Frontline Pakistan : The Struggle With Militant Islam - Arz-e-Pak

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kashmir
a general on
a tightroPe
t he bitterness was palpable among the young fighters squatting on
the floor of a dingy, cold room in their hideout outside Muzaffarabad.
Some of them had just returned from a guerrilla operation on the
other side of the Line of Control, dividing the disputed state. They
looked frustrated and exhausted with their dishevelled beards and
dirty clothes. Some of them were quiet while others talked about their
future plans.
It was the most testing of times for the veterans of the 14-year-long
guerrilla war after Musharraf had assured India that Pakistani territory
would not be used for cross-border operations. Most of them were
visibly frustrated and resigned to the fact that their jihad might well be
coming to an end. ‘We have no choice but to return to our homes,’ said
30-year-old Mohammed Ashfaque, in a voice choked with emotion. A
resident of Srinagar in Indian-controlled Kashmir, he had left his home
and joined the guerrilla struggle some ten years ago after his brother
was killed by Indian forces. However, others sounded more defiant
and vowed not to lay down their weapons.
Meeting on the sidelines of the South Asian Regional summit in
Islamabad, in January 2004, Musharraf and Indian Prime Minister Atal
Bihari Vajpayee, had agreed to start a peace process to resolve all