KOHAT, Sept 12: Leaders belonging to the Jamiat Ulema-i-Islam of Maulana Fazlur Rehman said at a meeting here that the military operation against innocent tribesmen in Waziristan Agency and raids on seminaries were pitting the people against the armed forces.

They warned that the situation might turn explosive any time. Although held under the banner of Mutahidda Majlis-i-Amal, the meeting was attended only by leaders and workers of the JUI(F).

The response from the public was poor although JUI workers had been making announcements through loudspeakers in mosques and bazars for four days. At least 80 people gathered at the tomb of Hazrat Haji Bahadar and, after marching through the main bazaar, assembled at the Shah Faisal Gate where local leaders addressed them.

The participants raised slogans against the government and asked President Gen Pervez Musharraf to step down in the larger interest of the country. They accused him of following the western agenda.

They said that innocent people were being killed in South Waziristan and warned of serious repercussions of the operation. Maulana Abdul Hayee, JUI(F) Kohat's secretary-general, said that recent killings in Wana were creating a situation which would get out of hand.

He recalled that even the British could not conquer the Wazir and Masud tribesmen despite their military might and were ousted from the area after a six-year war. He advised the government not to try to conquer "its own people" by bombing them.

Others who spoke on the occasion were Pir Munim Shah, Maulana Mujeebur Rehman and Qari Zainul Abideen. Through a unanimously passed resolution, the JUI activists vowed that they would thwart the Western designs. They condemned the recent raid on the madressah run by Hafiz Hussain Ahmed.