<b>Quetta-based Taliban move to Karachi</b><!--QuoteBegin-->QUOTE<!--QuoteEBegin-->PESHAWAR - Fearing US drone attacks, <b>a large number of Talibanâs Afghan leaders have shifted from Quetta to Karachi, Peshawar and other cities.</b>
TheNation has learnt from some highly reliable sources that Taliban leaders after discussing in detail the situation, <b>caused by recent threats of drone attacks by the United States, United Kingdom and other allies, had decided to vacate Quetta with immediate effect. </b>
<b>The sources said that majority of the top leaders have shifted to Karachi, Peshawar and other areas of Pakistan and are now living in a low profile.</b> The sources also informed that <b>Taliban leaders are under tremendous pressure of âcertain friends to have âunderstandingâ with both Iran and China.â</b>Moreover, Taliban leadership has intensified efforts for collecting maximum donations from their Arab worldâs well-wishers and in this respect Maulvi Hamdullah has been made Taliban representative for the Gulf region. Moreover, Taliban supreme leader Mullah Muhammad Omar Akhund has written letters to around one thousands well-wishers and philanthropists asking them for funds. Most of these well-wishers belonged to the United Arab Emirates, Saudi Arabia and Qatar.
Maulana Hamdullah is considered amongst the most confidential aide to Mullah Omar since 1994. He had been heading the Finance Department in Qandahar during Talibanâs rule from 1994 till November 2001.
Meanwhile, Taliban leadership has also announced posting of Maulvi Qudratullah Jamal as Liaison Officer for the well-wishers and friends throughout the world. Maulana Qudratullah Jamal had been a minister in Taliban regime.
<b>The Taliban leadership has also posted Maulvi Muatasem as head of Finance Committee, Maulvi Abdul Kabir as head of political Affairs Committee, Maulvi Aminullah as Commander for Orazgaan province, Amir Khan Mutaqqi as head of Culture and Information, Mullah Jalil as head for Interior Affairs and Mullah Baradar as special aide to Mullah Omar.</b>
The sources informed that purpose of this reshuffling is to stimulate Taliban activities all over Afghanistan. Despite finalizing frequent strategies, the Taliban militants are yet to embark on summer offensive against the United States-led allies in Afghanistan.
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<b>Emergency US aid for Pakistan unlikely: Top senator</b><!--QuoteBegin-->QUOTE<!--QuoteEBegin-->WASHINGTON: The US Congress is unlikely to pass an emergency aid package for Pakistan separate from a broader measure to fund wars in Iraq and Afghanistan, a leading senator said Thursday.
"I don't think it's likely," Democratic Senator Richard Durbin said when asked whether the senate would take up a Pakistan aid measure before the 83.4-billion-dollar supplemental spending legislation for the two conflicts.
That package includes about 1.4 billion dollars for Pakistan but may not pass the US Congress for weeks, and some lawmakers have warned that it could be too late to help the "war on terror" ally.
<b>US President Barack Obama's administration has said it wants to speed up to 400 million dollars for Pakistan, and told lawmakers that it may seek other avenues for the funding if they fail to act, according to congressional aides</b>. <!--QuoteEnd--><!--QuoteEEnd-->
<b>ISLAMABAD : Prime Minister Syed Yusuf Raza Gilani on Thursday urged the NATO and ISAF to effectively deal with the issue of poppy cultivation in Afghanistan and drug trafficking which still remains the main source of funding for extremists and terrorist elements.
This has led to exporting numerous problems to Pakistan and stressed that the elimination of poppy cultivation is the key for defeating the menace of terrorism in the region, he added.</b> The Prime Minister was talking to an eight-member delegation of the British Select Committee on Foreign Affairs of the House of Commons headed by Mike Capes which called on him here at the PM House on Thursday.
The Prime Minister said that âthe UK Policy on Afghanistan and Pakistan: The Way Forwardâ announced by the British Prime Minister yesterday has many aspects which require careful examination and further clarifications.
He said that the policy acknowledges Pakistanâs position that military option alone cannot resolve the problems of insecurity, insurgency and terrorism while placing emphasis on the development dimension which his government has been advocating since long.
