Taliban threaten pro-govt tribes

A prominent Taliban commander of Bajuar Agency has threatened to carry out more attacks on security forces from Pakistan-Afghanistan border areas and asked the local tribesmen to dissociate themselves from government otherwise they would also be facing their wrath. Maulvi Faqeer Muhammad Friday morning while talking to BBC correspondent Riffatullah Orakzai on phone in Peshawar said the region was going through a change. The US was leaving Afghanistan while Pakistan government was mounting pressure on Taliban to act as per Islamabads wishes. He said Pakistani government wanted them to come on negotiating table as per its own terms and conditions. Faqeer said Taliban would not yield to any pressure. Maulvi Faqeer has been in hiding for the last one and half year. It is believed that he along with his men are residing in Afghanistans Kunnar province. However, he has recently started communicating with the media again. He has also made functional his FM radio station. A spokesman of Tehreek-e-Taliban Pakistan (TTP) Sajjad Mohmand has said the fighters responsible for Thursdays cross-border attack has already been expelled from the movement. He added that the attack was carried out by Bajaur Agencys warriors and two Taliban commanders had already been ousted from the TTP. He, however, did not elaborated why they were expelled from the movement.

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