PESHAWAR, Dec 27: The military authorities have warned four sub-clans of the Mehsud tribe in South Waziristan to lay down arms before Jan 15 or face full-scale action.
"All wanted militants, including Abdullah Mehsud and Baitullah Mehsud, should surrender before Jan 15, otherwise, they will face military action," Corps Commander Lt-Gen Safdar Hussain warned a tribal jirga here on Monday, according to military sources.
Talking to a 40-member delegation of the Mir Khunai, Mazakhel, Ainikhel and Merstanzai, sub-tribes of the Mehsuds, Lt-Gen Safdar said a number of foreign militants were still hiding in their respective areas.
He urged the tribal elders to expel militants from their areas or hand them over to the military authorities. The fresh warning came after the security forces abandoned operation in those parts of South Waziristan which are largely inhabited by the Ahmadzai Wazir tribe.
The military authorities believed that about 80 foreign militants were still holding up in the Mehsud dominated areas. "The army will use force, if you (tribesmen) don't comply with the order," the sources said, quoting the Corps Commander.
Lt-Gen Safdar said the army would take action against militants and their protectors. He said the tribesmen would be responsible for their human and material losses if they did not cooperate with the security agencies to track down militants.
Abdullah Mehsud, an ex-Guantanamo Bay detainee, has gone underground after the government declared him masterminding the kidnapping of two Chinese engineers working on the Gomal Zam dam project in the region. One of the engineers was killed during the rescue operation conducted by the military.
