New Delhi: Despite losing out on American aid over support to terror groups, Pakistan’s civilian leaders continue to rub shoulders with militant commanders, the latest being the case of Khyber-Pakhtunkhwa Chief Minister sharing the dais with Lashkar terrorist Abdul Rahman Makki.
Pervez Khattak, a prominent leader of cricketer-turned-politician Imran Khan’s Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaaf (PTI), attended a public meeting of the Difa-i-Pakistan Council in Peshawar on Sunday. Among those present was Makki, who was filling in for his brother-in-law and 26/11 attacks mastermind Hafiz Saeed.
Saeed was barred from attending the meeting by the Punjab government in Pakistan.
According to a report in The Dawn, Khyber-Pakhtunkhwa CM Pervez Khattak attended the meeting to please hardcore religious groups in the country. His attendance came as a surprise as his party chief Imran Khan has been a vocal critic of the Difa-i-Pakistan Council. Dawn quoted opposition leaders as saying that Khattak’s attendance indicates PTI’s “formal induction” in the council.
The Difa-i-Pakistan Council is a coalition of more than 40 hardline Islamic parties that advocate conservative policies and often targets India. Hafiz Saeed had attended a meeting of the council last week and was spotted with the Palestinian ambassador to Pakistan, who was eventually recalled.
Saeed addressed Sunday’s gathering on phone and reportedly continued with his rhetoric and threats against the United States and India. The terror mastermind alleged that the two countries, along with other allies, were trying to create “problems” for Pakistan.
The JuD chief was apparently referring to the recent freeze of $2 billion American aid to Islamabad and to US President Donald Trump’s tweet accusing the country of giving nothing to the US but "lies and deceit" and providing "safe haven" to terrorists in return for $33 billion aid over the last 15 years.
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