Britain hails Taliban suspect arrests in Pakistan

ISLAMABAD, July 25 (Reuters) Britain commended Pakistan today for the arrests last week of more than 200 Afghans suspected of belonging to the Taliban and said Islamabad's efforts to combat terrorism would help stabilise Afghanistan.

The arrests were made in the southwest province of Baluchistan, a region facing the Afghan province of Helmand, where British troops have run into fierce resistance from Taliban fighters.

''It is extremely encouraging to hear reports that over 200 Taliban had been arrested in Baluchistan, in southwest Pakistan.

I welcome Pakistan's continued commitment to combating terrorism and support for stability in Afghanistan,'' Kim Howells, Minister of State at the Foreign Office, said in a statement issued by the British High Commission in Islamabad.

Analysts have doubted police claims that nearly all of those detained were Taliban.

Afghan authorities yesterday released all 58 men turned over to them a day earlier by Pakistan and said none of them were Taliban fighters, and their only crime was lacking proper documents.

The Afghan government, the United States and NATO powers with forces in Afghanistan want Pakistan to act more forcefully against the Taliban, particularly in and around the Baluch capital Quetta where many Taliban settled after they were ousted from power in 2001.

Pakistan maintains that while some Taliban fighters do sneak across the border to join the fighting, most of the guerrillas are based in Afghanistan where they have plenty of support in the rural areas.

REUTERS MQA PM2204