ISLAMABAD: Prime Minister Syed Yousuf Raza Gilani said on Thursday the government would restore its writ in all troubled areas, including Dir and Buner where a military operation is under way to flush out militants.
The operation in Lower Dir and Buner was meant to re-establish the writ of the Constitution and for restoring Quaid-i-Azams Pakistan, Mr Gilani said during a meeting with Interior Minister Rehman Malik at the Prime Ministers House.
He said: At this crucial time, entire nation should forget political differences and get united to meet the challenges. This is the only way that designs of militants and extremists can be defeated.
According to a spokesman for the prime minister, the interior minister briefed Mr Gilani on law and order and the situation in Karachi.
He apprised him of the steps being taken by law-enforcement agencies to maintain law and order in the countrys commercial hub.
Later, Rehman Malik said in a statement that a common strategy was needed to defeat extremism and terrorism in Pakistan and Afghanistan.
We cannot succeed unless Pakistan, Afghanistan, Nato and the US evolve a common strategy against the Taliban, he said.
He stressed the need for a robust strategy for combating the Pakistani and Afghan Taliban. When we are allies then our strategy on the war on terror must be one and common, he added.
He said US drone attacks were counter-productive because they alienated local people and harmed government efforts to muster public support.
Our forces have the ability and capacity and we request US officials to share intelligence with us. Being a democratic country, the US should listen to the voice of the people of Pakistan and stop drone attacks. We ask them to transfer drone technology, he said.
He said the Friends of Pakistan should extend all-out support because the country had spent over $35 billion in the war on terror.
DAWN.COM | Pakistan | Buner operation launched to restore writ: PM