He however stressed that the policy must also recognize that the problems faced by Pakistan today are rooted in decades old conflict in Afghanistan; that Pakistan and Afghanistan have distinctly different political and institutional traditions and hence they must not be bracketed together for finding solutions of the problems faced by them.
The Prime Minister assured the British delegation of his governmentâs steadfast and unwavering commitment to fight the menace of extremism and terrorism but highlighted the urgency of capacity building of Pakistani Law Enforcing Agencies and Armed Forces as promised by important countries like US and UK.
The Prime Minister apprised the British MPs of the sense of anxiety generated amongst the people of Pakistan in and outside the country because of the arrests of Pakistani students in UK and urged them to play their role in ensuring that the people of Pakistani origin are not discriminated against in any way.
He added that since no evidence was found against the arrested Pakistani students, they should not be deported and be allowed to complete their studies.
He welcomed the heightened exchanges between Pakistan and UK in all levels and underlined the importance of people to people contacts and parliamentary exchanges for eliminating any possible misperceptions and misunderstandings in otherwise cordial relations between the two countries.
The British delegation expressed their understanding of the ground realities and the challenges being faced by Pakistan. They agreed with the Prime Minister on the need of evolving mechanism to check cross border movement of undesirable elements from both sides.
The leader of the delegation appreciated Pakistanâs role and sacrifices in the campaign against terrorism and assured that the British government will extend full support in this regard
<!--QuoteBegin-->QUOTE<!--QuoteEBegin-->ISLAMABAD : Pakistan has said on Thursday it has been looking into various options including appointment of neutral expert or arbitrator by World Bank to resolve the issue of water with India.
"Indus Commissioner Pakistan wrote a letter to India in March but Pakistan has not received satisfactory answer to the question and now considering other options," said Foreign Office Spokesman Abdul Basit in his weekly briefing here at Foreign Office.
The Spokesman said Pakistan would approach World Bank to appoint arbitrator to resolve the water dispute with India. He said peaceful resolution of long-standing issue of Jammu Kashmir between Pakistan and India was vital for ensuring peace and security in the region.
The Spokesman said besides many other issues between Pakistan and India, Kashmir was the most important issue that needs to be settled as early as possible.
Referring to some statements from Indian leaders about intentions and capacity of Pakistan to counter terrorism, the Spokesman said such statements emanating from India are 'irresponsible'. He said it is non-serious attitude from New Delhi.<!--QuoteEnd--><!--QuoteEEnd-->
By Farhan Bokhari in Islamabad and James Lamont in New,Delhi
Published: April 30 2009 03:00 | Last updated: April 30 2009 03:00
Pakistan's senior civil and military officials are sharing tightly held information about the country's nuclear arms programme with western countries in an effort to allay fears about the security of weapons in the face of a Taliban advance.
The decision highlights global concerns about the safety of up to 100 atom bombs in Pakistan's possession, as the country tries to repel Taliban militants who advanced last week to within 100km of Islamabad. Pakistan is secretive about its nuclear programme, developed outside the non-proliferation treaty in an arms race with India.
A senior western envoy in Islamabad said diplomats had been given assurances about the security in place for the weapons systems and also their distance from Taliban-held territory.
Pakistani officials presented this as action to satisfy the west that its weapons would not fall into Taliban hands. "We have renewed our pledge to keep our nuclear weapons safe," said a Pakistani official. The briefings were meant to be "reassuring" to the international community in regard to safety measures.
Last night, the Pakistani army said it had halted the latest Taliban incursion in the Buner district, 100km north-west of Islamabad, after two days of fighting.
"We have successfully blocked Taliban advances and confined them just to a pocket," said Rehman Malik, the interior minister.
The army has been accused in the west of failing to challenge the militants.
Western diplomats said yesterday a Taliban advance on Islamabad threatened to bring them close to nuclear installations. They doubted the militants were capable of overwhelming heavily protected facilities.
At the weekend, Hillary Clinton, the US secretary of state, described the toppling of the Pakistani government and capture of nuclear weapons as "unthinkable".
