India, Pakistan vow to normalise trade ties

NEW DELHI: Top officials of Pakistan and India began talks on Monday to flesh out a plan to open up trade between the countries, after Islamabad said it would grant most-favoured nation status to its archrival.

Commerce Secretary Zafar Mahmood and his Indian counterpart Rahul Khullar are holding two days of discussions in New Delhi aimed at doubling annual trade in the next three years to $6 billion.

The visit followed the Pakistani cabinet's decision on November 2 to grant "most favoured nation" (MFN) status to India, reciprocating a move made by New Delhi in 1996.

"The cabinet not only gave its full approval but also mandated the commerce ministry to achieve complete normalisation of trade" with India, Mahmood told the meeting in New Delhi.

The cabinet's decision was seen as a breakthrough in efforts to thaw relations between the South Asian neighbours who have fought three wars since independence from Britain in 1947.

Mahmood said Pakistan "hopes to cover a lot of distance" in this week's talks.

"We will have interactions in the spirit of mutual cooperation and confidence so please have trust and faith in the process (as) times have changed and the world is coming closer," he said.

The meeting was part of a start-stop peace dialogue flagged off in 2004 by India and Pakistan but put on hold by New Delhi after attacks in Mumbai in 2008. "Through this meeting we want to create an atmosphere through which the composite dialogue can go forward," Mahmood said.

Khullar said India welcomed the MFN status that was intended to remove discriminatory higher pricing and duty tariffs that stand as barriers to exports between the South Asian neighbours. Analysts have said that the decision to ease trade barriers could open enormous opportunities for the two countries.

Second blast in Lahore at Bhaati Chowk; casualties feared

Updated at: 1923 PST, Wednesday, September 01, 2010
LAHORE: Casualties are feared as another blast takes place at Bhaati Chowk minutes after a cracker blast ripped through a Yaum-e-Ali (RA) procession at Karbala Gaame Shah, Geo News reported Wednesday.

Two white Britons 'killed fighting for Al Qaeda' in U.S. drone attack in Pakistan Read more

Two white British men who were fighting alongside Al Qaeda militants in Pakistan have been killed in a drone attack, it was reported last night.

One of the men was identified by Taliban sources as 25-year-old Gerry Smith, whose Islamic name is Mansoor Ahmed, according to the officials. The second was only identified as Stephen, 48, but also goes by Abu Bakar.

The men died five days ago when a Hellfire missile was discharged from a remote-controlled American drone in the town of Datta Khel, in North Waziristan.

Deadly: A U.S. drone with Hellfire missiles

Target: The men were killed in the tribal area of northern Pakistan

hey were in a vehicle with two other fighters when they were hit by the missile. It is not known whether they were crossing the border into Afghanistan.

Details of their deaths are slowly emerging following the missile strike on the Pakistan and Afghanistan borders.

It was reported that the pair had entered the area last year and had travelled to Waziristan in the lawless tribal belt bordering Afghanistan to join Al Qaeda.

The Americans believe that there are around 2,000 militants in the area. These are the ones that are targeted by drone attacks because they are deemed the most dangerous.

A Foreign Office spokesman said: ‘We are aware of media reports of the death of two British nationals in Pakistan.

‘Our High Commission in Pakistan is seeking further information on these reports.’ In September another British militant called Abdul Jabber, who was from Birmingham and of Asian descent, died in a drone attack in the same area.

Although not part of official defence strategy, and not acknowledged by the CIA, drone attacks have been stepped up in recent months as the United States attempts to tackle fighters who gather openly in Pakistani villages and compounds.

There have been at least 25 such strikes in Pakistan since September, resulting in the deaths of around 50 people.

The tactic has caused controversy, with Afghan leaders claiming they cause indiscriminate civilian casualties.

A senior defence source said: ‘There was possibly an attack on two British nationals five days ago. It is not something our military have been [dealing with] as it was out of our operating area, and there was no involvement from our side.

‘The Foreign Office is investigating the reports.’

The Pentagon had no comment to make on the reported deaths last night.

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US will continue to work with Pakistan: Crowley

The US said here on Monday that it would continue to work with Pakistan and that the former has full confidence on the means for communication between the two countries. Interacting with reporters here at US Foreign Office, spokesman P.J. Crowley said the US is aware of the fact that Pakistan military resources are presently engaged providing relief to the flood-affected people. The spokesman said the US has alternative routes for dispatching supplies to NATO forces in Afghanistan, adding, talks are underway for restoring supply line to Afghanistan via Pakistan. He Pakistani people want a government that can resolve their issues in a better way and in this connection the US is undertaking positive steps to strengthen the incumbent government in Pakistan.

Pentagon: Elements in Pakistani Intelligence Agency Support Terror

AP

Thursday: Pakistani fire fighters try to extinguish a fire in Khairabad near Peshawar, Pakistan, after gunmen torched a dozen tankers carrying fuel to NATO troops, police said.

The Pentagon acknowledged Thursday that some parts of Pakistan's intelligence agency are cooperating with terrorist groups as a new report suggests Inter-Service Intelligence agents are working to undermine U.S. and NATO forces in Afghanistan.

Spokesman Col. Dave Lapan said the Pakistan intelligence service as an organization does not support terrorism, but some elements within the ISI are providing assistance to terrorists.

U.S. officials have raised concerns about whether some members of the ISI "might be interacting with terrorist organizations in ways that aren't consistent with what the government and military are doing," Lapan said.

Lapan was responding after a report in The Wall Street Journal that suggested the ISI is pushing the Taliban to keep fighting in Afghanistan, undermining efforts by the Pentagon to end the war.

The Journal quotes an Afghan commander in Kunar province who said the ISI is still urging and paying Taliban to fight NATO soldiers.

Pakistan's top military leadership is working to correct the problem, Lapan said, but "like any large organization, change is difficult and comes slowly."

