DAR AL ISLAM - PAKISTAN/IRAQ: MOSLEM PEACEKEEPERS FOR IRAQ

Muslim Peacekeeping Force For Iraq?
Pakistani President Proposes Multi-National, All Muslim Contingent, Removal Of "Outside Interference"

Pakistani President Pervez Musharraf on Tuesday proposed sending a Muslim peacekeeping force to Iraq. Musharraf has suggested his own country would send thousands of troops to join the effort, should such a plan come together.

He made the proposal at a conference of foreign ministers from Islamic countries Tuesday, following months of reports that Pakistan was lobbying for an Islamic military force to ease the burden of the U.S. military fighting against a deadly Iraqi insurgency.

Arab diplomats familiar with the Pakistani proposal tell CBS News that Pakistan is keen to build up a role for itself in the Iraq effort, by way of contributing largely to such a man-power effort. The diplomats suggest Musharraf sees the force as a way to forge closer relations with the U.S.

Musharraf and President Bush are already close allies in the U.S.-led war on terror. But Gen. Musharraf faces mounting protests at home from Pakistan's opposition political parties, while the Democrats who control Congress have increasingly questioned America's huge economical support to the south Asian country.

"The mass killing that is taking place (in Iraq), the carnage that is taking place there, has to stop. If all the warring factions — different factions in Iraq — if they accept, then maybe a Muslim peacekeeping force under the United Nations umbrella could be looked at", said Musharraf in his opening speech to the conference.

"We have to stop all outside interference in Iraq. The carnage that is taking place there has to stop, and if outside interference stops, I think internal control would be possible," Musharraf said.

...


Pertinent Links:

1) Muslim Peacekeeping Force For Iraq?