New terror wave: Senate panel slams Afghan support to Jamaatul Ahrar

Urges the govt to raise the matter at United Nations

ISLAMABAD: The Senate Standing Committee on Interior and Narcotics Control condemned the cross-border attacks on Pakistan and urged the government to raise the issue with the United Nations.

The committee met with Senator Abdul Rehman Malik in the chair and unanimously passed two resolutions condemning the recent wave of terrorism in the country and Afghanistan’s criminal support for allowing a terrorist organisation to operate from its soil against Pakistan.

“We strongly condemn the criminal support of Afghanistan allowing the terrorists of Jamaatul Ahrar to operate from its soil against Pakistan. We call upon the government to raise this matter in the UN, asking the Afghan government to eliminate these anti-Pakistan terrorist camps from its soil. The committee fully endorses the recent operations against Jamaatul Ahrar by the Pakistan army,” the resolution stated.

It further proposed Pakistan and Afghanistan to work together to eliminate terrorism from the region and urged Kabul to honour the agreement of common border control management already signed between the two countries.



Another resolution passed by the committee strongly condemned the recent wave of terrorist attacks across the country, including Lahore and Sehwan blasts, attack on TV cameraman in Karachi, attacks on FC and police personnel in Balochistan and Khyber-Pakhtunkhwa and other terror incidents in Parachinar, Buner, Bajur Agency, Mohmand Agency, Chaman and South Waziristan Agency.

Malik said that the Afghan government should support Pakistan Army’s operations, targeting terrorist hideouts along Pak-Afghan border, as they are a common enemy.

Foreigner visas

The panel was also told that no central database was available with interior ministry regarding the number of visas issued to foreigners.

Director General (DG) Immigration and Passport (I&P), Usman Akhtar Bajwa while briefing the committee said that no central database was available with interior ministry.

He added that the interior ministry and National Database and Registration Authority (NADRA) are working jointly over a project aimed to develop an online visa information system.

Bajwa said that ministry has delegated the authority of issuing visas to foreigners to Pakistan’s foreign missions. The applicants apply for visa in foreign missions which issue visas to them according to set rules and regulations.

The committee chairman directed the Ministry of Interior to establish a centralised database regarding number of visas issued to foreigners and number of foreigners who left the country.

Published in The Express Tribune, February 22^nd, 2017.