The Globe blurb: Known as the headquarters of the Taliban, Quetta's streets throb with anger at Kabul and Islamabad, GRAEME SMITH reports.

An excerpt:

QUETTA, PAKISTAN -- The war in Afghanistan colours everything in Quetta. Just across the border from the battlefields of Kandahar, over the mountains into Pakistan, down in the ramshackle suburbs of this frontier city, the bloody conflict plays out more like an election campaign than a war.

Drab urban blocks are festooned with bright flags of the two sides: Those who want to destroy the Afghan government and those who favour protecting it. Black and white stripes mark the homes, vehicles, and even children's kites of the Jamiat Ulema-e-Islam, a political party that openly supports the Taliban insurgency.

Not far away, spray-painted on a rock or worn proudly on a baseball cap, the red, white and green colours of Pashtoonkhwa indicate the supporters of Hamid Karzai, Afghanistan's President.

Those two symbols dominate the landscape in Quetta more than any other visual cues, overwhelming the clutter of mobile phone billboards and advertisements for gun stores.
 
If it seems strange to a visitor that the biggest debate in a Pakistani city could be over the future of the government in a neighbouring country, it's entirely natural for the residents of a city that acknowledges itself as the Taliban's headquarters.

"Our society has been hijacked," said Douran Khan, 25, a geology student at a local university, sipping tea after classes. "The mullahs have imposed their war on us." On a recent afternoon, Mr. Khan joined hundreds of other Pashtuns as they gathered on the outskirts of the city for a rally against the war. The cars, motorcycles and intricately painted trucks made a boisterous parade along the highway, honking and flying the flags of Pashtoonkhwa.

There are two main political groups battling it out: The Pashtoonkhwa Millat Awami Party, a left wing nationalist party, and Jamiat Ulema-e-Islam, and Islamic party which is part of the ruling coalition in Baluchistan.

The difference between the Taliban supporters and the Pashtun nationalists is that the latter's anger is directed at Islamabad, calling for either a Pashtun homeland inside Pakistan or recognition of Kabul's historical claim that Quetta as well as other territory belongs to Afghanistan.

Given their anti-government stand, Pashtoonkhwa leaders say, it's not surprising that Pakistan's Inter-Services Intelligence agency quietly supports their rivals.

"They are saying Islam is fighting against America [in Afghanistan]," said Usman Khan Kakar, Pashtoonkhwa's provincial secretary, his voice rasping over cheap loudspeakers. "This is a lie. This is not the real fight. This is a fight between the Punjab and Kabul." His audience sat on a vast dusty field, listening in respectful silence. ...

Smith interviewed Maulvi Noor Mohammed, a senior JUI official in Quetta:

The white-bearded leader denied that his party, or the Taliban, are helped by Pakistani authorities. Just the opposite, he said: Recent arrests of Taliban prove that Pakistan has turned against the insurgents. (Critics say these arrests are staged roundups of ordinary Pashtuns.) When asked to name Taliban leaders captured in Pakistan, Mr. Mohammed said he could not give any examples. Instead, he lashed out at the Pashtoonkhwa, saying the party makes baseless accusations.

"Pashtoonkhwa and others are opposing the Taliban and the religious parties," Mr. Mohammed said. "They are supporting the Americans, so they blame us, or the ISI, saying we support the war in Afghanistan.

But they don't have any proof. They can't prove the JUI or the ISI is involved in the jihad."