The main minister of Khyber Pakhtunkhwa, Ali Amin Gandapur, announced Wednesday that a series of Jirgas will be convened on August 2 to decide on the future steps about a wide range of concerns among the residents of the province.
The provincial government has opposed the recently launched military operation unless the center takes it in confidence and has promised to raise a three -day curfew imposed in the 16 areas of the district yesterday.
The security forces backed by helicopters and artillery launched the ‘Operation Sarbakaf’ against the terrorists in the Lowi Mamund Tehsil on Tuesday. The tribal elders in Bajaur and some other KP districts have long opposed any military operation, citing concerns about displacement.
Although they were not officially confirmed by the security forces, the sources said that at least four terrorists were killed, around 12 were injured and around 10 were captured alive in different areas of Lowi Mamund Tehsil. The locals also said that a child was among the two civilians who died, and another eight, including two minors and one woman, were injured in clashes between security forces and terrorists.
In a video statement issued today, Gandapur emphasized the importance of unity between the government, state institutions and the general public.
“The public and all institutions have to work together to establish peace,” Gandapur said. “We have to achieve peace because our future depends on it.”
According to the main minister, there was a current “conspiracy” to develop discord between the government, the public and the institutions. He added that the distrust of construction must be “exposed” to frustrate this conspiracy.
“Unless people are with their government and institutions, we will not win this war. Everyone must be with us in the midst of this war,” he said, added that the State will address the terrorists and their facilitators.
“The facilitators … of terrorism must be attacked because it challenges our faith, our laws and our traditions,” he warned.
“These terrorists take refuge in populated areas so that when they carry out attacks, an attack attack by our armed forces causes collateral damage,” Gandapur continued.
“They are doing this to create distrust between people and armed forces. That is why we need to expel them from our cities. We will not tolerate their presence in populated areas.”
Gandapur added that government officials, police and military personnel are “guests” of the people of KP, adding that according to tradition, “violence against guests is intolerable and we will give an adequate response.”
By paying tribute to those who sacrificed their lives in the fight against terrorism, the main minister said that the Jirgas will begin at the division level on August 2, with the interested parties and political figures of multiple areas of KP.
“We will all sit together and have consultations on how to relieve people’s reservations and concerns,” he said.
“After these jirgas, there will be a great jirga, where we will present our policy, a plan and future steps and we will discuss it with the interested parties and government officials.
“Nobody wants any operation due to the damage it causes. When we receive reports from their [terrorists’] Presence, we will launch an investigation. Research will remain in progress until we eradicate the threat of terrorism, “he added.” This will ensure that there is no collateral damage. “
The main minister also presided over a meeting of the Provincial Committee of Apex, where the authorities presented information on the security challenges in the province, reads in a statement from the CM office.
According to the statement, a detailed review of the peace situation in KP was carried out, with a particular approach in the fused districts.
The participants of the meeting “expressed the determination to continue the joint efforts against terrorism and reached an agreement on measures to obtain full public confidence in operations to eliminate terrorism,” says the statement.
There was an emphasis on improving coordination between civil administration, police, security forces and intelligence agencies for effective operations against terrorists, he added.
“Terrorism has become a scourge that the government, the public and institutions must work together to eradicate permanently,” says the statement. “Terrorists are a common enemy and everyone wants to end terrorism.”
By chairing a meeting of the Parliamentary Party of PTI in Peshawar last night, Gandapur said: “We are not in favor of any military operation without the provincial government being taken in confidence.”
He regretted that the “relationship of trust between our army and our audience” was eroding due to the “martyred civilians and the collateral damage in Bajaur”, and added that the lack of trust was failing in the country’s struggle against terrorism.
The meeting promised that the recent curfew in parts of Bajaur would be revoked today. However, an official announcement for that has not yet been done.
It was decided that more action course on an operation would be announced after the matter was discussed in the KP Assembly.
“We are standing with our audience. We will go at each point for our audience,” CM Gandapur promised. “We cannot ruin our soil for decisions that are imposed without our consultation.”
The meeting made several decisions regarding the ongoing security situation and their future actions to address the concerns raised by people.
CM Gandapur ordered all the attached commissioners who do not impose any curfew without permission from the department of origin of KP, regardless of “any type of situation.” He also decided to transfer the powers of imposing section 144, under which a curfew, the department is established.
The PTI meeting also decided to revoke the ordinance of the actions of KP (in the aid of civil power) 2019, and the legislation for which it is expected is introduced in the session of the KP Assembly on Friday.
The ordinance provided legal coverage to several detention centers established during military operations, similar to two 2011 regulations imposed in tribal areas.
The meeting also approved the decisions taken at a multiparty conference (MPC) held last week, in which Gandapur opposed a renewed military offensive to eradicate militancy in the region and promised to take action against all armed attire.
In addition, the CM of KP said it would meet with the head of Army Personnel (COAS), the field marshal also Munir to discuss the situation of the law and order of the province.
Speaking about a series of Jirgas planned next week, the prime minister said: “In the next 10 days, we will celebrate multiple jirgas, each of the two districts, after which a great jirga of all interested parties will be convened in areas mounted in terrorism.
“In view of the decisions taken in the Jirgas, the policies will be reassessted,” he said, adding that the Government will transmit the reevaluation to “those responsible for protecting borders.”
The CM of KP said that the soldiers who sacrificed their lives “were not properly rewarded due to incorrect policies.” “We have repeatedly said we review these policies.”
The protesters gather in Bajaur: PTI MPa
Meanwhile, PTI MPA Anwar Zeb Khan said the protesters were gathering in the Chowk of Bajaur to demonstrate against the “unbeatized operation.”
The images shared by him of the supposed protest showed hundreds of men gathered in a street.
The meeting follows yesterday’s protest by the Mamund Tehsil war residents against the operation, where they demanded that the authorities guarantee the safety of civilians during the operation.
In addition to ZEB, Dr. Hamidur Rehman and Mohammad Nisar Khan; ex mna gul zafar khan; and Mna Mubarakzeb Khan, the special assistant of the Prime Minister in the tribal districts, have condemned the operation and the touch of the area.
The former Jamaat-I-Islami senator, Mushtaq Ahmed Khan, also expressed concern about the launch of the operation and urged the authorities to stop him immediately.
The National Awami Party also condemned military action, with the chief senator of the Party Aimal Wali Khan and provincial president Mian Iftikhar Hussain question his legality. They pointed out that according to article 245 of the Constitution, the approval of the provincial government for military operations was required.
Compensation for ‘civilians, soldiers’ killed in operation
The main minister also presided over a separate meeting to review the situation of the law and order following the operation of Bajaur.
CM Gandapur was informed about the situation by the relevant officials, according to a statement from his office. Expressing their condolences to the afflicted families of “civilians and martyred security personnel in the Incident of Bajaur”, announced compensation for the value of RS10 million for them.
RS2.5m compensation was also announced for injured during the “incident.”
The main secretary of KP and Inspector General Zulfiqar Hameed was among several officials present during the meeting.
The reported incident occurs only a few days after seven protesters were shot dead and another 16 were injured in the Khyber district valley.
Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif had condemned the “dismissal of peaceful citizens for Khawarij“-A term that the State uses to refer to the tehreek-i-taliban (TTP) prohibited Pakistan. However, according to sources and protesters, the security personnel who protected the installation had opened fire to control the crowd.
After the incident, the security officials met with a delegation of Elders of Tirah and announced compensation for the victims of their demand. The KP government also announced separate RS10 for each deceased and RS2.5m for the injured.
