Pakistan, pro-Taliban militants in peace deal

Pakistan has signed a deal with pro-Taliban militants on the Afghan border aimed at ending years of unrest, the BBC reported on Tuesday.

The North Waziristan accord calls on tribesmen to expel foreign militants and end cross-border attacks in return for a reduced military presence. Dozens of soldiers have been killed in North Waziristan over the past year and local support for the Taliban seems to have increased rather than decreased, the BBC said on its web site. The agreement brokered by a jirga of tribal elders is the first of its kind since Pakistani troops went after Taliban and al-Qaeda elements on the Afghan border. Senior army officers and militants hugged and congratulated each other after signing the agreement at a college football ground in Miranshah, the main town in the North Waziristan region.

Under the accord, the Pakistani military promises to end major operations in the area. It will pull most of its soldiers back to military camps, but will still operate border check-points, the web site said.

Local Taliban supporters, in turn, have pledged not to harbour foreign militants, launch cross-border raids or attack Pakistani government troops or facilities, it said