Prisoners release: Some elements pressuring govt, says Major Aamir

Former govt negotiator says govt 'should only consider the fear of Allah when making any decision in this regard'.

SWABI:

Some elements are ‘pressuring’ the government over the issue of the release of ‘non-combatants’, according former government negotiator Major (retd) Aamir. Speaking with the media on Monday, he said the government ‘should only consider the fear of Allah when making any decision in this regard’.

“In my opinion, interlinking the issue of release of innocent people from prisons and those in captivity of others with peace dialogue is wrong,” he said. He said the question of the release of Professor Ajmal Khan, former prime minister Yousaf Raza Gilani’s son and Shahbaz Taseer had also been raised with the Taliban.

Major Aamir said the appointment of PML-N senior leader Sardar Mehtab Abbasi as Khyber-Pakhtunkhwa governor will aid the negotiations process.

He said the government negotiators hope that the new governor will bring ‘water tankers’ from Islamabad to Peshawar rather than ‘oil tankers’ in order to ‘extinguish the blazing fire of unrest in the region’.

Published in The Express Tribune, April 15^th, 2014.