Police chief doubts Taliban leaders are in Balochistan

Quetta:  If Afghan Taliban fighters and their top leaders are roaming around this remote part of Pakistan as the US alleges, the police chief here says he hasn't seen them.

"Point them out to me," Abid Hussain Notkani says. "I will arrest them."

Interviews with residents and officials in and around Quetta, a dusty frontier city of 1.2 million, reveal widespread scepticism that Pakistan's vast Balochistan province harbours Afghan Taliban commander Mullah Omar, his aides or their foot soldiers.

It's a disconnect that does not bode well for Washington-Islamabad relations — and America's already tattered reputation among Pakistanis — as Balochistan grows in strategic importance for the United States.

The US is pouring in thousands of additional troops across the border in southern Afghanistan, a surge that could make Balochistan an alluring refuge and recruiting ground for the Taliban. Balochistan also is home to one of the two main border crossings used to ferry supplies to US and Nato forces — a route that has come under attack.

The region also could figure prominently in another plan gaining support in the US — reaching out to Omar and his aides in the so-called "Quetta Shura" — or governing council — to negotiate peace.

Washington is so convinced that Afghan Taliban traverse this province that it has debated firing missiles in the area, a move that would certainly infuriate residents. The US hasn't helped its case, offering virtually no public proof to back its allegations that Omar and his aides operate here.

Pakistan denies Balochistan is a Taliban haven, perhaps because it wants to avoid further unrest in a province already gripped by separatist sentiments. It also may be trying to maintain cordial relations with the Taliban, in case the US abandons Afghanistan and the militants return to power there.

Balochistan is a rugged region with a lengthy and porous border with Afghanistan and Iran. Geographically, it is Pakistan's largest province, covering 44 per cent of the country. It is also the most sparsely populated, with some 6.5 million people. A driver can go for hours without seeing anyone else.

When the US invaded Afghanistan in 2001, many Taliban fled to Balochistan, finding cover among their fellow ethnic Pashtuns, a group that lives on both sides of the border. Communities of Afghan refugees have also lived in Balochistan for decades.

"We wouldn't recognise them," said Ahmadullah Noorzai, 38, a shawl merchant in Quetta. "How could we? I have a beard. Am I Taliban?"