US Senate ties Pakistan aid to Haqqani crackdown

WASHINGTON:- A US Senate committee voted on Wednesday to make economic and security aid to Pakistan conditional on its cooperation in fighting militants such as the Haqqani network, which Washington blames for last week’s attack on the US embassy in Kabul.
The Senate Appropriations Committee decision reflected lawmakers’ anger at Islamabad over militants who operate out of Pakistan and battle US troops in Afghanistan.
Washington has pressed Pakistan to go after the Haqqani network, which it believes enjoys sanctuaries in Pakistan’s unruly ethnic Pashtun tribal region on the Afghan border.
The Senate committee did not specify any amount for economic aid to Pakistan for fiscal 2012, leaving it up to the Obama administration to set the level and notify Congress – or provide nothing at all.
“If the administration wants to provide zero, that’d be OK with us,” said Republican Senator Mark Kirk, one of the more vocal critics of Pakistan on the panel.
The committee did approve $1 billion for the Pakistan Counter-insurgency Capability Fund, which was created in 2009 to help Pakistan’s military develop counter-insurgency capabilities to fight Islamist militants within its borders.
But the committee voted to make this aid, as well as any economic aid that is provided, conditional on Pakistan’s cooperating with Washington against several militant groups.
In addition to the Haqqani network, these groups include al Qaeda and the Quetta Shura – the remains of the Afghan Taliban government overthrown and driven into Pakistan by the 2001 US-led invasion of Afghanistan.
They also include Lashkar-e-Taiba, a Punjab-based group blamed for attacks on Mumbai, India, in November 2008.
The restrictions were part of a foreign aid bill that the committee approved and sent to the Senate floor. It will have to be reconciled with the House of Representatives, where lawmakers in one subcommittee have voted similar restrictions.
Pakistan also gets US military aid via the Pentagon budget. But Washington is already withholding $800 million of that aid this year as ties have come under mounting strain.
Many lawmakers have been calling for aid to Pakistan to be reduced since US special forces found and killed al Qaeda leader Osama bin laden in a Pakistan military town on May 2.
Washington has allocated about $20 billion for Pakistan over the last decade. In fiscal 2010, Congress approved $1.7 billion for economic aid for Pakistan, and $2.7 billion in security aid, the Congressional Research Service says

Former Afghan President Burhanuddin Rabbani has been killed

Former Afghan President Burhanuddin Rabbani has been killed > Afghan High Peace Council Chief Burhanuddin Rabbani has been killed with some other people in a bomb attack in Kabul, official sources.

Mr. Burhanuddin Rabbani was killed at his home by a suicide attacker who officials believe had hidden away a bomb in his turban.

He was meeting members of the Taliban at the time. The council leads Afghan efforts to discuss with the Taliban.

Rabbani was a former president of Afghanistan and also lead the main political opposition in the country.

A senior adviser to the peace council, Masoom Stanakzai, is also thought to have been seriously wounded in the attack.

President Karzai said: “This is a sad day for us in Afghanistan but a day of unity and day of continuity for our efforts.”

Abdullah Abdullah, the leader of the opposition in the Afghan parliament, said Mr Rabbani’s killing was “a big loss for all the people of Afghanistan”, describing the former president as a man who “strove until his last breath to bring peace”.

Nato and the International Security Assistance Force (Isaf) condemned the attack, with Isaf commander Gen John R Allen saying that “the face of the peace initiative has been attacked”.

Rabbani was formerly leader of a powerful mujahideen party during the Soviet occupation of Afghanistan in the 1980s and served as president in the 1990s when mujahideen factions waged war for control of the country after the Soviet withdrawal.

The assassination comes a week after a 20-hour gun and grenade attack that on Kabul’s diplomatic enclave by insurgents, and three suicide bomb attacks on other parts of the city — together the longest-lasting and most wide-ranging assault on the city.

Last week’s siege was the third major attack on the Afghan capital since June and included three suicide bombing in other parts of the city. At least five policemen and 11 civilians were killed.

Pakistan govt. links with Haqqani Network, U.S. officials

Latest Breaking News:-

                                          United State ambassador stated in a Radio interview that Pakistan Government had links with Haqqani Militant network on Saturday, a foreign news agency said.

