Global News Post: Pakistan

Islamabad Market Bomb Kills at Least 21

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<span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS","sans-serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-size: 11.0pt;">By
VOA News<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS","sans-serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-size: 11.0pt;">Pakistani
authorities say at least 21 people were killed and 70 wounded in a bomb blast
at a crowded market in Islamabad Wednesday.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS","sans-serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-size: 11.0pt;">Police
said the bomb was hidden in a crate of fruit and set off by remote control
while the market was packed with shoppers and dealers.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS","sans-serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-size: 11.0pt;">Pools
of blood and body parts were scattered across the scene.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS","sans-serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-size: 11.0pt;">No
one has claimed responsibility for the blast. The Pakistani Taliban issued a
statement to reporters denying it was behind the attack. It came a day after a
passenger train was bombed in Baluchistan province, in southwestern Pakistan.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS","sans-serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-size: 11.0pt;">At
least 14 were killed and 40 wounded in that incident.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS","sans-serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-size: 11.0pt;">Police
said a bomb was hidden inside a suitcase and also set off by remote control.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS","sans-serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-size: 11.0pt;">A
spokesman for the United Baluch Army rebel group telephoned VOA to claim
responsibility.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS","sans-serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-size: 11.0pt;">Prime
Minister Nawaz Sharif's government has engaged the Taliban in peace talks to
end years of extremist violence in the country. Wednesday's blast occurred two
days before a Taliban ceasefire is set to expire.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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Islamabad Market Bomb Kills at Least 21

By VOA News Pakistani authorities say at least 21 people were killed and 70 wounded in a bomb blast at a crowded market in Islamaba...

Pakistan to Re-Engage With India as Soon as New Govt. Is Formed

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<span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS","sans-serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-size: 11.0pt;">WASHINGTON (NNN-PTI) -- Pakistan is looking to
re-engage with India as soon as the new government is formed in New Delhi post
the ongoing general elections and has recommended the non-discriminatory market
access (NDMA) to be proactively followed.<br />
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Visiting Pakistan's Finance Minister Mohammad Ishaq Dar said, "We have
again got re-engaged with India in a very proactive manner in the last few
month, in order to increase the trade between the two countries".<br />
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"The non-discriminatory market access (NDMA) is a new term we have coined
for mutual expansion of the trade. We wish to minimise the negative list of
both the countries," Dar said.<br />
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He said a Pakistani government committee headed by him, also reviewed the future
road map of trade with India.<br />
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"We have recommended to the Cabinet and to the Prime Minister that this
NMDA is to be proactively followed," he said.<br />
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In his address to the US Institute of Peace, a Washington-based think-tank, Dar
said, "Whosoever they elect let me assure you, the spade work is there,
Indian establishment know the entire detail. So as soon as a new government in
India is sworn in, we will be happy to re-engage the Indian government on this
subject".<br />
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Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif recently deferred a decision on this important
issue during the duration of the elections, which started on April 7.<br />
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Dar said the PML-N lead by Sharif, was the one which triggered the process of
dialogue with India way back in 1999.<br />
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But the process could not be completed and accomplish its goal as a result of
the coup in Islamabad that resulted in an overthrowing of the
democratically-elected government.<br />
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"Of course, the dialogue was at a very advance stage, but certainly we
believed that it is not the time that we should conclude this deal with the
Congress (government), with the sitting government, because we might be seen
that we are becoming partisan to the Indian general elections," he said.<br />
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Even a tentative meeting of the cabinet was cancelled, for this very reason, he
said. --NNN-PTI<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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Pakistan to Re-Engage With India as Soon as New Govt. Is Formed

WASHINGTON (NNN-PTI) -- Pakistan is looking to re-engage with India as soon as the new government is formed in New Delhi post the ongoing...

How best to serve Pakistan’s 750,000 IDPs?

