Entering the Yemen fray: Nawaz should ask Parliament about sending troops, says Shah

Palijo pointed to past consequences of engaging in others’ wars.

SUKKUR/ HYDERABAD/ KARACHI: Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif should approach Parliament regarding the sending of troops to aid Saudi Arabia in Yemen, said leader of the opposition in the National Assembly Khursheed Shah.

“We are busy fighting terrorism within our borders, while also not having cordial relations with our neighbours. Non-political decisions at this juncture will not be effective,” he said while talking to the media in Sukkur on Sunday. “When all-parties conferences can be held on other issues, why can they not be held about this?”



Politician and constitutional lawyer Rasool Bux Palijo, speaking at a press conference in Hyderabad, pointed to the consequences that Pakistan has been suffering from by taking part in US and Saudi-led wars in the past. “On the one hand, you have a neighbouring country that often indulges in aggression at the border; it may step this up if it finds that Pakistan is engaged in a war on foreign soil,” Palijo warned. “And on the other hand, militants and Baloch separatists will also pace up their activities to divide the country.”

He also expressed fears that such a move may negatively affect relations with Iran, destabilising Pakistan’s only peaceful border. “Wisdom demands that we stay away from the Middle East’s wars and put our own house in order.”

Jamiat Ulema-i-Islam chief Maulana Fazlur Rehman stated that any decision must be taken with the consensus of all political parties. He was talking to the media after meeting Pakistan Muslim League-Functional president Pir Pagara at his resident. Both leaders agreed that the government should call an all-parties conference to ease the tense environment in the country.

“Pakistan has obtained a strong position in the Muslim world and must do something to resolve the crisis in Yemen,” said Rehman. “The government should also consider its relations with the neighbouring countries while taking a decision about any involvement in the conflict.”

Published in The Express Tribune, March 30^th, 2015.