PM Shehbaz meets Balochistan political leaders to discuss anti-terrorism strategy

QUETTA: Prime Minister (PM) Shehbaz Sharif and political stakeholders of Balochistan on Thursday decided to utilise all available resources to eliminate terrorism from the province.

PM Shehbaz Sharif chaired a high-level meeting of leaders of political parties as they discussed the overall security situation in Balochistan.

Chief of Army Staff (COAS) General Syed Asim Munir, Governor Balochistan Jaffar Khan Mandokhel, and Chief Minister Balochistan Sarfaraz Ahmed Bugti also attended the meeting.

The others who attended the meeting included Sardar Yaqoob Khan Nasir and Sardar Abdul Rehman Khetran from Pakistan Muslim League (PML-N), Zahoor Ahmed Baleedi, and Meena Baloch from Pakistan Peoples Party (PPP) and Dr Abdul Malik Baloch, Rehmat Saleh Baloch and Mir Kabir Muhammad from National Party (NP).

Balochistan Awami Party’s (BAP) Khalid Hussain Magsi and Sadiq Sanjrani, Zamrak Khan Achakzai and from Awami National Party (ANP), Maulana Abdul Wase and Yunus Zahri from Jamiat Ulema-e-Islam-Fazl (JUI-F)  and Abdul Khaliq Hazara from Hazara Democratic Party were also present on the occasion.

In the meeting, the political leaders informed the prime minister about the problems faced by the people of Balochistan. The meeting reviewed the overall security situation of the province and the ongoing operations against terrorists.

The participants of the meeting expressed solidarity with the families of the victims of recent terrorism in Balochistan and appreciated the bravery of the security forces for their timely response to prevent the loss of more innocent lives.

The participants also condemned the cowardly terrorist attacks targeting innocent Pakistanis.

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Deputy Prime Minister and Foreign Minister Mohammad Ishaq Dar, Defence Minister Khawaja Muhammad Asif, Interior Minister Syed Mohsin Raza Naqvi, Commerce Minister Jam Kamal Khan, Planning Minister Ahsan Iqbal and Information Minister Attaullah Tarar also attended the meeting.

Earlier chairing a meeting of the Balochistan Apex Committee of the National Action Plan, PM Shehbaz Sharif made it clear that the federal and the Balochistan governments along with all security forces have the iron resolve to eliminate all the anti-state elements who had nefarious designs to destabilise the country.

PM Shhebaz said, “It is our national, political, and religious duty to fight against such elements. Dialogues could only be possible with those who respect the country’s constitution and salute the national flag.

“We must have to differentiate between these two elements to ensure the development and prosperity of the country,” the prime minister added.