Gilani renews talks offer to ‘angry Baloch’

QUETTA: Prime Minister Yousuf Raza Gilani renewed on Tuesday his offer of dialogue to ‘angry’ Baloch leaders and said he was even ready to go to their doorstep to listen to their grievances.

Talking to reporters after attending a passing-out parade at the EME Centre of Baloch youths inducted into the army after completion of training, Mr Gilani said: “Angry Baloch leaders are our brothers and we are ready to go to their doorstep to resolve issues through dialogue.”

He said he had asked Chief Minister Nawab Aslam Raisani to hold talks with angry Baloch brethren, adding that the government would remove the sense of deprivation among the people of Balochistan and bring them to the national mainstream.

However, he said, some elements wanted to create unrest and fan hatred in Balochistan, but no-one would be allowed to subvert peace in the province. “I appeal to those creating disturbance to adopt the path of peace and pave the way for speedy development of Balochistan.”

He said the country was facing a difficult situation because some people had taken the path of terrorism and were tarnishing the image of Pakistan and Islam. “The agenda of these people is not the agenda of Pakistan.” The prime minister said those who did not accept the government’s peace offer must understand that they would delay the process of development and prosperity in Balochistan. “They can create hurdles, but cannot deprive the people of their rights and stop development.”

Mr Gilani said he was dissatisfied with the law and order situation in the province and had directed the provincial government to maintain peace in Balochistan. He also asked the provincial administration to submit a report regarding alleged involvement of foreign hands in the unrest in Balochistan.

Answering a question about recovery of bullet-riddled bodies of Baloch political activists, he said the provincial government had been asked to look into the matter. Another important issue is that of missing persons and the government is trying to solve this problem. A commission on missing persons headed by a senior judge of the Supreme Court is working on it.

About relations with Afghanistan, Mr Gilani said Pakistan had cordial ties with that country and was working to evolve a joint strategy to fight terrorism.

He said Pakistan had already offered help in investigation into the assassination of Prof Burhanuddin Rabbani which had affected the peace process in Afghanistan.

Pakistan-US relations, he said, were being improved and strengthened. “These relations are moving in a positive direction.”(Dawn.com)

Iran calls US assassination allegations ‘evil plot’

UNITED NATIONS: Iran called US allegations of a plan to kill the Saudi ambassador to Washington an “evil plot” by the United States, in a complaint sent late Tuesday to the United Nations.

Iran’s US ambassador accused Israel of carrying out the murders of Iranian nuclear scientists with US support, in a letter sent to UN leader Ban Ki-moon and the UN Security Council.

“Iran categorically and in the strongest terms condemns this shameful allegation by the United States authorities and deplores it as a well-thought evil plot in line with their anti-Iranian policy,” Mohammad Khazaee said in the letter.

US authorities said earlier they had uncovered a plot by the Iranian government to assassinate the Saudi envoy to Washington, Adel al-Jubeir. The US administration has vowed to hold Iran to account.

Two men have been charged with conspiring with Iranian government factions to stage the attack and one is in US custody.

Khazaee expressed “outrage” over the allegations in his letter to the UN council, where Iran faces mounting pressure over its nuclear programme.

The Security Council has imposed four rounds of sanctions because of Iran’s refusal to halt uranium enrichment.

He said the US accusations were to “divert attention from the current economic and social problems at home and the popular revolutions and protests against United States long supported dictatorial regimes abroad.”

Iran has always condemned terrorism in all its forms and manifestations,”and has been a victim, the ambassador said. “A clear recent example of which is the assassination of a number of Iranian nuclear scientists in the past two years carried out by the Zionist regime and supported by the United States.”

An Iranian particle physics professor at Tehran University was killed in a bomb attack outside his home in January 2010.

Another scientist was killed in Tehran on November 29, while nuclear chief Fereydoon Abbasi Davani survived an assassination attempt the same day.

Khazaee said “The Iranian nation seeks a world free from terrorism and considers the current US warmongering and propaganda machine against Iran as a threat not just against itself but to the peace and stability in the Persian Gulf region.”

The envoy told Ban: “As the secretary general of the United Nations you have an important responsibility in enlightening the international public opinion about the dangerous consequences of warmongering policies of the United States government on international peace and security.”(AFP)

Afghan detainees tortured in prison: UN

KABUL: Prisoners handed over by international forces to Afghan custody are being subjected to “systematic’’ torture by Afghan interrogators seeking intelligence in the war against the Taliban, according to a United Nations report released Monday.

The report published in Washington Post portrays prisoner abuse by Afghan authorities on a scale far wider than previously known. It is bound to complicate American efforts to hand over increasing responsibilities to Afghan forces as U.S. troops begin a steady drawdown from Afghanistan.

The findings include the use of brutal beatings and electric shock at several Afghan-run centers to wrest confessions from detainees. The account, based on interviews with detainees conducted as recently as August, raises questions about whether U.S. officials knew or should have known about abuses involving prisoners turned over to the Afghans.

