Pakistan proposes fence to rein in Taliban

The job of preventing those attacks is, by all accounts, not an easy one. Afghanistan and Pakistan share a 1,500-mile-long border, studded with some of the most rugged terrain in the world. The Taliban are well-trained, well-armed and well-versed in that terrain, analysts agree. There are no easy, short-term solutions. Half-hearted ones, like the fencing proposal, will only chip away at Pakistan's credibility, which some see as already fading.

A more realistic solution begins with an honest review of Pakistan's policy of supporting militants, some analysts contend.

"It is for the policymakers in Islamabad," says Mr. Khattak.

Other analysts caution against such claims, citing a lack of hard proof. But they agree that substantive political reform is vital. Political parties are banned from the tribal areas, meaning there is no force to contest religious leaders who support the Taliban. Draconian, colonial-era laws are the rule of the land, compelling many to view Taliban-inspired laws as more just.

"Pakistan has the will [to stop militants]. It is a problem of its political capacity," says Rasul Bahksh Rais, a professor of political science at the Lahore School of Management Sciences. Introducing political parties is a critical step, he adds, but one the government has resisted for fears such parties will resist them.

"We are not going to impede the movement between countries," Aslam assured. The fencing proposal, which Pakistan has broached in the past, will include designated crossing points where officials can easily monitor traffic. So far, the proposal has no timeframe.

It is unclear if Pakistani authorities plan to mine and wire the entire 1,500-mile stretch. Pakistan has proposed the project unilaterally – a move that has sparked ire from Afghan officials and raised eyebrows at home.

"You make an agreement when you do these kinds of things. But they haven't discussed it with the Afghan authorities," says Yusufzai.

Pakistan's Foreign Secretary, Riaz Muhammed Khan, insisted at a press conference, however, that Pakistan "needs no permission or agreement with any country, including Afghanistan, while carrying out any such project within its territorial boundaries."

The proposed fence would run along the Durand Line, a border set by British colonialists in 1893. Pakistan recognizes the line as an international border, but Afghanistan does not. Pashtun tribes, who live on both sides of the border and have migrated in between for centuries, are unlikely to accept the fence.

"There would be attempts to stop the fence or blow up areas of the fence," says Mr. Yusufzai. Others add that for every militant felled by a mine, many more will emerge from the swirl of death and violence."One part of a family on one side [of the border] will be stepping over dynamite to see family on the other side. Don't we have enough gun powder in our area?" asks Khattak.

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