Stand proud in defence of Islam, Afghans told

By B. Muralidhar Reddy

ISLAMABAD, SEPT. 16. Amidst reports of panic-stricken people leaving Afghanistan, the Taliban supremo, Mullah Omar, has been quoted as appealing to the people to ``stand proud as Afghans in the defence of Islam''.

``I am not afraid of death or losing power. I am willing to give up power and my seat but I am not willing to give up Islam. We shall be victorious'', he has been quoted as saying in his radio address on Friday.

The Taliban Foreign Minister, Wakil Ahmed Mutwakil, has been quoted by the AIP as saying that Taliban would retaliate if any neighbouring country aided U.S. to attack Afghanistan to capture Osama bin Laden.

His statement comes after the military establishment in Islamabad announced on Saturday that it would cooperate with the international community to bring to book the perpetrators and of the attacks on the U.S.

In response to a question whether it is prepared to risk the security of the people of Afghanistan for the sake one person, the Taliban Foreign Minister had said that ``ask the United States why it wants to do that. We are responsible for the security of all the Afghans'.

The Taliban Ambassador to Islamabad, Mullah Abdul Saleem Zaeef, told a news conference here that ``we will not sit with folded hands but try to use all our options to retaliate''.

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Section  : International
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