The party of cricket player-turned-politician Imran Khan has been an outspoken critic of the US drone policy.
Islamabad:
Imran Khan, the leader of Pakistan's main opposition party Tehreek-e-Insaf, threatened on Thursday to cut off NATO supplies moving through Pakistan if the US launched any drone strikes during the ongoing talks between the government and the Taliban.
The party of cricket player-turned-politician Imran Khan has been an outspoken critic of the US drone policy. His party controls the provincial government in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa province in northern Pakistan, one of two routes supplies move in and out of Afghanistan.
Speaking at a news conference in the eastern city of Lahore, Khan said his party had the capability to stop the NATO supplies and warned that his words must not be taken lightly.
Pakistan's prime minister Nawaz Sharif on Thursday said that talks with the domestic arm of the Taliban have started, though he gave no details about who was taking part or what was on the agenda.
"The prime minister informed (the deputy prime minister) that the dialogue with the Taliban has started. He said that he hoped and prayed the dialogue works within the constitutional framework of Pakistan," the statement read.
The prime minister said the government "could not wait and see the innocent people and members of law enforcement agencies being killed in the streets of Pakistan."
Sharif was elected this year in part by promising to negotiate with militants in the country's northwest who have killed thousands of civilians and security forces.
Many are frustrated that years of Pakistani military operations in the tribal areas where the militants have their safe havens have failed to end the violence. They see negotiations as a necessary step.
The party of cricket player-turned-politician Imran Khan has been an outspoken critic of the US drone policy. His party controls the provincial government in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa province in northern Pakistan, one of two routes supplies move in and out of Afghanistan.
Speaking at a news conference in the eastern city of Lahore, Khan said his party had the capability to stop the NATO supplies and warned that his words must not be taken lightly.
Pakistan's prime minister Nawaz Sharif on Thursday said that talks with the domestic arm of the Taliban have started, though he gave no details about who was taking part or what was on the agenda.
"The prime minister informed (the deputy prime minister) that the dialogue with the Taliban has started. He said that he hoped and prayed the dialogue works within the constitutional framework of Pakistan," the statement read.
The prime minister said the government "could not wait and see the innocent people and members of law enforcement agencies being killed in the streets of Pakistan."
Sharif was elected this year in part by promising to negotiate with militants in the country's northwest who have killed thousands of civilians and security forces.
Many are frustrated that years of Pakistani military operations in the tribal areas where the militants have their safe havens have failed to end the violence. They see negotiations as a necessary step.
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