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| NATO Summit in Riga, November 2006 (Photo credit: www.guigo.eu) |
According to media news, US authorities have declared the Haqqani network to be a terrorist organization and have ordered the freezing of all its assets in the US and neighboring countries. The US has again accused Pakistan of links with the Haqqani militant network which is operating in Afghanistan and Pakistan.
The US has also blamed Haqqani militants for the deaths of several people who have died in deadly attacks on NATO bases in Afghanistan. Now in a recent meeting with Pakistan’s foreign minister, US Secretary of State Hillary Clinton urged Pakistan to do more to fight militant groups operating in Pakistan. These allegations by US authorities regarding Pakistan’s links with Haqqani militants are astonishing and groundless. If Pakistan enjoys good relations with militant groups like the Haqqani network, why is the country facing a wave of terrorist and suicide attacks?
The same day that US authorities made their claims, several Pakistani security personnel lost their lives in an attack on a security checkpoint in the Northwest frontier province which borders Afghanistan. The next day, militants targeted a high level security paramilitary base and Rangers headquarters in the heart of Karachi and killed several people. Several people also lost their lives in a busy shopping center in Peshawar when militants targeted a senior police officer. Government supported tribes and peace committee members have become the main targets of militant groups and even mosques, shops, and schools are subject to attack.
Militant attacks from Afghanistan have become a daily routine in Pakistani border cities. Afghan border cities have become safe havens for militants but NATO is doing nothing to stop this aggression. Since the start of the US-led war on terror, more than 7,000 Pakistani security personnel have lost their lives, which is more than the number of US and NATO soldiers who have been killed in Afghanistan. Due to the increasing number of militant attacks, the Pakistani economy has suffered badly and the total financial loss for the country is now more than $68 billion.
Khawaja Umer Farooq, Jeddah
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