Western diplomats say the nuclear programme resides in a "ring-fenced" part of the military under the command of a well-respected general and protected from rogue elements within the army that might seek to capture a weapon. But although security improvements have been made, Pakistan has not complied with the high levels recommended to it.
Security worries date back to 2004, when the proliferation network of Abdul Qadeer Khan, founder of the country's nuclear programme, came to light.
One danger identified by the international community was that one of his scientists might help extremists to gain a "dirty bomb". Since then, the Pakistani military has tightened monitoring of individual scientists and has introduced new inventory systems in order to track the bomb components.
<b>Taliban destroy FC camp, seize arms </b><!--QuoteBegin-->QUOTE<!--QuoteEBegin-->BUNER: Militants blew up a camp of the Frontier Constabulary and took away weapons, while jets and helicopters continued heavy bombing on their suspected positions in different parts of Buner district on Thursday.
According to sources, two FC platoons which had been besieged at the Jawar Camp on Wednesday night were allowed to leave after surrendering to the militants.
The militants took away an APC and a large haul of weapons before destroying the camp and a checkpoint, the sources said.
A police vehicle was also taken away and a police station was set on fire in Pir Baba town. Local people said militants had control of Ambela Chowk, Pacha, Nawagai, Jungai, Swarai, Gagera, Dewana Baba, Pir Baba and Sultanwas.
http://www.dawn.com/wps/wcm/connect/dawn-c...-pakistan-bi-01
<b>Clinton seeks $495 million for Pakistan </b><!--QuoteBegin-->QUOTE<!--QuoteEBegin-->WASHINGTON: US Secretary of State Hillary Clinton asked Congress on Wednesday to approve $497 million of emergency funds for Pakistan.
In her opening remarks before the Senate Appropriations Committee, <b>Secretary Clinton also said that a bill to triple US assistance to Pakistan â$1.5 billion for a period of five years âwill be presented in the US Senate in the next few days.</b>
She said the $497 million will be used to support Pakistanâs efforts to stabilise the economy, strengthen law enforcement, alleviate poverty, and help displaced citizens find safe shelter.
âIt will also enable us to begin to keep the pledge we made to Pakistan at the Tokyo Donors Conference earlier this month,â she added.
At the <b>Tokyo conference, the United States pledged $1 billion of emergency aid to help rebuild the troubled Pakistani economy and encouraged others to pledge a total of $5.2 billion.</b>
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US is buying peace.
<b>Blow to the government</b><!--QuoteBegin-->QUOTE<!--QuoteEBegin-->With President Zardari due to arrive in Washington next week, the US has piled on the pressure on the civilian government. On Wednesday, President Obama explicitly spelled out his concern: âThe civilian government there right now is very fragile and [doesnât] seem to have the capacity to deliver basic services.â
Perhaps Mr Obama meant less to undermine the civilian government here and more to alert the US political firmament of the need for immediate action (âwe need to help Pakistan help Pakistanisâ). But then on Thursday the US media reported extraordinary comments made by Gen Petraeus, the top military commander for this region, to US lawmakers and Obama administration officials.
Gen Petraeus reportedly warned that the next two weeks were critical to the governmentâs survival and that if âconcrete actionâ was not taken to âdestroy the Talibanâ the US would have to determine its ânext course of actionâ. Damningly, the general went on to label the Pakistan Army under Gen Kayani as âsuperiorâ to the âcivilian government led by President Zardariâ.
<b> It is clear that at the root of the American disquiet lies Pakistanâs nuclear weapons and the possibility of them falling into the militantsâ hands. But the comments are perplexing, to say the least. First, American officials have themselves said in recent months that Pakistanâs nuclear programme is safe and well protected. Second, as worrying as the Taliban incursions into other areas of Malakand Division may be, there is little evidence that the militants have the capability to overrun Islamabad, let alone capture nuclear paraphernalia. So why the alarmist rhetoric? </b>
After eight years of George W. Bush, the one lesson the Americans had appeared to learn when it comes to Pakistan is that the only viable option here for long-term change for the better is the civilian one. And yet, having vowed to learn from President Bushâs mistakes, <b>the new American set-up is sending out devastating signals against the civilian government and drumming up the âsafeâ option of the Pakistan Army. </b>
Whatever the PPP-led federal governmentâs sins of omission and commission, it must not be forgotten that it has been in power for little over a year and, on the militancy issue, is working in a fractious political climate and with little real control over the countryâs national security policy. American impatience will only aggravate its problems.