"The ISI has done a great deal in fighting terrorism. Some have said they probably have killed more terrorists than any other organization. But we also have some concerns with the strategic focus of the ISI," Lapan said.

Lapan spoke as U.S.-Pakistani relations remain strained over the effort to end the Taliban's use of Pakistan as a safe haven to launch attacks into Afghanistan.

White House Press Secretary Robert Gibbs said Thursday that President Obama has not spoken to Pakistani President Asif Ali Zardari but a Pakistani delegation is due in Washington later this month as part of a continuing strategic dialogue.

Other strains have added to the burden on U.S.-Pakistani ties recently. On Wednesday, the U.S. apologized for a Sept. 30 attack that killed two Pakistani border guards. Expressing condolences, the U.S. said the helicopters mistook them for insurgents being pursued across the border from Afghanistan.

On Thursday, Pakistani officials said they are still weighing when to open the Torkham border crossing along Kyber Pass, which was closed as a result of the U.S. attack. Pakistan Foreign Ministry spokesman Abdul Basit said authorities were still evaluating the situation and would make a decision "in due course."

Torkham is a major supply route for NATO trucks shipping supplies to troops in Afghanistan Military officials insist closing the crossing hasn't hampered supply chains, but truck convoys are something of sitting ducks as hundreds of vehicles are backed up at the border. Pakistani militants torched 70 NATO trucks Wednesday in Pakistan -- the sixth set of attacks on NATO convoys in the past week.

The CIA continues to operate its own drone attacks on suspected terrorists, including one believed to have struck Thursday that targeted a vehicle in the North Waziristan tribal region where Taliban militants are based. The strike would be the sixth suspected missile attack this month, following what is believed to be 21 similar attacks in the region in September.

As the troubled relationship evolves, one senior Pakistani official told The Wall Street Journal that Islamabad is fighting militants, not aiding them.

"Whenever anything goes wrong in Afghanistan, ISI is to be blamed," the official is quoted saying. "Honestly, they see ISI agents behind every bush in Afghanistan."

Lapan said the U.S. continues to communicate with Gen. Ashfaq Parvez Kayani, the head of the Pakistani Army and former chief of the ISI, and is "comfortable that change will be coming in how the ISI operates."

Speaking after a meeting with Secretary of State Hillary Rodham Clinton, Senate Foreign Relations Committee Chairman John Kerry, D-Mass., said that "the ISI's continued involvement with various entities remains an issue of concern between us."

He added that he is also concerned about Pakistani army attempts to undermine the government, but he doesn't think the army "will move in that type of way."

As country is facing fuel scarcity, we must go back to the old time basics

As country is facing fuel scarcity, we must go back to the old time basics.

We will soon need to once again embrace the Original...
Sport Utility Vehicle

More Troops to Afghanistan, But What Will They Do?

So the President has apparently made his decision about Afghanistan: He’ll send another 34,000 troops there, according to multiple reports. The White House is preparing for Obama’s first-ever prime-time address to formally announce the move. But for the moment, it’s not at all clear what those troops will be doing.

When top commander Gen. Stanley McChrystal laid out his gloomy Afghan war report in August, he cautioned that “additional resources are required, but focusing on force or resource requirements misses the point entirely. The key take away from this assessment is the urgent need for a significant change to our strategy and the way that we think and operate.”

Right now, there’s no word of any big strategy shift — just news of an influx of more forces.

According to McClatchy, “the plan calls for the deployment over a nine-month period beginning in March of three Army brigades from the 101st Airborne Division at Fort Campbell, Ky.; the 10th Mountain Division at Fort Drum, N.Y.; and a Marine brigade from Camp Lejeune, N.C., for as many as 23,000 additional combat and support troops.”

In addition, a 7,000-strong division headquarters would be sent to take command of U.S.-led NATO forces in southern Afghanistan - to which the U.S. has long been committed - and 4,000 U.S. military trainers would be dispatched to help accelerate an expansion of the Afghan army and police.

An increase of that size “would mean deploying practically every available U.S. Army brigade to war,” Spencer Ackerman recently noted. Yet paradoxically, it also repreents a relatively small number of extra trainers, given NATO’s stated goal of radically expanding Afghanistan’s armed forces, from under 100,000 today to 250,000 in the future. Will new NATO Training Mission – Afghanistan commander Lt. Gen. Bill Caldwell will have the forces he needs to accomplish this key job?

The New York Times recently speculated that an increase of 40,000 troops might mean as many as 10,000 troops in Kandahar province, 5,000 to Helmand, and another 5,000 to the country’s east. Any less than that, the Times mused, could mean a significant drop in the number of trainers that Caldwell gets.

And that’s hardly the only unanswered question about these new troops. We are still waiting for real answers about the geographic focus of operations; how NATO allies will fit in to the picture; and where all the civilian reconstruction experts will come from.

As McChrytsal advisor and CSIS strategist Anthony Cordesman notes, the broad recommendations for Afghanistan “can only be fully judged when they can be tied to clearly defined requests for military resources; a matching plan for civil-military action from [U.S. Ambassador to Afghanistan Karl] Eikenberry; a clear picture of the role allied forces and aid will play as part of action to create unity of effort; and a realistic net assessment of how they can affect the outcome of the war. It is a sick joke, and a devastating indictment of the U.S. interagency process in Washington, that we are still debating concepts and not resources and actions. We have to list metrics, not report on the actual status of the war, eight years after it began.”

And then there’s Pakistan. Early in the new administration, a fair amount of lip service was paid to the idea that Pakistan and Afghanistan would be treated as a “single theater.” But while some of the alarming headlines in Pakistan have receded, there’s still plenty of evidence that the Taliban and their affiliates maintain their headquarters, and their recruiting base, across the border. Rory Stewart’s priceless quip about the “cat-tiger strategy” still holds true.

