THE CAPTURE of Taliban militant commander Mullah Abdel-Ghani Baradar in Karachi is the most important prize for the American CIA and the Pakistani intelligence service since March 2007, when they captured Mullah Obaidullah Akhund, a former Taliban defence minister and a close aide of the Taliban's supreme leader, Mullah Mohamed Omar. It is a blow to the Taliban as it fights back against the recently launched US-led Operation Moshtarak (Together) in Marjah in the southern province of Helmand. According to analysts, Mullah Baradar not only has first-hand knowledge of the Taliban network in Afghanistan and Pakistan, he also is familiar with their relations to the Pakistani intelligence corps. There are rumours that his arrest may have been orchestrated by elements within the Pakistani establishment who are willing to hold talks with Taliban commanders, indicating a shift in Pakistani strategy to give it greater prominence in shaping Afghanistan's future. But if the arrest was solely the result of CIA intelligence-gathering, then it could on the contrary be a sign that Pakistan is being upstaged as the US pushes ahead with its plans for the region. Moshtarak, the largest US-NATO operation since the 2001 invasion, will test United States President Barack Obama's surge policy which promises to bring in Afghan administrators and police to stay once NATO forces have driven out the Taliban. Civilian casualties continue to plague the occupiers, especially from missile strikes, and there are serious doubts about the "nation building" follow-up plans. The slow progress so far strongly suggests that the campaign to capture all insurgent-held areas before the troop withdrawal date of 2011 set by Obama could falter. US forces complained that they are constrained by new rules of engagement where troops cannot fire at people unless they commit a hostile act or show intent.
