How to stop Al-Qaida in Afghanistan

Al-Qaida in general and Ayman Al Zawahiri in particular have had a free reign in the region bordering Pakistan and Afghanistan. They have found sympathizers and safe houses to allude the US-Pakistani law enforcement agents.

Al-Qaida's presence along Durand Line (the border between Afghanistan and Pakistan) has resulted in Talibanization of the region, thus making it even harder to chase down Al-Qaida.

Pakistan has deployed 70,000 troops to fish out Al-Qaida fugitive. So far we have seen killing or capture of few 2nd and third rank Qaida members. However tier-one leaders are still on the run.

Pakistan has fought pitched battles with the Qaida and their tribal sympathizers. The fight has resulted in the loss of innocent life and the loss of many brave soldiers. It is time now to review Pakistan's approach in the tribal region.

There are a couple of issues that Pakistani authorities must consider at this stage.

1. The source of Taliban appeal is the presence of US and NATO forces along the Afghan side of the Durand line.

2. It is too easy for the Talibans to move across the Durand line.

If Pakistani army with the help of US and NATO could address the two issues, Taliban movement will lose its steam. Pakistan should take charge to address these issues, keeping in mind that Tribal area known as FATA must be uplifted from it's 200 years old "wild-wild-West" status. There are several things that Pakistani military can do to address this.

1. Declare FATA area as provincial administration and deploy regular police instead of using Pak military or Frontier Corps. This will create a buffer between the military and the local people. FATA should become a separate province or be given under the control of Peshawar. In either case, this 200 years old system of political agencies must be abolished.

2. Create a 20 miles wide no-man land belt on each side of the Duran line. This 40 mile wide strip should be free of any civilian presence whether residential or business. People who may lose their property should be duly compensated with money, land or both.

3. Afghanistan is the real battleground of the Taliban resistance, so Pakistan should move major chunk of 70,000 troops from Wazirastan to Afghan side of the Durand line. Karazai shouldn't resist the idea as it will bring stability to his government. NATO and US will be too happy to receive badly needed reinforcements from battle hardened and well disciplined pro-West Pakistani troops.

4. Pakistan Air Force should declare the 40 mile wide no-man land strip along Durand line as a practice range for their bombing and strafing runs. This will keep this area free of smugglers and Talibans. It will also provide a source of fast ground support missions on the Afghan side where Pakistani troops may come under attack.


Taliban problem needs innovative solutions. Pakistan badly needs to stopping murder and mayhem in Wazirastan. By following suggestions in this essay, Wazirastan will become free of Talibans.