ISLAMABAD: Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) Chairman Imran Khan on Saturday demanded that the government must inform the nation if it intends to start a military operation in North Waziristan tribal region.
In a statement, the PTI chairman repeated his condemnation of the attack against the military personnel in North Waziristan which led to the martyrdom of five soldiers.
However, he said if the military had intended to respond with an attack it should have cleared the area of women and children at least before they bombed Mir Ali Tehsil of North Waziristan through helicopter gunships and artillery.
The death toll has risen to 53 in clashes between the security forces and the militants after the former launched the military operation in North Waziristan following a Wednesday’s suicide attack at Khajuri checkpost area in Mir Ali that left at least four soldiers dead and over two dozen others injured.
Moreover, the entire tribal region is under curfew for four days. Therefore, all markets and shops as well as schools and colleges are closed and people are restricted to their doorsteps.
Imran Khan said that already civilians, especially women and children, have been innocent victims of drone attacks and now military action is causing more suffering on these innocent victims of a war they are not responsible for.
“We cannot regard our women and children of the Federally Administered Tribal Area (FATA) with the callousness and unconcern that is presently being displayed towards them by the state of which they are citizens,” he said.
The PTI chairman reminded that since FATA is directly under the President, it is unfathomable why he remains silent on the plight of the people of FATA in the wake of curfews and military attacks.
Khan demanded the President act to alleviate the suffering of the women and children especially by providing immediate food supplies and medical assistance as well as protection against military action.
Imran Khan also pointed out that an incremental increase in military action will lead to a large scale military operation with revenge attacks and ensuing increase in chaos, militancy and terrorism.
The PTI chairman said that already local people as well as Parliamentarians from the area are claiming that those killed in the military operations are primarily civilians.
“In addition hundreds of people are being displaced as well as suffering food shortages because of the imposed curfew,” he said, adding that it is also now a recognised fact that in FATA those who lose family members to drone attacks and military action turn to militancy.
Khan asserted that the government must not only take control and bear responsibility for any planned military operation in North Waziristan, it must inform all the political parties that it has abandoned the All Parties Conference mandate for dialogue and an end to drones.
“Military operations in one’s own country do not resolve problems; instead they exacerbate them and the same will happen if a military operation is launched in North Waziristan. Already there are reports of people fleeing the area and civilians being killed. With no civilian control or responsibility the country will be further destabilised, divided and weakened which is what our detractors are seeking. Our history should teach us the human and political costs to the nation of military operations,” Khan said.
