SECURITY
Iran Fires Mortar Shells into Pakistani Area
Chagai: Mortar shells fired by the Iranian borderforces landed and exploded in a border village of Pakistan in Chagai district on Sunday. However, no casualty or damage to property was reported as no house was hit by the shells. Five mortar shells fired from Iranian side early in the morning landed in Talap village. Dawn
LEAs Arrest Two Terror Suspects
Sahiwal: The security agencies arrested two members of banned outfits for planning to trigger sectarian violence in the city. The suspects, Akbar Shah Khagga and Irfan, have been arrested from Kot Khadim Ali Shah and Kot Allah Din areas, respectively. Khagga is suspected to be involved in the Sehwan Sharif blast in Sindh and has links with Amanullah, the driver of Malik Ishaq, who is an expert in developing improvised explosive devices. Dawn
Four Militants Killed in Baluchistan
Baluchistan: Four suspected militants were killed and two arrested in Baluchistan’s Awaran district. Security forces launched a search operation acting on a tip-off about the presence of militants in remote Awaran area. The operation was carried out as part of Operation Raddul Fassad. The Express Tribune
BNP-A Leader Kidnapped near Gwadar
Gwadar: A local leader of the Balochistan National Party-Awami (BNP-A) was kidnapped in the Tump area on Sunday. Official sources said that BNP-A chairman for Tump Dost Muhammad Baloch was on his way to Karachi in a passenger coach from Tump when armed men on motorcycles intercepted the vehicle and took him away at gunpoint. Af ter forcing him to get down from the coach the armed men took him towards an unknown destination. Dawn
Search Operation in Khyber Agency
Khyber Agency: A search operation was conducted in Jamrud area of Khyber Agency by security forces during which heavy weapons and ammunitions had been recovered. Akhbar-e-Khyber
POLITICAL
PPP Leaders Demand Reopening of Pak-Afghan Border in Kurram
The Pakistan People Party (PPP) Kurram Agency chapter demanded of the political administration to reopen Pak-Afghan border and to eliminate Red Zones in Parachinar. PPP Kurram Agency president Jamil Hussain Turi, and Iftikhar Hussain said that the Pak-Afghan trade route in Kurram Agency had been closed since February 16. They said that the border closure had been causing problems for tribal people and traders. They further said that Parachinar bazaar was also converted into red zone which caused damages to business activities. Radio TNN
Majority of Tribal People Oppose KP-Fata Merger: Dr. Noor-Ul-Haq
Dr. Allama Muhammad Noor-ul-Haq, the Ahl-e-Sunnat-Wal-Jamaat Khyber Agency chapter chief, said that majority of tribal people were against the merger of Fata with Khyber Pakhtunkhwa adding that three to four parliamentarians could not decide the fate of tribal people. They supported Maulana Fazal-ur-Rehman’s demand of referendum to decide the fate of Fata. Radio TNN
SOCIO-ECONOMIC
Shahbaz Approves setting up of Punjab Public Health Agency
Lahore: Punjab Chief Minister Shahbaz Sharif approved setting up of the Punjab Public Health Agency and recommendations for its organizational structure and other affairs. Presiding over a meeting which reviewed development of the health sector and reforms in 40 hospitals of the province and installation of incinerators for hospital waste management, he said that affairs of Punjab Public Health Agency would be entrusted with Primary and Secondary Health Department and the role of the institution was of paramount importance in connection with improvement of the healthcare system. The News
Rs1 billion being Spent for Special Persons
Islamabad: The Capital Administration and Development Division (CADD) has been allocated Rs1 billion for the institutions working for the persons with disabilities. “The government has allocated a hefty amount for the CADD, for the years 2017-18 and out it we are utilising a substantial amount for the persons with disabilities,” said Parliamentary Secretary for CADD Maiza Hameed. The News
Peace Sports Gala Concluded in Kurram Agency
The Peace Sports Gala was concluded in Parachinar, Kurram Agency. More than 100 teams from Khyber Pakhtunkhwa and Fata participated in cricket, volleyball, football, basketball, tug of war, martial arts and local dance and other games competitions held during the one month long Peace Sports Gala. Radio TNN
Political Administration Ordered People to Vacate Border Areas in Khyber Agency
The political administration of Khyber Agency ordered the residents of Shinpukh and Loe Shalman, a border village of Landi Kotal, to vacate their homes and migrate to safe places with immediate effect. The Landi Kotal administration issued the orders to the locals two days after the cross border firing from Afghanistan and also informed the villagers that there was further possibility of such attacks from across the border. Radio TNN, Dawn
Federal Government Spending Rs 3.5 billion on Education in FATA
According to FATA Secretariat, the federal government is spending three and a half billion rupees on the promotion of education in Federally Administered Tribal Areas (FATA). The government has initiated 59 projects in education sector out of which 35 have been completed. Khyber News
Lack of Facilities Impending Girls Education in Bajaur
Naila Akhtar, Woman Wing President of FATA Students Organizations, said that almost all the government educational institutions for women in Bajaur Agency lack basic facilities. She pointed out that none of the schools met the standard of girl’s school at KP. She demanded the federal government, the KP government, Chief Secretary FATA, and local administration to take result oriented steps to improve the state of women education in Bajaur. Dawn
Cultural Show Organized in North Waziristan
For the first time after military operation Zarb-e-Azb, a cultural show was organized in Miranshah, the main town in North Waziristan Agency, by the FATA Secretariat. Muhammad Javed, FATA Secretariat Official, said this kind of events sent out a positive message to the world that the people of the region were peace loving. He said the people of North Waziristan had a very positive and progressive thinking and their positive colors should be known to the world. Radio TNN
FOREIGN AFFAIRS
Only Pakistan-bound Journalists should be Monitored: BD MP
The parliamentary committee directive to monitor to Bangladeshi journalists while travelling abroad was actually intended only for those travelling to Pakistan on the invitation of the Pakistan government, reported foreign media. Mehjabeen Khaled, member of the standing committee on foreign affairs, admitted that she had raised the issue of monitoring journalists at a meeting after finding out some journalists who took part in the tour made statements that undermined Bangladesh. The News
