By NNN-PTI,
Islamabad : Meeting for the second time within hours to discuss the fallout of the Mumbai terror attacks amid suspected Pakistani link to them, Army Chief Ashfaq Parvez Kayani briefed the civilian leadership here about operational preparedness of military to address any eventuality.
President Asif Ali Zardari met Premier Yousuf Raza Gilani and Kayani late Saturday night again after their first meeting ended in the wee hours.
At their meeting last night, which came after Pakistan backtracked on sending ISI chief Lt Gen Shuja Pasha to Delhi in connection with the Mumbai attacks, the three leaders reviewed the situation that had arisen following the terrorist strikes in India’s financial hub.
Kayani briefed the President and Prime Minister about the operational preparedness of Pakistan’s armed forces to meet any eventuality, TV channels quoted official sources as saying.
Kayani informed the civilian leadership that the military was capable of thwarting any aggression, the sources said.
The sources also quoted the three leaders as saying that India should refrain from levelling “baseless allegations” against Pakistan in connection with the Mumbai attacks.
The discussions followed a special meeting of the Cabinet chaired by Gilani, which condemned the attacks as a “barbaric act of terrorism” and termed the menace a “common threat” to both countries.
The meeting said Pakistan will “stand shoulder-to-shoulder with the Indian people to defeat this common enemy”, Foreign Minister Shah Mahmood Qureshi told a news conference.