– Noah Shachtman and Nathan Hodge

US nuclear team 'ready' in Pakistan

US nuclear team 'ready' in Pakistan


v
Investigative journalist Seymour Hersh says the US has a rapid-response unit ready to secure Pakistan's nuclear weapons in the event of a mutiny or "any nuclear incident", a claim the US and Pakistani governments have denied.

Speaking to Al Jazeera, Hersh discussed his report which appeared in The New Yorker magazine and said a team was scrambled recently to respond to what was thought to be a nuclear emergency in Pakistan, which turned out to be a false alarm.

Zardari is a criminal, a fraud and a third rater: Musharraf

slamabad The relationship between Asif Ali Zardari and his predecessor Pervez Musharraf is not at all good and it was reflected in an interview when the General called the Pakistan President a “criminal”, a “fraud” and a “third rater”.

In an interview with noted journalist Seymour Hersh, Musharraf said that Zardari would go to any extent to save himself.

Hersh, in a detailed report on Pakistan, wrote: “Musharraf did not spare his successor. ‘Asif Zardari is a criminal and a fraud. He’ll do anything to save himself. He’s not a patriot and he’s got no love for Pakistan. He’s a third-rater’.”

Musharraf said that he and General Kayani, who had been his nominee for Chief of Army Staff, were still in telephonic contact.

He said he didn’t think the Army was capable of a mutiny. “There are people with fundamentalist ideas in the Army, but I don’t think there is any possibility of these people getting organised and doing an uprising. These ‘fundos’ were disliked and not popular.”

“The Muslims think highly of Obama, and he should use his acceptability — even with the Taliban — and try to deal with them politically,” The News quoted Musharraf, as saying.

Musharraf spoke of two prior attempts to create a fundamentalist uprising in the Army. In both cases, he said, the officers involved were arrested and prosecuted.

“I created the strategic force that controls all the strategic assets — eighteen to twenty thousand strong. They are monitored for character and for potential fundamentalism,” he said.

Musharraf acknowledged that things had changed since he’d left office. “People have become alarmed because of the Taliban and what they have done. Everyone is now alarmed.”

Hersh said Pervez Musharraf lives in unpretentious exile with his wife in an apartment in London, near Hyde Park.

Kerry-Lugar Bill: still seeking control over Pakistan

This column was going to be a continuation of the issue of Madressahs and the origin of Pakistan's suicide bombers, and why a non-military fast track approach is required by galvanising Pakistani resources, but that will have to wait for another week. The much awaited (in some Pakistani quarters) Kerry Lugar Bill has now been presented and it certainly moves away from the ridiculous Howard Berman Bill that was presented to the House of Representatives. However, once again, we are seeing the doublespeak so aptly describes by fellow columnist Anjum Niaz. At the end of the day, what may emerge in the Congressional consensus is a mix of the two bills, and the final shape will depend on how effective the Indian lobby has been and how critical the US regards our national submission to Indian interests. Be that as it may, the Kerry Lugar Bill (KLB) itself is problematic, even though it appears angelic compared to the Berman Bill – although the amounts and time lines are similar - $1.5 billion per year authorised for five years and a similar amount advocated for the following five years! The KLB delinks security or military assistance from non-military assistance but has conditionalities attached to both.

In terms of security, the assistance is on a year-by-year basis, and the US president has to certify that Pakistan's security forces – that is the military which effectively means the army – are making concerted efforts to prevent Al Qaeda and "other terrorist groups" from operating in Pakistani territory! Given how even the loss of over a thousand security personnel has failed to convince the US that our military is doing its best under trying circumstances, the US continues to put forward the mantra of "do more", such certification would put our security forces under US pressure and "control" for a decade at least. And for what? For weapons systems that we have done without adequately for many decades. As for getting US training in counter terrorism, that is a laugh given how inadequate the US itself has proven to be – whether it was Vietnam, Latin America, Iraq or Afghanistan.

There is also the required certification that the military is preventing Taliban sanctuaries in Pakistan from where attacks against Afghanistan can be launched – as if the whole burden on preventing cross-border movement and attacks is the responsibility of the Pakistan army, not of the NATO forces or Afghan military! Once again, the US continues to focus on a military-centric approach and has a punitive policy towards the Pakistan military.

The latter is reflected also in another requirement relating to security assistance: the US president has to certify that our security forces are not interfering in the political and judicial processes of Pakistan. While all Pakistanis wish to see this, is it the place of the US to dictate this as a conditionality? What has this got to do with military aid and fighting "terrorism"?

To add further insult to the state of Pakistan, the US secretary of state, after consulting the secretary of defence and the director of national intelligence will also be submitting to Congress an annual report on the "progress" of Pakistan's security forces. The "progress" is not defined categorically so it could include demands for revelations of our nuclear assets locations, security systems and so on also. Is our military so desperate for US weapons that we will compromise our nuclear assets? Already there is concern over the "sensitive" briefing allegedly given to US and some European diplomats relating to our nuclear assets. How far will we go just for dollars and some weapons systems that we do not really need? And what if "progress" also refers to cuts in our nuclear weapons' spending – something that the Zardari government has already begun to time "coincidentally" with his US visit, although some of us had written about this danger many months earlier!

Then there is a very ominous phrase relating to the presidential evaluation and that is a reference to the roles of "Pakistan local, regional and national institutions". Does regional here offer an indirect intrusion of India somewhere or does it merely mean provincial institutions – and which institutions?

Even with non-security or civilian assistance, there are conditionalities which are highly intrusive and relate to democracy, independent judiciary, rule of law and so on. All laudable, but why should we need US supervision or intervention financially on these counts? After all, on these issues, it is not money that is needed but political commitment and internal reforms which the senior judiciary has already initiated. Incidentally, on one count the US has understood the Pakistani penchant for bowing before dollars: the KLB also provides a regular $5 million for the US ambassador to Pakistan to provide "critical need development or humanitarian assistance" – an open-ended provision for buying loyalties and providing the US ambassador in Islamabad with more interventionist powers within Pakistan's domestic polity.

