LAHORE: Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif has said the committee constituted by the government to hold talks with the Taliban-nominated body has a full mandate, and the dialogue process with the Taliban is moving in the right direction. The News, Dawn, The Frontier Post.
MIRANSHAH: The Jamaat-e-Islami (JI) leader and member of the Taliban negotiations committee Prof Muhammad Ibrahim Khan and its coordinator Maulana Yousaf Shah on Saturday arrived in North Waziristan Agency via helicopter to meet the Shura of the outlawed Tehrik-e-Taliban Pakistan (TTP), sources said. The News, Dawn, The Frontier Post.
LAHORE: Federal Minister for Information and Broadcasting Senator Pervaiz Rashid on Saturday called for avoiding irresponsible statements about the ongoing talks between the government and the Taliban committees. The News.
ISLAMABAD: Former President Asif Ali Zardari on Saturday said neutralising extremists whether through negotiations or use of force was only one part of the battle. The real battle was to change the militant mindset through the creation and provision of opportunities to people, and for this Pakistanis need greater international support to give them a hope through creation of jobs and economic opportunities. He said this in a meeting with Canadian High Commissioner Greg Giokas who called on him. The News.
BAJAUR AGENCY: The Bajaur levies force on Saturday defused an improvised explosive device planted by unidentified terrorists in a busy Inayat Killi Bazaar of Bajaur agency, officials of the political administration said. According to the officials, the personnel of Bajaur levies force foiled a bid to explode shops in the busy Inayat Killi Bazaar eight kilometers from the agency headquarters in Khar.
The officials said that the bomb had been planted by unidentified miscreants on the roof of a shop. The News.
PESHAWAR: Motorcycle riding will not be allowed in Peshawar on Sunday after the local administration announced a ban on the practice for one day. Media reports said the decision for the ban was taken in the wake of the second phase of the Health Insaf programme as part of security arrangements. Deputy Commissioner Zaheerul Islam said Section 144 had also been imposed with a ban on motorcycle for Sunday. The News.
LANDIKOTAL: The Fata Mobile Hospital held medical camps in five far-flung areas of Khyber Agency, health officials said on Saturday. Fata Director Health Services Dr Pervaiz Kamal Khan said that on the directives of Khyber Pakhtunkhwa Governor Shaukatullah, they arranged the free-medical camps in Shin Pokh, Chora, Kam Shalman, Lawara Mena and Landikotal. The News.
NOWSHERA: Former minister and provincial leader of the Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) Muhammad Azam Khan Swati on Saturday said that party chief Imran Khan had asked the Khyber Pakhtunkhwa government and party leaders to extend full support to the peace parleys to bring harmony and tranquility to the region without further bloodshed. The News.
LAHORE: Jamaat-i-Islami chief Syed Munawar Hasan has said that nobody should be worried about the demand for enforcement of Sharia in the country because the 1973 Constitution already declares the holy Quran and the Sunnah as the supremelaw of the land. Dawn.
ISLAMABAD: The government negotiators holding talks with the Taliban are anxiously waiting for a reply from the leadership of the banned Tehreek-i-Taliban Pakistan to the conditions set by them. Dawn.
BANNU: A couple and their relative were killed over a land dispute in the limits of Saddar Police Station here on Saturday, police sources said. Reporting the incident to the police, Zahid Shah, son of the slain couple, alleged that Zaheer Khan, Farman Khan and Irfan Khan killed his father, mother and a close relative on account of a land dispute. The News, The Frontier Post.
LAKKI MARWAT: Police on Saturday claimed to have arrested 11 wanted men, including five alleged militants, during search operation in different parts of the district. An official said that the operation was commanded by District Police Officer (DPO) Ismail Kharak wherein Elite Force and Anti-Terror Unit personnel also took part. The News.
PARACHINAR: Unidentified gunmen shot dead a schoolteacher in Malana village in Kurram Agency, official sources said. The sources said that Najeeb Ali had gone to offer condolence over the death of a neighbour and was returning home when the gunmen lying in wait sprayed him with bullets. The News.
HANGU: A checkpost of the Frontier Constabulary (FC) was attacked with rockets in Bagato area in the district early Saturday, official sources said. The sources said that four rockets were fired at the checkpost prompting the security personnel manning the picket to return the fire in the direction wherefrom the projectiles had been fired. The rockets landed in the nearby area, causing no casualty or damage to property. The News.
ISLAMABAD: The issue of deaths, allegedly while in custody, refuses to be resolved despite judicial activism and the promulgation of laws; at least six bodies of missing persons have been handed over to their relatives over the past six months. Dawn.
ISLAMABAD: Extremist threats have hampered the murder trial of former minority affairs minister Shahbaz Bhatti, who was gunned down in Islamabad in March 2011, the All Pakistan Minorities Alliance (Apma) said on Saturday. Shahbaz Bhatti, a Catholic, had been a vocal opponent of blasphemy law. Dawn.
KHAR: The political administration of Bajaur Agency has banned sale of petroleum products in commercial centres and bazaars across the region. Bajaur Agency Assistant Political Agent Asad Sarwar told reporters on Friday that the ban had been slapped to discourage illegal business of petroleum products and prevent fire incidents. Dawn.
PESHAWAR: Keeping in view the killing of at least seven anti-Tehreek-i-Taliban Pakistan volunteers and the growing movement of militants in Peshawar`s suburban villages, leaders of different peace bodies have decided to reorganise peace workers and check the militants` activities in rural areas of the city. Dawn.
KOHAT: Preparations are underway for the repatriation of internally displaced families of Kurram Agency, which is expected to be started from Feb 15. The IDPs of Kurram Agency would return to their homes after remaining refugees in Kohat for seven long years. Dawn.
PESHAWAR: The second round of the “Sehat Ka Insaf” campaign of the Khyber Pakhtunkhwa government would begin today (Sunday) in 63 union councils of the city to vaccinate nearly 500,000 children against polio and eight other child-related diseases. The News.
Miranshah: While the ‘Sehat Ka Insaf’ programme successfully continues to vaccinate hundreds and thousands of children in Peshawar against nine diseases that includes polio eradication, the troubled region of North Waziristan Agency (NWA) has reported four new polio cases in a single day taking the total number of polio cases during the current year to nine. The News, Dawn.
