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| 26 February 2004 | Thursday | 05 Muharram 1425 |
Operation against Al Qaeda continues: Zawahri's son not held
ISLAMABAD, Feb 25: The Foreign Office has said that the operation to flush out Al Qaeda militants from Pakistan's territory has not yet ended, although the crackdown in the western border town is over for the time being.
Speaking at his press briefing here on Wednesday, Foreign Office spokesman Masood Khan said it was not possible to give any information about the foreigners arrested during the operation because suspected terrorists might still be hiding in the area.
He said investigations were still going on to determine nationality and antecedents of the arrested people. The spokesman said the operation was conducted after some of the suspects failed to surrender by the deadline of Feb 20.
The objective of the operation was to locate and neutralize any terrorists in the tribal areas and would continue till they were flushed out and eliminated, the spokesman added. Mr Khan termed the reports of arrest of Ayman al-Zawahri's son Khalid during the Wana operation 'wild speculation'.
ISPR CLARIFICATION: Meanwhile, according to a press release, the Inter-Services Public Relations (ISPR), has said that news reports pertaining to nationality of foreign elements arrested during the Wana operation were mere speculative reporting as the investigations were in progress and nothing could be ascertained at this stage.
Confirming that a few foreign women were among those arrested during the operation, an ISPR spokesman said that apprehended women were dealt through women police and the jirga and they were accorded due respect and had been kept in safe custody.
Commenting on reports regrading demolition of houses of those providing refuge to the foreigners, the spokesman said it was a local custom that houses of people who provided shelter to foreign elements or involved in anti-state activities, were demolished.
In this particular case the political assistant and local elders accordingly demolished the houses of those found guilty of the punishable offence. However, no collateral damage was caused during the operation, he added.
BAGLIHAR PROJECT: Speaking about the Baglihar dam being constructed by India over the River Chenab, the foreign office spokesman said the Indus Water Commissioners of the two countries had so far been unable to resolve differences over the design of the dam, resumes Hasan Akhtar.
Pakistan would continue its endeavours to have those differences resolved in accordance with the provisions of the Indus Water Treaty. He, however, said that Pakistan had not foreclosed any options.
When his attention was drawn to a press statement of Foreign Minister Khurshid Kasuri that Pakistan would not raise water-related issues at the world forums, the spokesman said the minister had been misquoted.
AGENCIES ADD: The spokesman expressed concern over ongoing fencing of the Line of Control (LoC) by India and described it as a violation of bilateral agreements and UN Security Council resolutions.
"We have conveyed our concerns to the Indian government on fencing of LoC and would like to discuss the issue in forthcoming composite dialogue," the spokesman said.
INTELLIGENCE SHARING: The spokesman denied reports about intelligence sharing between Inter-Services Intelligence (ISI) and Indian Research and Analysis Wing (RAW), on terrorism as part of confidence-building measures (CBMs).
"We first have to build confidence ... sharing information in intelligence or other areas comes later," Mr Khan said.
NO HAND OVER: The spokesman said Pakistan would not hand over its scientists to the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) as it was not a signatory to the non-proliferation treaty (NPT).
He said Pakistan's investigations had been transparent. The country limited its investigations to individuals and their links with the black market. The spokesman said next step should be that the IAEA and other organizations intensify investigations into the black market.
He said Pakistan would maintain the competitive edge of its nuclear programme by upgrading it both qualitatively and quantitatively. The spokesman pointed out that the purpose and objective of Pakistan's nuclear programme was to deter aggression, safeguard national security and protect sovereignty.
He said Pakistan also wanted a strategic restraint regime and conventional balance with India. He said Pakistan did not want an arms race between the two countries.
In reply to a question about restoration of Pakistan's full membership to the Commonwealth, Mr Khan said Prime Minister Zafarullah Jamali discussed the matter with the Nigerian president who is current chairman of the Commonwealth during the D-8 Summit in Tehran. He said the response of the Nigerian president was encouraging and positive.
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