A Pentagon spokesman George Little, said the United States is reviewing the “serious allegations” in the U.N. report. The Afghan government challenged the findings, saying that some depictions were “not close to reality,’’ but it also pledged to investigate the allegations of torture and abuse.

“Maybe there are deficiencies with a country stricken by war and a wave of suicide attacks and other terroristic crimes, we do not claim perfection and that we are doing things 100% in accordance with how things should be,” the Afghan government wrote in its response to the U.N. findings, which was included as an annex to the report.

The report reveals serious deficiencies in the Afghan security institutions, primarily the intelligence agency known as the National Directorate for Security (NDS) and the Afghan National Police, organizations that will only gain more responsibility as the U.S. military begins its withdrawal from Afghanistan this year.

The 74-page U.N. report paints a picture of an Afghan detention system routinely and severely abusing its inmates, most of them suspected militants caught at the height of the Obama administration’s surge in Afghanistan. U.S. troops detain thousands of suspected insurgents each year and regularly pass them off to Afghan authorities.

Among the nearly 400 prisoners interviewed by U.N. investigators over an 11-month period that ended in August, 89 said they had been captured by international forces acting either alone or together with Afghan forces. Among the group, the U.N. said it had found “compelling evidence’’ that 22 of them had been tortured in Afghan custody.

Detainees described being hung by their wrists; beaten with rubber hoses, electric cables, wires or sticks; subjected to electric shocks on their bodies and soles of their feet; having toenails removed; enduring “twisting and wrenching” of genitals; and being threatened with sexual abuse, the report says.

Briefed in advance about the U.N. findings, the U.S.-led coalition had halted the transfer of prisoners to several Afghan-run detention centers last month. There has been no indication about when those transfers might resume, leaving U.S. forces in Afghanistan to maintain custody of suspected insurgents captured on the battlefield, at a time when the population of the main American detention center, near the Bagram air base, had already been swelling.

Source: The News pk

Egypt probes deadly sectarian clashes, first victims buried

CAIRO: Egypt’s military rulers ordered a speedy probe into clashes which killed 25 people, mostly Coptic Christians, as the cabinet held crisis talks and thousands attended the funerals of 17 victims.

The Supreme Council of the Armed Forces (SCAF) “tasked the government with quickly forming a fact finding committee to determine what happened,” in a statement read on state television Monday as world leaders urged restraint.

It called for “all measures against all those proven to have been involved, either directly or by incitement”.

Both the ruling military council and the cabinet held crisis talks, a day after the clashes in Cairo left 25 dead, most of them Copts, and more than 300 people injured, according to health ministry figures.

The SCAF, which took power when President Hosni Mubarak was ousted in February, stressed it “continues to bear national responsibility to protect the people” until it hands over to an elected civilian authority.

Thousands of people attended a service at the Copt cathedral here late Monday for the funerals of 17 demonstrators.

Live television showed the coffins being brought in a procession from the Copt hospital in downtown Cairo where autopsies were carried out.

The coffins, each bearing the victim’s name and flowers arranged in a cross, were lined up in the cathedral for the funeral service before being taken out for burial.

White House spokesman Jay Carney said US President Barack Obama was “deeply concerned” about the violence.

“Now is a time for restraint on all sides so that Egyptians can move forward together to forge a strong and united Egypt,” he said.

“As the Egyptian people shape their future, the United States continues to believe that the rights of minorities – including Copts – must be respected, and that all people have the universal rights of peaceful protest and religious freedom.

“These tragic events should not stand in the way of timely elections and a continued transition to democracy that is peaceful, just and inclusive.”

A “deeply saddened” UN Secretary General Ban Ki-moon urged the Egyptian military authorities to defend “all faiths” in the country.

The Congregation for Eastern Churches at the Vatican slammed the “senseless violence”, with Cardinal Leonardo Sandri telling Vatican Radio he hoped it “would not lead as well to a climate of precariousness and difficulty” for Copts.

Egyptian military prosecutors began questioning 25 people accused of involvement in the clashes, state news agency MENA reported, after a security official said 40 were arrested overnight.

Copts had been protesting against an attack earlier this month on a church in the southern city of Aswan when the violence erupted.

Egypt’s Coptic Orthodox Church led by Pope Shenuda III accused “infiltrators” of triggering the street battle on the Nile waterfront.

“The Christian faith denounces violence. Strangers infiltrated the demonstration and committed the crimes for which the Copts have been blamed,” a Church statement said after Shenuda met 70 Church leaders.

“Copts have suffered repeated problems without accountability for the aggressors,” it said, calling on authorities to “solve the root causes of the problems”.

European leaders in Luxembourg expressed alarm at the Cairo clashes.

“It is very important that the Egyptian authorities reaffirm the freedom of worship,” British Foreign Secretary William Hague said.

“We can only call on the Egyptian government to get to the bottom of these incidents as soon as possible and bring those responsible to justice,” Chancellor Angela Merkel’s spokesman Steffen Seibert told journalists.

