Posted by
whoyg39 on Sunday, October 18, 2009 10:38:05 PM
Islamabad, Pakistan - A three-pronged offensive deep into Taliban territory entered its second day on Sunday as heavy fighting between the Pakistan Army and the Taliban left 60 militants and six soldiers dead, according to officials.
Gen. David Petraeus, head of the US Central Command, is due to arrive in Islamabad on Monday for talks with Pakistani commanders regarding what observers have called the "mother of all battles," highlighting the importance Washington attaches to the
freshwater pearl offensive.
Codenamed "Rah-i-Nijat" or "The Path to Salvation," the operation is taking place in the Taliban heartland of South Waziristan, a barren, mountainous region spanning some 6,620 square kilometers. It has been described as an Al Qaeda safe haven where 80 percent of terrorist attacks in Pakistan are planned.
According to retired Brig. Shaukat Qadir, a military analyst, securing the territory will be crucial in preventing militants from carrying out the kind of deadly attacks that have killed more than 150 Pakistanis over the past two weeks.
"After [Swat Valley], this was the
pearl jewelry last bastion that was available to the terrorist structure in Pakistan. It means they will not have any territory they will be able to fall back upon," he says.
The country is also bracing for retaliatory attacks with major cities on high alert. Nearly 100 arrests of suspected terrorists were made in the garrison city of Rawalpindi on
pearl bracelet Monday while a search operation was conducted in the vicinity of the Army's General Headquarters, which militants were able to successfully storm last week. In the eastern city of Lahore, three private schools were closed due to security threats.