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| Thursday, 25 September 2003 |
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Pakistan's province opposes al Qaeda, Taliban hunt QUETTA, Pakistan, Wednesday (Reuters) The parliament of a Pakistani province bordering Afghanistan called for the withdrawal of Pakistani troops hunting fugitives from the militant al Qaeda and the Taliban in the region. The resolution by the assembly of the southwestern province of Baluchistan is not legally binding for the central government in Islamabad, a staunch ally of the U.S.-led war on terror. But it reflects general opposition in Pakistan's Pashtun-dominated border regions against the hunt for the members of mainly Pashtun Taliban movement and their al Qaeda allies. "The operation going on along the border with Afghanistan in the name of hunt for al Qaeda members and Taliban should be stopped forthwith," said Maulvi Abdul Waseh, senior provincial minister who belongs to an alliance of six hardline Islamic groups that dominate the provincial administration. "The (Pakistan) army should be withdrawn from the borders," he said while tabling the resolution which was supported by the deputies by a show of hands. "The troops have been deployed to fulfil the American mission and not to serve any Pakistani interests." Pakistan has deployed thousands of troops along its long porous border with Afghanistan to hunt down al Qaeda and the Taliban militants fleeing U.S.-led operations in the country. The parliament's move came at a time when Pakistan's President Pervez Musharraf is in New York to attend the United Nations General Assembly. He is scheduled to meet U.S. President George W. Bush on Wednesday. Islamists opposing Pakistan's support for U.S.-led hunt for al Qaeda and Taliban made huge gains in the October 2002 election by exploiting anti-American sentiments in Baluchistan and the North West Frontier Province that also borders with Afghanistan. The Muttahida Majlis-e-Amal (MMA) alliance rules NWFP and is a |
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