Islamabad: Pakistan on Friday said no decision has been made on launching a full-fledged military operation in the restive tribal areas, where air strikes have been carried out against the Taliban after the suspension of a peace process.
Interior Minister Chaudhary Nisar Ali Khan said no military operation is being conducted in the tribal belt and no decision of this sort has been made by the government.
Any decision on a military operation will be taken after consulting political parties, he said while speaking in the National Assembly or lower house of parliament.
All available resources will be used to deal with terrorism as it is the most serious issue, he said. The government recently suspended peace talks with the banned Tehrik-e-Taliban Pakistan after a militant faction executed 23 troops abducted in 2010.
Khan said earlier this week that the government had given the go-ahead to the military for targeted air strikes based on intelligence inputs.
A series of strikes by combat jets and gunship helicopters in the tribal areas has killed over 100 suspected terrorists. Fearing a military operation, many people have fled regions bordering Afghanistan.
Asked about the plight of people fleeing the tribal belt? Khan said a policy will be evolved in the next few days to provide all possible relief to them.
A committee under a federal minister is looking into the matter and the Interior Ministry and other authorities in the country`s northwest will back efforts to rehabilitate the displaced people, he said.
However, Khan claimed the exodus from the tribal areas was not as great as had been reported. He further said the Prime Minister is convening a meeting of all four Chief Ministers next week to seek their inputs on the country`s new anti-terrorism policy.
Suggestions from the Chief Ministers will be incorporated in the National Security Policy that was unveiled by Khan in parliament on Wednesday. The policy envisages the allocation of Rs 32 billion to strengthen the internal security network.
Khan emphasised the need for greater coordination among provinces to deal with terrorism. The provinces and the federal government should hold joint meetings every month, he added.
