Pakistan and the United States on Tuesday signed into agreement a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) on the reopening of NATO supply routes through the country, also allowing for the passage of weapons to the Afghan National Army (ANA) in landlocked Afghanistan. The MoU was signed by US Charge D’Affaires Richard Hoagland and Additional Secretary of Defence Rear Admiral Farrokh Ahmad in Rawalpindi. The federal cabinet had earlier approved the draft of the MoU. Under the deal, Pakistan will not levy any transit fee and the United States will pay a customs charge of $250 per container. Furthermore, cargoes will be allowed to transport food, medicines, and items of daily use to allied forces fighting in Afghanistan. The News, Dawn.
The newly-nominated US Ambassador to Pakistan on Tuesday said that working with Islamabad to squeeze the Haqqani network would be his top-most priority. Richard Olson told his Senate confirmation hearing on Tuesday that the militant group was still based in North Waziristan while its group leaders had been designated as foreign terrorists.He added that he would seek to focus on mutual Pak-US concerns and interests, and would do his best to facilitate the relationship. While answering tough questions posed by members of the Senate Foreign Relations Committee, Olson said that Pakistan faced many challenges and that the last few years had been difficult for both countries. However, he said he still considered “the relationship with Pakistan is critical to our national security, particularly in combating terrorism.” The News.
Terror groups like Haqqani network and LeT continue to enjoy safe havens in Pakistan due to the country’s inability to control its own territory though killings of big-wigs like Osama bin Laden and Ilyas Kashmiri have put al-Qaeda on path of decline, a US report said today. Indian news agency PTI reported The ‘Country Report on Terrorism 2011’, released by the State Department, said portions of Pakistan’s Federally Administered Tribal Areas (FATA), Khyber Pakhtunkhwa (KPK) and Balochistan remain a terrorist safe haven as government does not have much control on this part of the country. The News.
Pakistan’s spy chief Lieutenant-General Zaheer ul-Islam has reached the United States on a three-day visit, SAMAA reported on Wednesday. Islam’s visit to meet CIA director General David Petraeus and other top officials will be his first since he became head of the Inter-Services Intelligence (ISI) in March and follows a thaw in relations between Pakistan and the US. SAMAA TV.
Orakzai is one of seven districts in Pakistan’s semi-autonomous tribal belt. According to official sources, security forces conducted search operation Upper Orakzai tribal on Wednesday morning. The attack took place in Dabori Ali locality where where a group of militants clashed with security personnel. As a result, four militants were killed and two security personnel were wounded. Dunya News.
The bullet-riddled bodies of three persons were found on the roadside in Bazikhel village in Darra Adamkhel on Tuesday, sources said. The sources said that unidentified persons had killed the three men and dumped their bodies on the roadside in Bazikhel village. Two of them were identified as 55-year old Akhtar Jan and 38-year old Sarfaraz.The officials of the political administration of Frontier Region Kohat shifted the bodies to a hospital in Darra Adamkhel. The news.
Commenting on cross border incursions, the Foreign Office spokesman said on Tuesday that the issue has been raised on several occasions with ISAF as well as the Government of Afghanistan. The most recent major cross border attacks took place in Dir and Bajaur Agencies on June 24th and July 12th this year, respectively, he added. The Nation.
An unannounced ban imposed by the local authorities on transportation of poultry and cattle to Khyber Agency has created severe shortage of beef and chicken in Landi Kotal Bazaar. Likewise, ice blocks have also disappeared from the bazaar as dealers complain that Peshawar police extort money from them for taking ice to the tribal region. The dealers allege that police posted at Karkhano Market checkpost are not only harassing them but also forcing them to pay huge amount of money to allowthem to take chicken and slaughtered animals to Landi Kotal. The shops of chicken and beef in the bazaar wear a deserted look as transportation of both the commodities to Landi Kotal has been stopped since July 26. Dawn.
Five people were injured when a car they were boarding plunged into a deep ravine at Yousafabad area of Khar tehsil on Monday night, locals and levies personnel said. An official of the Bajaur Levies told Dawn that a car no RP-705 coming to Khar from Peshawar went out of the driver`s control at a sharp turn in the Yousafabad and fell into a deep ravine. The locals and levies personnel rushed to the spot and took the wounded to the agency headquarters hospital where the condition of the two injured were stated to be critical. -Correspondent Outlaws with arms held Dawn.
The local administration on Tuesday arrested several traders in different bazaars for overcharging. Sources said the officials of the administration along with the personnel of Bajaur Levies raided the Khar and Inayat Killi bazaars and arrested at least fifteen traders for violating official price list. The action against the traders was taken over the public complaints and such raids would continue till the end of Ramadan, ` said Abdul Khan, a local administrator.Dawn.
In Khyber Agency, doctors of the Agency Headquarter in Landi Kotal went on indefinite strike due to ongoing load shedding. The frontier post.
An official of the Political administration in Khar said that around 10:15pm, a bomb planted by suspected militants exploded inside the Bilal Mosque which partially damaged the boundary wall of the structure adding that no one was killed or injured. All the people who were offering Isha prayers had left and no one was around, he said of the time the bomb exploded. Express Tribune
Eight militant of lashkare islami arrested in tehsil bara bazaar in Khyber agency, during the search operation of shalobar aman lashkar and shifted to unknown place. Daily Mashriq.
