24 April 2004	Saturday	03 Rabi-ul-Awwal 1425

LAHORE, April 23: A resolution adopted at Mansoora mosque after Juma prayers led by Qazi Husain Ahmad condemned Foreign Minister Kasuri's statement that Pakistan was considering sending troops to Iraq to protect the UN forces there.

The resolution demanded that the government should protest at Israeli oppression against Palestinian people and quit the US-led coalition. Pakistan, it said, should also seek an OIC meeting to devise a strategy to help the Palestinians.

Urging Islamic countries to get united against 'kufr', the resolution warned that every Islamic country would have to suffer at the hands of enemies in case they did not heed the call of the hour.

In a press statement, the MMA's acting president said the foreign minister's statement was condemnable specially because it had been made at a time when Spain was going to pull out its troops and Britain had refused to send reinforcements.

Qazi Husain Ahmad said the United States was in trouble in Iraq, but the Pakistani rulers had subordinated themselves to the US. Calling upon the nation to protest against the foreign minister's statement, Qazi said this was not the time to keep oneself indifferent.

The MMA leader said the US was backing Israeli terrorism, and it was because of this support that the Jewish state had martyred two Hamas leaders and vowed to give the same treatment to the successor.

He said by vetoing UN resolution against Israel, the US had established that it was on the side of terrorists. He said it was regrettable that Pakistan had not done anything to help the Palestinians, but was talking to send troops to Iraq.

He said although the US was projecting Al-Qaeda as a demonic the world over, in fact no such an organization was in existence.

Fazal: MMA secretary-general Maulana Fazlur Rehman holds President Musharraf responsible for the induction of 'corrupt elements' into the government as he was the one who had cleared the names of all ministers for the cabinet.

In a statement here on Friday, he said after admitting that the corrupt people were there in power, the MMA leader said the president should let the nation know whether he was referring to the PML-Q leaders or those belonging to the PPP-Patriots.

Also amir of his faction of the JUI, Maulana Fazlur Rehman said only recently some ministers, wanted by the NAB in corruption cases, had advised the president not to shed his military uniform.

MIAN AZHAR: PML-QA's former president Mian Azhar, responding to President's statement about the corrupt, said his 'confession' was not enough, reports PPI. Talking to a delegations of Muslim Leaguers from Sheikhupura, Multan and Khanewal here at his Garden Town residence on Friday, Azhar said the president could find around him people involved in rampant corruption, money laundering and plunder of billions borrowed from banks.