ISLAMABAD, March 23: The acting secretary-general of Pakistan People’s Party,Mian Raza Rabbani, has said the PPP regretted the unleashing of full military might against Iraq as thousands of guided weapons pounded the country in what has been described by the attackers as a ‘shock and awe’ blitz.

He said in a statement: “The unleashing of a terrible war machine and the massive bombardment campaign will inevitably result in the unleashing of an equally terrible humanitarian disaster and massive civilian casualties, particularly among the disadvantaged sections, including the women, children, the sick and infirm.

“The party believes that as repeatedly asserted by Hans Blix and the United Nations inspectors, the regime in Baghdad could have been forced to disarm in accordance with UN resolution 1441 through peaceful means and without recourse to use of force. The use of force dose not solve disputes; it only compounds them.

“The party is gravely concerned for the innocent people of Iraq whose lives have been threatened for no fault of theirs. Tragically the casualties involving the massacre, maiming and dislocation of thousands of civilians will be dismissed as ‘collateral damage’.

“Now that the completely avoidable and most regrettable military assault has been undertaken, there is an urgent need that the war is ended swiftly ensuring at the same time that the civilian causalities are minimum.

“The sovereignty of Iraq and its right over its natural resources must also be respected.

“Any other course of action and bypassing the UN will only encourage other regional actors to act unilaterally and use force to settle international disputes, which will have grave repercussions for peace and stability in the world,” he said.