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<span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS"; font-size: 10.0pt; mso-ansi-language: EN-GB; mso-bidi-font-weight: bold;">Photo: <a href="http://www.irinnews.org/photo/"><span style="color: windowtext; text-decoration: none; text-underline: none;">Rebecca
Conway/IRIN</span></a><o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS"; font-size: 10.0pt; mso-ansi-language: EN-GB; mso-bidi-font-weight: bold;">Pakistani men displaced by fighting in<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS"; font-size: 10.0pt; mso-ansi-language: EN-GB; mso-bidi-font-weight: bold;">Khyber tribal region drink tea outside<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS"; font-size: 10.0pt; mso-ansi-language: EN-GB; mso-bidi-font-weight: bold;">a shop near <st1:city w:st="on"><st1:place w:st="on">Peshawar</st1:place></st1:city><o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<st1:city w:st="on"><span class="apple-style-span"><span lang="EN-US" style="background: white; font-family: "Trebuchet MS";">PESHAWAR</span></span></st1:city><span class="apple-style-span"><span lang="EN-US" style="background: white; font-family: "Trebuchet MS";"> (IRIN) - Residents escaping the latest round of fighting in
Khyber Agency in <st1:place w:st="on"><st1:country-region w:st="on">Pakistan</st1:country-region></st1:place>’s
Federally Administered Tribal Areas (FATA) say they did not even have time to
bury their dead before leaving their homes in the Tirah valley.</span></span></div>
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<span class="apple-style-span"><span lang="EN-US" style="background: white; font-family: "Trebuchet MS";">They are the
latest of hundreds of thousands of people who have fled their homes in the
tribal belt close to <st1:country-region w:st="on">Pakistan</st1:country-region>’s
border with <st1:country-region w:st="on"><st1:place w:st="on">Afghanistan</st1:place></st1:country-region>
over the past five years of Pakistani military operations. <o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
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<span class="apple-style-span"><span lang="EN-US" style="background: white; font-family: "Trebuchet MS";">Conflict is not
the only cause of displacement - natural disasters have also played a role,
creating what humanitarians call a “complex emergency”. <o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
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<span class="apple-style-span"><span lang="EN-US" style="background: white; font-family: "Trebuchet MS";">But despite the
existence of camps set up for internally displaced persons (IDPs) where the
government and humanitarian organizations provide assistance, most choose to
flee elsewhere - creating a challenge for those wanting to help these
vulnerable communities. <o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
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<span class="apple-style-span"><span lang="EN-US" style="background: white; font-family: "Trebuchet MS";">Over 75,000
people live in three established IDP camps (such as Jalozai, a half-hour drive
from <st1:city w:st="on"><st1:place w:st="on">Peshawar</st1:place></st1:city>)
which house families in tents or makeshift structures, and provide food aid,
medical facilities and drinking water. They also serve as a central
registration point for families arriving from areas hit by conflict or natural
disaster. <o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
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<span class="apple-style-span"><span lang="EN-US" style="background: white; font-family: "Trebuchet MS";">Large though
these camps are, they only account for 10 percent of the three-quarters of a
million IDPs, according to the UN’s Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian
Affairs (OCHA). <o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
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<span class="apple-style-span"><span lang="EN-US" style="background: white; font-family: "Trebuchet MS";">Humanitarian
agencies are increasingly being pushed to take care of those who prefer to live
elsewhere; often in <st1:city w:st="on">Peshawar</st1:city>, the capital of <st1:country-region w:st="on"><st1:place w:st="on">Pakistan</st1:place></st1:country-region>’s
Khyber Pakhtunkhwa Province (KP), and elsewhere in KP. <o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
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<span class="apple-style-span"><span lang="EN-US" style="background: white; font-family: "Trebuchet MS";">NGOs and the UN
working in <st1:country-region w:st="on"><st1:place w:st="on">Pakistan</st1:place></st1:country-region>
carry out so-called IDP vulnerability assessment and profiling (IVAP) surveys
to gather information on where off-camp IDPs are, and the type of support they
need - from shelter and food to health care and Water, Sanitation and Hygiene
(WASH) assistance. <o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
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<br /></div>
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<span class="apple-style-span"><span lang="EN-US" style="background: white; font-family: "Trebuchet MS";">They also gather
information about what IDPs say they will need on returning to their homes,
generally in FATA - with housing, security and agriculture of particular
concern to families. <o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
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<span class="apple-style-span"><span lang="EN-US" style="background: white; font-family: "Trebuchet MS";">IVAP findings
are then passed to humanitarian partners in an effort to ensure that assistance
is targeted where there is the greatest need. <o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
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<span class="apple-style-span"><span lang="EN-US" style="background: white; font-family: "Trebuchet MS";">The European
Commission-funded IVAP project recommends that aid agencies prioritize
assistance for off-camp families, 82 percent of whom have to pay rent and live
in difficult, cramped conditions. <o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
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<span class="apple-style-span"><b><span lang="EN-US" style="background: white; font-family: "Trebuchet MS";">IDPs outside the camps <o:p></o:p></span></b></span></div>
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<span class="apple-style-span"><span lang="EN-US" style="background: white; font-family: "Trebuchet MS";">Providing
humanitarian services outside of the camp environment can be challenging. <o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
