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| Drone attacks undermining Swat operation: Gilani |
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Sunday, May 24, 2009
Says Army operation well-planned; denies extension of operation to other parts
By Amer Malik
LAHORE: Prime Minister Syed Yousuf Raza Gilani has said the US would have to review its policy of drone attacks, which were undermining the Pakistan government’s strategy and the military operation against the militants in Swat and Malakand.
“Pakistan has conveyed its concerns to the US on drone attacks and the whole world also supports Pakistan’s viewpoint,” Gilani said while answering questions on all parties’ unanimous demand to halt the US drone attacks.
After the inauguration of an undergraduate medical college at the Sheikh Zayed Hospital & Postgraduate Medical Institute, Lahore, on Saturday, the prime minister said the drone attacks had proved extremely counter-productive in the war against terror as the policy was uniting the militants and the tribal people. “Had it been productive, Pakistan would have supported it,” he said.
When asked that some political parties opposed the Army operation during the All Parties Conference, he said it was more important that all parties had adopted a unanimous resolution to conduct the military operation against the militants. “We are grateful to all parties whether they supported or opposed the military operation,” he said.
To another question regarding the expansion of the military operation to other parts like Bajaur and Waziristan, he said the government would only conduct the military operation in areas where the writ of the government was challenged. “The government does not aim to conduct the Army operation in any other parts of the country,” he added.
Gilani said the drug mafia from poppy growing areas was financing the militants and action would be taken against them after getting evidence.
About the Peshawar bomb blast as the militants’ reaction to the Army operation, he said the government had advised the chief ministers before the launch of the military operation to make necessary security arrangements as the militants would react in other provinces. “The government cannot keep silent if the militants make us hostage,” he said.
The prime minister also rejected the comments and analyses appearing in the media, according to which the military operation was ill-planned, saying the operation was the best-planned operation ever launched by the Pak Army. “There is complete cohesion between the civil government and the Army on the operation and those dubbing it as ill-planned are badly mistaken,” he said.
About the harassment of the IDPs, the prime minister said the government couldn’t even think of troubling those displaced people who were not terrorists but patriotic as was evident from their sacrifices during the military operation against the militants. However, he said the government was only completing their registration to issue proper IDs to them in order to help them get Rs 25,000 per family. “Otherwise, there is no way to identify them in order to help them,” he added.
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briefs...
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ISSN 1563-9479 