As for the democracy agenda, what happens if the Pakistani people elect a group or party that is anathema to the US and its interests? Will they do with our democracy what they did to Allende and Chile and what they are doing to Hamas? As for rule of law, if the US was seriously interested in this, it would come clean on the "Disappeared People" issue and close Guantanamo Bay.

Ironically, Kerry while introducing the Bill, kept referring to the US positive experience during the earthquake when the US provided humanitarian assistance. But he has forgotten that it took many critiques in the Pakistani press for the NATO transport planes and helicopters present in Afghanistan to be galvanised into playing a humanitarian role – while resource-limited Cuba and our friend Turkey gave immediately and without any publicity-seeking dramas.

The point that needs to be considered is: what are the long term costs of the US assistance to Pakistan and can we do without it? Certainly, if our leadership tightened its belt, cut out its foreign trips and perks and privileges, and actually governed effectively, our resources could be generated from within. Let the parliamentarians, most of who are economically prosperous, refuse to take their bloated pay and perks packages and redirect them towards education and health in their areas. Let the wheat and sugar mafias and smugglers be apprehended and so on. And let the military continue to rely on its indigenous weapons systems and nuclear deterrence.

As for fighting terrorism and extremism, the military is only a last option with tremendous negative long term fallout – especially as long as we are seen to be doing US bidding or acting under US pressure. We now face a threat not only from the militant extremists from within us, but also from the US. Yes, the writ of the state has to be asserted, but there has to be a political road map and a holistic approach not the military being sent in to fight in a political vacuum – simply because the US and its many apologists in Pakistan and in foreign-funded NGOs abroad, have decreed so.

The US leadership with its multiple histrionics, beginning with Obama, has made its negative Pakistan agenda clear: it is eventually seeking control of our nuclear assets and we are playing into their hands. On the one hand, the militants are threatening the fabric of Pakistani society and on the other hand the US is creating violent dissensions within Pakistan not only amongst civil society but also between the military and civilian structures. It knows that unless it destroys the military institution, it cannot achieve its goal of targeting out nuclear assets. So, it is demanding a role for the military which will undermine its morale, bring it into conflict with its own people and create further unrest.

Bangladesh, the various military actions in Balochistan and the murder of Akbar Bugti should be important reminders of the costs of military operations against one's own people. We have terrorist courts and paramilitary forces – isolate the militants by providing security and justice for the locals and bringing the terrorists to face the law – not simply creating more IDPs. After all, how many will we kill through military power? Militaries are never a solution to political problems and where the civilian government has lost its writ it should declare an emergency and move to re-establish it. Of course, if our leaders actually took time off from their foreign forays to visit their own troubled areas, it could offer solace and support to those caught in the military-militant crossfire. As for the US agenda, what part is still not clear to our rulers?

Alert: If Not Stopped, US Plans Will Lead To A Pakistani Civil War

US Plans Will Lead To A Pakistani Civil War

A pro-US fifth column inside Pakistan is now talking about southern Punjab as the hub of Al-Qaeda just as it earlier pointed to Balochistan in the same manner. For those who had failed to connect the dots to the US grand design of targeting Pakistan a year ago, it should be easier today. There are covert US operatives now spread across the length and breadth of Pakistan; drone attacks have increased in frequency since Obama took office; aid packages are demanding unacceptable conditions; the military is being pushed on all fronts, with India increasing its deployments along the western border with Pakistan and aiding low intensity conflict through Afghanistan.

ISLAMABAD, Pakistan—The US design to destabilize Pakistan is becoming clearer by the day, even for the most blinkered Pakistani.

As the US continues to be stalemated in Afghanistan, it has sought to move the centre of gravity of the “war on terror” to Pakistan. Initially it was assumed that this shift would be restricted to FATA, but now it is evident that the US is seeking to engulf the whole of Pakistan in an asymmetric conflict, which will eventually pit the people against the state, especially the military.

Reports of a US plan to target Balochistan, including its capital city Quetta are, in all likelihood, correct – more so because the US has not issued even a half-hearted denial on this count.

Pakistani officials are admitting that the US has sought to extend drone attacks to Balochistan, especially Quetta. Given the present government’s proclivity to accede to all US demands, it should not come as a surprise to soon see these drone attacks taking place.

However, for Pakistan such a development will be suicidal, given the prevailing instability in Balochistan and the continuing lack of trust between the Pakistani Baloch people and the Pakistani federation. Worse still, Quetta is an urban centre with a concentration of population. It is also a major military station with the Command and Staff College as well as other formations present in the heart of the city.

How far is our military prepared to accommodate the US desire to undermine the country’s sovereignty?

After all, the drones will push the separatists closer to their goal, while the US will think it can move towards its concept of Greater Balochistan through the breakup of Pakistan and Iran.

Unfortunately for the US, the Iranian leadership shows no signs of falling prey to such US designs, unlike their Pakistani counterparts.

Again, if today drones are allowed to target an expanded area of the country, what will stop the US from expanding into southern Punjab next? With receding red lines, the whole country could be up for targeting by the US in its growing despair over the inevitable failure in Afghanistan.

There are many fifth columnists in our midst now talking of southern Punjab as the hub of Al-Qaeda just as earlier they pointed to Balochistan in the same manner. For those who had failed to connect the dots to the US grand design of targeting Pakistan a year ago, it should be easier today. There are covert US operatives now spread across the length and breadth of Pakistan; drone attacks have increased in frequency since Obama took office; aid packages are demanding unacceptable conditionalities; the military is being pushed on all fronts, with India increasing its deployments along the western border with Pakistan and aiding low intensity conflict through Afghanistan, and the US demanding we withdraw more troops from the eastern border to FATA and begin a premature conventional operation there; and the US-dominated IMF and World Bank pushing through threatening price hikes and taking charge of policy making in Balochistan and NWFP.