And EU foreign policy Chief Catherine Ashton urged Egypt to move towards elections “with a desire to see all people part of those elections and to protect the people, whoever they are, wherever they come from, whatever belief and faith they have.”

A curfew was imposed overnight Sunday-Monday in parts of the Egyptian capital.

In a late-night address, Prime Minister Essam Sharaf appealed to Egyptians “not to give in to sedition” and warned the country was “in danger”.

At least five of the dead were mown down by a speeding army vehicle which swerved to hit protesters, a Coptic priest said, while an AFP correspondent saw bodies with gunshot wounds at the hospital.

The grand imam of Al-Azhar, Ahmed Tayyeb, the Sunni religious head, called for crisis talks between Muslim and Christian leaders “in a bid to contain the crisis”, state television said.

Some commentators warned of civil religious strife, but others said the clashes were fuelled not only by sectarian strife but also by anger towards the security services and the military council which succeeded Mubarak.

Government-backed provocation was also blamed.

Users of social networking sites such as Twitter said the initial clashes outside the state television building on the Nile were provoked by “thugs” at the scene, while the broadcaster was accused of fanning anti-Coptic sentiment.

On Monday, the authorities announced the hanging of a man sentenced to death for shooting six Copts last year.

Copts complain of systematic discrimination, but since Mubarak’s fall, tensions have also mounted between the military – initially hailed for not siding with Mubarak – and groups which spearheaded the revolt.

AFP/DAwn.com

Jagjit Singh passes away

MUMBAI: Jagjit Singh, a prominent Indian ghazal singer, composer, music director, activist and entrepreneur, popularly known as “the ghazal king” passed away on Monday at the age of 70.

Mr Singh had recently suffered an intracranial hemorrhagic stroke, or bleeding within the skull.

He was born on February 8, 1941 in Sri Ganganagar, Rajasthan. Jagjit and his wife Indian ghazal singer Chitra Singh have together been regarded as the pioneers of modern ghazal singing.

He has sung in Punjabi, Hindi, Urdu, Bengali, Gujarati, Sindhi and Nepali languages and was awarded India’s third highest civilian honour, the Padma Bhushan, in 2003.

With a career spanning over five decades and a repertoire comprising 80 albums, his work has been regarded as genre-defining.(Dawn.com)

Pakistan must protect US interests, says Obama

WASHINGTON: President Barack Obama warned on Thursday that the United States would not feel comfortable in a long-term strategic relationship with Pakistan if it did not protect US interests as well.

In a 90-minute news conference at the White House, the US leader focused mainly on domestic issues, chiding banks, showing irritation with the Wall Street and urging lawmakers to help him create jobs.

This was Mr Obama’s first news conference since his former military chief Admiral Mike Mullen told a Senate hearing two weeks ago that Pakistan was encouraging the Haqqani network of militants to attack US and Nato targets in Afghanistan.

A journalist pushed aside the domestic agenda and asked President Obama if he agreed with Admiral Mullen’s accusation that Pakistan’s intelligence agency ISI had used the Haqqani network as a virtual arm.

“And what, if any consequences, up to and including a cut-off of aid, would you be willing to consider?” the journalist asked.

“There’s no doubt that we’re not going to feel comfortable with a long-term strategic relationship with Pakistan if we don’t think that they’re mindful of our interests as well,” said the president.

“We will constantly evaluate our relationship with Pakistan based on (what it does) to protect Americans and our interests,” he added.

“And there is no doubt that there’re some connections that the Pakistani military and intelligence services have with certain individuals that we find troubling. And I’ve said that publicly and I’ve said it privately to Pakistani officials as well.”

The remarks alarmed Pakistani diplomats in Washington who were recently warned by their lobbyists that the US anger with Pakistan’s alleged links to the Haqqanis was not over yet.

The lobbyists also warned the Pakistanis not to be too comfortable with recent conciliatory statements from the White House and the State Department as the Americans were not going to give up their demand for a military operation against the group.

“Yes, there is some anger, some misgivings about the Pakistani military and the ISI in this country,” said former president Pervez Musharraf, who is currently in Washington with a plan to meet more than a dozen senior US lawmakers and to persuade them to soften their attitudes towards Pakistan. “They do see a link between the ISI and the Haqqanis,” said Mr Musharraf. “Now it is up to us to help them get rid of these misconceptions.”

President Obama’s remarks, however, show that those lobbying for Pakistan “have their work cut out for them,” as a senior Pakistani diplomat said. “With respect to Pakistan … my number one goal is to make sure that Al Qaeda cannot attack the US homeland and cannot affect US interests around the world,” Mr Obama said. “And we have done an outstanding job, I think, in going after, directly, Al Qaeda in this border region between Pakistan and Afghanistan.”

The US president acknowledged that the Americans could not have been as successful as they have been without the cooperation of the Pakistan government.

“On a whole range of issues they have been an effective partner with us,” he said.

But Mr Obama complained that the Pakistanis were dragging their feet in Afghanistan.

