The worsening law and order situation in the NWFP even after a two-week operation against militants in Bara, Khyber Agency, and parts of Peshawar is alarming for the coalition government in the province.
The chief minister, Ameer Hyder Khan Hoti, during his concluding debate on law and order in the last session of the provincial assembly, said his coalition government was not dealing with a simple sort of lawlessness, but was faced with 100 per cent insurgency which could not be described as lawlessness.
When circumstances in Swat, which had been mishandled during the last over three years, and the militancy in Bara were the main focus of attention for the present provincial government, the state of affairs in southern district of Hangu worsened forcing the government to call troops to control the situation, leaving all other important ventures, which were near a successful completion, as they were. 
At least 25 people, including 18 troops, were killed and several injured when the militants in Hangu ambushed a convoy of security forces near the Zargari bazaar in retaliation to the arrest of their comrades.
According to official sources, militants opened indiscriminate fire on soldiers from hilltops. The militants led by Baitullah Mehsud on Friday claimed to have held 29 security personnel hostage in Hangu and threatened to start killing them one by one if the government did not stop the military operation against them and their men were not released.
The authorities on Saturday relaxed curfew from 10am to 4pm and allowed people to buy items of their needs. However, the soldiers opened fire on a suspected vehicle when its driver refused to stop and instead accelerated the car. The law-enforcement agencies arrested four suspected militants from the car and shifted them to an undisclosed location. According to news reports, the arrested militants also included a close aide of Baitullah Mehsud.
Meanwhile, the Tehrik-i-Taliban Pakistan renewed its threat to kill kidnapped government employees if the operation in Hangu was not stopped and the detained militants were not released. “The situation can get out of control if TTP’s demands are not met,” Tehrik’s spokesman Maulvi Omar told journalists on phone. He said the Taliban would take action if their demands were not accepted. He said 29 government employees, among them 12 paramilitary soldiers and six policemen were in Taliban’s custody.
The problem in Hangu started when Taliban militants came face to face with forces who were conducting a flag march from Hangu to Doaba. The security personal took into custody a van with nine militants including Baitullah Mehsud’s assistant Maulvi Rafiuddin. This infuriated the militants and in order to secure the release of their comrades, they laid siege to the police station.
A jirga of local elders was asked to negotiate with the Taliban who laid siege of the police station. In the meanwhile, a battalion of army personnel was ordered to move into the area. The siege was brought to an end due to the efforts of jirga and fear of operation by the government, but in retaliation, the militants opened fire on the security forces killing 25 people including 18 troops.
At the moment, tense calm prevails in Hangu bazaar and its adjoining villages. The area, which is under serious threat of the Taliban for the last few weeks is facing shortage of food, medical facilities at hospital and medicines in the market.
According to a report, 25 new born babies died in the gynecology ward of Hangu hospital during the last few weeks due to lack of proper medical system. Officials said the required medical system for gynecology ward is purchased and lying in the health department Hangu, but it cannot be transported to the hospital due to the curfew and insecurity on roads.
One is not sure of the prospects of grand jirga, presently negotiating between government and militants in Bara, but sincere efforts of Jamiat Ulema-i-Islam could not be ruled out.
The NWFP Inspector General of Police (IGP) Malik Naveed Khan said the operation against militants could be extended to other areas of the province if the need arose.
Talking to reporters after a high-level meeting on law and order situation, he said Section 144 was imposed in Peshawar due to security threats and pillion riding was banned due to the fact that militants usually used motorcycles for their criminal activities. He said the government would conduct operations on need basis in every part of the province. He said the government had agreed to meet the needs of Frontier police and it would be equipped with modern weapons. He said he had apprised the government of the problems of the police.
Many suspected militants have been arrested during an operation in Bara, but most of them were later released. It has been noticed that fear among the local people has been reduced after the operation in Bara. But, everyone is expecting retaliation from militants in Bara as during the operation their houses and offices were razed and arms and ammunitions seized.