ISLAMABAD, 16 February 2007 — Pakistan’s Prime Minister Shaukat Aziz warned yesterday that an attack on Iran would destabilize the entire region and compound the Middle East problem.
Speaking at an international conference “Voice from Asia,” at the Institute of Strategic Studies here, Aziz said the region is already in turmoil due to insurgency in Afghanistan and bloodshed in Iraq and an attack on Iran would contribute to more chaos and anarchy.
The conference which has been jointly organized by the Institute of Strategic Studies, Majlis El Hassan of Jordan and Sasakowa Peace Foundation of Japan was attended by Prince Hassan ibn Talal of Jordan.
Aziz said any attack on Tehran would be detrimental to Pakistan’s national interest. He said Islamabad was not in favor of the division of Iraq.
“We cannot accept any division of Iraq. It will lead to a tremendous amount of upheaval in the region,” he said.
Aziz said his government was placing greater emphasis on economic development despite the fact that it was facing terror attacks.
Prince Hassan thanked Prime Minister Aziz for attending the conference and said it was high time all OIC member states behaved like one entity.
Former BNP Deputy Detained
Rauf Mengal, a former lawmaker of the Balochistan National Party who had resigned to protest the killing of nationalist leader Nawab Akbar Bugti, has been detained in Zhob, BNP deputy Chaudhry Manzoor told the National Assembly yesterday.
Mengal’s detention is illegal and the house should take notice of the government’s highhandedness, Manzoor said.
A deputy from the Pakistan People’s Party Raja Pervez Ashraf asked the National Assembly speaker to take notice of the targeted killings of PPP workers in Attock and an attempt on the life of PPP Information Secretary Sherry Rehman in Karachi.
Sherry’s aide told Arab News on phone from Karachi Sherry was in the intensive care unit of a local hospital after alleged attacks by plainclothes officers.
Various human rights groups have protested attacks allegedly by the ruling party on opposition leaders.
One of the victims of such attacks was Dr. Azra, a National Assembly deputy, who is the sister of Asif Ali Zardari, spouse of former Prime Minister Banazir Bhutto.
