How Pakistani minutemen are fighting the Taliban 'false Muslims' Villagers in the border town of Pashat, Pakistan

may have turned the tide of pub lic opinion against the Taliban. -------------------------------------------------------------------------------By Issam Ahmed, Correspondent posted August 1, 2011 at 2:12 pm EDT Pashat, Pakistan When the Taliban descended upon this land of craggy mountains and misty waterfal ls, they razed girls schools, kidnapped villagers for ransom money, and killed e lders, all under the banner of Islam. At first, few resisted. In this deeply conservative corner of Pakistan, the lure of Islamist rhetoric as well as a handsome purse of $350 a month enticed many, and the Taliban soon controlled most of the Bajaur tribal agency. But three years ago Shahabuddin Khan, a farmer and the leader of the Salarzai tr ibe, called his men to arms to counter the Taliban, a group he calls false Muslim s. That show of strength, together with the militants partiality for kidnapping an d looting, helped shift public opinion here. Earlier people were fooled when they [the Taliban] played the Islam card. They ca rried out suicide attacks in our funeral prayers. They didnt leave mosques alone. They cant be Muslims, and the people now realize this, he says. Not only are fewer villagers enticed to join the Taliban now, but the militants have been mostly cleared out thanks to the combined efforts of the Salarzai lash kar, or makeshift army of peasants and workers, as well as a series of military offensives by Pakistans Army. Related How Pakistan s border region could get a few more good minutemen

For years, Pakistan has turned to lashkars, some of which have a bad track recor d, as a way to tackle militants without launching destructive and sometimes unpo pular military operations. However, the government has failed to back up volunte ers. Indeed, the government has provided little assistance to the Salarzai lashkar: A t times the government will compensate villagers $10 for a round of ammunition, or give about $1,000 to a family who has lost a fighter to the Taliban in battle . And some men get a monthly stipend of about $40. However, these types of compe nsation are best-case-scenarios. What they lack in equipment, members of the lashkar make up for in determination . Each man here has used guns since they were children. And fighting is nothing n ew to us, before the Taliban we had our old rivalries and up to 100 men would be lost in a battle, says Abdur Rehman, a burly 50-something with a thick white bea rd who sits among the Jirga circle. While a core of the lashkar around 100 men remain posted on permanent watch, the others tend to their farming duties and are on call. We can count on up to 10,00 0 men when the need comes, says Khan. In many ways this lashkar has proved its lo ngevity, and worth, he says. Taliban persist Still, despite significantly reducing the Talibans influence from what it was thr ee years ago, attacks from Afghanistan persist.

An illegal Taliban FM radio station run by Maulvi Faqir Muhammad, leader of a Pa kistani Taliban umbrella group, routinely names Salarzai leaders as Wajib-ul-Qatl , or individuals that should be killed. It has forced the villagers to become extra vigilant. Strangers are bound to att ract attention, lest they be a sniper, suicide bomber, or mine layer. When the t ime comes to do battle, says Shar Zaman, a wiry tribesmen, they no longer bid th eir families farewell. We said our goodbyes when the Taliban came three years ago . Now we just accept that each day could be the last. Dabbling in Politics The fighters aversion to Islamist extremism extends beyond the battlefield to the question of how society should be run. Few among them, for instance, hold respe ct for Pakistans multitude of religious parties who advocate cutting deals with m ilitants, or even Imran Khan, a politician and former cricketer kicking up a sti r in urban areas of Pakistan for his staunch anti-American line. His fellow Pashtuns who fight the Taliban on the frontlines arent impressed. Imran Khan never condemns suicide bombers, and he has never come to Bajaur. All h e wants to do is make peace with the Taliban and we consider him a coward, says S hahabuddin Khan, to a murmur of general agreement at the jirga or tribal confere nce attended by some 50 men and boys. As for US drone attacks, many here support them because, as resident Muhammad Ja mil says, they hit the real militants. However, a recent Pew poll found 97 percent of Pakistanis oppose the use of the drones, which they generally view as a viol ation of the countrys airspace. To be sure, since Shahabuddin Khan s lashkar began battling the Taliban, it hasnt been easy. The lashkar has lost more than 140 elders, including two of Shahabud din Khans own brothers and an uncle. We have carried so many corpses we are no longer afraid. We have come out and wil l fight while there is strength in our bodies, says Shahabuddin Khan. Experts caution about getting too excited about the potential of lashkars to cha nge public opinion. According to a senior Pakistan Army officer stationed in the area, who was not authorized to give his name, The common people are more likely to follow whoever has the upper hand. Their main concern is surviving."