PESHAWAR-
A commander of Mehsud faction within banned militant outfit Tehreek-e-Taliban Pakistan (TTP) announced that his group, under the leadership of Khalid Mehsud, has split from the umbrella organization of TTP.
Azam Tariq said Wednesday that the split came as a result of disagreements with the group’s leadership and also over the issue of peace talks with the government.
Tariq represents the faction based in the TTP birthplace in the South Waziristan tribal region near the Afghan border.
In a statement, he says the South Waziristan branch has differences with the TTP chief Mullah Fazlullah over the ongoing peace negotiations with the government.
Azam said rifts have been created due individual ideologies among the TTP groups which has led them to deviate from the real cause.
He said that the present TTP regime was attacking public places and extorting money from religious seminaries, adding that other factions under the umbrella organisation were also becoming distrustful of the current regime.
He also claimed the leadership has turned the group into a criminal cartel.
Infighting between the TTP factions during the past several weeks had killed scores.
After TTP leader Hakimullah Mehsud was killed by a US drone strike in November 2013, infighting broke out among the supporters of Sheheryar Mehsud and Khan Said Sajna for the command of TTP.
We certainly hope the news of Mehsud group separating itself from the TTP will result in reduction of terrorism from the country. These terrorist organizations have caused enough chaos and mayhem for over a decade. The credit goes to the Pakistani authorities for their counter terrorism efforts against the extremist organizations. The people of Pakistan also deserve all the credit for standing tall and refusing to accept terrorists’ evil ideology. Our nations have made a lot of sacrifices in our shared fight against extremism, and it would be safe to say that the things are looking up and we have every reason to remain optimistic in regards to achieving our shared peace objectives in the region.
Ali Khan
Digital Engagement Team, USCENTCOM
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