Masood Azhar is really unwell, says Foreign Minister Shah Mehmood Qureshi, claims Pakistan wants to 'sit and talk' to India

Day after Pakistan prime minister Imran Khan announced that IAF’s captured pilot Wing Commander Abhinandan Varthaman will be released on Friday as a gesture of peace and the “first step” to open negotiations with India, Pakistan foreign minister Shah Mahmood Qureshi told CNN that Pakistan never wanted to escalate issues, adding that it was when India attacked Pakistan is when matters escalated. On a question regarding putting Jaish-e-Mohammed’s Masood Azhar on the list of UN-designated terrorists, Qureshi said: “We are open to any step that leads to de-escalation and if they have good, solid evidence, please sit and talk, please initiate a dialogue and we will show reasonableness.” [caption id=“attachment_6174921” align=“alignleft” width=“380”] File image of Jaish-e-Mohammed chief Maulana Masood Azhar. AFP[/caption] Regarding Azhar, Dawn quoted Qureshi from the CNN interview where the foreign minister said, “He is in Pakistan, according to my information. He is unwell to the extent that he can’t leave his house, because he’s really unwell.” When asked about taking action against JeM chief, Qureshi said Pakistan wants evidence that can stand in a court of law, adding that Pakistan follows a legal process and will have to fulfill those requirements if action is to be taken against Azhar. “This is a new government with a new mindset. We want to live in peace. We have a people-centric agenda. We want to improve governance in Pakistan. We do not want to fight on the eastern front. We want to put an end to this 17-year-old war that’s going on in Afghanistan. We want peace and stability in the region. After a very long time there is a government in Pakistan which supports the Pakistan Armed Forces. The civil and political leadership is on the same page. The policy of this government is that we will not allow our soil to be used by any organisation or individual for terrorism against anyone and that includes India,” Qureshi told CNN. On the matter of de-escalation of the crisis and the conversations Qureshi had with the United States, the foreign minister said “I’d like to thank President Trump for taking an interest in order to de-escalate” and praised America’s role in diffusing the situation. Pakistan says will release Abhinandan as a gesture of peace Imran on Thursday announced that IAF’s captured pilot Wing Commander Abhinandan Varthaman will be released on Friday as a gesture of peace and the “first step” to open negotiations with India. The surprise announcement during a joint session of Parliament came barely an hour after Qureshi said that Imran is ready to talk to his Indian counterpart Narendra Modi to de-escalate Indo-Pak tensions. As the opposition leader Shehbaz Sharif took the floor of the House, Imran apologised for interrupting him and said he wishes to announce that the Indian pilot captured by Pakistan Air Force on Wednesday will be released Friday as a peace gesture. “In our desire for peace, I announce that tomorrow (Friday), and as a first step to open negotiations, Pakistan will be releasing the Indian Air Force officer in our custody,” Imran said. The announcement was greeted by thumping of desks by Pakistani lawmakers. India on Thursday made it clear that IAF pilot Abhinandan cannot be a bargaining chip and New Delhi will not strike any deal with Islamabad for his release. The joint session of Parliament was held on Thursday to discuss rising tension with India. The Pakistani Air Force on Wednesday carried out a retaliatory strike, a day after Indian struck inside Pakistan, destroying the biggest terrorist training camp of the JeM. Addressing the House, Imran said, “The only purpose of our strike was to demonstrate our capability and will.” “We did not want to inflict any casualty on India as we wanted to act in a responsible manner.” He warned if India moved ahead with the “aggression”, Pakistan will be forced to retaliate and urged the Indian leadership not to push for escalation as war is not solution to any problem.