Siraj Ul Haq demands a Time Frame for Operation Zarb-e-Azb
"The seven lac IDPs from North Waziristan are fast becoming a human tragedy." - JI Head
ISLAMABAD: (Dunya News) Siraj ul Haq, head of Jamat-i-Islami, criticized the government for not taking other political parties into confidence before starting the military operation in North Waziristan Agency (NWA). He said that when government wanted to talk to Taliban, it took everyone into confidence by calling an All Parties Conference but when it went for the military operation, there was no consultation whatsoever with any of the stakeholders. He regretted that none of the religious or political parties in the country was asked for its opinion by the government before starting the operation.
Government had launched the operation on June 15, 2014, after a major terrorist attack on Karachi Airport and had named it Operation Zarb-e-Azb. The name was given to the operation after the sword that was used by the Holy Prophet (s.a.w) in the Battle of Badr, named Azb. On 8 June, 2014, terrorists had broken into the airport and had caused serious damages. The damages were not confined only to financial losses but also caused embarrassment to Pakistan across the globe. In the light of these developments, the government had decided to launch the operation against the terrorists and their hideouts in the NWA. To keep an element of surprise in it, Pakistan Army had launched the operation without creating much pre-launch hype, a week after the attack on Karachi Airport, which was claimed by the Tehreek-i-Taliban Pakistan (TTP) and Islamic Movement of Uzbekistan (IMU).
Jamat-i-Islami has always opposed the military operation in the region and though the party has lent support to the Operation Zarb-e-Azb, it has repeatedly expressed its concerns about the IDPs. Sirajul Haq urged the Prime Minister to mention the names of the people who were responsible for the failure of the negotiations with the Taliban. He complained of having been caught off guard by the operation as no preparations could be made in such a short span of time for the IDPs. He mourned the conditions of thousands of IDPs who were still unable to leave the areas where operation was being carried out and the women and kids who had died of the hot weather. He demanded fifty thousand rupees for each internally displaced family because he feels that the aid currently being given to the IDPs was not enough for them. He also demanded from the Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif to declare KPK a war-hit area and ask for foreign aid in this regard.
He made an appeal to the people of North Waziristan, who have left for Afghanistan, to return to Pakistan. He said that Pakistan was their home and this is where they must live.
