ISLAMABAD: Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif and his national security advisers deliberated on Thursday on various options for dealing with militants.
The meeting took place against the backdrop of a spate of deadly attacks on law-enforcers, troops, polio vaccinators, media workers, pilgrims and tourists. The sudden surge in strikes put pressure on the government, so far ardently sticking to the option of dialogue with the militants, to start talking tough.
An official statement was, as always, terse and bland and talked only about a review of the “existing security situation in the country” and progress on “terror-related legislations”. But soon after the meeting it was in the air that the country’s security czars had agreed on a ‘targeted operation’ against the miscreants in North Waziristan, while keeping the dialogue option on the table for the ‘reconcilables’.
Moreover, it was obvious from the unusual attendance list for a security meeting presided over by the prime minister, which included Defence Minister Khawaja Asif, Interior Minister Chaudhry Nisar Ali Khan, Information Minister Senator Pervaiz Rasheed, Finance Minister Ishaq Dar, Special Assistant on Foreign Affairs Tariq Fatemi, Chief of Army Staff General Raheel Sharif, Director General ISI Lt General Zahir-ul-Islam, Chief of General Staff Lt General Ashfaq Nadeem, DGMO Maj General Amir Riaz and DG MI Maj Gen Sarfaraz Sattar, that the government was close to taking the difficult decision of going ahead with the military operation.
“We would engage with those wanting to renounce violence, but would strongly fight those choosing that path,” an official told Dawn on the background after the session.
A final decision is likely to be made public later. Prior to the announcement, the government will take other political leaders on board about the planned move.
Mr Sharif, who first forged political consensus for talks, now plans to ask politicians to “put aside politics for the sake of greater national interest”, a source claimed.
After the recent attacks on law-enforcement agencies in Bannu and Rawalpindi, the armed forces had launched air strikes against terrorist hideouts in Mirali (North Waziristan) in which a number of foreign militants and a couple of senior commanders of banned Tehrik-i-Taliban were killed.
If statements by cabinet ministers were any indication, some of them this week clearly suggested that the government’s patience with militants was thinning out.
“Let there be no doubt that the government will talk to every group or individual who believes in dialogue and peace in order to bring peace and harmony in Pakistan. But let there also be no doubt that we will fight those with all our energy and capacity who do not believe in peace and want to create disharmony, cause insanity and unleash bloodshed in Pakistan,” Interior Minister Nisar had said after the Bannu attack.
Defence Minister Khawaja Asif had, meanwhile, in a television interview said: “One can’t have talks when innocent people are being killed. The government can’t be blackmailed”. He also said the time had come for a final decision.