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Coup/regime change countdown in fast mode.
<b>Pentagon seeks wartime powers for dealing with Pak </b><!--QuoteBegin-->QUOTE<!--QuoteEBegin-->WASHINGTON: The Obama administration wanted Congress to give wartime authorities to US military commanders dealing with Pakistan, US officials told a congressional panel.
<b>Under the new proposal, the US Central Command will have the same unfettered authority in its dealings with Pakistan as it enjoys in the combat zones of Iraq and Afghanistan.
The Centcom will also have complete control over US military assistance for Pakistan and will not have to consult other US departments or agencies before disbursing those funds.
Traditionally such military aid flows through the State Department and is subject to Foreign Assistance Act restrictions</b>.
US Secretary of Defence Robert Gates revealed the outlines of the new programme during a congressional hearing on Thursday, telling lawmakers they needed to approve US military aid to Pakistan with a sense of wartime urgency.
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This will bribe gernals or shaking hornet nest forever.
from Paki fora-
<!--QuoteBegin-->QUOTE<!--QuoteEBegin-->How the treachery of our government officials lost Buner in the first place. This is not the first time, every single anti-Taleban lashkar and their leaders have met the same fate. Remember how Pir Samiullah was abandoned in Swat and his followers slaughtered and how his dead body was dug out by the Taliban, decapitated and then hung from a tree for all to behold. Read and weep:
PESHAWAR : NWFP Information Minister Mian Iftikhar Hussain has announced the setting up of Darul Qaza in Malakand region.
Addressing a news conference here on Saturday night, the provincial minister said that âZiauddin and Moinuddin have been appointed as Qazis at the Darul Qaza, adding that a notification has also been issued in this connection.â
<b>âIt is a good news for the people of Malakand who have been demanding for long for the establishment of Nifaz-e-Adl Regulation,â Hussain said.</b>
He said that the regulation would be implemented onwards from today.
The minister also called upon Sufi Muhammad to help the government in this regard.
âQazis have been appointed according to the Sharia in line with the demands of Tehrik Nifaz Shariat-e-Muhammadi,â he said.
Hussain also quoted a statement of Sufi Muhammad in which he had said that one who would pick up arms after the implementation of the regulation would be considered as insurgent.
There was no reason left to pick up arms after the setting up of Darul Qaza, he said, warning that government would take strict action against those who would try to establish parallel state in the province.
KARACHI : The country has been witnessing a massive outflow of foreign exchange reserves since the beginning of the current fiscal year owing to increased foreign debt servicing.
The State Bank of Pakistan on Wednesday reported that the country paid $3.714 billion during the first nine months (July-March) of the current fiscal year, which is even higher than $3.161 billion paid in whole 2007-08.
The mounting volume of debt servicing could negate the impact of higher remittances being sent by the overseas Pakistanis and foreign direct investment.
According to the State Bank latest data <b>the external debt registered a sharp increase during the first nine months of this fiscal year and rose to $50.139 billion from $46.284 billion on June 30, 2008.</b>
This massive surge in foreign debt has started sucking up forex reserves as increased debt servicing has been creating serious problems to maintain dollar reserves equivalent to at least three months imports of the country.
The two tranches from the International Monetary Fund (IMF) under the $7.6 billion standby deal helped the government to improve its reserves position, but the climbing debt servicing could even jeopardise this strategy.
<b>The government hopes to get over $5 billion from Friends of Pakistan that will further increase the countryâs external debt.</b>
They will never return money, whenever someone will ask them money , they will put Nukes on market. Pakis are very smart, they know how to milk world. <!--emo&--><img src='style_emoticons/<#EMO_DIR#>/biggrin.gif' border='0' style='vertical-align:middle' alt='biggrin.gif' /><!--endemo-->
Things are moving very fast in Pakistan.