The main US goal, he said, was to be able to transition out of Afghanistan and leave a stable government behind that was independent, respectful of human rights, and democratic.

“And Pakistan, I think, has been more ambivalent about some of our goals there,” he said.“I think that they have hedged their bets in terms of what Afghanistan would look like. And part of hedging their bets is having interactions with some of the unsavoury characters who they think might end up regaining power in Afghanistan after coalition forces have left,” Mr Obama said.

“What we’ve tried to persuade Pakistan of is that it is in their interest to have a stable Afghanistan; that they should not be feeling threatened by a stable, independent Afghanistan.”

To ease tensions between the two countries, the US had tried to get conversations between Afghans and Pakistanis going more effectively than they have been in the past, he said. “But we’ve still got more work to do.”

Mr Obama also showed a rare understanding of Pakistan’s concerns in Afghanistan, pointing out that “they see their security interests threatened by an independent Afghanistan, in part because they think it will ally itself to India and Pakistan still considers India their mortal enemy.”

The US, he said, was also trying to allay these fears.

“Part of what we want to do is actually get Pakistan to realise that a peaceful approach towards India would be in everybody’s interests and would help Pakistan actually develop,” he said.“Because one of the biggest problems we have in Pakistan right now is poverty, illiteracy, a lack of development, civil institutions that aren’t strong enough to deliver for the Pakistani people.”

That’s the environment that encourages extremism to grow, said Mr Obama, adding that the US was trying to make Pakistan realise that militancy “doesn’t just threaten our efforts in Afghanistan but also threatens the Pakistani government and the Pakistan people.”

Asked if the US could stop its assistance to push Pakistan to accept its demands, Mr Obama said his administration had “a great desire” to help the Pakistani people strengthen their own society and government.

This Articel Orignaly Published at Dawn.com

Apple 'genius' Steve Jobs dies from cancer

SAN FRANCISCO: Apple's visionary co-founder Steve Jobs died from cancer Wednesday at 56, a premature end for a man who revolutionized modern culture with ubiquitous inventions like the iPod and the iPad.

"We are deeply saddened to announce that Steve Jobs passed away today," the California-based gadgetmaker said in a statement from its board of directors.

"Steve's brilliance, passion and energy were the source of countless innovations that enrich and improve all of our lives. The world is immeasurably better because of Steve."

Tim Cook -- who had been handling Apple's day-to-day operations since Jobs went on medical leave in January, and was made CEO in August -- led the praise for the Silicon Valley legend.

"Apple has lost a visionary and creative genius, and the world has lost an amazing human being. Those of us who have been fortunate enough to know and work with Steve have lost a dear friend and an inspiring mentor," he said.

"Steve leaves behind a company that only he could have built, and his spirit will forever be the foundation of Apple."

Apple turned its home page into a tribute to Jobs, posting a large black-and-white photo of the bearded high-tech maestro in his trademark black turtleneck and small round glasses. The only caption: "Steve Jobs, 1955-2011."

When a user clicks on the photo, they are taken to Cook's message in remembrance of Jobs, who died after a long battle with pancreatic cancer.

Apple fans were invited to share their thoughts, memories and condolences by sending messages to rememberingsteve@apple.com. The rest of the website and store remained accessible.

Jobs' family also issued a statement, saying he had died surrounded by his relatives.

"In his public life, Steve was known as a visionary; in his private life, he cherished his family," it said.

"We are thankful to the many people who have shared their wishes and prayers during the last year of Steve's illness; a website will be provided for those who wish to offer tributes and memories."

Born on February 24, 1955 in San Francisco to a single mother and adopted by a couple in nearby Mountain View at barely a week old, Jobs grew up among the orchards that would one day become the technology hub known as Silicon Valley.

He was just 21 and Steve Wozniak 26 when they founded Apple Computer in the garage of Jobs's family home in 1976.

Under Jobs, the company introduced its first Apple computers and then the Macintosh, which became wildly popular in the 1980s.

Jobs was elevated to idol status by ranks of Macintosh computer devotees, many of whom saw themselves as a sort of rebel alliance opposing the powerful empire Microsoft built with its ubiquitous Windows operating systems.

Jobs left Apple in 1985 after an internal power struggle and started NeXT Computer company specializing in sophisticated workstations for businesses.

He co-founded Academy-Award-winning Pixar in 1986 from a former Lucasfilm computer graphics unit that he bought from movie industry titan George Lucas.

Apple's luster faded after Jobs left the company, but they reconciled in 1996 with Apple buying NeXT for $429 million and Jobs ascending once again to the Apple throne.

Apple went from strength to strength as Jobs revamped the Macintosh line, revolutionizing modern culture and launching a "post-PC era" in which personal computers give way to smart mobile gadgets -- the iPod, iPhone and the iPad.

His passing will raise doubts over whether the Cupertino, California-based company can continue its dominance in the hugely competitive technology sector.

