Taliban says will attack lawmakers if Afghan supply routes reopen

TTP spokesperson says parliamentarians and their 'overlords' will be attacked if Nato supplies are reopened.


Reuters March 25, 2012

MIRANSHAH: The Pakistan Taliban will attack lawmakers if they decide to re-open Nato supply routes to Afghanistan, the militant group's spokesman said on Sunday, a threat likely to complicate efforts to mend severely strained relations between the United States and Pakistan.      

"If the parliament decides to restore Nato supplies, we will attack parliamentarians and their overlords," Ehsanullah Ehsan, spokesman for the Tehreek-e-Taliban Pakistan (TTP) told Reuters.

The US needs Pakistani permission to allow supplies to be trucked via two routes into Afghanistan, which prior to their closure, accounted for almost a third of all Nato cargo to Afghanistan.

Pakistan's parliament is reviewing recommendations for a new direction in ties with Washington, including a possible re-opening of the supply routes for Nato forces in Afghanistan, which were shut last November after a cross-border skirmish with Nato forces killed 24 Pakistani soldiers.

The national security committee said that if supplies to foreign forces in Afghanistan are resumed, the shipments must be taxed.

A halt in US drone strikes in Pakistan's tribal areas along the border with Afghanistan, and an unconditional apology for the November incident, were the main recommendations from the parliament's national security committee.

Pakistan's cooperation is considered critical to US efforts to stabilise Afghanistan before most foreign combat troops leave at the end of 2014.

COMMENTS (27)

Dr. A.K.Tewari | 12 years ago | Reply

CENTCOM , will continue its task and Pak army will have to support at any cost . The ground reality in the entire region suggest that the time is rolling in the right direction and we should remain prepared to facilitate the events so that the desired goal could be achieved as being wished by liberals,

US Centcom | 12 years ago | Reply

Is it really a surprise that TTP are against the restoring of ties between our nations? These terrorists desire the freedom to operate freely, and clearly feel threatened by our partnership. It’s times like these when we should remind ourselves that our failure to acknowledge the obvious helps give birth to conspiracy theories. The hard work of our forces on both sides of the border has taken the freedom away from these terrorists to freely conduct their terrorist activities throughout the region. And desperation is clearly evident with suicidal attacks throughout Pakistan. These terrorists have made it a norm to target innocent people in their bid to spread fear and chaos. We must bring justice to those killed and stop these terrorists from infiltrating the region with their acts of terror. We must look past our differences and remain focused on our ultimate goal of defeating terrorism. We must let these terrorists know that we are willing to work through our challenges for the safety of our nations.

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