The move by Taliban-backed militants into the Buner district of northwestern
Pakistan, closer than ever to Pakistan’s capital of Islamabad, have
prompted concerns both within the country and abroad that the nuclear-armed
nation of 165 million is on the verge of inexorable collapse.
On Wednesday a local Taliban militia
crossed from the Swat Valley — where a February cease-fire allowed the
implementation of strict Islamic, or Shari’a, law — into the neighboring
Buner
district, which is just a few hours drive from Islamabad .
