Ashrafi terms Pak-Afghan cooperation against terrorism imperative

ISLAMABAD: Chairman Pakistan Ulema Council PUC), Chairman and International Interfaith Harmony Council President Hafiz Muhammad Tahir Mahmood Ashrafi on Tuesday said Pakistan-Afghan cooperation against terrorism and extremism was the demand of time and circumstances. “Chief of Army Staff General Syed Asim Munir and Head of Afghan Interim Government Mullah Haibatullah had guided in the right direction,” he said while talking the media on Tuesday.

Tahir Mahmood Ashrafi, while highlighting Pakistan’s status as an ideological Islamic state, with its Constitution adhering to the principles of the Quran and Sunnah, the nations’ Islamic scholars had unequivocally condemned violence and the killing of innocent individuals in the name of Jihad and combat.

Speaking about the long-standing conflict and turmoil that both Pakistan and Afghanistan have endured for over four decades, he emphasized the need for mutual cooperation not only between Pakistan and Afghanistan but among all regional countries. He pointed out that resolving the Kashmir issue could lead to economic prosperity for the entire region, bringing much-needed happiness to the people.

To a question, Hafiz Tahir Ashrafi said that the policies advocated by General Syed Asim Munir and Mullah Haibatullah had laid out a clear trajectory for addressing these issues, adding that they had provided renewed clarity on the rights and responsibilities pertaining to Jihad and violence.

He also termed Mullah Haibatullah’s message that there was no room for unauthorized Jihad and combat in Pakistan a good omen. He reinforced Pakistan’s commitment to achieving a progressive and just society within the framework of its Constitution expressing optimism that Pakistan’s transition towards a fair judicial system would complement the eventual end of exploitative economic systems.