US eyes new support for Pakistan

WASHINGTON: The United States looked to expand support for Pakistan in high-level talks Thursday, but also nudged its frontline partner to do more after a string of disputes on how to fight Islamic extremism.

Secretary of State Hillary Clinton was due to join talks on the second of three days of a “strategic dialogue,” an initiative by Washington to develop long-term assistance for struggling Pakistan.

Two previous rounds of the dialogue focused on agriculture, water and energy. But US officials said the latest talks will also review Pakistan’s requests for military assistance, a step likely to worry neighboring India.

US envoy Richard Holbrooke said that Clinton has devoted more time to Pakistan than any other country and credited the efforts with easing distrust between the governments, if not the rampant anti-Americanism in Pakistan.

“We believe

NRO case: SC rejects Govts plea for more time, change of counsel

The Supreme Court has rejected the government’s plea to change its lawyer and more time in the National Reconciliation Ordinance (NRO) case, Dunya News reported on Monday.
A three-member bench of the apex court was hearing a government plea for change of counsel in the case.
The government, however, decided to file a review petition against the Superior Courts rejection of change of counsel in the case, sources revealed.
The apex court further ordered the government to withdraw the notification of Barrister Kamal Azfar’s appointment as Adviser to the Prime Minister. During the hearing, the notification of Azfar’s appointment as Adviser was produced in the court. Chief Justice Iftikhar Chaudhry also directed that Azfar’s appointment notification should be withdrawn.
On Saturday, the governments counsel Raja Abdul Ghafoor, advocate-on-record, filed an application in the SC seeking more time in the National Reconciliation Ordinance (NRO) review petition to engage another counsel in place of Barrister Kamal Azfar, who was appointed the Adviser to the Prime Minister.
Chief Justice Iftikhar Muhammad Chaudhry remarked that it is not good to humiliate the superior court to such an extent, adding that the government seemed to be joking with the SC.
During hearing the petitioner Advocate Salman Akram Raja requested to the court to cancel the notification regarding the appointment of Kamal Azfars as advisor to the PM, pleading that he was supposed to assist the court in the NRO case.
The CJ observed that the government, if serious, should retract Azfars appointment notification so to enable him to represent the former in NRO review petition. Justice Khalilur Rehman Ramday maintained that the government is employing delaying tactics to get the hearing postponed.
First the government related the NRO implementation case with review petition and now it is not letting the court to hear even the review plea, the CJP lamented. Hearing of all the important cases including NRO implementation, its review plea and others will be resumed on Oct 13, the CJ said.
The court rejected the government request and ordered Barrister Kamal Azfar to appear before the court on behalf of the government in the hearing of the case on October 13th.
This was the third time that the government had sought more time to appoint another counsel on behalf of the federation.At the last hearing on September 27, the court had accepted the governments request for putting off the hearing on implementation of its judgment on the NRO and fixed the review petition for October 13.

Govt moves show its weakness: Justice (r) Wajihuddin
Justice (r) Wajihuddin, while talking to Dunya News, said that the governments moves are aimed at getting the case postponed.
He said that the defendants case is weak and that was why they are resorting to such delaying tactics. He said that the government is left with no option then to yield to SC orders.

Photo session with COAS cant save govt: Nawaz

PML-N leader Main Nawaz Sharif said that photo session with army chief was not enough to save the government.
While talking to media in Lahore, Nawaz Sharif said that the governments way of handling issues was not right. He said that government policies were not directed towards right direction but democratic system should not be derailed.
Government should change its policies, he added.

G-8 call for Pak, Afg support to curb terrorism

WASHINGTON/NEW YORK: Applauding Pakistan”s continued anti-terrorism efforts along the Afghan border, the G-8 nations meeting in Canada on Saturday called for international support for the key South Asian country”s economic and political reforms.

The leaders of eight influential industrialised countries also welcomed moves by South Asian regional powers Pakistan and India towards improving their bilateral relationship.

“We welcome and encourage Pakistan”s efforts to root out violent extremists, especially in its border areas with Afghanistan,” the group said in a communiqué, released by the Canadian Press from Muskoka, where the leaders met over the last two days.

Stressing on world backing for Islamabad”s resolve, the communiqué noted it was essential that Pakistan be supported by the international community as it addresses its political, economic and social reforms.

“We welcome and encourage the recent steps taken by the governments of Pakistan and India to advance their bilateral relationship, and urge all countries of the region to work together actively in the interests of regional peace and stability,” the group said.

The group also underscored the need for a broad regional approach to countering violent extremism.

The group was also pleased that progress was being made, in association with multilateral donors, on two key projects under the G8 Afghanistan Pakistan Border Region Prosperity Initiative, a Peshawar-Jalalabad expressway and a feasibility study for a Peshawar-Jalalabad rail link.

“We are confident that these projects and others – realised with the efforts of the governments of Pakistan and Afghanistan – will deliver tangible benefits to the Afghan and Pakistani people and help to foster regional stability,” it said.

Continuing in the regional perspective, the group said the upcoming Kabul conference will be an important opportunity for the government of Afghanistan to present its detailed plans and show tangible progress in implementing the commitments made in the January 2010 London Conference.

