14 February,2009 12:08 PM IST | | PTI
Pakistan has no option but to fighting extremists and militants who want to impose their political agenda on the people by force, President Asif Ali Zardari said on Friday.
Chairing a meeting with Prime Minister Yousuf Raza Gilani to review the situation in the country's troubled northwestern region, Zardari said there is "no alternative to fighting the extremists and ending militancy".
"The absence of alternatives makes the choice abundantly clear. The militants wanted to impose their political agenda on the people of Pakistan through use of force but they will never be allowed to succeed," he said.
The meeting, which was also attended by Foreign Minister Shah Mahmood Qureshi, Interior Ministry chief Rehman Malik, army chief Gen Ashfaq Parvez Kayani and Inter-Services Intelligence agency chief Lt Gen Ahmed Shuja Pasha, was given a detailed briefing on the security situation in Swat valley and the tribal areas.
Pakistani security forces have launched fresh campaigns against the local Taliban in Swat and some of the seven semi-autonomous tribal agencies.
The Taliban currently control most parts of Swat valley, located some 160 km from Islamabad, and wide swathes of the tribal belt bordering Afghanistan.
The top leaders "expressed satisfaction over the ongoing fight against militancy and vowed to continue the fight until the end of militancy and complete restoration of the writ of the government in the affected areas", said a statement issued by the presidency.
The meeting also appreciated the courage of tribesmen for standing up before the militants and refusing to abandon their homes and lands.
Earlier, Prime Minister Gilani and Gen Kayani held a separate meeting with the President during which the regional security situation and other issues were discussed.
