WORLD NEWS | Taliban have successfully returned to Swat Valley in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa: Report

Islamabad [Pakistan], May 8 (ANI): The Taliban have successfully returned to the Swat Valley in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa province. The Taliban in Afghanistan and the Pakistan-Taliban Movement (TTP) do not intend to give a moment’s respite, Pakistan Military Monitor reported.

A cloud of fear and uncertainty hangs over the Swat valley following recent bombings in Swat that killed police and civilians. There are fears that oppressors may take over the valley and establish their camp.

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They fear that Pakistan’s Switzerland will be like an unforgiving desert, dreary and depressing. Reflecting on the atrocities committed by Mullah Fazlullah and his Taliban commanders some 15 years ago, it is not surprising that such thoughts might haunt one’s mind, according to the Pakistan Military Observer.

Locals call the area between Mingora City and Green Plaza the “Bloody Crossroads” because the Taliban used to hang their enemies’ heads here. The Nobel laureate Malala Yousafzai was a victim of their brutality. Bombings at girls’ schools are common.

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A total of 640 schools were destroyed in Swat and nearby areas. The Taliban used radio broadcasts to issue decrees prohibiting girls from being educated, playing music and performing any kind of art, such as dancing, which they considered blasphemy.

A decade ago, hundreds of thousands of Swat residents were displaced without government support, according to the Pakistan Military Monitor. Everyone, rich or poor, age or gender, had to leave their homes. The people of Swabi, Mardan, Charsada and surrounding areas of Peshawar opened their doors to them.

With target killings, extortion, bomb explosions, infrastructure destruction, kidnapping and extortion, fear is in the air in Swat. Members of peaceful communities are being persecuted.

Since October 2022, TTP has been publicly challenging the federal government by attacking high-security sites and law enforcement agencies. Police stations across the country were blown up like dominoes, one after the other. In January, two Inter-Services Intelligence (ISI) officers and several counter-terrorist department (CTD) officers were killed, Pakistan Military Monitor reported. (Arnie)

(This is an unedited and auto-generated story from a Syndicated News feed, the content body may not have been modified or edited by LatestLY staff)