RAWALPINDI: Director General Inter-Services Public Relations (ISPR) Maj Gen Asif Ghafoor on Tuesday said that the decision to put Jamaat-ud-Dawa (JuD) chief Hafiz Saeed was taken in the national interest.
When asked whether the decision of putting Hafiz Saeed under house arrest was a result of any foreign pressure, the DG ISPR said that the decision was taken in the national interest.
He said that the move to put the JuD chief under house arrest was joint decision of state institutions.
During media briefing, General Ghafoor said that Pakistan did not want war with anyone. “War is not a solution to anything,” he added.
“We want the Kashmir issue to be resolve via United Nations resolutions and dialogue, but this desire for peace should not be misconstrued as a weakness.”
“There have been 945 ceasefire violations across the Line of Control and the Working Boundary over the past three years,” he said.
“In the last four months alone, there have been 314 violations, due to which 46 Pakistan citizens and 40 Indian soldiers have been killed,” Ghafoor said.
He added that India was doing all this according to a preempted plan. It is trying to divert the world’s attention away from atrocities in India-held Kashmir. “India’s ‘surgical strike’ was one episode of this drama,” he added.
“The Indian army chief recently also made a statement about the cold-start doctrine… Pakistan had apprehensions it is working on developing these capabilities. The Indian army chief has acknowledged this capability and has made their intent to intensify their actions clear.”
“We want peaceful resolution of issues, but will not compromise on our dignity and respect,” he said. “Pakistan will take steps to strengthen its defence.”
