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New Delhi: Pakistan Defense Minister Khwaja Asif said that “we sowed the seeds for terrorism” and that “worshippers were not killed during prayers in India or in Israel but in Pakistan”. The minister was speaking in the National Assembly over the recent Peshawar suicide blast that killed over 100 people, ANI reported citing the Dawn.
Speaking on the attack, Asif said, “Worshippers weren’t killed during prayers even in India or Israel but it happened in Pakistan.” He said that there is a need for Pakistan to set its “house in order” to tackle terrorism.
He said, “I will not talk for long, but I will say briefly that at the beginning, we sowed the seeds for terrorism.” According to ANI, Asif added that the prime minister and the army chief visited Peshawar where they were given a briefing on the attack.
“But this is a tragedy where we require the same resolve and unity which was expressed in 2011-2012,” the minister added, reported ANI.
Khwaja Asif also recalled terrorism incidents from 2010- 2017, and said, “This war started from Swat during the PPP’s tenure and it was concluded during the PML-N’s previous tenure, and peace was established in the country from Karachi to Swat… but if you remember, a year-and-a-half or two years ago…we were given a briefing two, three times in this same hall in which it was clearly stated that talks could be carried out against these people and they can be brought towards peace.
He said that when Russia invaded Afghanistan, Pakistan offered its services to the United States ‘on rent’. “General Zia was the ruler at the time…the agreement made with the US went on for eight to nine years after which the US went back to Washington celebrating the fact that Russia was defeated,” he mentioned.
The defense minister said despite varying opinions on the matter, no “conclusive decision” was taken. He further stated that thousands of people were left jobless after the Afghans came and settled in Pakistan, ANI reported citing the Dawn.
Asif Accuses Former PM Imran Khan Of Chaos
Pakistan’s Minister for Defense Khawaja Muhammad Asif earlier accused Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) head Imran Khan of taking Pakistan into bloodshed and chaos, reported ANI citing The News International.
He made the comments while addressing a press conference at his residence in Sialkot, Pakistan.
Accusing the Imran Khan government of Pakistan’s downfall, Asif said, “Khan used to blame the USA for bringing down his government, but now he was accusing caretaker chief minister Mohsin Naqvi of doing so. This is a clear contradiction in Khan’s words and actions.”
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