Peace deal talks halted in Pakistan
Güncelleme Tarihi:
The Associated Press
Oluşturulma Tarihi: Nisan 10, 2009 00:00
ISLAMABAD - A hard-line cleric who negotiated a peace accord that halted fighting between the Taliban and security forces in part of northwest Pakistan said yesterday he is leaving the region to protest the government's failure to impose Islamic law.
The announcement casts serious doubt on the durability of a cease-fire in the Swat valley that U.S. officials worry will create another sanctuary for allies of al-Qaeda responsible for a rising tide of violence in the nuclear-armed country.
Imposing Islamic law in Swat, a one-time tourist haven, was the key plank of an accord worked out in February between the provincial government and Sufi Muhammad, a cleric who once led thousands of volunteers to fight U.S. forces in Afghanistan but has since renounced violence.
The agreement ended 18 months of bloody clashes that had left hundreds dead and forced up to one-third of the previously prosperous valley's 1.5 million residents to flee. President Asif Ali Zardari has said he will only sign an order introducing Islamic law in the region once peace has been restored.
Imposing Islamic law in Swat, a one-time tourist haven, was the key plank of an accord worked out in February between the provincial government and Sufi Muhammad, a cleric who once led thousands of volunteers to fight U.S. forces in Afghanistan but has since renounced violence.
The agreement ended 18 months of bloody clashes that had left hundreds dead and forced up to one-third of the previously prosperous valley's 1.5 million residents to flee. President Asif Ali Zardari has said he will only sign an order introducing Islamic law in the region once peace has been restored.