Secession in Pakistan - Waziristan

Waziristan

Waziristan comprises the area west and southwest of Peshawar between the Tochi River to the north and the Gomal River to the south. The North-West Frontier Province lies immediately to the east. The region was an independent tribal territory until 1893, remaining outside British-ruled empire. Tribal raiding into British-ruled territory was a constant problem for the British, eliciting frequent punitive expeditions between 1860 and 1945. The region became part of Pakistan in 1947.

In the rugged and remote region of Waziristan on British India's northwest border with Afghanistan, mountain tribes of Muslim fighters gave the British Army a difficult time for decades. The Northwest Frontier is now part of Pakistan, which is fighting its own war against Waziri tribesmen in the early 21st century. The Waziristan Revolt of 1919–1920 was sparked by the Afghan invasion of British India in 1919. Though the British quickly defeated the Afghans, the Waziri tribesmen gave the colonial forces a very difficult fight. Many of the Waziri men were veterans of the British-led and controlled Indian Army (India and Pakistan were combined at this time as part of the British Empire), and used modern military tactics and modern Lee-Enfield rifles against the British and Indian forces sent into Waziristan. One aspect of this conflict is the effective use of air power against the Waziri fighters. This is similar to Royal Air Force tactics in suppressing the Arab Revolt in Iraq in 1920 and 1921.

On June 4, 2007, the National Security Council of Pakistan met to decide the fate of Waziristan and take up a number of political and administrative issues in order to control the "Talibanization" of the area. The meeting was chaired by President Pervez Musharraf and attended by the Chief Ministers and Governors of all 4 provinces. They discussed the deteriorating law and order situation and the threat posed to state security.

The government decided to take a number of actions to stop the "Talibanization" and to crush the armed militancy in the Tribal regions and the North-West Frontier Province.