[Times of India]ISLAMABAD: Showing new resolve, Pakistani Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif on Monday said his country has had enough of terrorism and the military operation launched in North Waziristan tribal region a day earlier would continue until terrorist safe havens are destroyed in the country.The operation called Zarb-e-Azb (strike of the Prophet's sword) was launched days after a terrorist siege at Pakistan's busiest airport in Karachi killed over 30 people. Earlier, Pakistan got back control of the neighboring South Waziristan and Swat after separate military offensives in 2009.
Sharif said he was forced to order the operation after the Taliban did not reciprocate his sincere efforts to pursue peace talks.
"On one hand, we were pursuing dialogue,
why do people think that you can negotiate with the syndicate?
and on the other we were being targeted. From Islamabad courts to Karachi airport we were attacked. Even, our places of worship, schools and children were targeted," he told the National Assembly.
"We will change the fate of this country and under no circumstances will allow our country to serve as a safe haven for terrorists," he said. He added the operation would start a peaceful beginning for the country.
Sharif earlier got a short in the arm after Imran Khan-led Pakistan Tehreek-i-Insaf (PTI) party endorsed the operation. PTI, which rules the provincial Khyber Pakhtunkhwa adjoining the tribal region, has been a staunch opponent of military actions. The province is feared to take the brunt of Taliban reprisals.
Army Chief General Raheel Sharif echoed the prime minister and said the operation would continue until the elimination of all terrorists and their sanctuaries. "We will rid the country of terrorists," he said.
The fresh operation is seen as a victory for the Pakistan army which had been upset with PM Sharif's insistence on talking with the Taliban. It was one of the reasons that had heightened civil-military tensions recently.
Separately, the Pakistan army said 140 militants - mostly Uzbek - were killed in air strikes on the second day of the operation. Six soldiers were killed while three others were injured in an IED explosion.
"Many East Turkestan Islamic Movement terrorists and their affiliates have also been killed in the strikes. It was a massive blow to the terrorists and one of their main communication centres has been dismantled," said an official release.
A local security official said fighter jets bombed two buildings in Miranshah - the main town of North Waziristan - early Monday, killing at least 10 Uzbek terrorists who were sheltered there.
The Taliban have vowed to retaliate in the cities of Islamabad and Lahore, saying they would burn the mansions of the country's rulers.