Lahore High Court directs Govt. to use all means to defend terror suspect Dr.Aafia

June 6, 2010 By Leave a Comment

Lahore, Jun.6 (ANI): The Lahore High Court (LHC) has directed the federal government to use all its diplomatic means to defend Aafia Siddiqui, who is currently in detention in the US for having alleged links with Al Qaeda.

LHC Justice Ijaz Ahmad Chaudhry also asked the Foreign Office to write a letter to the American court and bring all documents and materials, which would prove Siddiqui’s innocence, to its knowledge, The Daily Times reports.

The court’s directive came during a petition filed by one Javed Iqbal Jaffree, who submitted that Siddiqui was kidnapped along with her three children from Karachi in 2003, and that the government should be directed to seek her release from the US custody.

Siddiqui, a trained neuroscientist, has been charged by the US for allegedly shooting at her American interrogators in Afghanistan in July 2008.

Aafia faces up to 20 years in prison on the attempted murder charges and life in prison on the firearms charge. (ANI)

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I was expecting to be included in Pakistan team: Naved

May 27, 2010 By Leave a Comment

Karachi, May 26 (IANS) Banned all-rounder Rana Naved is ‘deeply disappointed’ after being ignored in Pakistan’s 35-man preliminary squad for the upcoming Asian Cup and England tour.

The all-rounder said he was a expecting a place in the team after reports that the Pakistan Cricket Board (PCB) will include all the banned players in the team.

‘I am deeply disappointed at not being picked in the team, it’s a huge shock for me’, Rana told IANS.

The all-rounder who was one of the seven Pakistan players to face action by the PCB following the team’s failure on the Australia tour said the inclusion of other banned players in the team hurts even more.

‘Other banned players like Shoaib Malik and Younis Khan were selected, why I am not there? I was also hoping for a berth in national team,’ he said.

Rana, a former Indian Cricket League (ICL) player, said he would continue to strive to win his place back in the national team.

‘It’s a decision of the selectors and I have to accept their decision in any way but I will continue the hard work to retain my place in team,’ he said.

The all-rounder who is fighting a case against his one-year ban also expressed dissatisfaction on the hearings and called for open proceedings of the case.

‘I am not satisfied with the hearings in which we are not allowed to give our version… the hearings should be made public,’ he said.

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Pak students against ban on Facebook, YouTube in country

May 21, 2010 By Leave a Comment

Islamabad, May 21 (ANI): Pakistani students are opposing the government’s decision to ban the hugely popular social networking site-Facebook and video portal YouTube, saying the move would only encourage extremism in the country.

“Pakistani people have the right to know about the world. The extremists want to snatch this right from the people which will certainly help extremism,” The Daily Times quoted student from Karachi, as saying.

“The competition hurt Muslims. But only that link should have been blocked. Facebook has nothing to do with it. It’s just that one page,” a Lahore based student said, while refusing to be named.

It may be noted that the Pakistan Telecommunication Authority (PTA) has directed all internet service providers in the country to shut down YouTube, as protests against the sacrilegious depiction of Prophet Muhammad on both YouTube and Facebook intensified across the country.

A statement issued by the PTA said that it has blocked over 450 links containing offensive content.

In Peshawar, more than 500 people participated in a protest against Facebook for holding competitions of drawing caricatures of Prophet Muhammad. They chanted slogans against the government and demanded it to end all ties with countries where these ‘blasphemous’ caricatures are being published.

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Pak team management mulling inclusion of fresh faces for Asia Cup

May 20, 2010 By Leave a Comment

Karachi, May 20 (ANI): Following T20 skipper Shahid Afridi’s call for injecting young blood in the team, the Pakistan selectors are planning to include at least two to three new faces in the 15-man squad for the forthcoming Asia Cup, to be held in Sri Lanka from June 15-25.

According to sources, the team management and selectors are mulling including some young players in the team and axe some of the non-performing veterans, particularly middle order batsman Misbah-ul-Haq, who had a disappointing outing during the recently concluded ICC World T20 Championship.