Thar coal reserves in Pakistan‏

Thar coal Reserves

If All The Oil Reserves of Saudia Arab & Iran Put Together These Are Approximately 375 Billion Barrels, But
A Single Thar Coal Reserve Of Sindh is about 850 Trillion Cubic Feet,
Which is More Than Oil Reserves Of Saudia & Iran.

These reserves estimated at 850 trillion cubic feet (TCF) of gas, about 30 times higher than Pakistan 's proven gas reserves of 28 TCF.

Dr Murtaza Mughal president of Pakistan Economy Watch in a statement said that these reserves of coal worth USD 25 trillion can not only cater the electricity requirements of the country for next 100 years but also save almost four billion dollars in staggering oil import bill.

Just 2% usage of Thar Coal Can Produce 20,000 Mega Watts of Electricity for next 40Years ,without any single Second of Load Shedding.
and if the whole reserves are utilized, then it could easily be imagined how much energy could be generated.

The coal power generation would cost Pakistan PKR 5.67 per unit while power generated by Independent Power Projects cost PKR 9.27.

It Requires Just Initial 420 Billion Rupees Initial Investment,
Whereas Pakistan Receives annually 1220 Billion from Tax Only.

Chinese and other companies had not only carried out surveys and feasibilities of this project but also offered 100 percent investment in last 7 to 8 years but the “Petroleum Gang” always discouraged them in a very systematic way.

But Petroleum lobby , is very strong in Pakistan and they are against any other means of power generation except for the imported oil. This lobby is major beneficiary of the increasing oil bill that is estimated above 15 billion dollar this year. Even GOV. is planning to Sell all these reserve to a company on a very low price.
When Pervez Musharraf was president he gave green signal to embark upon the initiation of work on exploiting energy potential of these coal reserves of Thar under a modern strategy.


Think About This, How We Can Help Our Home Land .

Spread this knowledge among all Pakistanis.

A Bloody Revolution Awaits Pakistan's Rulers: Man Waiting In Queue For Subsidized Food Dies From Heart Attack

A Bloody Revolution Awaits Pakistan's Rulers: Man Waiting In Queue For Subsidized Food Dies From Heart Attack

They should fear the time they would swing from lampposts in Islamabad.

Man waiting in queue for subsidized atta dies from heart attack

September 13, 2009

GOJAR KHAN: An aged man waiting in the queue for the subsidized atta for four hours died from heart attack here on Sunday.

Fifty-year-old Bisharat Hussain had stood in the queue with his wife, early in the morning, so t! hat he might leave for his duty.

Due to the intense heat and suffocation his condition started to deteriorate, however he succeeded in getting the token.

But at 10:30 am, after the arrival of the distributing truck, he fell down and passed away on way to hospital.

18 Pakistani women die in stampede for free flour

by The Associated Press

Enlarge Associated Press

People mourn the death of a relative who died in a stampede, at a local hospital in Karachi, Pakistan, Monday, Sept. 14, 2009. At least 18 women and girls waiting to get free flour in Pakistan's southern city of Karachi died when the crowd around them swelled and a stampede occurred, officials said.

Associated Press

People mourn the death of a relative who died in a stampede, at a local hospital in Karachi, Pakistan, Monday, Sept. 14, 2009. At least 18 women and girls waiting to get free flour in Pakistan's southern city of Karachi died when the crowd around them swelled and a stampede occurred, officials said.

Enlarge Associated Press

People mourn the death of a relative who died in a stampede, at a local hospital in Karachi, Pakistan, Monday, Sept. 14, 2009. At least 18 women and girls waiting to get free flour in Pakistan's southern city of Karachi died when the crowd around them swelled and a stampede occurred, officials said.

Associated Press

People mourn the death of a relative who died in a stampede, at a local hospital in Karachi, Pakistan, Monday, Sept. 14, 2009. At least 18 women and girls waiting to get free flour in Pakistan's southern city of Karachi died when the crowd around them swelled and a stampede occurred, officials said.

Associated Press

People mourn the death of a relative who died in a stampede, at a local hospital in Karachi, Pakistan, Monday, Sept. 14, 2009. At least 18 women and girls waiting to get free flour in Pakistan's southern city of Karachi died when the crowd around them swelled and a stampede occurred, officials said.

Associated Press

Pakistani police officers, front are assisted by bystanders as they carry a victim of a stampede in Karachi, Pakistan on Monday Sept. 14, 2009. At least 18 women and girls waiting to get free flour in Pakistan's southern city of Karachi died when the crowd around them swelled and a stampede occurred, officials said.

Enlarge Associated Press

A Pakistani woman mourns over the death of people, who died in a stampede, at a local hospital in Karachi, Pakistan on Monday Sept. 14, 2009.. At least 18 women and girls waiting to get free flour in Pakistan's southern city of Karachi died when the crowd around them swelled and a stampede occurred, officials said.

Associated Press

A Pakistani woman mourns over the death of people, who died in a stampede, at a local hospital in Karachi, Pakistan on Monday Sept. 14, 2009.. At least 18 women and girls waiting to get free flour in Pakistan's southern city of Karachi died when the crowd around them swelled and a stampede occurred, officials said.

text sizeAAA

KARACHI, Pakistan September 14, 2009, 11:18 pm ET

At least 18 women and girls died when a crowd waiting for handouts of flour swelled and panicked in Pakistan's most populous city, officials said.

The stampede in Karachi came during the Muslim holy month of Ramadan, a traditional time for charitable acts including giving away food. Pakistan's battered economy, combined with higher than usual prices for staples such as sugar due to alleged hoarding by producers, has made this Ramadan a particularly needy time for the country's largely impoverished population of 175 million.

