Daily Times

ISLAMABAD: Former foreign minister Sardar Asif Ahmad Ali on Tuesday said that the monster of Islamic State (IS) was now trying to destabilise Saudi Arabia and other Muslim states through its terrorist activities.

Talking exclusively to Daily Times regarding aftermaths of attacks in three Saudi Arab’s cities, he said that through terrorist attacks in Iraq, Syria, Istanbul, Dhaka and now three cities in Saudi Arabia, IS was trying to build its image internationally. Recent attacks in Medina and other cities showed its strong foothold in Saudi Arabia too, he added.

The former minister said those funding and patronising the IS might be present in Saudi Arabia, adding that the recruitment of IS started in Afghanistan and a lot of money was invested on it. Now, he said, this organisation has become lethal and after attacking other prominent cities of the world, it was now targeting Saudi Arabia.

He added that there were speculations that differences in Saudi royal family could be a reason behind these blasts, adding that the Saudis still consider Iran as a bigger enemy than IS, which was against the concept of Muslim unity. If Saudis really want to unify Muslims, then it should take positive steps for it, he said, demanding strong and indiscriminate action against IS and other terrorist groups.

Institute of Strategic Studies Director General Masood Ahmad Khan also condemned the Medina attacks, terming it as a terrible act of heartlessness. “It is a sinister development. Terrorists must not enter any holy place, as such acts would not only hurt the feeling of Muslims, but would also unravel the current regional order.” He demanded an extraordinary session of the Organisation of Islamic Cooperation (OIC) to strategise and deal with this situation.

IS had carried out a suicide attack in an imambargah in January this year, in which at least four people were killed. In October 2015, IS claimed responsibility for another suicide attack on an Imambargah in Najran, killing one. During 2014, the same group killed scores of people, majority of them Shias.