KARACHI, Nov 20: Senator Mushahid Hussain Sayed, who heads the Senate Foreign Affairs Committee, is of the view that in the evolving Afghan situation Gulbudin Hekmatyar, and not Mullah Omar, may have a role in stabilising the country.

Mr Hussain who chaired the first session of the Ideas 2006 seminar on ‘Expanding global security environment’ was answering a question about the situation in Afghanistan after the seminar. He also said that he personally believed that use of military might would not lead to a solution. Only negotiations would lead to stabilisation, he added.

He said that scores of people having links with Mr Hekmatyar had been elected in the recent Afghan elections. Mullah Omar was one of the top figures of Taliban but Mr Hekmatyar had his own following.

It may be pointed out that during the America-led Afghan jihad against the former Soviet Union, Mr Hekmatyar was the key figure with a formidable force of fighters. He enjoyed support of the ISI, and later of Iran. Mr Hekmatyar’s first claim to fame, however, was throwing acid at women students in Kabul’s educational institutions. Earlier, speaking at the seminar, Mr Hussain spoke about the transformation of Saarc and regional collective environment and said that no country had a greater stake than Pakistan in the security and territorial integrity of Afghanistan.