'Taliban committing acts of terrorism in Pakistan'

LONDON: Former Prime Minister Benazir Bhutto has targeted Taliban elements for committing acts of terrorism in Pakistan and turning children from "poor families" into suicide bombers to kill innocent citizens.

She said former military ruler General Ziaul Haq exploited the political situation in the 1980s in the name of Islam and al-Qaeda and Taliban were brought on the horizon.

"The same Taliban are now committing acts of terrorism in Pakistan killing innocent citizens in suicide bombings," the Pakistan Peoples Party Chairperson told a public meeting organised by the PPP in Glasgow last night.

"Certain people, on the pretext of providing them with free education, taking children from poor families to terrorism training centres and turning them into suicide bombers to kill innocent people," she said.

Describing the Supreme Court verdict in the Chief Justice case as "historic", she said time was ripe for the central Pakistani political figures to return to the country.

She said the next few months were very important for the country owing to issues like general elections, presidential poll and the issue of whether Pervez Musharraf would continue to hold the dual posts of the President and army chief.