Posted on 12/06/2004 5:44:44 PM PST by blam
The terrorists have been wiped out in Pakistan, claims Musharraf
By Toby Helm and Anton La Guardia
(Filed: 07/12/2004)
The al-Qa'eda network has been virtually wiped out in the mountains of Pakistan, General Pervaiz Musharraf, the country's president, claimed yesterday during a visit to Downing Street.
After talks with Tony Blair, the general said that in Pakistan - where the semi-autonomous, mountainous border areas provided a refuge for al-Qa'eda after the September 11 attacks and the resulting war in Afghanistan - assaults on the network's outposts had yielded impressive results.
"We have cleaned them up from the mountains. We have broken the back of al-Qa'eda in Pakistan and I say this with total conviction and authority," said Gen Musharraf. "They are on the run, their control structure is broken, their bases smashed."
More than 600 al-Qa'eda terrorists had been apprehended by the Pakistani authorities, he said. As a result there should "no longer be any doubt" that the country was winning its battle against Osama bin Laden's network.
Earlier this year, Gen Musharraf announced an offensive to rein in "foreign elements" known to have been operating in the lawless tribal areas on the Afghan-Pakistani borders. While his claims suggest there has been real progress, they will be greeted with some scepticism until there is independent verification.
Gen Musharraf, a key ally of President George W Bush and Mr Blair in the war on terrorism, earned praise in Washington last week for his co-operation in the hunt for bin Laden - despite the Pakistani leader's acknowledgment that he had no idea where the terrorist leader was.
But he told The Daily Telegraph: "We're not there to concentrate only on running after one individual in the mountains. In the process of attacking the terrorists, many high-value targets, many of their leaders, get eliminated. If anyone - whether it is Zawahiri [bin Laden's deputy] or Osama bin Laden - happens to be there, they will be eliminated.
He emphasised the importance of addressing "root causes" of poverty and, above all, the disputes in Kashmir and with the Palestinians. He said both crises were "ripe for resolution" but gave no details of how this could be done.
He said Pakistan was talking to India "bilaterally", but wanted a western safety net if the negotiations went wrong. In his talks with Mr Blair, he said he would urge the Prime Minister to "use his good offices to ensure that we move well", even though the idea of outside intervention would be anathema to India.
The general made clear that he had no intention of throwing out his uniform and becoming a purely civilian leader any time soon. "I think the country is more important than democracy," he said.
In January, Gen Musharraf agreed to step down as chief of staff by the end of December in return for a constitutional deal that allowed him to stay in power as president until 2007.
The Commonwealth ended Pakistan's suspension, imposed after Gen Musharraf took power in a coup in 1999, on condition that he honoured the deal.
But now Gen Musharraf says he has had to "rethink" his promise and bristles at suggestions that he had taken power "unconstitutionally".
Legally, he argued, both the National Assembly and the Senate recently passed Bills "requesting" him to keep his military position. Politically, he said, Pakistan and the world had an interest in maintaining his firm leadership in turbulent times.
"We are fighting terrorism in the mountains. The army is suffering casualties and actively moving against them," he explained.
"We are trying to improve relations with India; there is a process of rapprochement. We are trying to bring about a transformation in Pakistan. The minority of extremists have dominated the vast majority of moderates. We need to transform this."
The general said that required "unity of the political element, the bureaucratic element and the military element. I think I provide all this unity".
The West wants Pakistan to send troops to help to stabilise Iraq but Gen Musharraf said public opinion at home was "absolutely" opposed.
However, he said Pakistan would be ready to help "at any time" to accelerate the training of Iraq's armed forces. "We have a very strong training institutes. They have a lot of capacity and can handle a lot of numbers."
Mr Musharraf said Pakistan wanted to bolster its ties with Britain. He wanted better access to European markets, and wanted to import western military hardware "to maintain minimum defensive deterrence" with India.
The headline grossly exaggerates what he's quoted as saying.
Then show me the head of UBL, Mr. Musharraf.
It's now even money that bombs go off tomorrow in downtown Karachi and Islamabad..
Hey, what about Obama Bin Hidin'?
How do I doubt this?
Let me Count the ways . . . . . . .
Mush is full of $hit. He's a one man spin machine for Pak.
Mush is full of $hit. He is a one man spin machine for Pak
You can say that again! The man has no credibility. Thats why he wont let AQ khan be interviewed by outsiders.
Yeah sure.
This new phony 9-11 law for the protection of illegal aliens is a joke.
Only a few Repubs are serious about fighting terrorism.
Bush appears to be bought and paid for by Mexico.
Too many Freepers post inane crap. They should be faxing and screaming to Congress about this phony 9-11 law.
Use numbersusa.com to fax Congress and the White House for FREE.
www.numbersusa.com
The Saudis have funded fundamentalist religious schools all over Pakistan. They are still turning out terrorists by the bushel.
It's a problem. If he wiped out all the terrorists he'd have to wipe out more than half of his citizens. That's not really very likely.
A large number of heads on pikes would still not fully pursuade me. But it's a start.
I made the point that the headline doesn't reflect the story and you give me that crap?
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