The New Nation - Internet Edition

AP, Peshawar

Pakistan is preparing a military operation against Taliban militants who have been threatening the main city in the country's volatile northwest, the army's spokesman said Saturday.

Maj. Gen. Athar Abbas told The Associated Press that the army is readying the paramilitary Frontier Corps to target militants in the Khyber tribal region, next to Peshawar. Khyber is also a key route for moving U.S. military supplies into neighboring Afghanistan.

"The operation is imminent," he said. There has been growing concern about the threat posed by Islamic militants to the city with a burgeoning Taliban movement thriving in the region.

Mahmood Shah, a former security chief in Pakistan's tribal regions, said the Taliban control the country's entire tribal belt and "everyone now is waiting for some action from the federal government."

"The situation is such that (the Taliban) are all around Peshawar. They are on our doorstep," Shah said. "The situation is like water flowing into a field and until you have some obstruction to stop it you will drown. We are drowning."

In a sign of expected resistance, a Taliban-linked group said an offensive in the area would only create more problems.

"If the government thinks there is any issue to address, that should be resolved through talks, not by the use of force," said Munsif Khan, spokesman for the Vice and Virtue Movement. "We are ready for talks with the government." Vice and Virtue, led by militant leader Haji Namdar, is suspected of carrying out operations against coalition soldiers across the border in Afghanistan. Namdar has sought to impose his own strict brand of Islamic law in the region. However, he is at odds with Baitullah Mehsud, who is seen as the leader of the Taliban in Pakistan.

Menghal Bagh's fighters have waged attacks in Peshawar in what provincial officials say was an attempt to intimidate the population and show the group's ability to wield influence outside the tribal regions. Bagh's followers have also been blamed for threatening convoys of supplies bound for coalition forces in Afghanistan. Two weeks ago, a Taliban force from Khyber sent its militants into Peshawar and kidnapped 16 Christians who were later released.

A round-the-clock curfew has been imposed in the Bara area, which starts on the outskirts of Peshawar, and heavy contingents of troops have been deployed, blocking the main road into Khyber, said Mujeeb Khan, a senior local official.

"All bazaars are shut and residents have been asked not to come out of their homes," he said.

Abbas declined to give further details of the military deployment, citing operational security.