News
Monday, August 27, 2007
Don’t go to Pakistan, Hariri asks Sharifs* ‘Guarantor’ of deal determined not to further interfere in Pakistan’s affairs
* Nawaz says he will return before RamazanDaily Times Monitor
LAHORE: Saad Hariri, son of former Lebanese PM Rafique Hariri, has met the Sharif brothers and has advised them to abide by the deal with the Pakistani government and not return to Pakistan, Geo News quoted Organisation of Islamic Conference mediator Muhammad Faisal as saying in an interview.
According to Geo News, Faisal said the unnamed ‘guarantor’ of the deal had decided not to interfere any further in Pakistan’s internal affairs. Faisal also told the interviewer that Qazi Hussain Ahmad, chief of the Jamaat-e-Islami, had alleged that the Sharifs had links with Al Qaeda leader Osama bin Laden and that a ‘big power’ was investigating whether the links with bin Laden were still alive or not, the channel reported.
Faisal said the unnamed guarantor was under immense pressure by the big power after the alleged link was revealed, the channel added. Former Punjab CM Shahbaz Sharif confirmed to Geo that his family had met Saad. He said Nawaz and him were in touch with Saad – on the Saudi government’s behest – for the past eight years and that they had met him several times recently.
However, he did not talk about what was said during the meetings, saying the issue was sensitive. He said Nawaz had clearly told Saad that his return to Pakistan was inevitable because the circumstances in the country were very critical. Shahbaz said the act by the Pakistani government to distribute copies of the agreement could affect its relations with Saudi Arabia.
Online adds: Nawaz Sharif said on Sunday that Shahbaz Sharif and him would return to the country before Ramazan and that the Sharifs were in contact with Saad Hariri.
“It doesn’t matter if I admit we are in contact with Saad,” he told a private TV channel. He also said cases filed against them were invalid and would not hinder their return. “If we compromise, we will face a situation similar to that of 1971 when Pakistan lost a major portion of itself for not respecting the mandate,” he added.
Courtesy DailyTimes.com.pk