Pakistan ? Pakistani officials closed in on a peace deal with a Taliban-linked group Sunday that could lead to enforcement of Islamic law in a part of the country that is supposed to be fully under government control. Militants in the Swat Valley responded by declaring a 10-day cease-fire as a goodwill gesture.

The agreement is expected to be formally announced today — and draw criticism from the United States, which has said such deals merely give insurgents time to regroup.

Several past deals with militants have failed, but Pakistan says force alone cannot defeat al-Qaida and Taliban fighters wreaking havoc in its northwest and attacking U.S. troops in neighboring Afghanistan.