The situation in Afghanistan and Pakistan

Many news commentators are noticing that Islamic extremism is spreading, mostly in the Arab world. They all have their theories, but almost everyone agrees that a combination of economic inequalities, nationalism and a lack of moral direction have contributed to this phenomenon.
While many political analysts have resigned to the idea that people in that part of the world are just going to believe that, there are those who believe there are alternatives and if offered, the people in the region will listen to them. One such group is the Communist (Maoist) Party of Afghanistan. Since this party is made of local citizens of Afghanistan, it only makes sense that they are the ones to offer an alternative to Islamic extremism. They also condemn the US presents in their country for contributing to the problems. Here is their analysis of what has been going on at the Afghanistan Pakistani border:

Pakistan and the occupation of Afghanistan
On 20 January Islamic fundamentalists in Pakistan blew up five schools in Mingora, once one of the safest areas in Swat, in North-West Pakistan, in an attempt to enforce their growing rule over the northern part of the country. Not long before they had labelled education of girls un-Islamic and forbid it. According to reports, nearly 200 government schools have been destroyed. A similar Islamic grouping, the Pakistani Taleban, also recently banned education for girls, forcing the government to close hundreds more schools in the area for days.
This kind of thing is becoming increasingly common in Pakistan, especially the north. "Elected representatives have fled Swat and many police officers, the target of suicide bomb attacks, have deserted, with the force down in strength from 1,725 to 295." (Guardian, 20 January 2009) Much of the tribal area in Waziristan north of Peshawar is under the rule of Baitullah Mehssud, a tribal leader said to be close to Al-Qaeda. Most of the Swat Valley once a tourist area is increasingly under the control of an Islamic fundamentalist group led by the cleric Maulana Fazlullah.

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