Trenches around capital

ISLAMABAD, May 21: In the backdrop of Abbottabad operation, the capital police plan to reduce entry and exit points by digging trenches and installing barricades around the city, Dawn has learnt. However some officers have opposed the move, fearing it will cut off the people living in the outskirts from Islamabad, forcing them to take [...]

Six killed on road

CHAKWAL, May 21: Six passengers, including a woman and her two sons, were killed and 11 others injured in a traffic accident near here on Saturday. The accident occurred when a passenger van (E-6279) going to Rawalpindi from Chakwal collided with a truck (RIG-2995) coming from the opposite direction near Kohinoor Mills. "One person died [...]

Long wait for official house

Having official accommodation in Islamabad is a dream for government employees but for many it never becomes a reality. For the government houses said to be in thousands, the number of aspirants runs into hundreds of thousands. To make matters worse, unjustified and illegal allotment of government houses deprives the eligible people of having official [...]

Court orders probe into ‘illegal’ marriage

ATTOCK, May 21: Additional and District Judge Chaudhry Anwaar Ahmad Khan has ordered a probe after a man complained that a policeman has illegally married his wife. The court asked the district police officer (DPO) to appoint a police officer to probe into the case and submit a report within one month. Making Inspector Akhlas [...]

Student found murdered

MURREE, May 21: A 10th class student found murdered in the forest near his house, police sources said on Saturday. Sajid Mehmood son of Mohammad Jumma, resident of Nand Kot went to school but did not return home. At this, his mother got worried and informed his father who was working as labourer at Bhara [...]

Russia to push restraint in Arab world, nuclear safety at G8

MOSCOW: Russian President Dmitry Medvedev will talk up the benefits of restraint in the Arab world and push for new rules on nuclear safety when he attends a key world summit in France this month. On May 26 and 27 the Kremlin chief and his counterparts from the Group of Eight (G8) wealthy nations will [...]

Pomp and power politics on Obama’s Europe tour

WASHINGTON: US President Barack Obama leaves Sunday on a major European tour mixing pomp, personal history and great power diplomacy shaped by the historic uprisings raging through the Arab world. Obama is seeking support for his plan to spur democracy after revolts in Tunisia and Egypt and may face pressure from Europe for a more [...]

Growing China-Pak ties worry India

NEW DELHI: India views with 'serious concern' growing defence ties between China and Pakistan and says it will have to bolster its own military capabilities to meet the challenge. "It is a matter of serious concern for us. The main thing is we have to increase our capability — that is the only answer," Defence [...]

‘China agrees to run Gwadar port’

ISLAMABAD: Defence Minister Chaudhry Ahmed Mukhtar said on Saturday that China had "acceded to Pakistan's request to take over operations" of the Gwadar port as soon as the agreement with the Singapore Port Authority expired. The minister, who had accompanied the prime minister during his visit to China, issued a statement to press about the [...]

The battle for prime ministership

KARACHI: A week before the 2008 elections, former PPP Co-Chairperson Asif Zardari was asking General Pervez Musharraf’s National Security Adviser Tariq Aziz for “advice” on “who should be prime minister if the PPP were asked to form the government.” These and other fresh insights are provided from previously unpublished US diplomatic cables about what the [...]

2008: Extremist recruitment on the rise in south Punjab madrassahs

178082 11/13/2008 10:30 08LAHORE302 Consulate Lahore SECRET//NOFORN “ACTION SCA-00 O 131030Z NOV 08 FM AMCONSUL LAHORE TO SECSTATE WASHDC IMMEDIATE 3818 INFO AMEMBASSY ISLAMABAD IMMEDIATE AMCONSUL KARACHI PRIORITY AMCONSUL PESHAWAR PRIORITY AMEMBASSY NEW DELHI AMEMBASSY KABUL NATIONAL SECURITY COUNCIL WASHINGTON DC CIA WASHDC SECDEF WASHINGTON DC JOINT STAFF WASHINGTON DC CDR USCENTCOM MACDILL AFB FL [...]

2009: Punjab Home Secretary fears Hafiz Saeed’s release

208236            5/22/2009 5:41            09LAHORE99 Consulate Lahore         CONFIDENTIAL                   “O R 220541Z MAY 09 FM AMCONSUL LAHORE TO SECSTATE WASHDC IMMEDIATE 4041 INFO CIA WASHDC JOINT STAFF WASHINGTON DC AMEMBASSY KABUL AMCONSUL KARACHI AMEMBASSY LONDON AMEMBASSY NEW DELHI NSC WASHINGTON DC AMCONSUL PESHAWAR SECDEF WASHINGTON DC USCENTCOM INTEL CEN MACDILL AFB FL AMCONSUL LAHORE “           “C O [...]

