Afghan security adviser: Muslims suffer terrorism, too

NEW DELHI – Afghanistan's national security adviser says associating terrorism with Islam was inappropriate given the suffering Muslims have endured at the hands of terrorists and the sacrifices they have made to defeat such violence.

Hanif Atmar said the South Asian region, including Afghanistan, Pakistan and India, had the "highest concentration of organized terrorists anywhere in the world."

Atmar noted that Afghanistan had lost 10,500 people to terrorism over the last 14 months, with an average of 28 people dying each day. He was speaking Monday at the Asian Security Conference being held this year in New Delhi.

India's Defense Minister Manohar Parrikar said a global response to countering such security concerns must come from Asia as the region has suffered the most.