Chief selector Mohsin Khan is likely to meet Pakistan Cricket Board (PCB) chairman Ijaz Butt on May 25 to discuss the team combination for the four-nation tournament.

Mohsin is also likely to meet coach Waqar Younis and captain Shahid Afridi before announcing the final contingent for the Asia Cup, The News reports.

Following its good show in the World T20 Championship in the West Indies, Pakistan would be eyeing lifting the Asia Cup and take home the 200,000-dollar prize money.

Asia Cup schedule: June 15: Sri Lanka vs Pakistan. 16: India vs Bangladesh. 17: Reserve day. 18: Sri Lanka vs Bangladesh. 19: Pakistan vs India. 20: Reserve day. 21: Pakistan vs Bangladesh. 22: India vs Sri Lanka. 23: Reserve day. 24: Final. (ANI)

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Afridi says aggression, ending ‘mental hang up’ critical for Pak success against Oz

May 20, 2010 By Leave a Comment

Karachi, May 20 (ANI): Flamboyant Pakistan T20 skipper Shahid Afridi believes that his team suffers from a ‘mental hang up’ when it comes to competing with the World Champions Australia, and he wants to help players break that ‘jinx’ concerning the Kangaroos.

In the recent years, Pakistan have had a nightmarish record against Australia, with the latest being the January-February tour where Pakistan failed to register even a single win against the hosts.

It came close to defeating Australia in the semifinal of the just concluded ICC T20 World Championship in the West Indies, but faltered at the last moment.

Afridi said the loss almost shattered his heart, but he pointed towards the positive aspect of the loss that at least Pakistan played some tough and competitive cricket.

“I would have been left completely shattered but what gave me hope was the fact that we played aggressive cricket and a victory against Australia was within our reach,” The News quoted Afridi, as saying.

“It would have been great had we go on to win that match but once again the Australians proved that they are still the best in the world,” he added.

The hard hitting all-rounder pointed out that defeating Australia has never been easy, but the teams competing against the world champions would have to match the aggression of the Kangaroos to stand any chance.

“I must make it clear that beating Australia will never be easy. But I’m also confident that we can do it. What we need is to overcome our mental hang up and just play brave cricket. The thing is that the Aussies are mentally very tough and the only way to beat them is by going out there and giving it our best shot. You have to be really aggressive against that team because there is no other way to tackle them,” Afridi said.

Afridi said he is eagerly waiting for the two T20 encounters against Australia during the upcoming series in England, as the best chance of ending the team’s poor run against Australia is to defeat them in the game in which they are considered to be the best.

“It would take a gigantic effort to beat Australia in the Test series but Twenty20 cricket is a different story. We have a very good team for the shortest format and can beat any opposition on our day,” he said. (ANI)

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Afridi says aggression, ending ‘mental hang up’ critical for Pak success against Oz

May 20, 2010 By Leave a Comment

Karachi, May 20 (ANI): Flamboyant Pakistan T20 skipper Shahid Afridi believes that his team suffers from a ‘mental hang up’ when it comes to competing with the World Champions Australia, and he wants to help players break that ‘jinx’ concerning the Kangaroos.

In the recent years, Pakistan have had a nightmarish record against Australia, with the latest being the January-February tour where Pakistan failed to register even a single win against the hosts.

It came close to defeating Australia in the semifinal of the just concluded ICC T20 World Championship in the West Indies, but faltered at the last moment.

Afridi said the loss almost shattered his heart, but he pointed towards the positive aspect of the loss that at least Pakistan played some tough and competitive cricket.

“I would have been left completely shattered but what gave me hope was the fact that we played aggressive cricket and a victory against Australia was within our reach,” The News quoted Afridi, as saying.

“It would have been great had we go on to win that match but once again the Australians proved that they are still the best in the world,” he added.

