Islamabad: Pakistan Prime Minister Shahid Khaqan Abbasi said on Thursday said jihad (holy war) was only the right of the state.
Mr Abbasi said the government had banned the use of private ownership of automatic weapons. He said suicide bombing has been condemned adding declaring jihad was only the right of the state and not any individual.
The Premier said that Pakistan fought a world war against terrorism, and now it was for the world to do more. He urged the international community for its role in addressing the causes leading to extremism and terrorism.
Addressing the concluding session of the three-day National International Counter Terrorism Forum (IICTF), Mr Abbasi said he was happy and proud to note that Pakistan had made success in an area where the rest of the world failed.
He said no country in the world had committed over 200,000 troops to eradicate the threat and had conducted numerous civil and military operations across the country to wipe out all sanctuaries of terrorists.
“We do not accept the narrative that there are any sanctuaries in Pakistan that are bringing any instability to Afghanistan. That is not the truth,” he said.
He added: “In fact today, unfortunately, the reverse is true. The people instigating terrorism in Pakistan are based in Afghanistan.” He maintained that Pakistan was a safe country as a result of great sacrifices.
The Prime Minister pronounced that peace in Pakistan came following the sacrifices of army, political parties and public. He said that Pakistan made remarkable progress despite the existence of challenges.
He mentioned the recent bombing at a religious seminary in Kunduz in which tens of young children were killed and said “this is what breeds radicalism and extremism.”
The Prime Minister dismissed the narrative that Pakistan did not support peace in Afghanistan and said “no other country is more interested in peace in Afghanistan than Pakistan.”
He said Pakistan was the first country that faced the impact of instability in neighbouring Afghanistan.
“War is no solution to Afghanistan,” he said and reiterated Pakistan’s support for dialogue to achieve peace and said his government was ready to facilitate it.
The Prime Minister also urged the world to take note of the indigenous freedom movement in Kashmir and said the issue could only be resolved through implementation of the UN Security Council resolutions.
