Taliban in Swat 'Paradise'

Sunday Times:

IN the former mountain resort of Malam Jabba, where skiing thrived when the surrounding Swat Valley was an international attraction, one can still see the remnants of the Pakistan Tourism Development Corporation’s flagship hotel. The building was blown up by the Taliban because it was being used for “un-Islamic activities”.

Hundreds of other hotels in the valley have been destroyed or forced to close after threats from the militants.

“We used to charge 1,200 to 3,000 Pakistani rupees [£10.50 to £26] for a room per night. Now we are renting rooms for 200 rupees but nobody is visiting,” said Zahid Hussain, the manager of a luxury hotel which has officially shut down.

In Mingora, Swat’s largest city which once buzzed with foreign tourists, the shops are empty. The women’s clothes markets are either closed or show banners proclaiming: “Women are banned from entering this market.”

Barbers have pasted hand-written posters to their shop fronts saying: “Shaving a beard is unIslamic. We have stopped shaving beards. Please don’t visit the shop for a shave.”

After two years of fighting between 5,000 Taliban militants and 12,000 troops from the Pakistan army, a ceasefire has been hammered out between the government and the rebels. It has left the Swat Valley, just three hours drive from Islamabad, the capital, under the control of a hardline cleric known as Radio Mullah for his fiery sermons on an illegal radio station.

American officials are concerned that the cleric, Maulana Fazlullah, who is intent on imposing a harsh version of sharia (religious law), will allow the valley to become a base for Al-Qaeda and other terrorists.

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Why is there anyone in the world who has respect for the Taliban? They have no redeeming value. They impose their weird religious beliefs on everyone within their reach and it makes less sense than any tyranny ever imposed on a people. This week we learn that the Obama administration was complicit in an agreement to impose cruel and inhuman Shari'a law in this area that used to be one of the more attractive places in Pakistan. The Taliban are the brutal equivalent of Luddites who reject the progress the rest of the world has made except for weapons they can use to kill anyone who does not buy into their nonsense.

The NY Times reports that the Taliban may not be satisfied with their deal. I guess they want more. Whatever they want cannot be good news for those unfortunate enough to live near them.