The hard hitting all-rounder pointed out that defeating Australia has never been easy, but the teams competing against the world champions would have to match the aggression of the Kangaroos to stand any chance.

“I must make it clear that beating Australia will never be easy. But I’m also confident that we can do it. What we need is to overcome our mental hang up and just play brave cricket. The thing is that the Aussies are mentally very tough and the only way to beat them is by going out there and giving it our best shot. You have to be really aggressive against that team because there is no other way to tackle them,” Afridi said.

Afridi said he is eagerly waiting for the two T20 encounters against Australia during the upcoming series in England, as the best chance of ending the team’s poor run against Australia is to defeat them in the game in which they are considered to be the best.

“It would take a gigantic effort to beat Australia in the Test series but Twenty20 cricket is a different story. We have a very good team for the shortest format and can beat any opposition on our day,” he said. (ANI)

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Pak shifts CWG, Asian Games training camps from Quetta over security fears

May 18, 2010 By Leave a Comment

Islamabad, May 18 (ANI): The Pakistan Sports Board (PSB) has decided to shift its proposed training camps for the upcoming Commonwealth games and the Asian Games from Quetta due to security reasons.

The decision has come after Brazilian volleyball coach Augusto Sabbtini refused to join the team for training sessions in Quetta, capital of the insurgency hit Balochistan province.

The camps would now be organised in Islamabad.

“National volleyball coach Augusti Sabbtini refused to go to Quetta with national spikers and the PSB has to reverse his decision,” The Nation quoted sources privy to the issue, as saying.

Several training camps are already underway in Islamabad, Lahore and Karachi for the upcoming 19th Commonwealth Games from October 3 to 14 in New Delhi, and the 16th Asian Games from November 12 to 27 in Guangzhou, China. (ANI)

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Shock, disbelief in Pak after ouster

May 16, 2010 By Leave a Comment

They were gearing up to celebrate a win when Michael Hussey turned the match on its head, leaving scores of fans in Pakistan shocked at their team’s ouster from the Twenty20 World Cup following the last-over loss to Australia.

A pall of gloom descended on the city of Karachi and in other parts of the country after Pakistan were stunned by Australia in the high scoring semifinal of the mega event last night.

Australia snatched victory from the jaws of defeat by overhauling a 191-run target with a ball to spare, leaving Pakistani supporters in disbelief.

“It is shocking we were just getting ready for a feast and to distribute sweets and to just celebrate a great victory and that was just two overs back and now we are simply stunned and shocked,” former Test player Jalaluddin said.

Jalaluddin was among thousands of people in the city who had made special arrangements to watch the match with family and friends at their homes where people had set up barbecues and big television screens.

People thronged big hotels, private clubs and cafes, to watch the match and as a likely victory loomed large for Pakistan, the celebrations had already begun at most places with people dancing and cheering every Australian wicket that fell.

But it took just two overs to change the mood of the as they left disheartened after Pakistan lost despite coming so close to beating Michael Clarke’s men.

“It was just poor captaincy and nothing else, our players don’t have self belief, they don’t realise how much we pray for their success,” an angry student said in the Lines area.

In the Lines area, a lower and congested middle class locality of Karachi, people had set up giant screens on the roads for children and elders watched the match.

There were special arrangements to watch the match on generators due to the energy crisis in the country.

“I think we should accept defeat with grace, our team played like true champions but in sports one team has to lose and unfortunately it was not our day today but our players made us proud,” said Zeesh another student watching the match at Area 51.

If Pakistan had won, it would have been their third successive final in the Twenty20 World Cup.

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Pak’s good show in T20 WC ‘perfect launch pad’ for tough assignments ahead: Bari

May 16, 2010 By Leave a Comment

Karachi, May 16 (ANI): Though defending champions Pakistan have crashed out of the ICC World T20 Championship, Wasim Bari, the Pakistan Cricket Board’s (PCB) Chief Operating Officer (COO) believes that the team’s performance in the Caribbean has given itself a perfect ‘launch pad’ ahead of a busy calendar this year.