Jobs is survived by his wife Laurene, with whom he had three children. He also had a daughter with a woman he dated prior to marrying. (AFP)

ISI arranged `talks between US officials and Haqqanis`

WASHINGTON: US officials recently held secret talks with the Haqqani network and this meeting had been set up by Pakistan`s Inter-Services Intelligence agency, the US media reported on Wednesday.

A key leader of this faction, Sirajuddin Haqqani, had earlier told the BBC that the US had approached him about joining the Afghan government.

The US State Department, when asked to comment on the reports, said any group which wanted to engage with the US in Afghanistan must give up violence and should be willing to work with the Afghan government.

“We insist, as do the Afghans, that anybody who is reconciled or who is pursuing reconciliation has to renounce violence,” said State Department spokesperson Victoria Nuland when asked to comment on the reported contact with the Haqqani group.

“They have to abandon their ties, cut their ties with Al Qaeda, they have to abide by the laws and the constitution of Afghanistan, including respecting the rights of women and ethnic minorities,” she added.

“Now, I`m not going to talk about any specifics and meetings and this and that. Within that umbrella this is an Afghan-led process,” said the US official when a journalist asked her to confirm or deny if Washington had held talks with the Haqqanis.

“I will say to you, again, what we`ve been saying for some two weeks very firmly with regard to the Haqqani network. Job one in our relationship with Pakistan is for us to work on the terror and the problem that they are posing to Pakistan, to the US, to Afghanistan,” she added.

“If a person had been or were a member of the Haqqani network but then renounced violence and met the criteria that you`ve had for now quite a long time, they might be able to be part of reconciliation?” asked a journalist. “Again, these are the Afghans` criteria, these are our criteria, but I`m not going to comment on any specific conversations that are going on under that umbrella. But those are the criteria that we require, yes, and the Afghans require,” said the US official.

Earlier Wednesday, the US media reported that American officials had secretly met leaders of the Haqqani network during this summer, despite their reservations about the group`s link to Al Qaeda. Read more at Dawn.com

Angry MPs call for resignations over Balochistan killings

ISLAMABAD: The National Assembly was outraged across party lines on Tuesday by the killing of at least 13 people in a sectarian attack near Quetta, with some government allies demanding that the interior minister and the Balochistan chief minister resign and the federal government impose governor’s rule in the troubled province.

But the main opposition party, Pakistan Muslim League-N (PML-N), reserved its more bitter attack of the day against the PPP-led coalition government over power cuts, with one party member threatening a protest outside the Presidency before staging a second walkout in as many days of its protest agitation.

The Muttahida Qaumi Movement (MQM), which had stayed away from Monday’s walkout like other smaller opposition parties, joined this time, though one PML-N member from Punjab, Rashid Akbar Khan Nawani, stayed behind in the house while his other colleagues marched out, ignoring a challenge from PPP’s Jamshed Dasti to “show moral courage” to listen to his response and a jibe: “They (PML-N leadership) ran away the same way after signing a deal with General Musharraf (for exile in Saudi Arabia).”

Prime Minister Yousuf Raza Gilani, who was present in the house for some time, did not respond to the demands for resignations and governor’s rule from lawmakers of two allied parties, including a federal minister, and a Pakistan People’s Party (PPP) dissident from Quetta, in speeches during an unscheduled debate, most of whose participants described the attack as target-killing of members of the Hazara Shia community as had happened in a Sept 20 attack that killed 26 Hazara pilgrims in Balochistan’s Mastung district while they were on their way to Iran.

Interior Minister Rehman Malik was not present in the house at the time when some members lambasted him and Balochistan Chief Minister Aslam Raisani for their perceived failures to maintain law and order in the province. Read more

Afghanistan, India sign security accord

NEW DELHI: India and Afghanistan signed a security pact here on Tuesday after assessments by both that they were targets of the ubiquitous Haqqani group of the Taliban network increasingly accused of being a cat’s paw for Pakistan’s military.

The pact, they said, was not directed against any country or group of countries and it follows announcement in Islamabad that Indian Prime Minister Manmohan Singh had accepted an invitation to visit Pakistan.

It was officially stated that Afghan President Hamid Karzai and Prime Minister Singh held “detailed and frank discussions”, including on the issue of terrorism, after which Dr Singh said the people of Afghanistan “deserve to live in peace and decide their future themselves without outside interference, coercion and intimidation”.

Afghanistan and senior US officials have accused the ISI of helping the Pakistan-based Haqqani group, a charge Islamabad has strenuously denied.

Significantly for President Karzai’s visit to New Delhi the national security advisers in Delhi and Kabul hold a similar view.

WikiLeaks documents published by Dawn recently revealed former US ambassador to India Timothy Roemer as quoting India’s National Security Advisor Shivshankar Menon about his Haqqani worry.

“India endured serial bombing attacks throughout 2008, two attacks on its embassy in Kabul — one he (Menon) attributed to the Haqqani network and the other to Lashkar-e-Taiba — and then the November 26, 2008 attacks in Mumbai…

“Menon lamented that Pakistan had shown itself to be unable or unwilling to wean itself off from terror as an instrument of state policy,” Mr Roemer said.

