Tuesday, December 15th, 2015
Bara area of Khyber Agency handed back to civil administration: ISPR
RAWALPINDI: The Bara area of Khyber Agency has been handed back to the civil administration after clearance, said Inter-Services Public Relations chief Lt Gen Asim Bajwa. Traders can now re-open their businesses in Bara Bazaar, with a majority of displaced people having returned. The Pakistan Army launched an operation against terrorists in the country’s tribal areas, primarily North Waziristan, in June 2014. The operation then spread to other tribal regions, including the Khyber Agency – where Bara is located. It was earlier reported that authorities had registered around 600,000 displacedRead More
MQM, PPP want Rangers to leave Sindh, says Imran Khan
LODHRAN: Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) chief Imran Khan has said both the Pakistan People’s Party (PPP) and Muttahida Qaumi Movement (MQM) were raising hue and cry against the paramilitary Rangers as they wanted the LEA to leave the province. “People want the Rangers to stay in Sindh for protection [of life and property] but the corrupt and target killers want the paramilitary force to leave,” he said, while addressing a rally in Lodhran as part of the upcoming by-election in NA-154 on Tuesday. However, the PTI chief said he agreed toRead More
Saudi put to death in kingdom’s 151st execution this year
RIYADH: A Saudi convicted of murder was executed on Tuesday, in the 151st death sentence carried out this year in the conservative Muslim kingdom. Sultan al-Dosari was executed in the eastern province of Ihsa after his conviction for stabbing to death another man, the interior ministry said. According to AFP tallies, his case brings to 151 the number of locals and foreigners put to death this year, against 87 for all of 2014. Amnesty International says the number of executions in Saudi Arabia this year is the highest for twoRead More
Four including two cops killed as PPP, PML-F rallies clash in Sanghar
SANGHAR: Four people, including two police constables, were shot dead during clashes between Pakistan Peoples’ Party (PPP) and Pakistan Muslim League–Functional (PML-F) workers on Tuesday afternoon, ahead of the local body polls in Sanghar scheduled for December 17. The local government elections in the district were earlier postponed by the Election Commission of Pakistan following the killing of at least 11 people at Daraza Sharif in Khairpur district during the first phase of polling. The decision was taken on the basis of reports regarding the possibility of political clashes inRead More
Privatisation hits snag as PIA workers walk out in protest
ISLAMABAD: Employees of the ailing national airline on Tuesday walked out in protest over its planned privatisation, disrupting flights and undermining a central plank of reforms promised by Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif in return for an International Monetary Fund (IMF) bailout. In September 2013, the IMF agreed to lend $6.7 billion over three years in order to save the country from possible default. In return, the government of Pakistan agreed to broaden its tax base, cut electricity subsidies and privatise failing state companies that lose taxpayers around $5 billion aRead More
PM Nawaz at SCO: Pakistan facing challenges to territorial integrity
ZHENGZHOU: Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif while attending the 14th Heads of Government Council meeting of the Shanghai Cooperation Organisation (SCO) in China on Tuesday reaffirmed Pakistan’s commitment to counter-terrorism and combating crime. “We reaffirm our commitment to collectively confront the challenges of extremism, separatism, terrorism, human and drug trafficking, organised crime and environmental and natural disasters,” the premier told the summit. However, “the security situation around us remains precarious”, he said, adding that Pakistan is “seeing challenges to state sovereignty, territorial integrity”. “Armed conflicts continue to rage in several partsRead More