ISLAMABAD, Nov 3: The secretary general of Jamaat-i-Islami (JI), Syed Munawar Hasan, has said President General Pervez Musharraf’s clarification that no attack has been launched on Afghanistan from the Pakistani soil has become immaterial after handing over airbases to the US.

Speaking at a news conference here on Saturday, the JI leader said the government had put the national security at risk after providing access to the US to the country’s sensitive defence installations. “President Musharraf has lost the right to rule the country after failing to protect the national interests”, he said while advising the general to quit before being forced to do so.

Mr Hasan also criticized the government for failing to provide protection to the general people.

He said the government had admitted its failure by putting the blame of the Bahawalpur massacre on the Indian agency, RAW. He demanded a broad-based national government to bring the country out of the present crisis.

He claimed that thousands of volunteers had enrolled themselves with the JI for joining “Jehad against the US state terrorism”. He, however, said Mujahideen would only embark upon their journey on the call of Taliban chief Mullah Omar.

Replying to a question, he said by taking a U-turn on Afghan policy on a single call of US President George Bush and Secretary of State Colin Powell, the president had betrayed the Afghan nation.

The JI leader ridiculed Gen Musharraf’s claim that only 10 to 15 per cent people were taking part in anti-government demonstrations and questioned why the government was arresting religious leaders, if majority of people were not with them. “This minority could cause a fatal blow to the government and send Musharraf packing,” he remarked.

He said the Afghan Defence Council (ADC) and Muttahida Majlis-i-Amal had given a strike call for November 9 and it would be peaceful. However, he warned the administration against resorting to violence against peaceful protesters. He said the supreme council of the ADC would hold a crucial meeting on November 10 to decide future course of action.

Commenting on the Turkish government’s offer of sending its troops to join the US forces in Afghanistan, he said, “we appeal to Turkey to refrain from taking this step, which will go against the interests of Muslim Ummah”.

He condemned the US and other European nations for putting blame of international terrorism on Muslims only, ignoring Russian atrocities on Chechens, Indian state-terrorism on Kashmiris, Israel’s aggression against Palestinians, Irish Red Army and Tamil Tigers etc.

The Jamaat leader said the US and its allies had failed to achieve even a single objective after continuing air strikes on Afghanistan for more than 20 days.