KOHAT, Dec 2: The smuggling of huge quantities of arms and ammunition from the notorious and south Asia’s biggest illegal arms manufacturing semi-autonomous town of Darra Adam Khel into the tribal areas of North and South Waziristan Agencies, bordering the troubled Khost and Paktika provinces of Afghanistan, has prompted the intelligence agencies to believe that Al Qaeda may be reorganising in these areas for launching a major attack on the allied forces.

The intelligence officials have confirmed reports that about 100 carriers, mostly tribesmen, are engaged in ferrying arms consignments to North Waziristan Agency for the last so many months.

They carry the arms on their backs covering more than 400 kilometres on foot to reach the unknown destination in the border area.

Hundreds of big and small factories in Darra Adam Khel are continuing to produce weapons and ammunition.

Recently, the local police in a big haul seized a huge quantity of weapons which were being transported to the North Waziristan Agency which borders the Khost province of Afghanistan where dozens of US troops have come under attack by the belligerent Pukhtoon groups also hostile to the Northern Alliance.

Hardly a day passes when the US forces do not come under attack. Many soldiers have died in the unending skirmishes in this region of Afghanistan since October last when allied forces conducted air attacks in these areas.

A senior police officer, monitoring the arms smuggling for the last six months to the tribal areas from Darra Adam Khel, Abid Ali Khan, told this correspondent that he foiled an attempt after being tipped off by his sources that a huge quantity of arms were being smuggled to North Waziristan Agency, 435 kilometres south-west of Islamabad.

It included 40 China-style famous pistols and their rounds besides a number of rifles, including a version of M-16 and home-made K-47s.

He maintained that the tribal area of Waziristan did not need arms as the locals there already possess sophisticated weapons for their protection as part of a custom.

There, every household possess Klashnikovs and heavy artillery is used during tribal feuds.

Another senior intelligence officer posted in North Waziristan Agency said: “This has led me to believe that these weapons can be used in small-scale war as is the case in Khost where hundreds of Pukhtoons are engaged in battles and clandestine operations against the US forces,” the official said.

“Why have the tribesmen near the Afghan border started placing orders for arms and ammunition where there is no dearth of lethal weapons. In the past these people had been using missiles and rockets against each other, so the notion that they are acquiring more weapons for themselves is difficult to digest,” the official further observed.

A survey conducted by this correspondent revealed that the arms manufacturers, who made huge fortunes by selling arms and ammunition to the freedom fighters in Kashmir during the rule of military dictator Gen Zia ul Haq and former prime minister Nawaz Sharif, after facing restrictions being placed on that business, have now found another market in the shape of Afghanistan.

It is believed that a large number of Al Qaeda suspects have found the tribal areas in the NWFP as a safe haven.