MINGORA, July 5: The Tehrik Taliban, Swat chapter, on Saturday held the security forces responsible for the fresh spate of violence in the Matta tehsil and renewed its demand for immediate withdrawal of troops from the area.

Muslim Khan, spokesman for the hardline cleric Maulana Fazlullah, told Dawn that a fact-finding team of the Taliban visited troubled parts of the Matta tehsil and adjoining areas on July 4-5 to ascertain reasons behind the ongoing attacks on government personnel and police posts and torching of schools.

He said that keeping in view the NWFP government’s complaints the Taliban team held detailed meetings with local groups and it reached the conclusion that the situation was worsening due to ‘hostile acts’ like construction of bunkers, raising checkpoints, and pounding of the Taliban hideouts by the security forces.