The proximity between the political and military leadership of Pakistan and terror outfits is not a secret. But despite their backing for these groups, they have seldom acknowledged it in public.?
However, former military dictator of Pakistan Pervez Musharraf has now come out in the open in support of globally banned terror group Lashkar-e-Taiba's (LeT), calling himself its "biggest supporter" and that he's aware they "like" him too.
"I am the biggest supporter of LeT and I know they like me and JuD (Jamaat-ud-Dawa) also likes me,"?Musharraf said while speaking to Pakistan's Ary TV.
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When asked if he's similarly appreciative of LeT's founder and mastermind of the 26/11 Mumbai terror attacks Hafiz Saeed, Musharraf nodded, saying Saeed "is involved in Kashmir" and he "supports" that involvement.
Saeed, a United Nations-designated terrorist was freed from house arrest last week on an order from the Lahore high court. Musharraf, meanwhile, was declared a fugitive from justice by Pakistan in August this year.
The US has also branded Saeed a terrorist and put a $10 million bounty on Saeed's head after the 2008 Mumbai terror attack. Musharraf claimed Saeed was not involved in the Mumbai terror attack in 2008 because Saeed "himself denied the charges" of being the attacks' mastermind.
The LeT is banned in Pakistan since 2002 and it was, in fact, the Musharraf government that banned the group. When reminded of that fact, Musharraf said he didn't know much about Saeed at the time. He implied that he wouldn't have banned LeT if he had known more about Saeed.
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"We had banned LeT because the situation was different at that time. We were moving towards peace and as such I thought we should reduce 'mujahids' (religious warrior) and increase political dialogue and frankly I had very less knowledge about him," said Musharraf.
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LeT, though banned, it is widely believed to orchestrate attacks in India, especially in Kashmir. For Musharraf, that makes Saeed a-ok.
"I was always in favor of action in Kashmir and of suppressing the Indian Army in Kashmir and they (LeT) are the biggest force. India got them declared as terrorists by partnering with US," said Musharraf.
The former military dictator was also reminded that he calls himself a liberal and a moderate. The interviewer wondered if that was at odds with Musharraf's admiration for LeT. He said it isn't.
This kind of hypocrisy is typical of Pakistan's establishment. On the one hand, you will have Pakistan's foreign minister saying on a public forum that Saeed is "a liability" for Pakistan - like minister Khawaja Asif did in New York in September - and on the other, you have the country's army and its intelligence agency providing safe havens for terror groups and terrorists.