Mohammad Afzal Khan Lala has no plan to leave Swat despite threat
[22.Dec.2008 - 13:30]The News, PESHAWAR: Elderly nationalist politician Mohammad Afzal Khan has said he has no plans to leave his native Swat despite the constant threat of attack by militants on his house located in an area with strong Taliban presence.
Talking to The News from his village Bara Darushkhela near Matta town, he said his relatives and well-wishers have been urging him to come out of Swat and take refuge in Peshawar. ´´I have been telling them that I cannot abandon my people. My co-villagers would feel abandoned if I opted to leave. I also have nephews who are staying put in Swat in different villages and my departure would demoralize them,´´ he argued. Besides, Afzal Khan said he had done nothing wrong and saw no reason for the militants to target him. ´´I would ask the Taliban to let me know about the sins that I had committed against them or anyone else,´´ he stressed.
Another argument that Afzal Khan gave in support of his decision to stay back in Swat was his belief that he would not be able to do anything meaningful for his people sitting outside the valley. ´´It is much better for me to stay in Swat and share the suffering of my people. Leaving my abode would serve no purpose,´´ he maintained.
Afzal Khan is a senior ANP leader and a former provincial and federal minister. The bearded politician has been an ardent proponent of the unity of Pakhtuns. Known for his honesty and sincerity to his cause, he rejoined the ANP sometime back after heading his own nationalist faction.
Though ANP activists and common people have been impressed with his courage, there is growing worry about his safety in restive Swat valley. Twice his house was attacked with rockets during the night in the recent past. Earlier, his vehicle was fired at and he narrowly survived the attack. His two bodyguards were killed and his nephew, Abdul Jabbar Khan, Tehsil Nazim of Matta, was wounded.
Afzal Khan is clearly a marked man. Sources among the militants in Swat said he was top of their hit list. They know he is holding out in his village house. They are annoyed by his defiance at a time when every other khan and anti-Taliban politician and elder has abandoned Swat. If they can, the militants would keep trying to get him.
Still Afzal Khan wanted to believe Swat Taliban head Maulana Fazlullah, who gave a statement that his men weren´t involved in the attack on him. ´´But then I heard Taliban spokesman Muslim Khan issuing a statement claiming responsibility for the attack. Muslim Khan said those responsible for demolishing the huts of Taliban in Swat should be ready for destruction of their own palace-like homes,´´ he recalled.
Now Afzal Khan is probably the only prominent politician and notable still living in Swat. All the assembly members have left and so have most nazims, including Swat District Nazim Jamal Nasir. The khans and most civil and police officers hailing from Swat have gone. Many of them didn´t want to go but the deteriorating security situation, kidnappings and non-stop attacks on notable people prompted them to leave Swat.
Afzal Khan´s exceptional courage has won him praise from every quarter. The militants too seem to grudgingly admire him. In fact, Afzal Khan´s decision to stay put in Swat despite the danger to his life attracted even more attention and is being widely discussed after his party leader Asfandyar Wali Khan´s controversial move to shift to Islamabad in a helicopter following the suicide attack targeting him in his native Charsadda.
- Rahimullah Yusufzai
بېرته شاته
Talking to The News from his village Bara Darushkhela near Matta town, he said his relatives and well-wishers have been urging him to come out of Swat and take refuge in Peshawar. ´´I have been telling them that I cannot abandon my people. My co-villagers would feel abandoned if I opted to leave. I also have nephews who are staying put in Swat in different villages and my departure would demoralize them,´´ he argued. Besides, Afzal Khan said he had done nothing wrong and saw no reason for the militants to target him. ´´I would ask the Taliban to let me know about the sins that I had committed against them or anyone else,´´ he stressed.
Another argument that Afzal Khan gave in support of his decision to stay back in Swat was his belief that he would not be able to do anything meaningful for his people sitting outside the valley. ´´It is much better for me to stay in Swat and share the suffering of my people. Leaving my abode would serve no purpose,´´ he maintained.
Afzal Khan is a senior ANP leader and a former provincial and federal minister. The bearded politician has been an ardent proponent of the unity of Pakhtuns. Known for his honesty and sincerity to his cause, he rejoined the ANP sometime back after heading his own nationalist faction.
Though ANP activists and common people have been impressed with his courage, there is growing worry about his safety in restive Swat valley. Twice his house was attacked with rockets during the night in the recent past. Earlier, his vehicle was fired at and he narrowly survived the attack. His two bodyguards were killed and his nephew, Abdul Jabbar Khan, Tehsil Nazim of Matta, was wounded.
Afzal Khan is clearly a marked man. Sources among the militants in Swat said he was top of their hit list. They know he is holding out in his village house. They are annoyed by his defiance at a time when every other khan and anti-Taliban politician and elder has abandoned Swat. If they can, the militants would keep trying to get him.
Still Afzal Khan wanted to believe Swat Taliban head Maulana Fazlullah, who gave a statement that his men weren´t involved in the attack on him. ´´But then I heard Taliban spokesman Muslim Khan issuing a statement claiming responsibility for the attack. Muslim Khan said those responsible for demolishing the huts of Taliban in Swat should be ready for destruction of their own palace-like homes,´´ he recalled.
Now Afzal Khan is probably the only prominent politician and notable still living in Swat. All the assembly members have left and so have most nazims, including Swat District Nazim Jamal Nasir. The khans and most civil and police officers hailing from Swat have gone. Many of them didn´t want to go but the deteriorating security situation, kidnappings and non-stop attacks on notable people prompted them to leave Swat.
Afzal Khan´s exceptional courage has won him praise from every quarter. The militants too seem to grudgingly admire him. In fact, Afzal Khan´s decision to stay put in Swat despite the danger to his life attracted even more attention and is being widely discussed after his party leader Asfandyar Wali Khan´s controversial move to shift to Islamabad in a helicopter following the suicide attack targeting him in his native Charsadda.
- Rahimullah Yusufzai بېرته شاته