17 September 2004	Friday	01 Shaban 1425

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PESHAWAR, Sept 16: The Pakistan People's Party has asked of the government to end the ongoing military operation in South Waziristan. A continuation of the operation, it warned, might trigger an unending civil war in the province.

Speaking at a news conference here at the Peshawar Press Club on Thursday, PPP provincial chief Rahim dad Khan said that Ayub Khan and Yahya Khan had brought the country to the verge of disintegration in 1971. Their greed for power had resulted into the dismemberment of the country, he added.

He said South Waziristan was reflecting similar civil war-like situation in the west of the country, where military troops were engaged an operation against the tribesmen. The very same tribal people had been defending the western borders voluntarily for the last 57 years, he said.

The PPP leader feared that the rulers were pushing the country towards the civil war in order to serve the United States interests. Mr Khan said in the name of operation against the Al Qaeda and Taliban fugitives the government were killing its own people, who had sacrificed their lives while defending Kashmir in 1948. Today, he said, the same patriotic people were being punished.

The ongoing military operation, he said, had been launched on the behest of the United States, but the US newspapers had dubbed it a 'mock operation' to hoodwink the world opinion.

He said all Al Qaeda terrorists who were being chased across the Fata, were transported by the America and its allies to push the former Soviet Union out of Afghanistan. All these 'terrorists' had been Gen Zia's guests, he added.

Mr Khan claimed that the US media had been portraying all such terrorists as Pakistani, who were hiding in Pakistan. But, rulers were making all out efforts, including the genocide of Pashtuns, to please the US administration, he added.

He said his party was in favour of aliens' registration, but why the rulers had not registered them during the last 22years. Today, Wana had been converted into a cantonment, where tribesmen were faced with a terrible situation, he added.

Mr Khan advised the government to find out a peaceful solution of the crisis instead of imposing a harsh decision on the tribesmen. He said that the talks were the first and the last solution of the present unrest. He denied that any official committee could solve the issue.