Musharraf suggests Muslim peacekeepers for Iraq

Musharraf suggests Muslim peacekeepers for Iraq

Pakistani President Pervez Musharraf Tuesday suggested that a Muslim peacekeeping force could be sent to war-torn Iraq under the United Nations.

Musharraf made the suggestion as foreign ministers from Islamic nations gathered in Pakistan's capital for a conference discussing ways of combating alleged "Islamophobia."

"If all the warring factions... different factions, if they accept, then maybe a Muslim peacekeeping force under the United Nations umbrella could be looked at," Musharraf told the conference.

"We have to stop all outside interference in Iraq, the mass killings... the carnage that is taking place there has to stop."

Military ruler Musharraf, who seized power in a bloodless coup in 1999, has promoted a political philosophy of what he calls "enlightened moderation" aimed at reducing tensions within the Muslim world and between Muslims and the West.

He said poor living conditions were breeding extremism and called for collective efforts for the socio-economic development of the Muslim world.

"There is a suicidal backwardness, there are acute general disparities and low living conditions" in the Muslim world, the Pakistani leader said.

"The Islamic world on the whole is on on a downward slide."

The three-day meeting of foreign ministers is being attended by some 600 delegates from the 57-member Organisation of the Islamic Conference.