November 02, 2006	Thursday	Shawwal 9, 1427

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PESHAWAR, Nov 1: NWFP Governor Ali Mohammad Jan Aurakzai has said that the military action in Bajaur Agency will not disturb the ongoing peace efforts in the area but they may be delayed for some time.

Talking to newsmen here on Wednesday after speaking at a seminar on sustainable development plan for the Federally Administered Tribal Areas, Mr Aurakzai denied reports that foreign forces had carried out the air strike on Monday.

“There is no need to engage foreign forces and the country’s armed forces conducted the operation,” he said.

He was optimistic that the action would not affect the peace process in the area and said the government had a multi-pronged strategy for the tribal areas, under which military action, development activities and dialogue would go side by side.

He denied reports that the bombing had left many children dead, saying that people in the age group of 18 to 25 years were killed in the attack and all of them were miscreants.

When asked about the statement of a militant leader in South Waziristan, Haji Muhammad Omar, that the action could threaten the peace agreement in the area, Mr Aurakzai replied: “The government did not sign any agreement in the area.”