KP CM Sohail Afridi. Photo: Screengrab
ISLAMABAD:
Chief Minister Khyber Pakhtunkhwa Sohail Afridi has said that 80 percent of militants and terrorists operating in the province are foreigners, while before the Emirate-e-Islami took over Afghanistan, most militants were locals.
He further said that the unrest in the province was the result of lack of seriousness on the part of the establishment, but maintained that peace could still be restored through negotiations. He claimed that if supported by the federal government and security forces, he could help bring peace to the province within “hundreds of days”.
During an informal interaction with foreign media professionals, Afridi clarified that he had no information about allegations that 2,000 government employees of the Khyber Pakhtunkhwa government were involved in supporting militants in the province. “But he declared that he has zero tolerance for those who sympathize and support elements in the governments for militants and militants,” Afridi said.
Afridi said the Afghanistan conflict had caused a loss of $10 billion due to the recent closure of Khyber Pakhtunkhwa trade points, especially Torkham, adding that the province’s share in trade had dropped from $10 billion a month to $3 billion a month. Despite this, he stressed that dialogue remained the preferred way to resolve conflicts.
“We have proposed names for a Jirga with Afghanistan, but despite proposed names and time for talks with emirate e Islami Afghanistan on TTP, but despite our seriousness, the central government is still unable to take a decision on such a subject,” said Sohail Afridi.
Talking about the investigation of Mufti Sheikh Idress, Afridi said that the Counter Terrorism Department (CTD) was doing its best and had almost reached conclusions, adding that the culprits would soon be behind bars.
Regarding the repatriation of Afghan refugees, he demanded that respectful measures be adopted to protect the dignity and self-respect of Afghan citizens.
