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Dead men tell no tales. MFU (Maulana Fazl Ullah) ordered the hit of his father-in-law's (Sufi Mohammad) closest advisers to silence them. They were not arrested by the Pakis, they asked for protection from MFU's Taliban who had been threatening them. The truck carrying the two was in a convoy and was blown up by an IED as it drove along. MFU's Taliban knew exactly what vehicle to hit, very precise. Probably carried out by MFU's Turkmen, they are the best at this kind of radio controlled IED.

A father of five, Alam, 50, led the TNSM for seven years when Sufi Mohammad was jailed for violating border laws. The soft-spoken scholar was known for his non-violent positions and for his role along with Sufi Mohammad in brokering a peace deal in February between the government and Taliban to end violence in Swat.

When MFU went around their backs and invaded Buner and collapsed the entire agreement, followers of Sufi Mohammad broke ranks and began cooperating with the Pakis. That's what facilitated all this.

MFU is in Paktia, Afghanistan with his best commanders. The Swat Taliban will continue the fight by small unit and snipers.

BTW, they along with Sufi Mohammad were living openly in Bilal Masjid (a madrassa) on the Mingora-Batkhela Road in the Amandara village of Malakand during the entire offensive and were well known to the PakMil. "Arresting" them now could only be for their own protection.

While MFU consolidates his power, tactically, from a strategic point this is a big gamble, openly attacking the "old school" power structure of Sufi Mohammad.