PAKISTAN: LUSH VALLEY A POSSIBLE BIN LADEN HIDEOUT

Chitral (Northern Pakistan), 17 May (AKI) - (by Syed Saleem Shahzad) - Traveling through the scenic landcsape of Chitral in northern Pakistan, one is struck by the beauty and wealth of natural resources that have served the needs of the local population in this hard-to-reach part of the country. Although the Pakistani government denied on Tuesday the presence of American forces in Chitral, the area in the rugged Hindu Kush mountains remains on top of the list of possible hide-outs for Osama bin Laden, the wanted leader of the al-Qaeda terrorist network.

"Welcome to Warm Spring Valley" said Nizamuddin, the local teacher in Chitral, referring to the place known locally as Garam Chashma, before ushering this correspondent to a warm room and serving a cup of hot tea. "The Warm Spring Valley has many more miracles than what you see now," said Nizamuddin.

"You saw and tasted the sweet and chilled spring water throughout your travel here," he said. "The same water sources also exist in our Warm Spring Valley where together side-by-side there is a warm spring and its source in the mountain glaciers. During the winter it becomes even hotter," he said.

Nizamuddin built a water tank to store the warm spring water under his room and uses the tank to keep the room warm throughout the year.

"We don't need to either boil tea or cook an egg," said Nizamiddin. "All we need is to take the warm spring water and use it. The egg cooks and the tea is ready without any hassle," he said.

"We are poor people and cannot afford heaters in winters when the weather becomes extremely inhospitably cold. Nature has setup this spring for the whole valley and we use it for all purposes," said Nizamuddin.

"From the southern parts of the country people come and take baths [in the waters] to cure their skin diseases as the water has a high sulpher content," Nizamuddin maintained.

While it's natural wonders are celebrated, the Warm Spring Valley in Chitral is also noted for its strategic location in Pakistan’s North West Frontier Province.

The valley is at a strange crossroad where at one side it touches Afghanistan’s Kunar and Nooristan Valleys which are in eastern Afghanistan, and on the other side it also borders the Badakshan and Pansher Valley in northern Afghanistan and even next to Tajikistan, the central Asian state neighbourin Afghanistan.

"That used to be the only supply line of arms and ammunition for the mujahadeen when Soviet Russia invaded Afghanistan," said Khairullah, a local resident at Chitral's Warm Spring Valley. "I remember every morning hundreds of mules carrying food supplies and ammunition passing through this valley and then getting lost in the mountains. The whole valley used to abuzz with the braying of mules and donkeys every morning," said Khairullah.

"That was the only route to dump ammunition in Nooristan and Pansher Valley for the mujahadeens," he said.

The US Central Intelligence Agency (CIA) has always maintained that the area of the Hindu Kush mountain range is an ideal area for Osama bin Laden to use a safe sanctuary. The terrain is difficult to access and largely deserted yet it is full of natural vegetation, food and spring water. In addition, the region also provides ample routes to travel into Afghanistan, Pakistan and Central Asia.

Although Pakistan on Tuesday officially denied the presence of American forces in Chitral, sources confirm that the tops list of suspected hideouts for bin Laden's operations in the region.