PM's attack on Pakistan will fuel extremism, warns Imran Khan

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Mr Khan, founder of the Movement for Justice party and former husband of Jemima Goldsmith, said his country suffered more from terrorism than any other nation.

The sports-star-turned-politician said Mr Cameron had blundered with his comments in India this week. In a press conference, the Prime Minister had said Pakistan was "facing two ways" on terrorism and failing to do enough to root out extremists plotting with the Taliban and planning attacks on Britain.

His remarks raised eyebrows at the Foreign Office, where good relations with Islamabad are seen as vital in combating extremism. To smooth the diplomacy, a message was sent to Pakistan president Asif Ali Zardari, who will be visiting Chequers next week, saying that Britain did believe his government was fighting hard against terrorism.

Speaking on BBC Radio 4's Today programme, Mr Khan said attacks by US drones which killed civilians in Pakistan's border region with Afghanistan were already risking civil war.

Suicide bombers were targeting his country more than its neighbours combined, he added: "There's a lot of anger in Pakistan at David Cameron's statements. People feel this country is the biggest sufferer of terrorism. We've had over 30,000 casualties in a war Pakistan has had nothing to do with - there was no Pakistani involved in 9/11.

"The failure in Vietnam was blamed on Cambodia and Cambodia was destroyed by the bombing. Today Pakistan is being bombed by its ally, the US ... killing mostly innocent people."

Mr Khan said America was already seen as more of a threat to Pakistan than India. He added: "The youth in Pakistan is getting radicalised. The more we are pressed to do more in this war on terror, the more the backlash, the more the ... radicalisation of our young.

"The threat to the West does not come from ... Afghanistan and Pakistan. It comes from the radicalised Muslim youth in the western countries. We are being blamed for the complete failure of this Afghanistan campaign."