Pakistani clerics seek military action to eliminate Taliban

Islamabad: Muslim scholars from different schools of thought have asked the Pakistani military to eliminate the Taliban, saying the civil-military leadership should take bold decisions on the issue. Shia and Sunni groups observed Friday as "Anti-Taliban Day" across the country to show solidarity with the armed forces fighting terrorists.

The groups, including Pakistan Sunni Tehreek (PST), Sunni Ittehad Council (SIC), Majlis-e-Wahdat-ul-Muslimeen (MWM) and Tahafuz-Namoos-e-Risalat Mahaz (TNRM), held small rallies in different parts of the country. The clerics from different schools of thought demanded the government should initiate a massive military action to flush out the Taliban and asked the civil-military leadership to make bold decisions, The Nation daily reported. They also criticised peace talks with the Taliban and described negotiations with militants as unconstitutional. The Pakistan government recently suspended a peace process with the Taliban after a militant faction executed 23 troops abducted in 2010. Since then, combat jets have carried out air strikes on militant hideouts in the country`s northwest, killing some 100 terrorists.