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| India-Pakistan |
| 200 militants have surrendered in Swat: Hamid |
| 2008-03-10 |
| Caretaker Interior Minister Lt Gen (r) Hamid Nawaz Khan has claimed that around 200 militants have so far surrendered to the authorities in Swat. He told the state-run PTV channel that 422 people had been arrested in Swat for their involvement in terror activities. “Six tonnes of explosive material has also been recovered from the area,” he added. He praised the law-enforcement agencies for making “foolproof” security arrangements during the February 18 elections and Muharram. “Security agencies have averted 20 to 30 possible incidents of terrorism in the Punjab and Sindh during Muharram and the elections,” the minister said. However, he added that “by just preventing these incidents we are not going to be successful as it is very important to go back and hit the base area of terrorist organisations”. Replying to his recent statement regarding the involvement of foreign elements in terrorist activities in Pakistan, Hamid said he was talking about the growing general perception of this “because such activities cannot not be sustained longer without foreigners’ involvement”. He stressed a joint and coordinated effort in the NWFP to eliminate terrorism and extremism from the country. He said that the new NWFP government would have an important role to play in tackling terrorism. Pakistan released Kashmir Singh, an Indian who served 35 years in prison, last week. Hamid said the release of Singh would help promote a benign image of the country. |
| Posted by:Fred |