PESHAWAR, Oct 25: Pakistan army has taken stringent security measures along the border with Afghanistan to check infiltration of terrorists and other undesired elements from across the border.

This was stated by NWFP Governor Syed Iftikhar Hussain Shah and Corps Commander Lt-Gen Ali Mohammad Jan Aurakzai here on Saturday during separate briefings to a visiting team of ambassadors, high commissioners and diplomats posted in Islamabad.

The team was apprised that two division headquarters, four brigade headquarters, 10 infantry battalions, three engineering battalions and one special services group (SSG) battalion had been deployed to check the movement of the suspected elements.

In addition, the intelligence network, ground and air surveillance system had also been intensified to keep an eye on the activities of the unwanted elements.

The diplomatic corps also visited the erstwhile “no-go” areas in the Mohmand Agency and appreciated Pakistan’s role in combating terrorism as a front-line state in the international coalition.

The ambassadors, high commissioners and diplomats, who visited the Mohmand Agency belonged to Czech Republic, Russia, Sweden, the Netherlands, Egypt, Finland, Norway, Belgium, Japan, South Africa, Canada, Australia, Iran, China, UK, Turkey, and Brazil.

Rebuffing the impression being created by the western media that there were base camps of the Taliban or Al Qaeda militants in the region, the NWFP governor said these were baseless allegations as there was no substance in it.

He said the movement of people across the border was continuing but it was through a regularized system and no undesired element was allowed to sneak into Pakistan’s territory.

He said for the first time in the year 2001-02 the Pakistan army entered the Federally Administered Tribal Areas (Fata) where no regular force could ever get access in the past.

Besides launching development programmes in the region, the army along with political administration had been keeping a strict vigil on the movement of the undesired elements with special regard to the suspected terrorists.

Giving a background of the Durand Line and tribal system, he said the British rulers in 1893 had reached a written agreement with the then Afghan rulers under which the people living on both sides of the Durand Line were given the right of free movement for meeting, greeting and trade purposes.

The same practice, he said, continued till the regularization of the border, which had been carried out by the FC and Pakistan army in 2002.

Earlier, Corps Commander Lt-Gen Ali Mohammad Jan Aurakzai in his briefing said the Pakistan army had been carrying out operation “Al Mezan” in phases in the area. He said three phases had been completed and at present the third phase was in progress.

Gen Aurakzai said during the operation, over 230 Al Qaeda suspects had been rounded up, while 10 others were killed. Ten personnel of the Pakistan army also lost their lives during the operation, he added.

Referring to the operation carried out on Oct 3, he said, after receiving reports about the presence of some suspected terrorists, the troops cordoned off the area and nabbed them.

Gen Aurakzai said Pakistan army had regularized the entry and exit of the inhabitants of the both sides of the Durand Line through seven passes on the Pakistan-Afghanistan border.

When asked about the need for moving troops into the area, he said had the Pakistan army not moved in time the whole area would have been under the control of unwanted elements.

He said a total of 589 posts had been erected on the NWFP’s border with Afghanistan and 100 of them were being manned by the Pakistan army, while the rest were managed by the Frontier Corps.

He said tribal elders of the area were in agreement with Pakistan army that they would not give refuge to any undesired elements and any violation would be dealt with severely. So action was taken in light of that agreement that had been reached earlier between Pakistan army and the notables of the area.

Gen Aurakzai said during the last one-month there had been no incident of firing on any Pakistani post from the Afghan side. Before that, he said there were a few incidents of firing by some tribesmen from Afghanistan on Pakistani posts but the Pakistan side exercised maximum restraint to avoid any direct clash.

“Those who fired on Pakistani posts belonged to the militia of Hazrat Ali, which is not a part of regular force of Afghanistan,” he said.

To avoid any further skirmishes, he said, a tripartite military group of Pakistan-Afghanistan and the United States was already working.

On Sunday, the group is holding its fifth meeting to take up various issues for discussion and their remedy, he added.

Gen Aurakzai pointed out that ever since Pakistan army had taken over the area, not a single untoward incident had been reported from any part.

“The law and order situation has tremendously improved in the area after we took over,” he said.

Expressing concerns over the pathetic living conditions of the area inhabitants, he said at the time when the Pakistan army took over area the inhabitants welcomed them with an open heart hoping that development projects would be carried out for provision of basic amenities to them.

He said immediately a special grant of Rs1 billion was allocated by President Pervez Musharraf, while a grant of Rs3 billion was managed through other sources for the overall uplift of Federally-Administered Tribal Areas.

He thanked the governments of Japan and Norway for initiating construction of educational institutions in the area.

Giving details about development projects being carried out in the area, he said 596km roads, 18 schools and four colleges had been constructed in different parts of Fata.

To provide medical facility to the people, he said, 21 medical camps had been set up, which had so far treated over 0.2 million people, besides providing them medicines free of charge.

In addition to that, he said, five free eye-camps had been set up to provide medical assistance to the patients.

In all, he said, during the period over Rs15.5 million had been spent on provision of free medicines to the patients.

Later, the diplomatic corps also visited the project sites in the Mohmand Agency where the tribal notables hosted a luncheon in their honour. —APP