According to the story, they have evidence to links with Haqqani Network. Cameron Munter told Radio Pakistan that “This is something that must stop”.

In the 20 hours around twenty five killed by Haqqani group claimed the attack, US officials believed that Haqqani Militants based in Pakistan.

The Government of Pakistan strongly rejected the statement and told that the Government had not linked with any one of militants group.

Haqqani Network that is a very strong associated with Taliban they had blamed for many high profile leaders, attacks, Indian, government targets in Afghanistan.

Pakistani officials cleared that Haqqani Network is based in Afghanistan, its links with Pakistan it is not true.

Mr. Cameron Munter gives statement in his interview that there is prove that Pakistani government have links with Haqqani Network; this is something must stop.

In the other side;

Surajuddin Haqqani; who is the son of the Haqqani Network Leader, also told the foreign news agency that Haqqani Group has no longer has sheltered on Pakistan desert, because they feel more secure in Afghanistan.

He more added that the days were passed when they were hiding in the mountains along with the Pakistan – Afghanistan border.

He said that they live in Afghanistan people were they feel more secure

Pakistan, Iran to rush gasline

TEHRAN (Agencies):-
                                         Iran and Pakistan have agreed to increase their bilateral trade to $10 billion, with Prime Minister Yousuf Raza Gilani telling Iranian President Mehmoud Ahmadinejad that Islamabad under a policy revamp wants a ‘very close’ relationship with its Islamic neighbour.

During a meeting here at the President’s House Monday the two leaders agreed to give fresh impetus to the existing bilateral relationship in line with their proximity and potential in trade, security and other fields.

PM Gilani said there was a paradigm shift in Pakistan’s foreign policy and now it wanted to maintain close relations with the neighbours and Iran was one of those countries with which it would like to have ‘very close relations’. He also assured Iranian concerns on the borders will be addressed to their satisfaction.

The Iranian president said three countries of the region - Iran, Afghanistan and Pakistan - should make coordinated efforts to solve the problems of security and development so that no outside assistance is required by them. He appreciated Pakistan’s keenness to take necessary steps for enhancing cooperation between the two countries, observing that it was because Pakistan had a major role to play in this part of the world.

Gilani agreed with the Ahmadinejad that the Gas Pipeline Project and import of 1,000MW electricity from Iran should be expedited as Pakistan was facing acute energy shortage which is hampering the pace of growth of its economy.

Both the sides committed that they will not spare any effort to boost the trade to the extent of $10 billion. The current volume of trade between the two countries is $1.2 billion, with Pakistan’s exports only at around $200 million. Both sides agreed that it was not possible to realise the immense potential of trade between the two countries without effective communication and transport links.

The prime minister highly appreciated the gesture of Iranian government and people for donating $100 million for rain and flood victims in Pakistan. The Iranian people and government are, indeed, friends of Pakistan, the Prime Minister said.

The Iranian leader agreed to give serious consideration to Pakistan’s demand for opening a Consulate at Bandar Abbas to facilitate people to people contacts. They also agreed in principle for opening a Pakistan cultural centre in Tehran. The Iranian president happily agreed to declare Multan and Rasht (Gilan) as twin town, saying “it’s an honour for us”.

The prime minister disclosed that the two committees, one jointly headed by the foreign ministers and the other security committee headed by interior ministers, will deliberate upon issues on regular basis with a view to making their borders safer and boosting the economic activities and trade between the two countries. Gilani said that the Iranian interior minister would visit Pakistan and he would hold discussions with his counterpart in Islamabad in the context of his instructions that Iranian government’s concerns on the borders of Balochistan, Sistan must be addressed to their satisfaction.

Gilani reaffirmed that Pakistan wanted a sovereign, independent, prosperous and stable Afghanistan and supported a process of reconciliation, which is Afghan-led and Afghan-owned. He added that his country was part of the solution and not part of problem. He informed that Pakistan suffered casualties of 5,000 its troops and equal number of them were disabled, while it also suffered casualties of 35,000 of its civilians, which is the price Pakistan has paid in the fight against terrorism.

The Iranian president said that the outside powers keep them underdeveloped because they drive their strength from their weaknesses. They keep the countries poor and unstable. “Your development is our development. Your security is our security. If we stay together, we can limit their capacity to hurt us, because their interests are best served by instability.”