2008: Aziz prefers likable but weak Faheem over Zardari

141548 2/15/2008 4:12 08ISLAMABAD676 Embassy Islamabad SECRET 08ISLAMABAD549 “VZCZCXRO9025 OO RUEHLH RUEHPW DE RUEHIL #0676/01 0460412 ZNY SSSSS ZZH O 150412Z FEB 08 FM AMEMBASSY ISLAMABAD TO RUEHC/SECSTATE WASHDC IMMEDIATE 5131 INFO RUEHBUL/AMEMBASSY KABUL PRIORITY 8160 RUEHLO/AMEMBASSY LONDON PRIORITY 7261 RUEHNE/AMEMBASSY NEW DELHI PRIORITY 2810 RUEHKP/AMCONSUL KARACHI PRIORITY 8952 RUEHLH/AMCONSUL LAHORE PRIORITY 4823 RUEHPW/AMCONSUL PESHAWAR [...]

2009: Southern Punjab extremism battle between haves and have-nots

230969            10/23/2009 3:49          09ISLAMABAD2576 Embassy Islamabad      CONFIDENTIAL                   “VZCZCXRO7776 PP RUEHLH RUEHPW DE RUEHIL #2576/01 2960349 ZNY CCCCC ZZH P 230349Z OCT 09 FM AMEMBASSY ISLAMABAD TO RUEHC/SECSTATE WASHDC PRIORITY 5519 INFO RUEHBUL/AMEMBASSY KABUL 1033 RUEHLO/AMEMBASSY LONDON 1590 RUEHNE/AMEMBASSY NEW DELHI 5635 RUEHPW/AMCONSUL PESHAWAR 7056 RUEHLH/AMCONSUL LAHORE 8010 RUEHKP/AMCONSUL KARACHI 2412 RUEAIIA/CIA WASHINGTON DC RUEKJCS/SECDEF [...]

Loadshedding to continue for years: Qamar

ISLAMABAD: Federal Minister for Water and Power Syed Naveed Qamar announced on Saturday that electricity tariff would be enhanced by two per cent in June and said loadshedding would continue for several more years. The two per cent increase in tariff would allow the authorities to recover the cost of generating electricity, he said at [...]

Drones fuel terrorism, says Imran

KARACHI: Tehrik-i-Insaf chief Imran Khan has said that the "war on terror" is not Pakistan's war and it is harming the country's integrity. Addressing thousands of supporters at a rally held on Saturday at the Natives Jetty bridge leading to the Karachi harbour, he said that drone and other such attacks were breeding terrorism. Imran [...]

Interest rate unchanged at 14pc

KARACHI: The State Bank of Pakistan has kept the policy interest rate (discount rate) unchanged at 14 per cent for the next two months. The central bank announced the monetary policy on Saturday, expressing grave concern over government borrowing from the banking system and persistent double-digit inflation. However, it revised its earlier assessment about inflation. [...]

Delay in completion of EC causes bypoll postponement

ISLAMABAD: The Election Commission has postponed the by-election scheduled to be held on May 24 for the Balochistan Assembly constituency, PB-26, Jaffarabad-II. The Supreme Court had earlier questioned the legitimacy of the previously held by-elections in the light of the 18th Amendment. Justice Javed Iqbal of the Supreme Court, who is the acting Chief Election [...]

Discord persists over unilateral strikes, says FO

ISLAMABAD: Differences with Washington over an Abbottabad-like unilateral action against terrorists on Pakistan territory have yet to be sorted out and the two sides are negotiating the matter, the Foreign Office said on Saturday. "The most important thing is to have reasonable and reasoned discussions at official level with the US government and those continue," [...]

2008: Before elections: Zardari upset over Faheem-Musharraf meeting

136099            1/2/2008 12:56            08ISLAMABAD9       Embassy Islamabad      CONFIDENTIAL            07ISLAMABAD5395|08ISLAMABAD1        “VZCZCXRO3203 OO RUEHLH RUEHPW DE RUEHIL #0009/01 0021256 ZNY CCCCC ZZH O 021256Z JAN 08 FM AMEMBASSY ISLAMABAD TO RUEHC/SECSTATE WASHDC IMMEDIATE 4154 INFO RUEHBUL/AMEMBASSY KABUL PRIORITY 7980 RUEHLO/AMEMBASSY LONDON PRIORITY 6987 RUEHNE/AMEMBASSY NEW DELHI PRIORITY 2578 RUEHRH/AMEMBASSY RIYADH PRIORITY 5742 RUEHKP/AMCONSUL KARACHI PRIORITY 8541 RUEHLH/AMCONSUL LAHORE [...]

