Sufi Muhammad arrested on charges of encouraging violence and terrorism; Holbrooke announces aid worth $165 million for Swat refugees; UNICEF: 1 million people will remain displaced till year-end
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  • Pro-Taliban cleric Maulana Sufi Muhammad, who brokered a peace deal between the Pakistan government and militants in the Swat Valley in February 2009, was arrested on July 26 on charges of encouraging violence and terrorism. The peace deal with the government had resulted in the imposition of Shariah or Islamic law in the valley in exchange for an end to over two years of fighting. The deal collapsed in April when the Taliban advanced into neighboring districts, forcing the Pakistan military to launch a counter-offensive under US pressure1.

    US Special Envoy Richard Holbrooke, at a press conference in Islamabad during the week, announced another tranche of $165 million in humanitarian aid to the country. The Obama administration has already given over $300 million for the rehabilitation of refugees affected by the military operations in Swat2. The UNICEF’s Louis-Georges Arsenault meanwhile stated that about half of the estimated two million people who fled the fighting in Swat and FATA could remain displaced for the rest of the year3.

    Pakistan and France on July 20 signed an agreement to set up a joint task force for sharing information about terrorists. The accord was signed by the visiting Interior Minister of Pakistan Rehman Malik and his French counterpart Brice Hortefeux in Paris4.

    In other developments, the Pakistan Supreme Court on July 22 asked former military ruler Pervez Musharraf to defend his extra-constitutional actions before the court, including his proclamation of emergency and his action in replacing the Constitution with a provisional constitution order on November 3, 20075.

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