PM Gilani said that his government has made it clear to the US government that unilateral action is not acceptable and if they have any credible information, they must pass it on to Pakistan and its security forces will take action on it. He added that he had told the US Secretary of State in clear terms that drone attacks are counter-productive in the war against terrorism and should be stopped.

The Prime Minister said he had twice visited Afghanistan and President Karzai also visited Pakistan to give impetus to the efforts focussed to seek out a solution, acceptable to the Afghan people and to Pakistan, because Pakistan cannot afford the blow-back of the imposed solution, as it was the last time when the country had to give shelter to 3 million Afghan refugees the world has forgotten now.

President Ahmadinejad said, “We should increase people-to-people contacts and cultural cooperation, because we have a lot of commonalities among our people.” The Iranian president urged a new world order based on humanitarian values and justice. “The world is going through transition at a very fast speed and it is imperative that innovative strategy should be evolved and implemented to offset its negative fall-out on our people,” he stressed.

President Ahmadinejad assured Prime Minister Gilani that Pakistan would be given priority in meeting the requirements of Iran and the goods and services which are available in Pakistan would be given preferential treatment. In this regard the Iranian president said that his country would be keen to import food items like wheat, vegetables and fruits in the beginning.

Prime Minister Gilani agreed with the Iranian President that trade between the two countries was grossly incompatible to their geographic location and commonality of heritage, which is an asset and needs to be capitalised on by pursuing policies, formulated after a lot of thinking and efforts. Both the sides favoured to allow their private sectors to play active role in the development of their economies and bottlenecks, if any, should be removed by setting up such a mechanism that measures upto the imperatives of the modern economy.

Earlier on the same day, Prime Minister Gilani and First Vice President of Iran Mohammad Reza Rahimi agreed on steps to increase the relationship of the two states in a range of fields. They also signed agreement to increase the value of their bilateral trade to $10 billion during the meeting.

BB murder case transferred to Gujranwala

Anti Terrorism Court (ATC) issued notice to transfer Benazir murder case from Rawalpindi to Gujranwala. It also includes hearing of Mumbai attack case. Ex-CCPO Saud Aziz and SP Khurram Shahzad have submitted writ petitions before the court seeking acquittal from the case. The said cases have been transferred from Rawalpindi to Gujranwala on the High Court order.

Explosion at Nuclear Plant in Southern France

PARIS (AP):-
                          An explosion rocked the Marcoule nuclear plant in southern France on Monday, the country's nuclear safety body and local authorities said.
It was not immediately clear how serious the accident was or whether there were any victims. The Marcoule site is located in Langedoc Roussillon, in southern France, near the Mediterranean Sea.
Evangelia Petit of the Agency for Nuclear Safety said Monday an explosion had taken place but declined to provide any further details. Officials in the Gard region confirmed Monday's explosion but also would not elaborate.
The local Midi Libre newspaper, on its web site, said an oven exploded at the plant, killing one person and seriously injuring another. No radiation leak was reported, the report said, adding that no quarantine or evacuation orders were issued for neighboring towns.
Three other people have been hospitalized with lighter injuries in the explosion, the paper said.
The accident occurred at 11:45 a.m. (0945 GMT, 5:45 a.m. EDT) in a plant that treats nuclear waste operated by a subsidiary of France's EDF electricity company, the report said.
In Vienna, an official at the IAEA, who asked for anonymity because he was not authorized to speak on record, said the agency was in contact with French authorities "trying to learn more about the nature of the explosion."

14 arrested in Pehlwan Goth, Yousuf Plaza operation

The rangers and police have arrested 14 suspects during ongoing combined search operation here in Federal B Area’s Yousuf Plaza after Pehalwan Goth.

Sindh Home Minister Manzoor Wasan has claimed that the security agencies have captured 182 suspects including 42 marked target killers in the going search operation in the city while four more persons have been killed in separate incidents of firing and violence in the metropolis. Rangers and police are conducting combined search operations in various parts of city and they have arrested several hundred suspects so far. The previous night, rangers and police launched search operation in Al-Rahim Plaza in Pehalwan Goth area and succeeded to arrest several suspects and seize arms and ammunition.

During operation they also recovered CCTV cameras, National Highways’ snatched carpets and two containers of computer parts.