Gilani: Foreign militants on Pakistan

ISLAMABAD, Pakistan, July 15 (UPI) -- Pakistani Prime Minister Yousaf Raza Gilani says there are foreign militants on his country's soil.

Gilani told reporters the foreign militants in Pakistan's restive tribal areas include Chechens and Uzbeks, which worry the United States, and it is necessary take action to prevent a devastation similar to the Sept. 11, 2001, terror attack in the United States, Pakistan's Dawn newspaper reported.

"When there is interference in the (tribal areas) from people who (do) not belong to your country and they are coming from Chechnya, Uzbekistan and Afghanistan and they are militants disturbing the peace of the country, naturally they (the United States) object because they don't want ... another (incident) of the same nature as 9/11 should take place," the Press Trust of India quoted Gilani as saying.

Gilani said the Pakistani military operation in the tribal areas would continue to flush out foreign elements to prevent a 9/11-like attack, the report said, adding his remarks come amid reports the United States is building troop deployments in areas near the Afghan border.