RAWALPINDI: A White Paper issued by the Federal Government categorically states that at no stage has the Air Force been used for bombing attacks during military operations in Baluchistan. Forcefully denying the false allegations … by Afghanistan and certain interested quarters, the … Government declares … that no village, base or band of hostiles has ever been subjected to an aerial attack, nor have paratroopers been dropped anywhere in the province.

…[T]he White Paper says that military presence in aid of civil power has a dual purpose: preservation of law and order and economic development. The White Paper points out that the leadership of the National Awami Party and an unfriendly foreign power, Afghanistan, synchronised moves in [an] … attempt to internationalise an issue that is solely … within the … jurisdiction of Pakistan.

[Meanwhile, as reported by news agencies from Washington,] President Ford declared [US] continuing support for Pakistan’s … territorial integrity. [He] gave this assurance to Pakistan’s Minister of State for Foreign Affairs and Defence … when they discussed … a “broad range of matters”.

Published in Dawn, October 20th, 2024