Turkestan Bhittani

Turkestan Bhittani (born c. 1968)[1] is the militant leader of a pro-government Taliban faction based in the town of Tank in Khyber-Pakhtunkhwa province of Pakistan.[2] He is notable for his opposition to Baitullah Mehsud's Tehrik-i-Taliban Pakistan (TTP).[3] Turkistan belongs to Bhittani tribe (the historic rivals of Mehsud tribe).

Background

During his teens, Bhittani joined in the anti-Soviet jihad in Afghanistan.[4]

Later, Turkestan served in the Frontier Corps until his retirement in 1998.[1][5] He then joined the Taliban in the Afghan Civil War and remained in 2001 to fight against U.S.-led forces.[4]

Challenge to the TTP

Although at one time he was allied to Baitullah Mehsud, Turkestan Bhittani disapproved of Baitullah's violent attacks against Pakistani citizens and security forces.[1] After he lost about 40 of his men in clashes with Baitullah's forces in 2008, Turkestan joined anti-TTP forces.[6] With the implicit support of the Pakistani military, he allied himself with Qari Zainuddin Mehsud to openly challenge Baitullah.[1][7] On 8 June 2009 Zainuddin and Turkestan held a jirga of Mehsud tribal elders during which Turkestan condemned Baitullah's methods and urged the elders to fight against the leader of the TTP if he did not end his attacks against civilians and begin negotiations with the government.[6]

After Zainuddin's death on 23 June 2009, Turkestan proclaimed willingness to work with the Pakistani army and American forces to combat the TTP.[3]

References

  1. 1 2 3 4 Khan, Mukhtar A. (2009-06-18). "Pakistani Government Offensive in Swat Heading for the Taliban of Waziristan" (PDF). Terrorism Monitor. The Jamestown Foundation. 7 (17). Retrieved 2009-06-25.
  2. ↑ Khan, M Ilyas (2009-06-24). "Making friends with the Taliban". Pakistan: BBC News. Retrieved 2009-06-25.
  3. 1 2 "Militant commander Bhittani speaks out against Baitullah". Dawn Media Group. 2009-06-25. Retrieved 2009-06-25.
  4. 1 2 Reza, Jan (2009-08-20). "A Thorn in the Side of the Taliban: Turkistan Bhittani Biography and Analysis". irantracker.org. American Enterprise Institute. Retrieved 2009-09-. Check date values in: |access-date= (help)
  5. ↑ Page, Jeremy; Rehmat Mehsud (2009-06-23). "Pakistan villagers revolt against Taleban after militants want women they widowed". The Times Online. Retrieved 2009-06-25.
  6. 1 2 Shahzad, Akhtar (2009-06-09). "TTP chief asked to renounce violence". The News International. Retrieved 2009-06-26.
  7. ↑ Hasan, Syed Shoaib (2009-06-25). "A very strange Taliban burial". Dera Ismail Khan: BBC News. Retrieved 2009-06-25.



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