Senators write to Musharraf on terror

The chairman and three senior members of the US Senate Committee on Foreign Relations have asked Pakistan President Pervez Musharraf to prevent terrorist groups from using Pakistan-occupied Kashmir as a “staging ground” for attacks on India.

In a letter to Musharraf, released to the media yesterday, the senators—Joseph R Biden, John F Kerry, Patrick J Leahy and Blanch L Lincoln—said that militants should not be allowed to enter into India through the LoC.

The senators said LeT and JeM continue to “enjoy safe haven on Pakistani soil”.

“We would be interested in discussing ways of combating not merely these groups themselves, but the climate of political alienation and economic stagnation that makes it easier for extremist groups to recruit new members,” the letter said.