LONDON, April 25 Former president Pervez Musharraf has said that most of the `missing persons` went `missing` on their own.

“They had joined various factions of jihadi outfits including Taliban without informing their families,” he said.

“Many had gone into Indian (occupied) Kashmir to participate in Jihad and many went to Afghanistan to fight on the side of Taliban. Most were brainwashed.”

General Musharraf while participating in Al-Jazeera`s David Frost Show on Friday night rejected the perception that the army and the ISI were somehow involved in making people disappear and said that Chief Justice Iftikhar Mohammad Chaudhry would finally come up with nothing in the case.Answering a question on how he felt about the current situation in Pakistan he said he felt sad, despondent at whatever was happening in Pakistan today. “Pakistan is suffering.”

He, however, said Pakistan had the potential to fight back and all that was needed was for the government to win the confidence of the people in its ability to face terrorism and extremism and also in its ability to put the economy back on the rails.

In reply to another question he said he did not think there were more than 300-400 Al Qaeda fighters holed up in the mountains of Pakistan`s tribal areas.

He said between the Taliban and Al Qaeda he considered the former to be a more serious threat to Pakistan “because they are from among the population while the latter are foreigners and the local people are known to have supported the government in fighting them.”

He, however, said the Taliban could never overthrow the government in Islamabad, “Unless we commit a blunder. They should not be given any political space. If we keep giving them space they would keep gaining ground.”