Strongly condemning the Samjhauta Express blasts, the British Parliament has urged India and Pakistan to remain committed to the peace process in the face of such murderous attacks.
Replying to an Early Day Motion, moved on Thursday by Labour MP Stephen Pound, Prime Minister Tony Blair described the blasts as a wicket act and stressed that the world needed to stand up and defeat the scourge of terrorism.
"As my Honourable friend showed, the train was a symbol of Hindus and Muslims working together, so it was a wicked act in itself, but it took on a particular proportion of tragedy and evil by the nature of the act and what it was directed towards. It shows, I am afraid, that, as he rightly said, this type of nihilistic terrorism is with us the world over, and the only response is to stand up to it and defeat it," Blair said.
The motion moved by Pound noted, "That this House condemns those responsible for the terrorist attacks that killed 68 people and injured many more on the train from New Delhi, India, to Lahore, Pakistan, on Sunday, February 18, 2007; expresses its sympathy and condolences to the families of the killed and the injured; recognises that by targeting civilians the terrorists seek to destabilise any opportunity for peace between two countries seeking to improve bilateral relationships and understanding; and urges India and Pakistan to be firm in their resolution in the face of such murderous and indiscriminate attacks."
Pound asked, "Will the prime minister, on behalf of the entire House, express his deep sympathy to the friends and families of the 68 people whose charred bodies now lie in a mortuary and to the injured, and will he associate himself with the calm and dignified response of Prime Minister Manmohan Singh and President General Pervez Musharraf and agree with them that peace will prevail and that the ungodly ambition of nihilist terrorism, in all its forms, will never, ever triumph?"