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Qazi ''guarantees'' normalcy in FATA if troops withdrawn
Jamaat-e-Islami (JI) chief Qazi Hussain Ahmad on Friday claimed local jirgas in the Tribal Areas could ensure peace if the ongoing military operation was halted."I guarantee if the government withdraws the army from the Tribal Areas and leaves the restoration of peace to the local jirgas, normalcy will return to the region," Qazi told participants of a protest rally at Aabpara Chowk. The JI chief said former president Gen (r) Pervez Musharraf's policies, especially the one in the Tribal Areas, were intact, despite the people rejecting them in last year's election. Dialogue: He warned the United States and NATO forces would march on to Islamabad after they conquered the Tribal Areas, adding dialogue, not force, was the solution to the FATA problem. Qazi said Kashmir was the core issue between Pakistan and India, and the world leaders, including US President Barack Obama, should step in for its peaceful settlement for good. Obama: He urged Obama to withdraw troops from Iraq and Afghanistan. The JI chief condemned the recent Israeli attack on Palestine, saying the assault added to the misery of the Palestinians, who were already suffering from food and medicine shortage. JI leaders Liaquat Baloch, Prof Khursheed Ahmed and Main Aslam also addressed the rally. They said the government should adopt a 'realistic approach' for the improvement of law and order in the Tribal Areas. Later, the protestors marched towards the parliament building, chanting slogans against the military operation in the Tribal Areas. Posted by: Fred 2009-01-24 |
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