Through a communiqué, the conference made it clear to Afghan government that it must show commitment including measures to combat corruption, address illicit drug production and trafficking, improve human rights, improve provision of basic services and governance, make concrete progress to reinforce the formal justice system and expand the capacity of the Afghan national security forces to assume increasing responsibility for security within five years.

To that end, the leaders voiced full support for the transition strategy adopted by the International Security Assistance Force (ISAF) contributors in April, as well as the on-going efforts to establish an Afghan-led national reconciliation and reintegration process.

In this respect, the June Peace Jirga was an important milestone. Clear steps by Afghanistan towards more credible, inclusive and transparent parliamentary elections in September will be an important step forward in the country”s maturing democracy.

Pakistan receives $468m for anti-terror war

KARACHI: Pakistan received a total of $656 million from the United States under the Coalition Support Fund to reimburse the expense incurred while conducting operations against violent extremism in 2009.

The central bank said it received fresh $468 million from the US under war against terrorism.

In a statement from the State Bank of Pakistan (SBP), earlier Pakistan received $188 million, which, couple with the fresh amount received, added up $656 million in total received from April 30 to date.

The annual reimbursement known as Coalition Support Funds (CSF) is intended to aid in Pakistan”s fight against terrorists and in achieving the mutually shared goals of peace and stability in Pakistan and in the region, the US embassy said in a statement here.

So far, the US has reimbursed Pakistan approximately $7.2 billion since 2001 when it established CSF to support 27 nations for some of the costs incurred by the governments in the fight against terrorism.

A compensation of $349 was delivered to Pakistan in January on the basis of CSF claims received from Islamabad for the year 2008. Claim for additional payments under the fund is also being processed for 2009, a local news agency reported.

The US civilian and security assistance to Pakistan has totalled more than $4 billion over the last three years. The financial assistance also include support for medical aid, school refurbishment, bridge and well reconstruction, food distribution, agricultural and education projects.

Security assistance includes supply of 14 F-16 fighter aircraft, 10 Mi-17 helicopters, more than 450 vehicles for Pakistan”s Frontier Corps, hundreds of night vision goggles, radios, and thousands of protective vests and first-aid items for Pakistani security forces.

Besides, US has also provided intelligence, logistic and various other counter-terrorism training to more than 370 Pakistani military officers.

River Jordan nearly running dry

AMMAN: The River Jordan is in danger of disappearing altogether under pressure from huge water diversion programs, an environmental group has warned.

More than 90% of the water is being diverted by Israel, Jordan and Syria, Friends of the Earth Middle East say.

The group have called on the governments in the region to take immediate action to save the river.

The river is also heavily polluted and now contains 20% untreated sewage, the organisation says.

The river is already running dry in some areas and Friends of the Earth estimate that it could dry out completely within two years.

The pollution in the Jordan flows into the Dead Sea, which itself is under threat and has shrunk by 30% in the last 50 years.

Environmentalists want governments the United Nations to protect the river – a holy site for Christians, Jews and Muslims – by placing it on the UNESCO World Heritage list.

Key Militant Alam Buneri’s Body Recovered:Swat

Security forces have recovered dead bodies of two key militants from Madin, Swat during the ongoing operation.
The dead bodies include that of Alam Buneri, besides another. Buneri, a close accomplice of Maulana Fazalullah, carries a head money of Rs100million. He used to run an illegal FM channel in Swat.

---

Key Militant Alam Buneri’s Body Recovered:Swat was first posted on March 1, 2010 at 11:23 am.

Hamas Man Was Drugged Before Murder:Dubai Police

The killers of a Hamas commander drugged him before suffocating him, Dubai police said Sunday.
Hamas military commander Mahmoud al-Mabhouh was killed last month in his hotel room in what Dubai police say they are almost certain was a hit by Israel’s Mossad spy agency. The killers used a muscle relaxant to tranquillize Mabhouh before suffocating him, said deputy police chief Khamis al-Mazeina, quoted by the Dubai police website. The assassins used this method so that it would seem that his death was natural as there were no signs of resistance shown by the victim, he said. Dubai authorities have named 26 alleged members of the team that tracked and killed the Palestinian and said they operated in disguise and used fraudulent British, Irish, French, German and Australian passports. People with the same names as many of the suspects live in Israel and say their identities were stolen. The passport abuse has drawn criticism from the European Union, and some of the governments involved have summoned the Israeli ambassadors to their countries to protest. Israel has not denied or confirmed it played any role but its foreign minister said there was nothing to link it to the killing.

---

Hamas Man Was Drugged Before Murder:Dubai Police was first posted on March 1, 2010 at 11:32 am.

PM Gilani Leaves for China

ISLAMABAD: Prime Minister Yousuf Raza Gilani Monday left for the first official visit of China to hold meeting with its leadership.

Earlier, talking to media at airport Gilani said change of the governments won’t affect bilateral relations between Pakistan and China.

Talking on Kerry-Lugar bill Gilani said Pakistan have reservations over the bill but it is in the best interest of Pakistan. The Prime Minister said  parliament is the supreme body where debate is on the bill was in progress.

He said Pakistan and China have brotherly relations, which were strengthened during the tenures of former prime ministers Zulfiqar Ali Bhutto and Benazir Bhutto.

He said his visit will boost cooperation between the two countries in defence, social, economic and culture sectors.

---

PM Gilani Leaves for China was first posted on October 12, 2009 at 1:45 pm.