At times, however, the food giveaways have turned rowdy and dangerous.

Monday's stampede occurred in a small building with narrow passages. As more women entered to get the flour, some panicked and guards used strong-arm tactics to clear the building, officials and witnesses said.

Karachi police chief Wasim Ahmad said at least 18 women and girls died in the ensuing rush. Mohammad Amin Khan of Karachi Civil Hospital said some of the women had suffocated and that there were at least 20 bodies.

"Hundreds of women were pushing to enter into the small hall, and guards started beating us to get the place cleared," said 30-year-old Kulsoom, who gave only one name and ended up among the many wounded. "I fell down and was being crushed. My heart was missing beats, and I thought I was dying."

Panicked relatives streamed into the hospital, while others brought limp bodies in the backs of trucks or in their arms. Some women wailed while laying on stretchers.

The flour giveaway was organized by a private donor who Ahmad said was detained for not giving police prior notice of the event. Prime Minister Yousuf Raza Gilani ordered an inquiry.

Karachi, a southern port city, is Pakistan's commercial heart, but many of its residents live in dire conditions.

"Poverty is on the rise, there is a desperation among people," local government official Javed Hanif said. "Naturally, when people are frustrated, whenever they get such an opportunity, they try to grab the maximum."

History Mystery

History Mystery



Have a history teacher explain this----- if they can.

Abraham Lincoln was elected to Congress in 1846.
John F. Kennedy was elected to Congress in 1946.

Abraham Lincoln was elected President in 1860.
John F. Kennedy was elected President in 1960.

Both were particularly concerned with civil rights.
Both wives lost their children while living in the White House.

Both Presidents were shot on a Friday.
Both Presidents were shot in the head.

Now it gets really weird.

Lincoln 's secretary was named Kennedy.
Kennedy's Secretary was named Lincoln .

Both were assassinated by Southerners.
Both were succeeded by Southerners named Johnson.

Andrew Johnson, who succeeded Lincoln, was born in 1808.
Lyndon Johnson, who succeeded Kennedy, was born in 1908.

John Wilkes Booth, who assassinated Lincoln, was born in 1839. Lee Harvey Oswald, who assassinated Kennedy,

was born in 1939.


Both assassins were known by their three names.
Both names are composed of fifteen letters.

Now hang on to your seat.

Lincoln was shot at the theater named 'Ford'.
Kennedy was shot in a car called ' Lincoln ' made by 'Ford'.

Lincoln was shot in a theater and his assassin ran and hid in a warehouse.

Kennedy was shot from a warehouse and his assassin ran and hid in a theater.

Booth and Oswald were assassinated before their trials.

And here's the kicker...

A week before Lincoln was shot, he was in Monroe , Maryland.
A week before Kennedy was shot, he was with Marilyn Monroe.

WHO FIGURED THIS OUT?!

Now, try this…
INCREDIBLE

1) Fold a NEW $20 bill in half...




2) Fold again, taking care to fold it exactly as below



3) Fold the other end, exactly as before




4) Now, simply turn it over...




What a coincidence!
A simple geometric fold creates a catastrophic premonition printed on all $20 bills!!!

COINCIDENCE?

YOU DECIDE

As if that wasn't enough...
Here is what you've seen...

Firstly The Pentagon on fire...



Then The Twin Towers.


..And now ... look at this!



TRIPLE COINCIDENCE ON A SIMPLE $20 BILL
Disaster (Pentagon)
Disaster ( Twin Towers )
Disaster (Osama)???

It gets even better 9 + 11 = $20!


Creepy huh? Send this to as many
people as you can, because:
Hey, this is one history lesson most people
probably will not mind reading!

Is U.S Looking For A New Base In Pakistan???

PKKH has learnt from informed sources within the Pakistan Navy that certain high-ranking individuals within the Naval forces are involved in secret construction of operational facilities in Gharo, Sindh, which are intended to serve as a base for around 200 US marines.

Unconfirmed reports suggest that a high ranking official of the Special Service Group Navy (SSGN), which is the commando division of the Pakistan Navy, is involved in the construction of a large complex in GHARO, Sindh, which is described to be purpose built to serve as a base for an army unit – comprising of halls, residential units, and storage facilities. The source has also stressed that the Pakistan Navy had already rejected a similar proposal by the US Armed Forces earlier this year. However, the SSGN official involved had kept the authorities in the dark about the purpose-built facility in Gharo.

Some years back the Navy had decided to shift the SSGN headquarter (PNS Iqbal) from the dockyard to a coastal area, but Gharo was not the likely sight at the time. Because there has been a sudden increase in assistance to the SSGN from the US, questions are being raised whether this shifting of the SSGN to Gharo is actually a ruse to allow US Marine “trainers” to arrive there in large numbers on the pretext of training the SSGN commandos in newly-acquired weapons and tactics?

UPDATE September 3rd:
The source has also stressed that the Pakistan Navy had already rejected a similar proposal by the US Armed Forces earlier this year. However, the SSGN official involved, along with some help from other individuals, had kept the authorities in the dark about the purpose-built facility in Gharo. The top leadership of PAKISTAN NAVY was unaware of these plans at the time of publishing this report.

DIRTY BACKGROUND OF :REHMAN MALIK

Who is this Rehman Malik and why is he in the news for not so good reasons. And why is he still being kept in the government even when he can not be trusted as the items below will show:

Background:

'Rehman Malik rose to dizzying heights from a lowly grade 13 or 14 officer. Stories of Malik trying to worm his way through by bribing his seniors are still fresh in our minds. Come promotion time, he'd turn up at their homes with trays laden with designer suits. By golly, it worked!' [1]

Naseerullah Babar had tried to warn Benazir Bhutto to get a reliable security advisor as her potential murderers would have to come from within her party. He had advised against this third class officer to be part of her security chief. Malik was FIA chief and would report to Babar and his disapproval of Malik can be seen in the quoted article.

