Musharraf says victory near in Balochistan
QUETTA ( 2007-05-10 21:37:44 ) :
Security forces are on the verge of wiping out militant camps in the gas-rich province of Balochistan, President Pervez Musharraf said on Thursday, while reiterating a rebel amnesty offer.
Musharraf, on his first visit to one of the province's main rebel hot spots since government forces killed a prominent nationalist leader in the region in August, said the government would not tolerate terrorism.
"Only three to four rebel camps are left. We will wipe them out too," Musharraf, wearing a big Baloch turban, told a rally in Sui town, 720 km (450 miles) south-west of the capital, Islamabad.
Repeating an amnesty offer, Musharraf said the government would take no action against rebels if they laid down their arms.
"They are our brothers and sisters. I urge them to surrender their arms. No action will be taken against them if they do so," he said.
"Give up weapons and terrorism; otherwise the law will take its course. We will not allow terrorism."
In August last year, the army killed veteran Baloch nationalist leader Nawaz Akbar Khan Bugti in an offensive on his mountain hideout.
Musharraf made no reference to Bugti, a former governor of the province of deserts and mountains which borders Afghanistan, Iran and the Arabian Sea.
But he announced several development projects for the province and promised more.
Copyright Reuters, 2007
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