Bari said he was ‘impressed’ by Pakistan’s performance in West Indies, adding that it would help them prepare better for some tough encounters ahead which includes the Asia Cup in Sri Lanka and the Test Series against England and Australia.

“We may have lost in the semifinal, but I believe that the way we’ve played in the event has provided us with a great launch pad and will help us do well during the rest of the year,” The News quoted Bari, as saying.

“We have a very tough season coming up and the team will benefit from the confidence it will derive from its performance in the West Indies,” he added.

Pakistan looked all set for a third consecutive appearance in the World T20 final after posting a challenging total of 191 runs against Australia in the semi-final, but Michael Hussey’s breathtaking knock of 60 off 24 balls denied Afridi’s men a chance of a clash with England in the final of the coveted tournament.

Bari, however, denied commenting on whether the PCB would retain Afridi as captain for the upcoming Asia Cup, as the flamboyant all-rounder has been criticised for some of his decisions during the T20 World Championship.

“The thing is that the team is still in the West Indies and we will only sit down and talk about such issues once its back home,” he said.

He also refrained from commenting about reports regarding leg-spinner Danish Kaneria being arrested in London over match-fixing charges, saying the PCB is yet to receive any official report regarding the case from English authorities.

“We’ve heard about it from media reports today but haven’t received anything in writing from the authorities in England. The Board is monitoring the case but will only decide its course of action after getting something in black and white from the concerned people,” Bari said. (ANI)

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Zardari’s electoral eligibility cannot be challenged by any court or authority: SHC

May 13, 2010 By Leave a Comment

Karachi, May 13 (ANI): Backing the electoral validity of President Asif Ali Zardari, the Sindh High Court (SHC) has observed that it can not be challenged before any court of law or authority.

Hearing a petition filed by Advocate Maulvi Iqbal Haider challenging Zardari’s electoral eligibility, a division bench headed by Justice Sarmad Jalal Osmany said that the Chief Election Commissioner had already dismissed Haider’s plea, and that the validity of nomination papers filed in 2008 could not be allowed to be challenged in 2010 on the basis of “ flimsy, fake and fabricated grounds.”

Haider, in his petition, had said that being a beneficiary of the now defunct amnesty law, the National Reconciliation Ordinance (NRO), Zardari was not qualified for contesting the presidential elections.

He argued that Zardari’s nomination papers were liable to be re-scrutinised in light of the Supreme Court’s NRO verdict on December 16, 2009.

After hearing Haider’s argument, the SHC dismissed his petition observing that Zardari didn’t enjoy any immunity under the NRO.

“ We have heard the petitioner in person and have pointed out to him provision of Article 41(6) of the Constitution which in so many words provides that the validity of election of the President shall not be called in question by or before any court or other Authority,” The Dawn quoted the court’s ruling, as saying.

“ The petitioner did not have any locus-standi to challenge the Presidential election on ground that Asif Ali Zardari was disqualified for any reason to contest the same. The crux of petitioner’s arguments is that after decision of the Supreme Court of Pakistan declaring National Reconciliation Ordinance, 2007, null and void ab initio, any benefit derived by any person in pursuance of Section six thereof was also declared none to have legally accrued to any such person and consequently of no legal effect,” the ruling said. (ANI)

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Times Square bomber not Pakistani but naturalised American citizen: Qureshi

May 10, 2010 By Leave a Comment

Karachi, May 10 (ANI): Pakistan Foreign Minister Shah Mehmood Qureshi has said that Faisal Shahzad, the man accused of plotting the botched Times Square bombing, is not a resident of his country but a ‘naturalised American citizen.’

Qureshi, however, said that Pakistan would provide all help to the United States concerning the probe into the failed New York bombing plot.

“I will have to check. I am not aware of that but I am aware that he is a naturalised American citizen, and the Government of Pakistan will cooperate with the United States and help them in whatever way we can,” he said while responding to a question on reports regarding the recovery of two Pakistani passports from Shahzad.