An official document on Tuesday said the strategic dialogue between Delhi and Kabul would provide a framework for cooperation in the area of national security. The two sides said the dialogue would be led by the NSAs and involve regular consultations with the aim of intensifying mutual efforts towards strengthening regional peace and security.

Security cooperation between the two sides is intended to help enhance their respective and mutual efforts in the fight against international terrorism, organised crime, illegal trafficking in narcotics and money laundering.Read mroe at Dawn.com

In Libya feat, NATO draws harsh lessons

BRUSSELS: NATO allies are savouring a bittersweet achievement in Libya: while the air campaign appears close to victory, the mission exposed major frailties in their ability to carry out a fight.

While Libya’s new regime battles to defeat the last forces loyal to deposed dictator Moamer Kadhafi, NATO defence ministers will draw lessons from the six-month mission during talks Wednesday and Thursday.

With one conflict drawing to an end, the 28-nation alliance will also take stock of the war in Afghanistan, which marks 10 years on Friday amid plans by NATO allies to withdraw combat troops by 2014.

“Our operation to protect civilians (in Libya) has been a great success,”said NATO Secretary General Anders Fogh Rasmussen.

While the mission is “close to an end,” the ministers will not terminate it this week because Kadhafi forces are still attacking civilians, he told a news conference on Monday.

NATO warplanes prevented Kadhafi from crushing a rebellion that erupted in February while daily bombing runs left the fugitive former leader’s military in tatters, allowing the ragtag rebel army to take over the country in August.

It is also the first NATO operation with Europeans in the driver’s seat while the United States took a backup role.

But Operation Unified Protector revealed shortcomings within the 28-nation alliance, with some allies refusing to participate while those who did relied heavily on the United States for key intelligence and logistics support.

Only eight NATO states took part in bombing missions — France, Britain, Canada, Belgium, Denmark, Norway, Italy and the United States — while Germany and Poland irked allies by staying out of the fight.

“Our wish is that, when a similar operation presents itself, a higher number of European allies will have the desire and capabilities to intervene,”the French ambassador to NATO, Philippe Errera, told reporters. “But these remain national decisions.”Europeans are under pressure from the United States to avoid drastic cuts in defence spending but a debt crisis is forcing governments to impose austerity programmes that have not spared armies.

“Our engagements in Libya and Afghanistan showed areas where allies must continue to improve their capabilities, such as drones, intelligence and air-to-air refuelling,” Rasmussen said.

“We cannot count on one ally to provide these assets,” said the NATO chief, referring to the United States.

The US military is facing its own budgetary constraints, under orders from President Barack Obama to find about $350-400 billion (265-300 billion euros) in cuts over the next 10 years. Read more at Dawn.com

Indian PM accepts invitation to visit Pakistan, says Fahim

ISLAMABAD: Commerce Minister Amin Fahim formally invited on Monday Indian Prime Minister Dr Manmohan Singh to visit Pakistan, reviving hopes that the two countries would fully exploit the potential of economic and business ties.

Mr Fahim extended the invitation during a meeting with Dr Manmohan in New Delhi at the end of his visit, said a statement issued by the commerce ministry in Islamabad. The minister extended his three-day (Sept-27-30) trip and visited shrines of Sufis and other tourist spots in India.

On return from India, Mr Fahim told reporters that the Indian prime minister has accepted the invitation to visit Pakistan.
However, he did not say when would Mr Singh visit Islamabad.

Indian Commerce and Industry Minister Anand Sharma is scheduled to visit Pakistan next month as the head of a delegation of businessmen.

Mr Fahim expressed the hope that all hurdles would be removed to achieve the bilateral trade target of $6 billion over the next three years. According to him, the Indian prime minister said India wanted to see Pakistan a prosperous country.

Mr Fahim said the Indian decision to reverse its earlier stand of blocking the EU trade package at the WTO would benefit Pakistan.

The package was due to be implemented in January, but delayed because of resistance by India. The issue is now likely to be taken up for consideration on Oct 20.

According to the commerce ministry, Mr Fahim praised active participation and keen interest taken by Pakistani and Indian business communities at business conclaves organised by the Federation of Indian Chambers of Commerce and Industry in Mumbai and New Delhi.

Dr Manmohan stressed that Pakistan and India should jointly fight poverty. He assured Mr Fahim of his government’s full cooperation in boosting trade between the two neighbouring countries. (Dawn.com)

Haqqani network denies killing Rabbani, ISI ties

KARACHI: The Haqqani network has categorically denied its involvement in the assassination of the former Afghanistan president Burhannudin Rabbani, said a media report on Monday.

Sirajuddin Haqqani, the son of Jalaluddin Haqqani, in his audio message told the BBC that his organisation had no links with Pakistan’s Inter-Services Intelligence (ISI).

The BBC had passed on questions for the militant leader through an intermediary, who returned with the audio response.

The report published on the BBC website quoted Siraj Haqqani as saying: “We haven’t killed Burhanuddin Rabbani and this has been said many times by the spokespersons of the Islamic Emirate.”

