12 August 2004	Thursday	25 Jamadi-us-Saani 1425

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WASHINGTON, Aug 11: Muttahida Qaumi Movement's parliamentary leader Farooq Sattar indicated on Wednesday that his party may oppose a military action in Balochistan. "If a military action is taken in Balochistan, the Muttahida will take a principled stance," he told a news briefing in Washington.

Last week, the party chief, Altaf Hussain, urged the government not to conduct a military operation in Balochistan and instead resolve the issue 'through honourable negotiations'. Balochistan, he said, is not a tribal region but one of the four provinces of Pakistan.

But Mr Sattar said the party has not yet taken a policy decision on this issue but it will not forget its opposition to such actions in the past while taking a decision.

The Muttahida leader, however, did not oppose a similar action against the jihadi groups 'working against Pakistan's interests. Even mainstream religious parties, he said, were not against 'the action being taken against these forces'.

"We believe that those who work against the policies of the state, they should be crushed," said Mr Sattar while explaining his party's position on the strategy against the jihadis. The Muttahida leader also criticized mainstream religious parties for forgetting vital national interests in their zeal for jihad.