Statement on Kasab was made after consultation: Gen Durrani

ISLAMABAD: Major General (retd) Mahmud Ali Durrani, a former national security adviser to the prime minister, has disclosed that the much-talked about decision to reveal the identity of Ajmal Kasab, the lone survivor of Mumbai terror attacks, to the media was his own, but that it was taken after consultations with all important officials, [...]

2008: Amin Faheem unprepared to become PM

139894            2/4/2008 12:55            08ISLAMABAD505   Embassy Islamabad      CONFIDENTIAL            08ISLAMABAD505   “VZCZCXRO8836 OO RUEHLH RUEHPW DE RUEHIL #0505/01 0351255 ZNY CCCCC ZZH O 041255Z FEB 08 FM AMEMBASSY ISLAMABAD TO RUEHC/SECSTATE WASHDC IMMEDIATE 4838 INFO RUEHBUL/AMEMBASSY KABUL PRIORITY 8109 RUEHLO/AMEMBASSY LONDON PRIORITY 7176 RUEHNE/AMEMBASSY NEW DELHI PRIORITY 2741 RUEHKP/AMCONSUL KARACHI PRIORITY 8826 RUEHLH/AMCONSUL LAHORE PRIORITY 4733 RUEHPW/AMCONSUL PESHAWAR [...]

Kayani, politicians asked US to intervene in Zardari-Sharifs row

[Kayani, politicians asked US to intervene in Zardari-Sharifs row]   195795            3/7/2009 16:44            09ISLAMABAD495   Embassy Islamabad      CONFIDENTIAL            09ISLAMABAD488|09LAHORE41   “VZCZCXRO3255 OO RUEHLH RUEHPW DE RUEHIL #0495/01 0661644 ZNY CCCCC ZZH O 071644Z MAR 09 FM AMEMBASSY ISLAMABAD TO RUEHC/SECSTATE WASHDC IMMEDIATE 1774 INFO RUEHBUL/AMEMBASSY KABUL PRIORITY 9941 RUEHLO/AMEMBASSY LONDON PRIORITY 9827 RUEHNE/AMEMBASSY NEW DELHI PRIORITY 4564 [...]

IMF board to meet on Strauss-Kahn successor

WASHINGTON: Acting IMF chief John Lipsky said the Fund’s executive board would meet later Thursday to launch the search for a successor to managing director Dominique Strauss-Kahn, who resigned to face sex charges. "My understanding is that they will meet today to begin the process," said Lipsky. "This is the responsibility of the membership, not [...]

Obama seeks to recast ties with skeptical Arab world

WASHINGTON: President Barack Obama on Thursday invoked the killing of Osama bin Laden as a chance to recast relations with the Arab world and said the top US priority was to promote democratic change across the region. Obama, in his much-anticipated "Arab spring" speech, also ratcheted up pressure on Syrian leader Bashar al-Assad, saying for [...]

Movement of foreigners to be regularised: Malik

ISLAMABAD: Movement of foreigners would be regularised and any foreigner/ diplomat will be sent back to his station of duty if he was found without legal permit of visit to specific area. This was decided at a high level meeting, with representation of PPOs and Home Secretaries of the provinces was held in Ministry of [...]

Argentina plane crash kills 22: official

BUENOS AIRES: A small commercial plane crashed in an isolated part of Patagonia in southern Argentina late Wednesday, killing all 22 people on board, officials said. "We did not find anyone alive. There were no survivors. The plane is in multiple charred fragments. Everything is burnt and smashed to pieces," said local hospital director Ismael [...]

Bin Laden audio praises Arab protests

CAIRO: In a recording made shortly before his death, Osama bin Laden praised the mass protests that have toppled and shaken longtime rulers across the Arab world while trying to cast a role for al-Qaida in the region’s future. Bin Laden’s message, released on militant websites Thursday and addressed to ”the Muslim nation,” represents an [...]

Four injured in fresh Afghan anti-Nato protest

KABUL: Four people were injured in fresh protests in Afghanistan Thursday as the UN urged "restraint" a day after 14 people died in demonstrations against a Nato-led military operation. Around 200 people gathered in the streets of Taloqan in the northeastern province of Takhar for a second day with some attacking the town’s police compound [...]

Unchained melody

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