Islamabad - Chairman of the Senate Defence Committee, Senator Mushahid Hussain Sayed, on Sunday lauded the valiant Pakistan Army for fighting the battle for the soul and future of Pakistan.
He made these remarks in the course of a historic visit of the senate defence committee which was led by him to North Waziristan on Sunday. This was the first ever visit of any parliamentary committee to that war-torn part of FATA.
He thanked the Chief of Army Staff General Raheel Sharif who had especially invited the senate defence committee to visit Waziristan, and Senator Mushahid Hussain led a high-powered delegation which went in a military helicopter, first to Peshawar where he laid wreath for the martyred schoolchildren of the Army Public School as well as the military martyrs who have sacrificed their lives in the war on terror at the Corp Headquarters. In Peshawar, they were given a special briefing by the Corps Commander, Lt Gen Hidayatur Rehman who briefed them on the operation against terrorists being carried out.
In his briefing, the corps commander informed the committee that since 2007, 439 major military operations and 1,808 minor military operations were carried out under the command of the Peshawar corps. Any operation which is more than that of a military battalion is classified as a major operation. Since 2001, the Pakistan Army has suffered a total of 4,173 fatalities, besides 13,000 injuries, in the war on terror.
The senate defence committee was also informed that over 900 million dollars have been spent in development and construction work in FATA under the supervision of the Pakistan Army.
During its visit to Miran Shah, which is the main city of North Waziristan, just 18 kilometres from Afghanistan border, the delegation was received by GOC Maj Gen Zafarullah Khan who briefed the delegation about Operation Zarb-e-Azb which was launched on June 15, 2014.
He said that since the launch of Operation Zarb-e-Azb, 1,300 terrorists have been killed, 600 have surrendered while 233 have been arrested. From the Pakistan Army side, so far there have been 63 martyrs and 238 wounded in operation Zarb-e-Azb.
Briefing the delegation, Maj Gen Zafarullah Khan told the defence committee that the terrorist infrastructure in North Waziristan has been destroyed with 40 factories producing illicit arms, ammunition and IEDs demolished and 137 tons of explosive material for making IEDs was unearthed. Gen Khan also escorted the delegation to various parts of Miran Shah.
On the way back, the delegation was also taken to the Bakka Khel Camp for temporarily displaced persons (TDPs) where 20,000 persons from North Waziristan are living with their families under the military supervision.
During the briefing by Maj Gen Rao, who is in-charge of the rehabilitation and reconstruction operation, the delegation was informed that close to Rs 90 billion would be needed for the final return of rehabilitation and reconstruction of destroyed properties of the TDPs.
The delegation praised the efficient functioning and friendly atmosphere in the TDP camp.
Addressing the officers and soldiers during the visit, Senator Mushahid Hussain said, “The people, political parties and parliament of Pakistan are proud of their armed forces for waging valiant war to preserve and protect Quaid-i-Azam’s Pakistan.” He also praised the “tremendous initiative and outstanding leadership demonstrated by Army Chief General Raheel Sharif who has led from the front in the war on terror and has reversed wrongs of the past which were based on faulty assumptions by drawing a distinction between good and bad terrorists.”
Senator Mushahid Hussain said, “We are your voice in parliament as you have displayed professionalism of the highest order and exemplary courage and he said that this was not only the need of the hour but this was something that should have been undertaken long before. Road to peace, security and stability in Pakistan and the region lies through peace and prosperity in North Waziristan.”
The delegation was also briefed that a number of foreign terrorists have been killed in the operation which included Arabs, Chechens, Uzbeks and Uighurs.
They were also informed about the de-radicalisation programme as well as efforts for promoting education in FATA. Of the 2096 persons, who went to the de-radicalisation programme, only 15 had chosen to revert back to the path of militancy while the rest have joined society as normal law-abiding citizens. The delegation was also told by the Corps Commander that this year alone, 455 students from FATA were studying in various universities of Pakistan.
During the visit to Bakka Khel, the delegation was informed that over 50 NGOs and institutions of civil society were playing positive role for the rehabilitation and reconstruction of the TDPs.
Members of the senate defence committee who accompanied Senator Sayed included Chaudhry Shujat Hussain, Raja Zafarul Haq, Haji Adeel, Farhatullah Babar, Sehar Kamran and Abdul Rauf. Dr Syed Parvaiz Abbas, secretary of the committee, also accompanied the delegation.