He was soon to replace Amin Fahim as Benazir's dealer of the military and was the primary negotiator of the NRO:

http://www.thenews.com.pk/daily_detail.asp?id=66184

Rehman Malik and illegal money:

http://www.dailytimes.com.pk/print.asp?page=2007%5C05%5C31%5Cstory_31-5-2007_pg1_4

He is known to have a lot of money illegally during Benazir's time through corruption and money laundering.

Links with Foreign Agents:

Rehman Malik had dealings with Mosad and FBI during Benazir's government

http://www.fas.org/irp/world/pakistan/fia/index.html

Benazir Bhutto appointed Rehman Malik as chief of the Federal Investigation Agency which then launched a secret war against the Islamists, which amounted to a direct attack on the ISI. The Pakistani military was equally dismayed by reports of FIA contacts with the Israeli secret service, the MOSSAD, to investigate Islamist terrorists. The FIA leadership under Bhutto also angered Islamist elements because they allowed the extradited Ramzi Yousaf to the US for trial on the New York Trade Centre Bombing. One of the first acts of President Leghari after dismissing Benazir Bhutto on 05 November 1996 was to imprison the Ghulam Asghar, head of FIA, suspended on non specified corruption charges, and Rehman Malik, Addl. Director General FIA, was also arrested.

http://www.rense.com/general25/team.htm

Working for Ejaz Shah, Tariq Aziz and Nadeem Taj

Rehman Malik had established good relations with the Musharraf, DG MI Ashfaq Kiyani, DG ISI Nadeem Taj and other top brass of Pakistani Army. When Benazir mentioned that the notorious Ejaz Shah, who was DG IB, and also known as the 'handler of Osama bin Laden', might be involved in the attack on her, Malik was summoned by DG ISI Nadeem Taj. The security provided to him was unprecedented because Ejaz Shah had accompanied him to the GHQ in order to work things out with DG ISI Taj and Rehman Malik.

'Earlier, Rehman Malik was taken aback when he was given extraordinary protocol at the Islamabad airport. He found dozens of top security and protocol officers receiving him inside the plane. A bulletproof car was specially parked close to the plane and he was taken out of the Islamabad airport amid tight security, which is not even available to the federal ministers.' [2]

What was this secret meeting all about? Why was he flown to meet Ejaz Shah who was one of the possible killers of Benazir as said by her? Why was Ejaz Shah present at this meeting to discuss security of Benazir when he was being alleged to be behind Oct 18 attack on Benazir? Rehman Malik did not respond to journalists when they came to know about the meeting and asked for his opinion:

'Talking to The News, Rehman Malik confirmed his meeting with DG ISI, but refused to comment on the nature of his talks. On the issue of extraordinary security provided to him by the government, Malik said, they had some concerns about my security and they acted on their own.'

Rehman Malik was the chief negotiator of Musharraf-Benazir deal and had established many key connections which he uses till now.

Suspicious activities around Benazir's Assassination

First Interview of Rehman Malik, within hours of BB's Death:
All videos and details can be seen here

http://pkpolitics.com/2008/01/04/fishy-character-rehman-malik/

- RM claims that his car was 4 feet away from BB's car during incident and he also claims that he did not hear gunshots?

- Although being BB's Chief Security Office (CSO), he did bother to call anyone in BB's car [Naheed Khan, Amin Faheem, SP Major Imtiaz, Safdar Abbasi & 2 other persons]

- As per his understanding, BB was safe and this is what he told the Geo TV after the explosion.

- He says that they stopped at the Hospital and found that BB's car was not coming. He took a U turn from there and found that BB's car had already entered hospital and there was lots of crowd over there.

- He said that he was trying his best to get the custody of dead body As Soon As Possible from the Hospital. Why he wasn't bothered about further investigation when he has been a Director General of Federal Investigation Agency (FIA)?

---------------------

Rauf Klasra of The News claims that:

- Brigadier Cheema officially told on TV that BB was safe after confirming from CSO RM, who himself said the same on Geo TV

- As the tire of BB's car got burst after the explosion, Major Imtiaz moved BB to Shery's car after traveling a short distance

- RM went directly to Bilawal House in Islamabad and confined himself there until Zardari reached Islamabad from Dubai

- Babar Awan sitting next to RM says that they directly went to Bilawal House in Islamabad assuming that BB was okay and she was directly following their car.

- Once Babar found that BB did not reach Islamabad, Babar immediately rushed back towards Rawalpindi and RM did not accompany him to Rawalpindi.

- Babar's statement (who was sitting next to RM) is in complete contradiction to RM's claim that:

-> They returned to hospital from next U-Turn (as told to Iftikhar of Geo)

-> They stopped the car when they could not see lights of BB's car anymore

Link to Rauf Klasra's Article

Last but not least, the suspicious person with strange antics standing close to BB while she was addressing at Liaqat Baagh, was hired on special recommendation of Rehman Malik. This person, Khalid Shahinshah who was personal servant of BB, might have known about the explosion in the advance which could be the reason he rushed into the armored car before everyone else.

The Post says that:

PPP sources have reported that the moment Benazir ended her address, this (servant) man was the first one to dive into her bullet proof Land Cruiser; an unusual change from past routine whilst he always boarded the vehicle after Benazir, often hanging by the external pedestals of her Cruiser, as was evident in videos.

One other household servant and Dr Safdar Abbassi got seated in the rear portion of the Cruiser, and when the suicide bomber blew himself apart, Khalid was also present in the Cruiser. Afterwards he (Khalid) went over to the Zardari House, Islamabad where he lived for two days, and did not visit Naudero despite Benazir's death, making it there on third day. When informed about the video of his antics he promptly disappeared from the scene, over the excuse of his mother's death.