Talking about his group’s ties with the ISI, Siraj said that during the 1980s mujahideen fighters “had contacts with the intelligence agencies of Pakistan and other countries, but after the invasion by the Americans there have never been contacts by intelligence agencies of other countries which could be effective for us”.

He also said accusations of links to the ISI were an attempt “to hide their failure and to confuse people’s minds”.Read more

Pakistan doing more than its share, says Khar

WASHINGTON: Foreign Minister Hina Rabbani Khar said in an interview aired on Sunday that Pakistan was doing more than its share in fighting the Frankenstein of terror created jointly by many world powers, including the United States.

She argued that instead of casting aspersions on Pakistan, its US-led allies should do their share of the burden in the common struggle. She cautioned against alienating the Pakistani people with “incorrect, biased” statements against her country, which has done the most and suffered the most in the common struggle against terrorists operating in the Afghan border region. She also called for more engagement and not disengagement between counterterror partners, the US and Pakistan. “This Frankenstein was not created by Pakistan,” she pushed back at the claim that it was Pakistan which produced terrorists. “This Frankenstein was financed and assisted by many world powers including that of the US,” she said appearing in CNN’s GPS programme.


Published in The Express Tribune, October 3rd, 2011.

Afghanistan says Rabbani’s killer was Pakistani

KABUL: Afghanistan said on Sunday that the suicide bomber who assassinated Afghan peace negotiator Burhanuddin Rabbani was a Pakistani national.

Tensions between the neighbours have been rising amid allegations from Afghan officials that Pakistan and its powerful ISI intelligence agency masterminded Rabbani’s assassination and are seeking to destabilise Afghanistan.

An investigative delegation established by President Hamid Karzai said evidence and a confession provided by a man involved in Rabbani’s killing on Sept. 20 had revealed that the bomber was from Chaman and the assassination had been plotted in Quetta, both on the Pakistani side of the border.

“It proves that the assassination of Professor Rabbani was hatched in Quetta and the man who carried out the suicide bombing is a Pakistani national,” the delegation, led by Defence Minister Abdul Rahim Wardak, said in a statement issued by the presidential palace.

“The documents and evidence in hand, details of other accomplices and their phone numbers have been handed over to Pakistan to make arrests,” it said.

Rabbani’s killing derailed efforts to forge dialogue with the Taliban to end the 10-year war, and raised fears of a dangerous widening of Afghanistan’s ethnic rifts.

The High Peace Council, which Rabbani headed, reiterated earlier comments by Karzai that negotiations should continue, but with Pakistan, rather than the Taliban.

“For the groups that are tired of conflict and want to end the killings and destruction inside the country, peace efforts must continue,” the council said in a separate statement issued late on Sunday.

“But because of those who hide in Pakistan with no known address, who send killers (to Afghanistan), we must negotiate with Pakistan instead.”

Hundreds of Afghans took to the streets of Kabul on Sunday to condemn recent shelling of border towns by Pakistan’s army and accuse the ISI of involvement in Rabbani’s killing.

This Articel Orignaly Published at AP Dawn.com

Elizabeth Hurley thankful for wedding well-wishes

Elizabeth Hurley has thanked well-wishers after confirming her engagement.

The 46-year-old British actress has been dating Australian cricketer Shane Warne for just ten months. Shane is believed to have proposed at the Old Course Hotel in St. Andrews, Scotland, on Friday night.

Elizabeth and Shane both took to their Twitter accounts to reveal their happy news after engagement rumours surfaced yesterday.

"Thanks for all your congratulations,” they posted in identical messages. “Here's a pic of us about to go to Dunhill dinner in St Andrews."

The picture was taken just before the pair went for dinner at the exclusive hotel, where Shane popped the question.

The 42-year-old is believed to have publicly asked Elizabeth in front of a roomful of diners at the Road Hole restaurant.

Elizabeth proudly showed off her stunning engagement ring yesterday. As they posed at the Alfred Dunhill Links championship golf tournament, Elizabeth displayed the band – which boasts an impressive square sapphire and a diamond on either side.

The couple were first seen together in December last year, after they were spotted kissing in London.

Elizabeth’s divorce from businessman Arun Nayar was finalised in June. Read more at Film-News uk

ISLAMABAD:Covert agreements with US be made public: Nawaz

Dawn.com: PML-N chief Mian Nawaz Sharif asked the government on Friday to disclose terms of engagement with the United States under which the so-called war on terror was being fought.

He said at a press conference that the nation had the right to be informed about the covert agreements.

According to official estimates, he said, the country had suffered a loss of $69 billion during the war on terror and sacrificed thousands of lives. “But in return we are getting threats and being treated as an accused.”

He said flawed policies of the government formulated after bypassing parliament were responsible for the current situation. He also criticised the government for ignoring political parties while taking major decisions.

The government’s attitude, he said, encouraged violations of the country’s sovereignty.

