March 10, 2007	Saturday	Safar 20, 1428

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PESHAWAR, March 9: Uzbek militants in the South Waziristan Agency have demanded handing over of five tribesmen, including a pro-government tribal elder Malik Saadullah, amid reports that two more tribes have announced their support for the Darikhel Wazir in their campaign against foreigners, sources said.

They said that local Taliban had received a list from foreign militants demanding the handing over of five elders of the South Waziristan Agency.

The list carries names of Malik Saadullah Darikhel and Malik Khanan Khuniakhel, who is also considered one of the most influential elders of the Ahmadzai Wazir tribe. The names of other three tribesmen could not be ascertained.

The sources said that two sub-clans of the Ahmadzai Wazir tribe — Ghanikhel and Jaikhel — had announced support for Darikhel Wazir in the Azam Warsak area near the Afghan border.

Darikhel tribesmen clashed with Uzbek militants in the Azam Warsak area on Tuesday last, leaving 18 people dead and wounding 11 others.

Political authorities said that 12 Uzbek nationals were killed in the gunbattle.

Bodies of five Uzbeks were found in different areas of the agency during the last two days.

The sources said that the killers had severed heads from three bodies.

Official sources said that local militant commanders were also in a fix over the ongoing tension between the local tribesmen and their foreign companions. Two influential militant commanders — Maulvi Abbas and Haji Mohammad Umar — had put their weight behind Uzbek nationals.