A critic of the American and Pakistan army bombing of the tribal areas in his homeland for flushing out al-Qaeda terrorists, Imran Khan told The Daily Telegraph: “This is a civil war in the making.”

“One million refugees have been created. Innocent people are being killed; children left without arms and legs. All under the magic mantra of fighting Islamic extremism. If people understood what is really happening they would not countenance it,” the leader of Tehreek-e-Insaf said.

“It is time to change tactics on the so-called war on terror. There is hope in President-elect Barack Obama.”
In the wake of September 11 attacks and those on July 7, and now the bombings in Mumbai, Khan is appalled at the way terrorism has been given a religious identity.

“No religion allows terrorism,” he said.

“The phrase Islamic terrorist is a smokescreen that diverts attention from the political reasons why people are blowing themselves up. Terrorism is an illness. All terrorism is political,” he said.