ISLAMABAD, Aug 2: The federal cabinet on Wednesday approved draft amendments to the Hudood laws and set up a five-member ministerial committee to pilot it through parliament.

The committee will review the draft bill to make it ‘acceptable’ to all parties.

Briefing reporters, Information and Broadcasting Minister Muhammad Ali Durrani said the proposed amendments were aimed at protecting women against discrimination in implementation of laws in conformity with Quranic injunctions.

He said the draft amendments would be tabled in parliament.

The cabinet, which met with Prime Minister Shaukat Aziz in the chair, condemned the Israeli aggression on Lebanon and called upon the United Nations and the Organisation of Islamic Conference (OIC) to take measures for an immediate ceasefire and restoration of peace. It called for resolution of the Palestinian issue.

Mr Durrani said the cabinet condemned the large-scale killings, specially the massacre of children in Qana, and expressed solidarity with the people and government of Lebanon.

He said the prime minister had contacted his Lebanese counterpart thrice over the past weeks and Pakistan had dispatched four planes with relief goods for the people of Lebanon and would provide more aid if needed.

The prime minister later left Islamabad for Malaysia to attend an emergency meeting of the OIC being held there to discuss the Israeli hostilities.

In reply to a question about the opposition’s planned no-confidence motion against the prime minister, Mr Durrani said that instead of involving itself in activities in which it had no chance of winning, the opposition should concentrate on the coming elections.

The cabinet approved initiation of negotiations between ACD member countries on ‘mutual recognition agreement of cooperation’ in the field of standardisation and with Mexico and Brunei for avoidance of double taxation and prevention of fiscal evasion.

It granted permission to start negotiations on draft agreement on cooperation and mutual assistance in customs matters among ECO countries, signing of a draft agreement with the UAE on cooperation and mutual assistance in customs affairs, and starting negotiations with Yemen on abolition of visa requirements for holders of diplomatic and official passports.