North Waziristan: Cabinet to ponder the option of military operation

Sartaj Aziz says writ of the state will be established after the breakdown of talks.

ISLAMABAD:

For the first time, a senior government official has acknowledged that a military operation against the Taliban is on the cards.

The prime minister’s security czar, Sartaj Aziz, said on Monday that the federal government has initiated consultations on whether or not to launch a military operation in North Wazirstan Agency after talks with the Taliban have collapsed.

He said the federal cabinet would discuss today (Tuesday) the option of launching a military operation in North Wazirstan. Aziz was talking to the media after attending a seminar on Economic Policies for Inclusive and Sustainable Development in South Asia.

Sartaj Aziz, who is adviser to the prime minister on national security, said the government would also hold ‘consultations with political forces’.

“Dialogue with the Taliban has derailed and the writ of the state will be established in the region,” Aziz said in response to a question regarding the government’s options after the peace talks collapsed.

“The doors for talks would remain open,” he said but admitted that violent attacks have undermined the chances of peace through dialogue.

Aziz also said that Pakistan has taken up the killing of its 23 soldiers on Afghanistan’s soil with the Karzai administration. He said Kabul has demanded additional information that was subsequently provided. Kabul was investigating the Taliban’s claim, he added.

Aziz said that for the last two months, no drone strikes took place after the Obama administration called off the campaign at Pakistan’s behest.

Pakistan does not possess drone technology, said Aziz while responding to a question on whether the government was using drones in the tribal regions.

Published in The Express Tribune, February 25^th, 2014.