Gilani says losing Swat war publicly will be unfortunate

Islamabad, May 15 (ANI): Prime Minister Yousuf Raza Gilani has expressed fear that the Pakistan Government may fail to win the "hearts and minds of people" despite winning the military war against the Taliban in the Swat Valley.

"I assure you that the army will win the war against the militants. But if we win militarily and lose publicly that will be very unfortunate," the Daily Times quoted Gilani, as saying.

Gilani assured the National Assembly that the Pakistan Army will win the war against the Taliban, but urged the political leadership to back government efforts to win the hearts and minds of the people of the violence-hit areas.

"We are fighting two wars. One is against the militants in the field, and the second is to win the hearts and minds of the people," he said.

Speaking on his government's plans to rehabilitate half a billion of internally displaced people, Gilani said the displacement was unprecedented in the country's history, "and we will tackle this problem with unprecedented sense of sacrifice".

"The government has established the Special Support Group - headed by an experienced army officer - to take care of the registration and welfare of the IDPs in relief camps," he said. (ANI)