could rise to 200,000 people, who are staying mostly with relatives or renting rooms in the neighbouring districts of Tank and Dera Ismail Khan. 2009. (Sydney Morning Herald -- World)
Read the story Oct 18, 2009
DERA ISMAIL KHAN, Pakistan, Oct. 17, 2009. Militants Killed in New Pakistan Offensive. (CBS News -- Evening News)
Pakistan offensive against al-Qaida starts Oct 18, 2009
DERA ISMAIL KHAN, Pakistan - More than 30,000 Pakistani soldiers launched a ground offensive against al-Qaida and the Taliban's main stronghold along the Afghan border Saturday, officials said, in the country's toughest test yet against a strengthening insurgency ... Earlier this week, the airport in the nearest major town, Dera Ismail Khan, was closed to civilian aircraft. (AZCentral -- News)
Pakistani forces battle Taliban in S.Waziristan Oct 18, 2009
A child looks out of the front windshield of a vehicle while fleeing a military offensive against Taliban militants in Dera Ismail Khan, located in Pakistan's North West Frontier Province October 17, 2009. (REUTERS/Mustansar Baloch). (The Star Online, Malaysia -- News)
Pakistan forces move on Taliban Oct 17, 2009
There has seen a huge army presence on the road between Tank and Dera Ismail Khan, says the BBC's Islamabad correspondent Shoaib Hasan, near South Waziristan. On his way to South Waziristan, he passed several army convoys on the road. (BBC News -- South Asia)
Pakistan moves troops to Taliban bastions: officials Oct 17, 2009
"Troops from neighbouring Tank district and Dera Ismail Khan have already been moved towards Waziristan," a Pakistani intelligence official said. Another military official in Peshawar confirmed that ground troops were moving towards Taliban strongholds in the vast, lawless and mountainous district where any operation is likely to prove extremely difficult. (Sydney Morning Herald -- World)
Tackling the other Taliban Oct 16, 2009
They had come to Dera Ismail Khan, in the settled area of North-West Frontier Province (NWFP) that borders Pakistan s semi-autonomous tribal belt, to escape an army assault on the local Taliban ... In dusty Dera Ismail Khan, where most of the displaced have been registered, no food has been distributed for a month ... Arriving footsore and broke in Dera Ismail Khan, Wazir Mehsud was dismayed to discover so little to eat, and that his house back in South Waziristan had been flattened in an air... (The Economist)
5 terror attacks in Pak in a day, 39 dead Oct 16, 2009
Fearing the looming offensive, about 200,000 people have fled South Waziristan since August, moving in with relatives or renting homes in the Tank and Dera Ismail Khan areas, a local government official said, speaking on condition of anonymity because he was not authorized to talk to the media. Topics. (India Times, India)
THOUSANDS FLEE: Pakistan jets bomb militant hide-outs Oct 15, 2009
DERA ISMAIL KHAN, Pakistan (AP) Pakistani jets pounded suspected militant hide-outs along the Afghan border Wednesday as officials said hundreds of thousands of civilians have fled South Waziristan in anticipation of an expected military offensive ... About 200,000 people have fled South Waziristan since August, moving in with relatives or renting homes in the Tank and Dera Ismail Khan areas in an exodus that has continued in recent days, a local government official said. (USA Today)
Gunmen attack 3 Pakistan police sites Oct 15, 2009
Fearing the looming offensive, about 200,000 people have fled South Waziristan since August, moving in with relatives or renting homes in the Tank and Dera Ismail Khan areas, a local government official said, speaking on condition of anonymity because he was not authorized to talk to the media. More on. (MSNBC -- International)
Lahore under siege: Terrorists attack 3 police offices, 23 dead Oct 15, 2009
Fearing the looming offensive, about 200,000 people have fled South Waziristan since August, moving in with relatives or renting homes in the Tank and Dera Ismail Khan areas, a local government official said, speaking on condition of anonymity because he was not authorized to talk to the media. The US has encouraged Pakistan to take strong action against insurgents who are using its soil as a base for attacks in Afghanistan, where US troops are bogged down in an increasingly difficult war. (India Times, India)
* Pakistan bombs Taliban hideout Oct 15, 2009
The intelligence apparatus was under fire after a newspaper reported that the authorities knew of a coming attack against army headquarters AFP , PESHAWAR AND DERA ISMAIL KHAN, PAKISTAN Thursday, Oct 15, 2009, Page 5 ... People are coming out of the area and around 90,000 people have left the area and have been shifted to safer places in Dera Ismail Khan and Tank, said Shahab Ali Shah, the top administrative official in South Waziristan ... Hameedullah Khan, a senior government official in... (Taipei Times, Taiwan -- World)
Pakistan bombs militants near Afghanistan Oct 15, 2009
(10-14) 04:00 PDT Dera Ismail Khan, Pakistan. Pakistani jets softened up militant targets along the Afghan border Tuesday ahead of what the government promises will be a ground offensive into the Taliban's main stronghold, authorities said. (San Francisco Chronicle)
Pakistanis Flee Border Ahead of Offensive Oct 15, 2009
(DERA ISMAIL KHAN, Pakistan) Streams of civilians jammed into cars and trucks to flee the militant stronghold of South Waziristan as the government pounded the area with air strikes ahead of an expected ground offensive against the Taliban along Pakistan's border with Afghanistan ... Fearing the looming offensive, about 200,000 people have fled South Waziristan since August, moving in with relatives or renting homes in the Tank and Dera Ismail Khan areas, a local government official said,... (Time.com)
Pakistan: airstrikes killed 9 militants Oct 14, 2009
DERA ISMAIL KHAN, Pakistan - Pakistani jets pounded militant hide-outs along the Afghan border and killed at least nine guerrillas, intelligence officials said Wednesday, part of a stepped-up campaign of airstrikes before an expected government offensive in South Waziristan. Government officials have been threatening an operation in the lawless border area for months, but a string of recent suicide bombings blamed on the Taliban appeared to have strengthened their resolve to engage in what will... (ABC 7 News, DC)
Pakistani jets strike at militants along Afghan border Oct 14, 2009
DERA ISMAIL KHAN, Pakistan - Pakistani jets softened up militant targets along the Afghan border yesterday ahead of what the government promises will be a ground offensive into the Taliban s main stronghold, authorities said. The resolve to send large numbers of troops on a risky operation into mountainous South Waziristan has deepened after a week of attacks around the country along with ominous signs that different militant groups are now working in tandem. (Boston Globe)
Pakistani jets bomb targets near Afghan border Oct 14, 2009
DERA ISMAIL KHAN, Pakistan - Pakistani jets bombed militant targets in the main insurgent stronghold along the Afghan border Tuesday in softening-up operations ahead of an expected ground offensive there, authorities said ... An Associated Press reporter in the town of Dera Ismail Khan, which lies just next to the South Waziristan, reported no unusual movement of military vehicles Tuesday, and did not see large numbers of people fleeing their homes. (MSNBC -- International)
