KHAR: Unidentified armed persons shot dead a member of Salarzai Peace Committee in Dara area of Salarzai tehsil in Bajaur Agency. According to the local administration, Ghaus Rehman, a member of the village defence committee, was on way to his home from the bazaar when unidentified gunmen opened firing on him. He was seriously injured in the attack and was taken to agency headquarters hospital in Khar where he succumbed to his wounds.Dawn.
MIRANSHAH: A security official was killed and three others were injured when an improvised explosive device (IED) detonated near a vehicle on Bannu-Miranshah Road. A security forces convoy was en route to Bannu from Miranshah, said an official of the forces. The convoy had reached Chashma Bridge when the IED detonated. Four security personnel sustained injuries and the vehicle was wrecked in the explosion. The Express Tribune, The News, Daily Mashriq.
ABBOTABAD: Jamiat Ulema-e-Islam-Fazl-F Chief, Maulana Fazlur Rehman said the ‘Taliban are serious’ for holding talks with the government. But the Khyber Pakhtunkhwa government should not pressurise to attract the federal government for initiating,and holding immediate dialogue process. Talking to media men here on Sunday, the JUI (F) Chief further said that the responsible people should need to devise a device for holding talks with the Taliban. Pakistan Observer.
JAMRUD: Nasir Shah Afridi and Atiq ur Rehman of Khudam Asateza Panel in annual elections of All Khyber Agency Teachers Association (KATA) were elected as president and general secretary respectively in Jarmrud tehsil of Khyber Agency.
The process of annual elections of KATA was completed as Nasir Khan Afridi was elected as president and Atiq ur Rehman was general secretary after election committee made the announcement. The Frontier Post.
PESHAWAR: Around 47 people were arrested in a search operation conducted in Badhaber on the outskirts of the city. The operation was jointly conducted by security forces and police in Bazid Khel, Kagawala, Ahmad Khel and Masho Khel villages. Security forces cordoned off the villages and police conducted a door-to-door search operation, resulting in the arrest of 47 people. These include nine proclaimed offenders wanted by the police in different cases. The rest were held on the basis of suspicion and shifted to a police station for interrogation. The Express Tribune.
MINGORA: A government-run girls high school was partially destroyed when a bomb planted along its boundary wall exploded in Howaid, Bannu. According to Howaid police official Gul Rauf Khan, the incident occurred at around 2am. He said a loud explosion was heard on the outskirts, adding police along with Frontier Constabulary officials visited the site and reported unidentified militants had detonated a bomb at a girls school. The Express Tribune.
KARACHI: The Azmat-e-Wilayat conference, a mammoth public meeting of Shia Muslims held at Nishtar Park, strongly opposed the strategic dialogue with the US and the outlawed Taliban, saying the two were playing a fixed match to hoodwink the people of the world. Thousands of supporters of the Majlis-e-Wahdat-e-Muslimeen (MWM) thronged the conference venue to endorse what MWM chief Allama Raja Nasir Abbas Jafari said was ‘a referendum against the pro-terrorism policies of the government’. The News.
KHAR: Meanwhile, security forced defused several explosive devices planted along a road in Lovisam area of tehsil Khar. Officials said that local people informed the administration about the presence of the explosive devices in the area. The security forces with the help of volunteers of local defence committee launched search operation in the area and recovered several explosive devices. The devices were defused safely. The administration has beefed up security across the agency to maintain law and order in the region. Officials said that additional personnel of Levies were deployed at various checkpoints and sensitive places to avert any untoward incident. Dawn, The Frontier Post.
PESHAWAR: The National Institute of Health Islamabad has confirmed four new polio cases, including two from the Federally Administered Tribal Areas and one from Khyber Pakhtunkhwa, according to officials. They said that the fourth victim of polio belonged to a Pakhtun family, currently living in Karachi. Officials said that Fata had recorded 38 polio cases, Khyber Pakhtunkhwa had seven, Sindh had five and Punjab had recorded three out of the total cases reported in 2013 so far. Dawn, The Frontier Post.
GHALANAI: A sports gala organised by Radio Pakistan started at Ghalanai sports stadium here on Sunday. Agency sports manager Saeed Akhtar, PTI local leader Sajid Khan and journalist Gul Mohammad opened the event, which features games like cricket, volleyball, race and karate. Addressing the opening ceremony, Mr Akhtar said the sports gala would attract a large number of local youths to the various games He said as peace had been restored in the area, tribal players would get an opportunity to polish their skills and be able to compete at the national level. Dawn.
SWABI: Senior provincial minister and provincial president of Qaumi Watan Party, Sikandar Hayat Khan Sherpao welcomed the federal government’s initiative of dialoguing with the Taliban. The government should launch the process in light of points chalked out in the all parties conference (APC) held in September, said Sherpao. In light of the APC’s agenda, the government should initiate the dialogue process soon, bring an end to drone attacks and rid the region of militancy, demanded Sherpao. The Express Tribune.
PESHAWAR: “Unless heritage and culture are kept in continuous practice, they die and are lost,” UNESCO’s Trust for History Arts and Architecture (THAAP) executive director said at training held at the Area Study Centre in the University of Peshawar. THAAP presented recommendations on how to better integrate Pukhtun history and heritage in school learning, suggesting a two-pronged approach which targets both students and teachers. The training was conducted for teachers from Khyber-Pakhtunkhwa and the Federally Administered Tribal Areas (Fata). FATA Secretariat Deputy Director Education Hasham Khan Afridi also attended the workshop. He promised participants the department would try to implement all recommendations in the Fata education system. The Express Tribune.
PESHAWAR: An alleged target killer was arrested at Kohati Gate near All Saints Church on Sunday. Police stopped a young man riding a new motorcycle for routine checking in the Kohati Gate area. A pat-down resulted in the recovery of a 9mm pistol, and several forms of identity (ID) cards, including press and university IDs. The Express Tribune.