Post Assassination:

http://www.makepakistanbetter.com/Why_how_what_forum.asp?PageNo=&GroupID=5&ArticleID=2716

Rehman Malik is a buddy of Tariq Aziz. His wife runs Nasir Nursing Home in Rawalpindi and his brothers in law do not hide their identity as being Qadyanis. Rehman Malik is thus a bridge between Musharraf and Zardari. Fatima Bhutto (Read her interview in today's Nation newspaper) blames specifically Asif Zardari for assassinating Murtaza Bhutto. Rehman Malik was the right hand man of Zardari and hence his role due to his high position in FIA makes him even more suspicious.

Rehman Malik who drives very fast on Islamabad streets breaking all laws, is trying to be over-smart and trying to stop restoration of judges and sacking of thoroughly corrupt and yes men judges ( How can they be judges when are bootlickers of dictators?) Rehman Malik had in hand with Farooq Naik are toeing Uncle SAM's dirty lines and policies which are in fact 100% Satanic and anti people. Uncle SAM (Sub-animal materialism) does not free judiciary and true democracy in any Muslim country. So through dirty and behind the scene games Human Satans are playing their dirty games. Certainly such people must not be in any Government position and must be fired. Mr. Nawaz Sharif as well as all other political parties must demand his immediate expulsion. Rehman Malik played key role in induction of terrorists in Sind Cabinet which now contains over 13 proven die hard terrorists as ministers! CIA and International Zionism played key role in induction of MQM terrorists who carried out May 12 2007 Karachi Carnage and burnt lawyers alive on 9th April, 2008 are in the folds of PPP Sind Government as Uncle SAM demanded. How people of Sind will live peacefully and progress amidst these fully protected terrorists? Against the Shar (Mischief) of all these human Satans and Jin Satans we take Allah's protection who is the Rabb of Falak and People as well the King and the God of all human beings.

Prof. (Dr.) Anwar-ul-Haq
Rehman Malik let Benazir's killer and his close friend Ejaz Shah flee the country

Ejaz Shah Headed Downunder

April 29th, 2008 Arif Rafiq Posted in Ejaz Shah |

The previous Intelligence Bureau chief Ejaz Shah-accused by Benazir Bhutto of plotting the assassination attempt on her in Karachi-has been allowed to leave the country for Australia. The purpose and duration of his visit is unclear, but it's worth noting that Pervez Musharraf, a close friend of his, attempted to post him as high commissioner to that country in 2004, but the Aussies seemed to have objected.

http://www.godlikeproductions.com/forum1/message480663/pg1

Bhutto's MOSSAD security detail

Quote

Benazir Bhutto appointed Rehman Malik as chief of the Federal Investigation Agency which then launched a secret war against the Islamists, which amounted to a direct attack on the ISI. The Pakistani military was equally dismayed by reports of FIA contacts with the Israeli secret service, the MOSSAD, to investigate Islamist terrorists

[link to www.globalsecurity.org]

At her side today is Rehman Malik, a former Pakistan intelligence chief who followed Bhutto into exile and has become one of her key backers and advisers.

REHMAN MALIK, FORMER PAKISTANI INTELLIGENCE CHIEF: If you say people keep saying a lie, again and again, and again and again, it becomes true. And now it is our turn to say the truth again and again so people should know that she was not corrupt, she was never corrupt.

Malik has been central in negotiating her return and in negotiating an amnesty from any corruption charges with military ruler President Musharraf.

BENAZIR BHUTTO: We have not done any deal. We have held negotiations for the transition to democracy and certain initial positive developments have taken place in that regard.

Beyond the party faithful, her arrangement with General Musharraf has been viewed with cynicism. She's portrayed as propping up a failing dictator to secure her own amnesty and share of power, but apparently they have more in common than many have assumed.

REPORTER: So there are similarities?

REHMAN MALIK: There are similarities. Moreover, we don't want terrorism, General Musharraf doesn't want terrorism, the international community doesn't want terrorism. So this is a very common place thing, a very common issue?

[link to news.sbs.com.au]

It was Rehman Malik who initially told the press BB had been shot twice. In a bullet proof car?

Smells of double agent false flag assassination. Not Pervez despite 911 connection/ Remember FRAMED 7/7 Pakistani bombers. This is JWO region destabilisation and Balkanisation plan. Same as Iraq.

Plus
Pakistan nukes give falseflag terror a ramp up and excuse to invade

Rehman Malik goes to ALL major meetings even Negroponte, Peterson, etc

http://www.karachipage.com/news/Mar_08/032608.html

He does not know anything about the judges issue but is in the committee..

He also has been the one responsible for the delay of the polls.

http://www.thenews.com.pk/top_story_detail.asp?Id=14559

EC confirms Malik's key role in by-polls delay

Thursday, May 08, 2008
By Ansar Abbasi

ISLAMABAD: The controversy behind the postponement of the by-elections deepened on Wednesday when the Election Commission Secretary Kanwar Dilshad revealed that he had received a phone call from Adviser to the Prime Minister on Interior Rehman Malik, who had asked for a delay. This confirms a similar claim by the NWFP government. As Dilshad's statement to The News firmly established that Rehman Malik was the man who had successfully executed the controversial postponement, it was still unclear who, between the Zardari House and the presidency, actually authored the script of the so-called conspiracy..

Rehman Malik was involved either directly or indirectly in Benazir's death. He is close friends with Musharraf's aides.Close friends with Ejaz Shah, the person responsible for Benazir's Assassination. Already known to have acted on a conspiracy for the Presidency.
[1] http://www.dawn.com/weekly/dmag/archive/071028/dmag16.htm

[2] http://www.thenews.com.pk/daily_detail.asp?id=76915

Disclaimer

The view expressed in all articles are those of the authors or commentators and have no bearing on the opinions of Pakistan Think Tank or its members. However, in the interest of free speech a right granted by the First Amendment of the U.S. Constitution, we present a diversity of opinions.