Qureshi reiterated that Islamabad is sincerely probing the Mumbai terror attacks, adding that the Jamaat-ud-Daawa (JeM) chief Hafeez Muhammed Saeed, who India says had masterminded the 26/11 attacks, was released as there were no evidence against him.

“Pakistan wants cordial relations with India and we will not let any terrorist outfit sabotage the process of dialogue between the two countries,” The News quoted Qureshi, as saying.

Replying to a question during an interview, Qureshi said back channel diplomacy was of no use until front channel diplomacy between New Delhi and Islamabad succeeds, adding that he would soon invite his Indian counterpart S M Krishna to Pakistan for talks. (ANI)

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Pak coaches must not allow pressure on them to affect team performance: Latif

May 7, 2010 By Leave a Comment

Karachi, May 7 (ANI): Following two consecutive losses against Australia and England in the on going World T20 Championship in the West Indies, former Pakistan cricket captain Rashid Latif has advised incumbent coaches Waqar Younis and Ijaz Ahmed not to let pressure on them affect the team strategy.

Latif pointed out that during the match against Australia, both Waqar and Ijaz looked under immense pressure, which had an adverse effect on team’s performance as well.

“World Twenty20 is a tough event and absorbing pressure in tough games by players and coaches is vital. Positivity of coaches is very important because it will send a good message to the players,” The Dawn quoted Latif, as saying.

He said Pakistan should not let the defeats affect their performance in the coming matches of the coveted tournament.

“It’s not the end of the world,” Latif said.

He pointed out that Pakistani bowlers, especially the pacers, failed to vary their speed and length, which resulted in them being thrashed by opponent teams’ batsmen.

“Our bowlers failed to bowl with variations when they came under pressure. Sami received thrashing because he did not vary his pace and bowled short which allowed the Australian batsmen to punish him,” Latif said.

Pakistan was comprehensively beaten by Australia by 34 runs in the last of their group matches. The defending World T20 Champions suffered another humiliating six-wicket defeat at the hands of England in the first match of the Super Eight Stage of the tournament on Thursday. (ANI)

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Zardari, Musharraf helped each other through secret deal: PML-Q

May 6, 2010 By Leave a Comment

Karachi, May 6 (ANI): Former Pakistan President General Pervez Musharraf’s ‘safe’ exit and incumbent President Asif Ali Zardari’s return to the country was part of a deal inked between both leaders, Pakistan Muslim League-Quaid (PML-Q) General Secretary Mushahid Hussain Syed has said.

Interacting with media persons during a press conference here, Syed also revealed that the deal was also backed by international powers.

“This deal was not a usual one as it had the support of international powers,” The News quoted Syed, as saying.

He, however, did not disclose the names of those ‘international powers.’

Syed also claimed that Zardari had entered into a secret deal with former US President George Bush, according to which the US would continue the drone strikes in the country’s tribal areas, and Islamabad would go on criticising Washington for the missile hits. (ANI)

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Possible link between New York ‘bomber’ and Masood Azhar’s JeM unravelled

May 6, 2010 By Leave a Comment

Los Angeles, May 6 (ANI): In what could lead to a major disclosure in the case of the failed Times Square bombing plot, Pakistani investigators have claimed arresting a Jaish-e-Muhammad (JeM) operative from Karachi, who is said to have links with Faisal Shahzad, the American-Pakistani accused of plotting the bungled bombing in New York.

A Pakistani official, who spoke on conditions of anonymity, said that Sheik Mohammed Rehan, an alleged member of JeM, a banned terror group having close relations with the Al-Qaeda, drove with Shahzad from Karachi to Peshawar in July 2009, The Los Angeles Times reports.

Officials however said it is still not clear why both of them had visited Peshawar and whether they met any extremist leader there.

