Islamabad: Pakistan's new Prime Minister Yousuf Raza Gillani today offered a dialogue to militants who lay down their arms, saying ending terrorism is his "first priority" and also pledged to reinstate the judges sacked by President Pervez Musharraf during emergency last year.

Unveiling a slew of populist measures in his first policy statement after securing an unprecedented unanimous vote of confidence, Gillani told the National Assembly that terrorism and extremism are Pakistan's "greatest problems" that have put the country in danger and declared "the war on terrorism is our own war".

"Restoring peace and ending terrorism is our first priority. The war on terrorism is our own war because many of our people, including countless innocent children and youth, have been martyred in the country," Gillani said apparently alluding to US fears that the new government may review cooperation in the fight against al-Qaida and the Taliban.

The premier said, "Unfortunately, some people have adopted violence as the way of expressing their opinion. As a new era of democracy has begun in the country, I urge all those people to give up the path of violence and join us in the journey of democracy." "We are ready to talk to all those people who give up their weapons and adopt the path of peace," Gillani, a close aide of slain former premier Benazir Bhutto, said outlining the PPP-led coalition government's plans for first 100 days amid frequent thumping of desks by MPs.

Pakistan has been rocked by an unprecedented wave of bombings, includig suicide attacks, since last year which are blamed on the local Taliban while President Pervez Musharraf had deployed military to check raging militancy in the tribal areas bordering Afghanistan.

Source : PTI