PM Nawaz meets PAF chief in Islamabad
PM Nawaz appreciated the role of Pakistan Air Force in ongoing anti-terrorism efforts.
ISLAMABAD (Web Desk / Agencies) – Chief of Air Staff Air Chief Marshal Tahir Rafiq Butt called on Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif in Islamabad today (Wednesday).
On the occasion, PM Nawaz lauded the role of Pakistan Air Force (PAF) in the operation Zarb-e-Azab and implementation of National Action Plan against terrorism.
Professional matters of PAF also came under discussion during the meeting.
PM Nawaz said that the government will continue providing funds for the capacity building of Pakistan Air Force.
ANTI-TERRORISM OPERATION
Pakistan began a long-awaited push to clear insurgent bases from North Waziristan last June after a bloody Taliban attack on Karachi airport sank faltering peace talks.
Air strikes, artillery, mortars and ground troops have all been used to retake territory.
The army has intensified its offensive since the Taliban s massacre of 150 people, 134 of them children, in a school in Peshawar in December.
The government described the carnage as its own "mini 9/11" and a game-changer in the fight against extremism.
It ended its six-year moratorium on the death penalty in terror cases in the wake of the slaughter at an army-run school.
More than twenty convicted terrorists have since been hanged.
The semi-autonomous tribal areas on the Afghan border have for years been a hideout for militants of all stripes -- including Al-Qaeda and the Tehreek-e-Taliban as well as foreign fighters such as Uzbeks and Uighurs.
