ISLAMABAD: Although the government and the military continued to discuss matters behind closed doors, government officials took pains on Tuesday to argue that Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif had made up his mind to take the battle to the TTP stronghold in North Waziristan Agency (NWA).
“More than one option is being considered for going into NWA; it’s just a matter of time now,” a government official privy to the development told Dawn.
He added that the military planning would take time, but the ball had been set rolling by the PML-N government in meetings between the prime minister and the army chief over the past week or so.
Asked about the ambiguity that seemed to define the PML-N’s stance vis-à-vis the Tehreek-i-Taliban Pakistan, the official claimed that the government genuinely wanted talks with militants, but the back-to-back attacks on civilians and military personnel had forced a rethink.
“The government is left with no other option but to use force.”
Dawn has learnt that Mr Sharif gave a go-ahead for the use of force at a Jan 24 meeting, which was attended by civilians as well as military officials. They included Chief of the Army Staff Gen Raheel Sharif, ISI DG Lt Gen Zaheer-ul-Islam, Chief of General Staff Lt Gen Ashfaq Nadeem, DGMO Maj Gen Amir Riaz, DG MI Maj Gen Sarfaraz Sattar, Defence Minister Khawaja Asif, Interior Minister Chaudhry Nisar Ali Khan, Information Minister Senator Pervez Rasheed, Finance Minister Ishaq Dar and Special Assistant to the Prime Minister Tariq Fatemi.
The high-profile huddle had taken place after the Bannu and Rawalpindi attacks on security personnel.
On Monday, while talking to journalists in the Parliament House, the information minister, who is also spokesman for the prime minister, also dropped some hints about the government’s strategy. “How come we allow such forces of extremism who want to impose not their ideology but also their lifestyle on us?”
Senior leader Zulfikar Khosa, after Monday’s meeting between PML-N parliamentarians and the prime minister, told Dawn that “an overwhelming majority supported the use of force against the TTP”.
Similarly, a minister told Dawn that the government had already exhausted its backchannel contacts for talks with the TTP. “It’s not only the party legislators but every country that the prime minister has visited has raised the issue of security and militancy in Pakistan. No major investor is willing to come to Pakistan in the current circumstances,” said the minister.
He rejected a perception that the PML-N had never considered any option other than talks. “Some senior members of the government were hopeful of a breakthrough with the TTP which is why the government pursued negotiations, but not everyone agreed.
“However, we should not forget that negotiations were also pursued because at an all-party conference held in September, other political parties also recommended talks.”
However, as the minister and the government official pointed out, the recent attacks had changed the national mood.
A national consensus appeared to be emerging that favoured use of force against the TTP.
“A government has to make sure that it has the nation’s support before making such a critical decision,” the minister pointed out.