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Attack in Kashmir Kills 3 Pakistani Soldiers

Erfan — Wed, 06 Jan 2010 09:56:38 +0000

At least three soldiers were killed and 11 were wounded in a possible suicide attack in the Pakistani-controlled part of the disputed Kashmir region on Wednesday, according to Pakistani officials and news media outlets.

The attack took place at 6:50 a.m. outside the barracks of a military residential compound in Tararr Khal area of Rawalakot District, a picturesque valley along the border with India.

4 Killed in Suicide Attack in Northwest Pakistan

Erfan — Thu, 24 Dec 2009 12:10:01 +0000

Four people were killed and 24 wounded on Thursday in the latest suicide attack in the northwest city of Peshawar, police and hospital officials said.

The lone bomber arrived on foot and ran when he was asked to stop on the main road in a heavily-guarded neighborhood of military and government buildings .

The attack occurred near a Christian school and the offices of the Pakistan International Airlines, though the police said the target of the suicide bomber was not clear. The school was closed for Christmas and winter vacations.

Pakistan to chop off men's ears and noses for brutalizing a woman

Erfan — Tue, 22 Dec 2009 12:15:18 +0000

The court in Pakistan’s most liberal city ordered two men to have their nose and ears chopped off as punishment for inflicting similar injuries on a woman they abducted, an official said Tuesday.

An anti-terrorism court headed by judge Khalid Naveed Dar handed down the ruling in the eastern city of Lahore on Monday, sentencing them to life in prison.

US War planners woo skeptical Pakistanis

Erfan — Fri, 20 Nov 2009 12:17:21 +0000

Faced with an escalating insurgency, Pakistan increasingly views U.S. efforts to stabilize neighboring Afghanistan as critical to its own security — but is worried enough about the chances of American failure that it continues to hedge its bets.

That skepticism represents a key obstacle for Washington’s emerging Afghan strategy, which envisages Pakistan targeting Taliban and al-Qaida-linked militants using its territory to launch cross-border attacks against Western forces in Afghanistan.

The U.S. sent national security adviser Gen. James L. Jones to Pakistan last week to make that point as the Obama administration nears the end of a months long debate over military proposals to send 10,000 to 40,000 additional troops to Afghanistan next year.

Suicide car bomb kills 41, wounds 100 in Pakistan

Erfan — Fri, 09 Oct 2009 09:33:30 +0000

A suicide bomber detonated his vehicle near a crowded market in Pakistan’s northwest city of Peshawar on Friday, killing 41 people. The government responded by saying it had “no other option” but to launch an offensive in the militant stronghold of South Waziristan along the Afghan border.

The attack in the Khyber Bazaar area also wounded more than 100 people and demonstrated the ability of insurgents to strike in Pakistan’s major cities despite ongoing operations pressuring their networks and the death of their leader in a U.S. missile strike.

A charred skeleton of a bus flipped on its side in the middle of the road, while remains of a motorbike lay twisted nearby, TV footage showed. Passersby rushed to cover the bodies of victims whose clothes were burned off, while a man carried a woman apparently knocked out by the blast. One man staggered from the scene, his entire face covered with blood.

“I saw a blood soaked leg landing close to me,” said Noor Alam, who suffered wounds on his legs and face and was at the overwhelmed Lady Reading hospital. “I understood for the first time in my life what a doomsday would look like.”

Robert Gates To Military Leaders: Advise Obama On War ‘Privately’

Erfan — Tue, 06 Oct 2009 09:36:29 +0000

Defense Secretary Robert M. Gates cautioned military and civilian leaders Monday against publicly airing their advice to President Obama on Afghanistan, just days after the top U.S. general in that country criticized proposals being advocated by...

Afghanistan agrees Taliban deal

Erfan — Mon, 27 Jul 2009 10:25:41 +0000

The Afghan government has agreed a truce with Taliban insurgents in the north-western province of Badghis ahead of elections next month, officials say.

The Taliban have pledged not to attack voting centres and to hand key areas to government forces, officials say. There has been no word from the militants.

The government says it hopes to replicate the deal in other provinces.

The moves comes as the UK is emphasising that more must be done to engage moderate members of the Taliban.

Foreign Secretary David Miliband announced the shift of emphasis in the UK’s Afghanistan strategy in a speech to Nato.

He stressed the Afghan government must do more to talk to moderate members of the Taliban as part of a broader political process.

Pakistan faces challenge of cementing victory against Taliban

Erfan — Mon, 22 Jun 2009 13:34:31 +0000

Reporting from Islamabad, Pakistan — The Pakistani army has exceeded expectations in its offensive against Taliban fighters in northwestern Pakistan, effectively marshaling arms, tactics and political support. But the tougher challenge will be preventing the extremists from returning, or from regrouping elsewhere.

“The key question is whether the army can hold the ground afterward,” said Urmila Venugopalan, a South Asia expert with the defense analysis group Jane’s.

The Perils of Blaming Pakistan,Mumbai Updated,Terrorist Attack

Erfan — Mon, 01 Dec 2008 11:25:24 +0000

Indian accusations of a Pakistani hand in last week’s Mumbai massacre couldn’t have come at a worse time for the government in Islamabad: As a Taliban insurgency continues to simmer in the tribal areas along the Afghan border, clashes on Sunday between rival political groups in the southern metropolis of Karachi killed 13 people and wounded 70. The country is on the verge of economic collapse, its desperate pleas for financial assistance from China and Saudi Arabia last month having been rebuffed, forcing Pakistan to accept loans from the International Monetary Fund— but those loans come with stern conditions limiting government spending, the implementation of which will risk inflaming further unrest. A suspected U.S. predator drone attack in the tribal areas on Saturday — one of dozens in recent months — has further alienated a population already suspicious of U.S. interference. Hardly surprising, then, that Pakistani leaders have reacted with alarm to politicians and the media in India pointing a finger at Pakistan-based terror groups over the Mumbai attack. Some foreign investigators have made similar claims, although not in any official capacity.

Will Military Rule Return to Pakistan—and Afghanistan—in a Year?

Erfan — Mon, 13 Oct 2008 23:13:53 +0000

A funny thing happened while everybody in the United States, from President Bush to John McCain to Barack Obama swore to muster the will, money, and troops to crush the Taliban in Afghanistan, in Pakistan, wherever, in order to preserve the...