Dreaded one-eyed Taliban supremo Mullah Omar neither died nor was buried in Pakistan, defence minister Khawaja Asif said amid growing infighting among the militants. Mullah Omar didn’t die in Pakistan and he was also not buried here,” Asif said in the National Assembly in response to questions from opposition parties.”The relatives of Mullah Omar have also confirmed this,” he added.
The minister also made it clear that the dreaded Afghan Taliban leader was not treated in a hospital in Karachi. Asif said that statements of Omar’s close family show that he died in Afghanistan and was buried there as well. Earlier, Afghan officials had said that Omar died in April, 2013 in a hospital in Karachi.
He said that Pakistan would not like to be involved in a controversy about the Taliban leadership in Afghanistan. His statement does not seem plausible. Everybody knows about our tainted past relations with the Taliban leadership whom we pampered to safeguard our own interests in the region. However, at this juncture, there is no need to indulge in politicking on the death of a militant leader. There should not be any further deliberations about how he died and where he died. Rather, there is a need to strengthen the reconciliation process between the Afghan government and Taliban. Our defence minister need not give any clarification to anyone. He should not involve himself in any unwanted controversy that is not in the country’s interests. Amid the ongoing peace process in Afghanistan, such controversies are uncalled for and a wastage of time and energies. While speaking in the National Assembly, Khwaja Asif said that Pakistan does not want to be involved in the row pertaining to the Taliban leadership succession. He said Pakistan wants peace in the region and to play its role as facilitator between the Afghan Taliban and the Afghanistan government. This approach is praiseworthy and the government needs to stick to this stance. The process of bringing peace in Afghanistan is a difficult task. After the news about Mullah Omar’s death broke, there has been widespread anger that has resulted in severe rifts within the Taliban factions who are fighting over the selection of their chief. Not only the spoilers of peace but other terrorist outfits are also eying Afghanistan as an ideal place to spread their nefarious agenda. In this situation, Pakistan has to play a very critical role. It should work on the elimination of all controversies instead of becoming a reason for estranged relations between the Afghan government and Taliban.
pk.shafaqna.com