It may be noted that Maulana Masood Azhar led JeM is primarily focused on Kashmir, and keeps on pushing trained militants into India to wreak havoc in the region.

The group, in coordination with Lashkar-e-Tayiba (LeT), has also been implicated in the 2001 Parliament terror attack.

Over the years, the Punjab province based extremist group has expanded its reach and has trained thousands of young men to fight against the U.S. and NATO forces engaged against the Taliban and Al-Qaeda in Afghanistan.

It was also linked to the 2002 kidnapping and murder of Wall Street Journal journalist Daniel Pearl.

Pakistan had banned the JeM in 2002, but analysts believe that it is receiving continuous help from the Inter-Services Intelligence (ISI). Some experts are also of the view that the ISI had actually facilitated the terror group’s formation. (ANI)

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Captured Baradar providing clues on Taliban

May 6, 2010 By Leave a Comment

Washington, May 6 (ANI): Captured Afghan Taliban leader Mullah Abdul Ghani Baradar is providing important information to American officials on the inner workings of the Taliban.

According to the New York Times, these pivotal insights will help the United States look for ways to end the war in Afghanistan.

Baradar, the second-ranking Taliban leader, was arrested in January outside Karachi, in a joint operation by American and Pakistani intelligence agents.

Officials, however, said that Baradar has not revealed details of Taliban combat operations, yielding little that American commanders would like to know as they prepare for a military operation around Kandahar, the Taliban’s spiritual base and Afghanistan’s second largest city.

He has provided his American interrogators with a nuanced understanding of the strategy that the Taliban’s supreme leader, Mullah Muhammad Omar, is developing for negotiations with the government of President Hamid Karzai of Afghanistan, who is visiting Washington next week.

He is also offering a more detailed understanding of what prompted Mullah Omar to issue a new code of conduct for militants last year that directed fighters to avoid civilian casualties.

American officials say the code was meant to project a softer image to the Afghan people.

Four American military, intelligence and diplomatic officials provided details of Mullah Baradar’s cooperation, but requested anonymity because they were not authorized to speak publicly about the delicate intelligence interrogations. (ANI)

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E-mail address led FBI to Shahzad

May 5, 2010 By Leave a Comment

New York, May 5 (ANI): Federal Bureau of Investigation sleuths have reportedly revealed that they could zero in on Faisal Shahzad as the main suspect of the attempted Times Square car bombing with the help of an e-mail ID.

According to an article written by Steve Coll for the New Yorker, “providing an accurate e-mail address to the seller of a vehicle you intend to use as a murder weapon is the sort of mistake that might get a person’s membership card pulled down at the terrorist union hall.”

He now believes that Shahzad is having a bad day, and that it will probably get worse after he realizes “the trail of breadcrumbs he apparently left behind while planning what the evidence available so far suggests was the only act of violence committed during his young life as a U.S. citizen.”

Coll believes that had the e-mail address not materialized during investigations, Shahzad might already have stepped off an airplane in Karachi and melted away into Pakistan.

He further goes on to say “Shahzad’s case may actually reflect on how Pakistan-based jihadi groups have learned to protect themselves.

A former U.S. intelligence officer, who worked extensively on jihadi cases during several overseas tours, told Coll that “when a singleton of Shahzad’s profile, especially a U.S. citizen, turns up in a place like Peshawar, local jihadi groups are much more likely to assess him as a probable U.S. spy than as a genuine volunteer.

He said “jihadi groups might conclude that a particular U.S.-originated individual’s case is uncertain. They might then encourage the person to go home and carry out an attack—without giving him any training or access to higher-up specialists that might compromise their local operations.”

“They would see such a U.S.-based volunteer as a “freebie,” the former officer said. (ANI)

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Banned terror outfits recruiting fresh ‘jihadis’ under govt’s nose in Pak

May 4, 2010 By Leave a Comment

Karachi, May 4 (ANI): Pakistan’s blatant lie regarding taking stiff action against so called religious organisations has been laid bare as groups like the Jaish-e-Muhammad (JeM), Lashkar-e-Jhangvi (LeJ), Harkatul Mujahideen, Sipah-e-Sahaba and the dreaded 313 Brigade, which is led by Ilyas Kashmiri, continue to operate and recruit fresh cadets in Karachi and other parts of the country.

