Zardari phones Altaf, agrees to end differences

KARACHI: Following a fiery speech which was received as highly critical of the Pakistan armed forces, the Pakistan People’s Party (PPP) co-chairman on Thursday telephoned the Muttahida Qaumi Movement (MQM) chief Altaf Hussain and agreed with him to end the differences between the two parties.
The main focus of the telephonic talk was to bridge the gap between urban and rural Sindh. Both the leaders discussed various issues confronting the country. They said Sindh was being deprived of its rights. They also talked about the changes taking place at the international level, starting of a new Cold War between the US and Russia and insurgencies in different countries of the world.
Both the leaders agreed that the country needed unity in the present circumstances and particularly emphasised that the permanent residents of Sindh living in its urban and rural areas, whose interests were tied to peace and tranquillity of the province, should shun all differences for their own interests. They agreed to promote peace and brotherhood and expressed mutual sentiments of offering sacrifices for each other.
Asim Yasin adds from Islamabad: Asif Zardari has invited leaders of the Awami National Party (ANP), MQM, Pakistan Muslim League-Quaid (PML-Q) and Jamiat Ulema-e-Islam-Fazl (JUI-F) on an Iftar dinner today (Friday) to discuss the political situation and to make new political alignments in the wake of the ongoing developments in Karachi.
In this regard, Asif Ali Zardari made telephone calls to the ANP president Asfandyar Wali Khan and PML-Q president Chaudhry Shujaat Hussain. During the telephonic contacts, the overall political situation of the country also came under discussion.
According to sources, the former president also sent the PPP Secretary General Raja Pervaiz Ashraf to Peshawar to extend the invitation to Asfandyar Wali Khan.