MIRAMSHAH: A meeting of the central shura of Tehreek-i-Taliban Pakistan is being held at an unspecified location in the tribal region to firm up a formal response to the government’s peace overtures made after the all parties conference (APC) held in Islamabad. According to sources, the meeting of the militant organisation’s central decision-making body might continue till Wednesday after arrival of some important Taliban leaders from different areas.
Jamaat chief hails APC decisions
KARACHI: Jamaat-i-Islami chief Munawar Hasan has described decisions of the All Party Conference as a step in the right direction and advised the government to assert itself while holding talks with Taliban. He also urged all security institutions to coordinate and cooperate with the government over the matter. Addressing a press conference at the Idara-i-Noor-i-Haq here on Tuesday, the Jamaat chief said there was dire need to pull the country out of the war on terror, claiming that the conflict was in the interest of the US and not that of Pakistan.
Altaf condemns arrest of MQM’s ex-MPA
KARACHI: Muttahida Qaumi Movement chief Altaf Hussain on Wednesday condemned the arrest of Nadeem Hidayat Hashmi, a former provincial legislator belonging to the party, DNA reported.
In a statement issued from the MQM’s London secretariat, Altaf asked the Sindh government to explain the reasons and clauses of the law under which the former Member of Provincial Assembly was taken into custody by law enforcers.
Shah says easier to negotiate with Afghan Taliban than Pakistanis
ISLAMABAD: Leader of the Opposition in National Assembly Syed Khurshid Ahmed Shah Tuesday said the government should hold result-oriented dialogue with Taliban to curb terrorism and restore peace in the country. Speaking to journalists at his chamber in the Parliament House, he said, “There are two types of Taliban: Afghans and Pakistanis. It is easy to negotiate with the Afghan Taliban as compared to the Pakistanis, because there are around 59 groups operating in the country.”
APC backs govt push for peace talks
ISLAMABAD: Pakistan’s top political leaders, who had huddled together in Islamabad on Monday for an All Parties Conference (APC) on how to tackle growing terrorism, agreed on initiating peace talks with “all stakeholders”. The APC, chaired by Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif and attended by the Army and intelligence chiefs as well as leaders of all major political parties, concluded after adopting a consensus resolution to overcome the ‘national security crisis’ besetting Pakistan.
Russia seizes initiative with plan to secure Syria chem arms
MOSCOW: Russia seized the diplomatic initiative on Monday with a plan for Syria to head off the threat of US military strikes by putting its chemical weapons under international control. The move by Moscow, Syrian leader Bashar al-Assad’s most powerful international ally, threatened to overshadow US President Barack Obama’s push to win support for punitive action. Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov met his Syrian counterpart Walid al-Muallem in Moscow and urged Damascus to “place the chemical weapons under international control and then have them destroyed”.
Pakistan stocks end higher, rupee firm, o/n rate flat
KARACHI: Pakistan’s main stock exchange closed higher on Monday, with the benchmark 100-share index of the Karachi Stock Exchange rising 0.32 per cent, or 72.97 points, to 22,838.84. The market continued its positive trend which was mainly led by Engro Foods Ltd and Lucky Cement Ltd. An upward trend in Asian markets also helped boost the sentiment while receipt of the first tranche from the International Monetary Fund helped build confidence, said Samar Iqbal at Topline Securities.
Three ‘peace committee’ activists beheaded
LANDI KOTAL: Militants beheaded three activists of a peace committee and kidnapped four others during an attack on a house in Bara early on Monday, sources said. A gang of armed men resorted to heavy firing before storming the house in Qambarabad area of Shalobar. Jahangir Khan, a member of the Shalobar peace committee, told Dawn that they had found headless bodies of three of their colleagues, adding that four others had been taken away by the attackers.The committee members tried to take the bodies to Peshawar and hold a protest demonstration on the Ring Road, but were stopped by security forces.
CJ calls for witness protection programme
ISLAMABAD: Chief Justice Iftikhar Muhammad Chaudhry has emphasised the need for a witness protection programme, especially for heinous cases like sectarian killings and terrorism. Addressing the opening ceremony of the new judicial year (2013-14) at the Supreme Court on Monday, he bemoaned the dearth of qualified and competent investigation officers (IO) of the police force and said negligence on part of the investigating agency was affecting the prosecution’s cases.The chief justice highlighted the need of improving the quality of investigation by educating investigators about the current laws but regretted that heavy workload on each IO was one of the causes of deterioration in the standard of investigation.
Senate panel asks govt to undo KESC sale
ISLAMABAD: The Senate’s Standing Committee on Water and Power has asked the federal government to take over the management of the Karachi Electric Supply Company (KESC) and register cases against officials responsible for causing losses of over Rs110 billion to the exchequer through ‘illegal’ agreements signed with the private owners of the company. The KESC denies the allegations. The committee recommended a judicial commission be set up to probe violations of the agreements, reinstatement of 7000 KESC employees sacked by the private owners and payment of their dues since their removal from service. The committee came up with the recommendations at a meeting on Monday which adopted a report of its sub-committee, headed by Senator Shahi Syed and comprising Nisar Mohammad Khan and Humayun Khan Mandokhel. The meeting was presided over by the committee’s chairman, Senator Zahid Khan.
