DAMADOLA, Pakistan, March 2, (Agencies): Pakistan’s army revealed on Tuesday a vast Taleban and al-Qaeda hideout dug into mountains near the Afghan border and captured in an offensive that killed 75 local and foreign militants.
Commanders gave journalists a guided tour of the bastion, carved into sheer rock within clear view of the snow-capped mountains of eastern Afghanistan and said by one general to comprise 156 caves developed over five to seven years.
Pakistan seized the complex in its latest offensive against militants in its semi-autonomous tribal belt, following US pressure on the country to eliminate Taleban and al-Qaeda-linked groups who attack Western troops in Afghanistan.
Major General Tariq Khan told journalists on the visit that the warren of caves in the Damadola area had served as a militant headquarters until it was overrun by troops in an offensive launched in January.
“There were Egyptians, Uzbeks, Chechens and Afghans killed in the operation,” he said.
“The first Pakistan army uniformed soldiers have arrived in Damadola after a recent operation and the Pakistan flag has been raised for the first time since (independence in) 1947.”
Journalists saw bedding such as pillows and mattresses that suggested the inhabitants had camped out for significant periods.
“Al-Qaeda was there. They had occupied the ridges. There were 156 caves designed as a defensive complex,” Khan said.
Damadola, in the Bajaur tribal region, was the scene of a 2006 US drone strike that unsuccessfully targeted al-Qaeda number two Ayman Al-Zawahiri.
Damadola covers about five square kilometres (two square miles) and lies 20 kilometres (12 miles) from the Afghan border.
Colonel Noman Saeed told AFP the latest offensive had killed 75 militants. Another 76 had been arrested and 364 were forced to surrender, he said. Such death tolls are impossible to confirm independently.
Under US pressure, Pakistan in the last year has significantly increased operations against militants in its northwest and tribal belt, which Washington has branded an al-Qaeda “headquarters” and the most dangerous region on earth.
Prosecutors seeking to indict five Americans on terrorist charges submitted their case to a Pakistani judge Tuesday, accusing the men of waging war against Pakistan and plotting to attack the country.
All young Muslims from the Washington, DC, area, the five were arrested in December in Punjab province not long after reaching Pakistan. They were reported missing by their families in November after one left behind a farewell video showing scenes of war and casualties and saying Muslims must be defended.
A senior police officer said soon after the men’s arrest that authorities were likely to deport them, but it now looks increasingly like they will face trial in Pakistan on charges that carry a maximum term of life imprisonment.
The men could be indicted on as many as seven charges at their next hearing on March 10, lawyer Hamid Malik told The Associated Press. The judge ordered the defense to review the prosecution report presented in the Sargodha town court and to prepare a rebuttal.
The Pakistani Taleban confirmed Tuesday that a senior commander wanted in the deadly 2006 bombing of the US consulate in Karachi was killed in a suspected American missile strike in northwestern Pakistan.
Mohammed Qari Zafar’s death, which was reported earlier by Pakistani intelligence officials, marks the latest success from Washington’s covert CIA-run drone program in Pakistan. The unmanned aircraft have carried out more than 100 missile strikes near the Afghan border since 2004, killing several senior Taleban and al-Qaida leaders.
The Taleban described Zafar as a martyr in a statement faxed to local journalists and pledged to avenge his death. It is uncommon for the Taleban to confirm the death of one of its members in a missile strike.
“The mujahideen will soon take revenge against the Pakistani government for his killing anywhere in the country,” said the statement.