Had the government taken a firm stand on the Raymond Davis issue, it would have received support from international community.

He said the CIA operative had been released in a mysterious manner.

He said it was meaningless to talk about self-respect, national pride and sovereignty without breaking the begging bowl.

He called for preparing a consensus economic agenda for 10 to 20 years and proposed an amendment to the constitution to put a bar on taking foreign loans. He said the consensus agenda would be binding on future governments and they would be required to follow it in letter and spirit.

“Anyone deviating from the agenda should be thrown out,” he said.

The PML-N chief said no single political party or individual could steer the country out of the present crisis, adding that only collective efforts could help the country adopt the path of self-reliance and economic stability.

He termed the Abbottabad operation carried out by US Navy Seals to kill Osama bin Laden a violation of national sovereignty and regretted that President Asif Ali Zardari had written an article praising the operation while Prime Minister Yousuf Raza Gilani declared it a great victory.

Answering a question, he said the resolution adopted by the APC was an important message to the United States that the political and military leadership was united on national issues.

He said the people of Pakistan would defend the country’s territorial integrity with the might of a united nation.

“It is not possible to defeat the resolve of 180 million people,” he said.

He described the APC resolution as a test for the government and said he still had doubts if it would be implemented.

He said the government was undermining credibility of democracy just like former military ruler Gen (retd) Pervez Musharraf had damaged the credibility of the armed forces for the sake of his personal interests.

He said the people of the country were reeling under terrible inflation. Unemployment has touched new levels and the energy crisis was leading to closure of industries. The debt burden has exceeded $60 billion.

Mr Sharif urged the government to mend its ways, take steps to end corruption and implement decisions of the superior judiciary.

Stress on peace with ‘our own people’

In this photo released by the Press Information Department, Pakistan's opposition leader Nawaz Sharif, right, shakes hands with Pakistan's army chief Gen. Ashfaq Kiyani during their meeting in Islamabad, Pakistan on Thursday, Sept 29, 2011. - AP Photo

ISLAMABAD: The all-party conference which brought under one roof on Thursday politicians of diverse hues, some of them always at daggers drawn, resolved to lay stress on peace and negotiations, instead of military operation.

While the military leadership, including the ISI chief Lt General Shuja Pasha, reportedly rubbished the allegations levelled recently by some top US officials, a 13-point resolution adopted by the conference said Pakistan must initiate dialogue with a view to negotiating “peace with our own people in the tribal areas” and should put in place a proper mechanism for this.

The resolution, signed by leaders of all political parties attending the conference, didn’t mention the Haqqani network that has been called a ‘veritable arm’ of the ISI by US Joint Chiefs of Staff Chairman Adm Mike Mullen nor did it make any direct reference to the US pressure on Pakistan to take military action against the Haqqanis.

But in an obvious reference to the tough posture adopted by a section in the US administration it said that as a peace-loving country Pakistan desired to establish and maintain friendly and cordial relations with all countries of the world on the basis of sovereign equality, mutual interest and respect.

Prime Minister Yousuf Raza Gilani who had convened the conference set its tone with a categorical declaration that Pakistan was in no position to accept the ‘do more’ dictation. He said: “Our national interest must be respected and honoured. And Pakistan cannot be pressured to do more.”

PML-N chief Nawaz Sharif put some tough questions to the military leadership. He said the country had increasingly become isolated in the world and there must be some reason for that, sources quoted him as saying at the in-camera meeting. Read more at Dawn.com

Gas explosion in Islamabad hotel injures six

ISLAMABAD: An apparent gas explosion at a hotel in a commercial area of Islamabad on Thursday injured six people, rescue officials said.

While the blast on the Citi Hotel’s fifth floor was still being investigated, senior police official Beni-Amin Khan said the cause was “apparently” a gas leak.

“Apparently, it was caused by a gas leakage,” he said. “There is no smell of explosives and gas is still emitting from one pipe. However, we are still checking.”

Six people were wounded in the blast, but none was seriously injured. The explosion damaged four rooms in the hotel, and video from the scene showed sidewalks littered with shattered glass.

Earlier a powerful explosion at a commercial hotel located in Blue area shook the capital.

According to Express 24/7 correspondent, Sabur Ali Syed said that the blast took place at the six storiedCiti hotel in Blue area of Islamabad.

He said that police had cordoned off the blast site and would be investigating the cause and nature of the blast.

The injured were shifted to PIMS hospital in Islamabad.

This Articel Orignaly Published at Express Tribune pk

Khar returns from US visit

ISLAMABAD: Foreign Minister Hina Rabbani Khar has returned on Thursday morning from the United States after attending the United Nations General Assembly meeting, DawnNews reported.

Ms Khar is expected to attend and brief the All Parties Conference (APC) convened by Prime Minister Yousuf Raza Gilani today to discuss the situation arising out of serious allegations levelled by US officials against Pakistan’s armed forces and the ISI.

She refused to talk to the media representatives after her arrival at the Islamabad airport.

This Articel Orignaly Published at DAwn.com