TANK, Feb 8: Militant commander Baitullah Mehsud has denied involvement in recent incidents of suicide attacks in the NWFP and Islamabad and challenged the government to produce any evidence of his involvement.

“I have no hand in the suicide attacks. But if the government has any evidence, proving my involvement, it should be brought before public,” he told tribal mediators at an undisclosed location in the restive South Waziristan Agency on Wednesday night.

After the recent spate of terrorist acts in the country, the agency’s administration formed a 21-member jirga, headed by tribal Senator Saleh Shah, to hold talks with Baitullah Mehsud who had vowed to avenge the Jan 16 Zamazola airstrike in which his 10 supporters were killed and eight others injured.

“Yes, I still stand by my words to avenge the Zamazola air strike, because it was quite painful and I was deeply hurt. As far as the suicide attacks are concerned, I have nothing to do with these incidents,” Senator Shah quoted Baitullah as saying.

The senator told journalists that Baitullah, who had signed a peace deal with the government in February 2005, denied his involvement in the suicide bombings in Peshawar, Islamabad, Dera Ismail Khan and Tank and told the jirga that he had never accepted responsibility for the attacks.

“I was willing to abide by the peace deal but the government breached it by killing innocent people in Zamazola,” the senator quoted the military commander as saying.

Baitullah Mehsud also criticised a statement of President Pervez Musharraf about “eliminating me”. “It will not be the murder of an individual, but of the entire Waziristan Agency,” claimed Baitullah.

Agencies add: “I had announced I would seek revenge for the Zamzola attack in anguish over the violation of the peace agreement by government, but I have repeatedly denied my role in attacks in Peshawar, Dera Ismail Khan, Tank and Islamabad,” the senator quoted Baitullah as telling the tribal elders.

“I condemn these suicide attacks. I have no role in these attacks. I am not responsible,” he said. Whatever he had said in the aftermath of the Zamzola attack had been said in anger, he claimed. “Pakistan is my country and I don’t want to fight a war with it,” Baitullah told the elders, according to Mr Shah.

Investigators said last week they were linking the series of attacks to Baitullah after he swore to avenge a January 16 airstrike by security forces on an alleged Al Qaeda camp in the Zamzola area of South Waziristan.