ISLAMABAD, 8 August 2006 — Pakistan’s President Pervez Musharraf spoke to UN Secretary-General Kofi Annan via telephone and stressed the Security Council’s critical role in bringing an immediate cease-fire in Lebanon, an official statement said yesterday.
“Any loss of time will further deteriorate the situation and exacerbate the humanitarian crisis,” he cautioned Annan. Musharraf said the UN Security Council had a critical role in “halting the Israeli aggression and finding a negotiated settlement of the crisis,” Associated Press of Pakistan quoted him as saying. He reiterated calls for an immediate cease-fire and withdrawal of Israeli troops from Lebanon. Prime Minister Shaukat Aziz also attended an emergency meeting of the Organization of Islamic Conference in Malaysia last week where he criticized “unwarranted” Israeli strikes on Lebanon and called for a cease-fire. He said Pakistan would consider sending troops as part of the UN peacekeeping force in Lebanon, if such a request was made.