According to a Daily Times report, several such organisations , which were banned by the previous General Pervez Musharraf government for promoting extremism, have now started to unite.

These banned groups are campaigning openly and recruiting young men to carry out ‘jihad’, the report said.

It is not that the present government is unaware about the development. The Interior Ministry, through a communiqué, had warned provincial governments about the sale of video CD’s, and pro-extremism literature and other provocative materials at madrassas (religious seminaries) and mosques after Friday prayers.

The sale of such articles is rampant in most cities in Sindh, Punjab and the North West Frontier Province (NWFP), but authorities seem to have turned a blind eye towards the nefarious business.

The Interior ministry had also directed the authorities to crack down on printing presses publishing terror literature, seminaries, mosques, as well as bar jihadi websites from public viewing, but little action has been taken.

Despite the government’s claims that it is taking necessary action against the war mongers, leaders of these banned ‘religious’ outfits are far from being deterred.

They said they are at war against foreign forces, and would continue to fight till the very end.

“We are at war and the material, especially the CDs showing the achievements of the mujahideen, attract Muslims toward jihad and they are encouraged by listening to the lecture before an explosion,” the newspaper quoted a top jihadi leader, as saying.

“We have completed all our missions against the infidels and their allied forces either in Pakistan or Afghanistan. We have shown the required spirit of jihad and a true Muslim would be easily convinced for jihad against the enemies of the Muslims,” he added.

He said the mujahideens and all the organisations banned in Pakistan were cooperating with the Taliban because of their similar agendas, and added that ‘jihad’ was being carried out only in Afghanistan and not in Pakistan. (ANI)

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Kaneria to join Essex on May 6 leaving match-fixing reports behind

May 3, 2010 By Leave a Comment

Karachi, May 3 (ANI): Putting the alleged spot fixing rumours behind, Pakistani leg spinner Danish Kaneria said that he is due to join up once again with English County team Essex.

The UK Police was investigating Kaneria, who plays for English county team Essex, for his involvement in a cricket betting scandal.

He is reportedly under police investigation over a NatWest Pro40 match between Essex and Durham at the Riverside on September 5, 2009.

“Yes I’ll be back at Essex later next week, probably 6th May. I’m really looking forward to it, especially after our promotion to Division 1 of the County Championship,” Kaneria said.

“It will be a good challenge for myself and my Essex colleagues to test ourselves in the top tier of English County cricket,” Pakpassion.net quoted him, as saying.

Kaneria said that he would have liked to be part of the Pakistani squad in the ongoing Twenty20 World Cup.

“It was good to see the boys (Pakistan) get off to a winning start in the West Indies against Bangladesh. Of course I would like to have been part of the squad and who knows maybe in future I’ll get a chance,” he said.

Speaking about the role of leg spinners at the Twenty20 World Cup, Kaneria said that leg spinners will be pivotal and crucial to any team’s chances, especially given the nature of the wickets in the Caribbean. (ANI)

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Bullet proof wall to guard bombed Peshawar US Consulate

April 27, 2010 By Leave a Comment

Peshawar, Apr.27 (ANI): A bullet proof boundary wall is being constructed around the US Consulate here, which was severely damaged in a suicide attack earlier this month.

Security in and around the consulate building has been beefed up and no outsider is permitted to enter the premises during the construction work, The Nation reports.

At least six people, including the four attackers were killed in the bomb and grenade attack on the US Consulate on April 5.

The militant strike was the first direct assault on a US mission in Pakistan since 2006.

In 2006, a militant had rammed an explosives-laden vehicle into the car of an American diplomat near the consulate in Karachi, killing him and three others. (ANI)

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