Pressing issue: ‘Yemen imbroglio has made Muslims anxious worldwide’

LAHORE:

Pakistan Ulema Council (PUC) central chairman Muhammad Tahir Ashrafi called on the government on Wednesday to offer all cooperation to guarantee the security of the two holy mosques and the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia.

He was speaking to several delegations of religious leaders after returning from the kingdom. Ashrafi said the statements of some politicians on the Yemen imbroglio had perturbed Pakistanis employed in the kingdom. He said the nation had had longstanding relations with the kingdom. Ashrafi said securing the two holy mosques was a religious obligation and cooperating with the “brotherly country” was a moral responsibility of the nation. He counselled lawmakers to take into account the importance of bilateral ties before commenting on the Yemen cauldron.

Ashrafi said Iran should be influenced into playing its due role in fostering peace in Yemen. He said the Yemen imbroglio had made Muslims anxious worldwide. Ashrafi stressed the need for effective cooperation among Muslim states. He said Pakistan should strive to eradicate anarchy and tension in the Middle East in league with other Muslim countries.

Published in The Express Tribune, April 9^th, 2015.