The Counterterrorism blog reminds us that Pakistan is still playing both sides of the fence, by working with the US to catch terrorist plots, while harboring the terrorists and even signing treaties with them:

As Pakistan’s Dawn newspaper explains, the Pakistani government has entered into a peace agreement with the Taliban insurgency that essentially cedes authority in the North Waziristan tribal region to the Taliban and al-Qaeda

What better country to hide in than a shaky ally of your enemy who has nuclear weapons capabilities? The duplicitous logic runs deep:

Pakistani president Pervez Musharraf has proclaimed that the U.S.-led coalition forces in Afghanistan won’t be allowed into the tribal areas covered by this peace deal: “On our side of the border there will be a total uprising if a foreigner enters that area. It’s not possible at all, we will never allow any foreigners into that area. It’s against the culture of the people there.”

Taliban and al Qaeda are not foreigners? Do they mean non-fundamentalist Muslim when they say “foreigner”? Identities are so tricky when it comes to access control. Speaking of local identities and fighting, American troop casualties will decline as the civil war heats up in Iraq, according to the Telegraph:

American combat deaths in the capital are down 50 per cent on this time last year and some terrorists say the US has succeeded in deflecting attention from its own troops.

“Now we are fighting each other,” said one insurgent. “That is what the Americans wanted and now they are winning.”

[…]

Abu Tayseer, a Baghdad councillor, said he was very angry that the militias were fighting each other instead of the Americans.