ISLAMABAD, Aug 3: Top military Commanders on Friday discussed the incidents of violence in the NWFP, the new wave of suicide bombings and the overall political situation in the country.

Sources said that the 102nd corps commanders’ conference took into account the internal and external threats to national security with special reference to militancy at home and threatening statements emanating from the United States.

President Pervez Musharraf briefed the conference on the security situation and said that the country was capable of meeting all kinds of threats, the sources said. This was the first corps commanders’ conference after the Lal Masjid episode, restoration of Chief Justice Iftikhar Mohammad Chaudhry and the new wave of suicide bombings.

The president identified extremism and militancy as the biggest threat to security. He said the menace must be eradicated in order to ensure sustainability of economic progress.

“The conference discussed the whole security situation and all possible questions related to it,” the director-general Inter-Services Public Relations (ISPR) told Dawn after the meeting. He said the current security environment had come up for detailed discussion.

According to the sources, the president said the army, police and other security agencies were doing a great job by chasing militants and terrorists, especially in the NWFP and the tribal areas.

Although there was no official word about the recent reported meeting between the president and former prime minister Benazir Bhutto in Abdu Dhabi, the sources said Gen Musharraf briefed the commanders on all aspects of his visit to Saudi Arabia and the United Arab Emirates.

According to a statement issued by the ISPR, the conference reiterated its resolve to continue to provide full support to the federal government for continued progress as an enlightened, moderate and economically strong nation.