Taliban Threatens Aid Workers in Pakistan

The AP notes that the Taliban have threatened aid workers in Pakistan assisting with flood relief:

The floods began with the onset of the monsoon and have ravaged a massive swath of Pakistan, from the mountainous north to its agricultural heartland. Almost 17.2 million people have been significantly affected by the floods and about 1.2 million homes have been destroyed or badly damaged, the U.N. has said.

The Pakistani Taliban on Thursday hinted that they might attack foreign aid workers, a swelling number of whom have been landing in the country to help with the crisis. The militant network has a history of attacking aid groups, including agencies under the U.N. umbrella.

Pakistani Taliban spokesman Azam Tariq claimed Thursday that the U.S. and other countries that have pledged support are not really focused on providing aid to flood victims but had other motives he did not specify.

“Behind the scenes they have certain intentions, but on the face they are talking of relief and help,” Tariq told The Associated Press by telephone from an undisclosed location. “No relief is reaching the affected people, and when the victims are not receiving help, then this horde of foreigners is not acceptable to us at all.”

He strongly hinted that the militants could resort to violence.

U.N. humanitarian chief John Holmes said the U.N. remained committed to helping flood victims in Pakistan.

“We will obviously take these threats seriously as we did before, and take appropriate precautions, but we will not be deterred from doing what we believe we need to do, which is help the people of Pakistan,” he told a news conference at U.N. headquarters in New York.

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