ONCE again Quetta, the heart of Balochistan, is hit by terrorists claiming more than 70 innocent lives. Once again the prime minister and the army chief visit the injured victims.

Once again politicians have blamed foreign agencies for the attack. Once again we hear the word ‘condemnation’ from the governing elite. Sadly, there is nothing new. The vicious cycle continues.

A famous African saying goes like this: “When there is no enemy within, the enemy outside cannot harm you”. It is time we looked into our internal policies and reassessed them.

The implementation of the National Action Plan should be our top priority. Action should be taken against terrorists across-the-board.

The civil administration seems pretty feeble in the province. Its role is indispensable for long-term peace and stability. Balochistan needs peace and so does Pakistan. We must act before it is too late.

Umer Ahmad Kithran

Peshawar

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THE carnage in Quetta, which left 73 dead and more than 100 injured, is condemnable. But blaming RAW for destabilising the country is no solution. Instead, we should make our foreign policy pro-active — a policy which responds effectively to foreign-sponsored interventions.

But at this stage, this is not possible, because the chair of the foreign minister has been vacant for a long time. A state without a foreign minister can never succeed in advancing its national interest.

Nasrullah Ali

Islamabad

Published in Dawn, August 15th, 2016