Musharraf warns ‘extremists’

Pakistani President Pervez Musharraf has warned he would not allow the country to be “used or misused by international extremists.”

Pakistan is a key ally of the US

Official media reported on Saturday that Musharraf’s warning came in a speech to a gathering of businessmen late on Friday after unknown assailants gunned down six Shia Muslims in the restive port city of Karachi.

“No external threat can harm Pakistan. The enemy lies within.” 
He said Pakistan had an intelligence network, a special operation task force and a fully mobile reaction force to combat “extremists.”

“There will be no extremist here in Pakistan,” said Musharraf, a key US ally in the war against “terrorism”.

“There will be no extremist…in Pakistan”

Pervez Musharraf,
President of Pakistan

“The vast majority of Pakistanis are moderate and the
unenlightened minority should not be allowed to hijack the religion. Acts of a small minority … spreading sectarian and religious hatred bring a negative sound bite to both the religion and the country in the outside world.”

On Thursday, Pakistani troops attacked a remote tribal area on the border with Afghanistan.

Eight al-Qaida suspects were killed and 18 were arrested in the operation in South Waziristan tribal region. Two soldiers died and one was injured in the operation.

Pakistan has arrested about 500 al-Qaida suspects, the majority of which have been handed over to the United States.

Source: AFP