M A I N   N E W S

Embattled...
Mush rakes up Kashmir

Islamabad, August 13
With the threat of impeachment looming large, embattled President Pervez Musharraf tonight attempted to reach out to the ruling coalition, saying there was a need for a "conciliatory" approach rather than confrontation for Pakistan's political stability.

Musharraf also gave signs that he planned to dig in his heels and fight it out and did not respond to mounting speculation that he may quit in the next couple of days before facing a planned impeachment in Parliament.

He also did not throw light on his future plans as expected. "We need a conciliatory approach rather than confrontation," 65-year-old Musharraf said in his address to the nation from his Presidency on the eve of Pakistan's 62nd Independence Day in the backdrop of the ruling coalition breathing down his neck.

Musharraf also said there was a need to fight terrorism and stabilise the country's economy. ” The country can fight terrorism if the people are united,” he said.

In an apparent bid to divert attention away from the impeachment threat looming over him, Musharraf condemned the "human rights violations" in Jammu and Kashmir.

In an address to the nation during the "Azadi Show" at the Presidency here, Musharraf raked up the issue of the ongoing violence in Jammu and Kashmir that has claimed several lives, whom he described as "martyrs".

"Every Pakistani is with our brothers and sisters in Srinagar. Kashmir beats in the heart of every Pakistani," Musharraf said.

Condemning "human rights violations" in Jammu and Kashmir, he said the recent violence over Amarnath land had claimed the life of Hurriyat leader Sheikh Abdul Aziz.

Earlier in the day Pakistans’ National Assembly adopted a resolution condemning the killing of the Hurriyat leader and others in Jammu and Kashmir and expressing solidarity with the Kashmiri people.

The resolution was moved by ruling PPP leader and information minister Sherry Rehman and supported by members of all parties represented in the lower house of Parliament.

It called on the international community to use its good offices with India to end "atrocities" on the Kashmiri people.

The House also condemned what it described as the "excessive" use of force by Indian forces. It also called for an early, just and peaceful settlement of the Kashmir issue in accordance with UN resolutions and the aspirations of the Kashmiri people.

Suicide bomber kills 5 in Lahore

Lahore: Five policemen were killed and 20 others injured today in a suicide attack outside a police station in a busy area of the city crowded with people celebrating on the eve of the country's Independence Day.

The suicide bomber blew himself up outside a police station near Moon Market, one of the largest bazars in the posh Allama Iqbal Town locality, officials said. — PTI