India should watch its border, Pakistan will try some desperate act.
another thought,
US is pushing this very fast, they are saying Pakistan had 2 weeks. On Israel front, lot is happening in background. I think something is in AIR.
<!--QuoteBegin-Mudy+May 3 2009, 04:32 AM-->QUOTE(Mudy @ May 3 2009, 04:32 AM)<!--QuoteEBegin-->Things are moving very fast in Pakistan.
India should watch its border, Pakistan will try some desperate act.
another thought,
US is pushing this very fast, they are saying Pakistan had 2 weeks. On Israel front, lot is happening in background. <b>I think something is in AIR.</b>
[right][snapback]96860[/snapback][/right]
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<b>MULTAN : Foreign Minister Makhdoom Shah Mehmood Qureshi Sunday said with a begging bowl in hand the viewpoint of the country cannot be clearly presented before the world.</b>
Addressing the gathering at a program on the occasion of Urs of Hazrat Shah Rukn Rehmat-ul-Alya, the Foreign Minister asked the world as to why it opted not to support the democratic forces when dictatorship was being imposed repeatedly on the country.
<b>âNow it is time to present the ground realities before the world,â he stressed, adding âhowever, we should not close eyes to the mistakes made in the past.â </b>
<b>
Pakistan Armyâs fine art of brinkmanship</b>
C. Raja Mohan
Posted: Thursday , Apr 30, 2009 at 1428 hrs IST
New Delhi:
All the gloom and doom in the Western media about Pakistan in the last few days has begun to translate into faster cash-flow from Washington to Islamabad and with far fewer conditions.
Predictable as this was, it is not always easy for Indiaâs chattering classes to see that weakness is often an advantage in international politics. The greater the international concern about state failure in Pakistan, the stronger the leverage of the nationâs only credible institution, the Army.
Although it might not have won too many wars, the Pak Armyâs ability to exploit the critical geopolitical location between the Indus and the Hindu Kush has been phenomenal.
All the loose talk of the Taliban marching relentlessly to Islamabad and the exaggerated fears on the safety of Pakistanâs nuclear arsenal has helped nudge the US Congress to fast-track a massive package of economic and military assistance to Pakistan.
As a panicked Washington loosens its purse strings, there is growing pressure on the Obama Administration and the Democratic leadership in the US Congress to drop all serious conditions on new aid to Pakistan.
Recall how presidential candidate Obama and his Democratic Party attacked the Bush Administration for placing blind faith on the Pak Army and doling out nearly $12 billion since September 2001 without asking any questions.
When he took charge of the White House a hundred days ago, President Obama had declared that there will be no free lunch for Pakistan, and that its leaders will now be held accountable for the larger amounts of money (bigger than what Bush gave Gen. Pervez Musharraf) that he wants to shovel towards Islamabad.
Remember all the excitement in India a few weeks ago, when a US legislation called the PEACE act, that had written down a range of benchmarks that Islamabad must comply with on fighting extremism, including one to end support to anti-India terror groups.
All this talk of conditional aid may now be water under the bridge amidst the sense of a looming crisis in Pakistan. Senator John Kerry, who is now the chairman of the Senate Foreign Relations Committee, has openly argued against putting too many conditions on aid to Pakistan.
The executive branch of the US Government is never comfortable with congressionally mandated benchmarks, for they limit its ability to negotiate with its international interlocutors.
As the Pakistan Army turns a seeming disaster on its Western frontiers into a windfall of American and international assistance, New Delhi must brace itself for the next round of Islamabadâs brinkmanship on its eastern borders.
At his press conference in Washington on Wednesday, President Obama asserted that the Pakistan Army might have finally begun to recognise that its "obsession" with India is "misguided" and that the biggest threat is "internal".
Many in India would fondly hope that this is true. But those who know the Pakistan Army might consider Obamaâs conclusion rather premature.
(C. Raja Mohan is a Professor at the S. Rajaratnam School of International Studies, Nanyang Technological University, Singapore)
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