ISLAMABAD, April 8: Former prime minister and the Pakistan People’s Party chairperson, Benazir Bhutto, has criticized President General Pervez Musharraf for his comments regarding the use of nuclear weapon.

“The purpose of nuclear weapons is to deter war,” Ms Bhutto said in a statement issued here on Monday adding “anyone who has seen pictures of Hiroshima can never use the nuclear weapons.”

She said that the lives of the people of Pakistan were most precious to her and “it is the job of the leadership to prevent war so that the people could live in peace.”

In an interview with the German magazine Der Spiegel, President Musharraf had warned that he was prepared to use nuclear weapons in the event of war with India.

India and Pakistan twice came close to a perennially nuclear conflict in a three years period.

She renewed her call for India and Pakistan to initiate dialogue on peace and security in the region in the backdrop of the Kashmir dispute. Both countries should adopt peaceful means for the resolution of their outstanding problems, she added.

Ms Bhutto said, in recent weeks Gen Musharraf had released 1,300 people belonging to different militant organizations.

Significantly, she said, not a single leader was charged with a criminal offence and Musharraf had also refused to extradite Omar Shaikh, who was allegedlly involved in the murder of Daniel Pearl. “His aggressive remarks on the use of nuclear weapons is seen as a bid to please the extremist political parties as well as hardliners in the military to gain support in the controversial referendum on his presidency,” she said.

The former premier said, “given his dramatic about turn from patron saint of terrorism to the frontline leader against terrorism, there is a genuine concern that the general can do another turnabout as world attention turns to the Middle East.”

She said the general’s statement was expected to upset countries seeking to defuse tensions between India and Pakistan.