Military operation against Taliban will continue, says Zardari

September 14th, 2009 ISLAMABAD - Pakistan President Asif Ali Zardari intends to link the start of a full-scale military operation in Waziristan with the provision of military equipment from the US. According to sources, he would press on President Barack Obama to expedite the delivery of these weapons, when he meets him in New York on September 24 to help Islamabad in meeting its urgent needs for adequate military equipments to continue with counter-terrorism campaign.

July 2nd, 2009 ISLAMABAD - Pakistan President Asif Ali Zardari has said that the military offensive against the Taliban would continue until all the extremists are rooted out from the country. "The fight against militancy and terrorism will end with the complete elimination of militants," Zardari said during a meeting with Prime Minister Yousuf Raza Gilani and Chief of Army Staff (COAS) General Ashfaq Kayani here.

June 27th, 2009 ISLAMABAD - Pakistan President Asif Ali Zardari has directed the law-enforcement agencies to ensure that Pak-Taliban chieftains don't escape to other countries. Zardari is reported to have issued the directive during a meeting with NWFP Governor Owais Ahmed Ghani.

June 24th, 2009 BRUSSELS - Pakistan President Asif Ali Zardari has said that India is no longer a military threat to Pakistan, rather it is the Taliban which is threatening peace in the region as well as in the whole world. Talking to a private television channel ahead of the first summit between the European Union (EU) and Pakistan here, Zardari said both India and Pakistan do not have any ill-feelings against each other, and both the countries have good intentions.

June 14th, 2009 LONDON - Pakistan's cricketer-turned-politician Imran Khan has expressed fear that the ongoing military operation against the Taliban in Swat could backfire and fuel extremism and terror attacks in the country. "Pakistan is on a suicidal course," said Khan, the chairman of the Pakistan Tehreek Insaf (PTI) party was quoted by Online news agency Sunday.

June 13th, 2009 LAHORE - Pakistan President Asif Ali Zardari has said that former Prime Minister Benazir Bhutto was killed because she challenged the writ of the Taliban. In a television address to the nation, Zardari said Bhutto's loss has made him realize the pain of families who have been a victim of terrorism.

May 24th, 2009 ISLAMABAD - The Taliban has threatened Pakistan President Asif Ali Zardari, Prime Minister Yousuf Raza Gilani and other top Pakistan Peoples' Party (PPP) leaders, saying they would face dire consequences if the military offensive is not discontinued immediately. In a letter to the PPP Information Secretary Fouzia Wahab, the Tehreek-e-Taliban Pakistan (TTP) warned that the country's leadership would be targeted if the operation against them is not stopped.

May 23rd, 2009 LAHORE - Hinting that the military offensive against the Taliban and other extremist groups could be expanded into other regions than the Swat Valley, Pakistan President Asif Ali Zardari has said the Taliban would be hunted down everywhere inside the country's geographical territory. In an interview to a private television channel, Zardari refuted media reports that quoted him as saying that the government is planning to carry out military operations in Waziristan after Swat.

May 21st, 2009 ISLAMABAD - Pakistan President Asif Ali Zardari has reiterated his pledge to defeat the Taliban, saying victory against the extremists is the only option available in the in Swat and Malakand regions of the North West Frontier Province (NWFP). "Defeat is no option.

May 11th, 2009 WASHINGTON - Pakistan is not in danger of collapsing in the face of a Taliban onslaught as its population 'is much, much more than the insurgents are', President Asif Ali Zardari has said. 'Is the state of Pakistan going to collapse?' Zardari asked rhetorically on NBC's 'Meet the Press' programme Sunday evening and replied: 'No.

May 11th, 2009 WASHINGTON - President Asif Ali Zardari has said he knew the Swat peace deal with the Taliban would not work, even as the Pakistan Army intensified its operation against the militant group in the troubled region. The Pakistani Army's advance in Swat marks the failure of Islamabad's boldest attempt yet to compromise with the Taliban.

May 10th, 2009 WASHINGTON - Pakistan President Asif Ali Zardari has said that all Madarsas in the countries would be taken over by the government to separate the students from extremism and impart modern as well as religious education to them. Speaking at a community dinner here, Zardari said his government has resolved to bring reforms in the Madarsas system and bring it under the government system.

May 9th, 2009 ISLAMABAD - Stung by a military operation launched against the Taliban in Pakistan's troubled northwest, the militants Saturday threatened to kill President Asif Ali Zardari and Prime Minister Yousuf Raza Gilani. 'We will eliminate not just them but also their families,' a Taliban commander in Swat was quoted as saying.

May 8th, 2009 WASHINGTON - Visiting Pakistan President Asif Ali Zardari has said the military operation in the North West Frontier Province's Swat Valley would continue until the Taliban and other extremist groups are completely flushed out, and 'normalcy' returns to the troubled region. Addressing a joint press conference with his Afghan counterpart Hamid Karzai and US Senator John Kerry here, Zardari said: "It is going to carry on until life in Swat comes back to normalcy." Zardari's statement came after Prime Minister Yousuf Raza Gilani declared an all out war against the Taliban in restive Swat and Malakand Divisions of the NWFP.

April 30th, 2009 ISLAMABAD - Pakistan President Asif Ali Zardari has urged citizens of the country to support the security forces in the fight against the Taliban and other extremists groups in Buner, Maidan and the Swat regions of the North West Frontier Province (NWFP). The military operation against the Taliban in the Swat Valley was critical for the protection of the country's Constitution, Zardari said.