Top Pakistani and U.S. officials have repeatedly declared there is a major change in the public mood against Taliban militants in Pakistan. In what could be the latest evidence of that sentiment, hundreds of armed Pakistani tribesman are attacking Taliban positions in a remote area in the northwest following a suicide attack last week on a packed mosque that killed dozens of people, including children.
巴基斯坦和美国高级官员一再说，在巴基斯坦，公众对打击巴基斯坦境内塔利班分子的情绪有了重大的转变。最近发生的事就是这种情绪转变的证明。几百个巴基斯坦武装部落成员攻击在西北边远地区的塔利班据点。在这之前，一个拥挤的清真寺上星期遭到自杀式袭击，打死了几十个人，其中包括儿童。
In Pakistan's remote district of Upper Dir near the border with Afghanistan, the shock of the attack on the mosque during Friday prayers turned to anger a day later.
在巴基斯坦靠近阿富汗边境的上迪尔偏远地区，人们对星期五清真寺举行祈祷时遭到袭击感到震惊，一天后，这种情绪变为愤怒。
That is when at least 400 armed tribesmen formed a civilian army, commonly called a "lashkar," and started attacking Taliban militants in several villages. Reports say anywhere from seven to 13 Taliban militants were killed and several of their hideouts destroyed.
由至少400个武装的部落成员组成了平民的军队，通常叫做“虔诚军” ，他们在一些村庄里开始攻击塔利班武装分子。报导说，大概有7到13名塔利班分子被杀，还有他们的几处藏身地被摧毁。
The civilian uprising in Upper Dir appears to be the latest evidence of growing anti-Taliban sentiment among the public, according to Fazal-ur-Rehman, Director of the Institute of Strategic Studies in Islamabad.
伊斯兰堡战略研究所主任法扎勒.乌尔.拉赫曼说，上迪尔区出现平民起义是公众反塔利班情绪日益增长的最新证据。
Rehman says this is a new development among the Pakistani public, one that is linked to the month-long military offensive against the Taliban in the Swat Valley.
拉赫曼说，这是巴基斯坦公众发生的一个新进展，这也和在斯瓦特山谷对塔利班发动一个月的军事行动有关。
"Now with government support and the military operation (in Swat), they have seen that this is the time to get themselves organized in order to create a resistance against these Taliban," Rehman said. "What you can see now are the initial signs of this trend."
“现在有政府的支持和在斯瓦特山谷采取军事行动，他们认为是把自己组织起来，对抗塔利班的时候了。你现在看到的是这一趋势的最初迹象。”
Rehman says local lashkars like the one that formed in Upper Dir have been encouraged by Pakistani officials, who have come to realize that security forces simply cannot extend their reach throughout Pakistan to stop militant attacks.
拉赫曼说，像上迪尔地区成立地方“虔诚军”的活动是受到巴基斯坦官员鼓励的，因为他们认识到，单凭安全部队是根本无法在整个巴基斯坦阻止激进分子的袭击。
"Empowering local people to create their own defense mechanism and their own defense system - this kind of local management of security affairs will be very helpful," said Rehman.
“让当地人民有能力建立他们自己的防卫机制，以及他们自己的防卫系统。这种当地安全事务管理将会非常有帮助。”
But, he warns, this type of local uprising will not last without strong backing from government officials.
尽管如此，他警告说，如果没有政府官员的强力支持，这类当地的起义将无法维持很久。
Aftab Sherpao, a former interior minister and chief minister in the North West Frontier Province, says the public does not trust officials to provide security. Still, he says there are ways the government can capitalize on the growing dislike of the Taliban.
前内政部长和西北边境省首席部长谢尔宝表示，公众不相信官员能提供安全保护。然而，他说，政府可以通过很多途径在公众对塔利班日益不满的问题上作文章。
He says the government needs to make sure the Swat Valley operation, and the resulting displacement of more than two million people, is handled in a humane fashion.
他说，政府需要确保斯瓦特河谷的军事行动，以及由此导致的超过两百万人流离失所，能以人道的方式得到处理。
"Once the operations are finished and the government has established its writ, they have to take the IDP's (internally displaced people) in a very organized manner back to their homes. The reconstruction and rehabilitation has to start and the police force has to be established," said Sherpao. "They can recruit the police from the IDPs living in the camps. This is the process that is being very keenly watched by the public across the country. If this goes well, that will generate a lot of good will."
“一旦军事行动结束，政府建立法制之后，他们必须用非常有组织的方式，将国内流离失所的人们带回家园。家园重建以及整顿必须开始，警察部队也必须建立。政府可以从住在难民营的国内流离失所人当中招募警察。目前全国人民都在密切关注着这个进程。如果一切顺利，这些行动将会产生很多善意。”
The army's ability to clear Taliban militants from key areas of the Swat Valley and elsewhere in the region has been praised from Islamabad to Washington. And although the army says the battle will not be over until top Taliban leaders are captured or killed in the Swat region, Pakistani officials say they are confident the Taliban are on the defensive.
无论是伊斯兰堡还是华盛顿，都赞扬巴基斯坦军队的能力，将塔利班激进分子从斯瓦特河谷主要地区，以及该区域其他地方铲除掉。尽管军方表示，在还没抓到或打死斯瓦特区域塔利班高级领导人之前，战争不会结束，一些巴基斯坦官员说，他们坚信，塔利班现在只剩下招架之功了。
But the Taliban have shown they are still capable of striking the country's main cities. On Saturday evening as the lashkar in Upper Dir began to fight local Taliban, a suicide bomber penetrated a police compound in the capital, Islamabad, killing two policemen.
然而，塔利班表现出他们仍然具有攻击巴基斯坦主要城市的能力。星期六晚间，当在上迪尔区的虔诚军开始攻击当地塔利班的时候，一个自杀炸弹炸杀手渗透到首都伊斯兰堡的一个警察局，炸死两名警察。 |