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Journalism of Courage
Pro-Taliban militants fighting Pakistani troops in a northwestern tourist region agreed to a ceasefire on Monday after days of fighting, officials and the rebels said.
The insurgents in a statement broadcast over their radio declared that a ceasefire came into force in the scenic Swat Valley at 8:00 am (local time), local police chief Arshad Majid told AFP.
“Security forces in the area also stopped firing and there is a ceasefire from our side also,” the officer said.
A spokesman for radical cleric Maulana Fazlullah, who has been waging a campaign for Islamic law in Swat, confirmed that a ceasefire was reached following talks with government representatives.
The two sides will now exchange the bodies and swap if they have any prisoners, said the spokesman, Shah Dauran.
“Later on we will hold negotiations with the government on establishing Islamic Sharia” in the region, he said.
The spokesman said five people including three militants were killed during the clashes over the past three days. “They targeted innocent people,” he said adding that the victims included a woman and a child.
A military spokesman on Sunday said 10 militants were killed in retaliatory strikes in the region.