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<span class="apple-style-span"><span lang="EN-US" style="background: white; font-family: "Trebuchet MS";">IDPs have direct
access to facilities at camps, but tribal customs, perceptions of camp life and
a preference to stay with relatives and friends, mean a large number of IDPs
choose to live outside the camps, making it more difficult for the authorities
and humanitarian organizations to keep track of them and offer assistance. <o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
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<span class="apple-style-span"><span lang="EN-US" style="background: white; font-family: "Trebuchet MS";">Those providing
aid, and the IDPs receiving it, would be better served if distribution was
decentralized, said Sobat Khan Afridi, chairman of the Tehreek-e-Mutasireen
Khyber Agency, an NGO set up by different political parties to assist IDPs. <o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
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<span class="apple-style-span"><span lang="EN-US" style="background: white; font-family: "Trebuchet MS";">“It is easier
for larger organizations, especially international NGOs, to operate from the
camp as it is easier to manage for them. The problem is that it is still
difficult for all the families not living at the camp to reach Jalozai and get
aid,” said Afridi. <o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
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<span class="apple-style-span"><span lang="EN-US" style="background: white; font-family: "Trebuchet MS";">“It would be
better if they set up distribution points across <st1:city w:st="on"><st1:place w:st="on">Peshawar</st1:place></st1:city> in the areas where a lot of IDPs
live. That would mean less stress for the authorities at Jalozai, and less
problems for off-camp IDPs too.” <o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
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<span class="apple-style-span"><span lang="EN-US" style="background: white; font-family: "Trebuchet MS";">Yar Mohammed,
29, arrived in <st1:city w:st="on"><st1:place w:st="on">Peshawar</st1:place></st1:city>
from Tirah in January after walking with his family for five days, much of the
journey through heavy snow. He says going to Jalozai was not an option. <o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
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<span class="apple-style-span"><span lang="EN-US" style="background: white; font-family: "Trebuchet MS";">"The ones
in the camps are the most vulnerable. They have no other means or resources to
set up something else for themselves."<o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
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<span class="apple-style-span"><span lang="EN-US" style="background: white; font-family: "Trebuchet MS";">“I spoke to some
people who told me the facilities at Jalozai are not enough. They were going to
give just one tent to us, and that will not do for 10 people.” <o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
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<br /></div>
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<span class="apple-style-span"><span lang="EN-US" style="background: white; font-family: "Trebuchet MS";">Instead,
Mohammed stayed with his cousin until he found a three-room mud house in the
Scheme Chowk area of <st1:city w:st="on"><st1:place w:st="on">Peshawar</st1:place></st1:city>.
He pays 4,000 <st1:country-region w:st="on"><st1:place w:st="on">Pakistan</st1:place></st1:country-region>
rupees (US$41) a month, and hopes to move his family to a better house soon. <o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
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<span class="apple-style-span"><span lang="EN-US" style="background: white; font-family: "Trebuchet MS";">“The movement of
off-camp families, especially those from Khyber, is very volatile. Sometimes
they are living with relatives. If they can afford it, they rent a house of
their own. We try our best to register all of them, but it is a challenge,”
said Faiz Muhammad, the KP government’s chief coordinator for IDPs. <o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
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<span class="apple-style-span"><span lang="EN-US" style="background: white; font-family: "Trebuchet MS";">Efforts are made
to keep in touch with families who choose to live among relatives or rent
property. The government uses mobile phone numbers to register families living
off-camp, and officials try to reach families that are not registered in this
way during monthly food distributions at designated points, he added. <o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
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<br /></div>
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<span class="apple-style-span"><span lang="EN-US" style="background: white; font-family: "Trebuchet MS";">“Even if they
are not staying at camp, most of them visit the food distribution points and
that allows us to get information from them, give them information and assess
the situation.” <o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
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<br /></div>
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<span class="apple-style-span"><span lang="EN-US" style="background: white; font-family: "Trebuchet MS";">Humanitarian
organizations and the government have identified areas in and around <st1:city w:st="on"><st1:place w:st="on">Peshawar</st1:place></st1:city> with a high
concentration of IDPs, and some assistance, such as medical care, is also
provided in those areas. <o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
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<br /></div>
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<span class="apple-style-span"><span lang="EN-US" style="background: white; font-family: "Trebuchet MS";">"Identifying
off-camp families was a challenge because of the reluctance of many IDP
families to register, as well as humanitarian organizations’ own security
concerns. That was overcome to some extent by mapping families initially based
on information from IDPs living in camps, and then expanding the effort to
surveys of off-camp families in host communities,” said an aid worker with Save
the Children in <st1:country-region w:st="on"><st1:place w:st="on">Pakistan</st1:place></st1:country-region>
who preferred anonymity. <o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
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<br /></div>
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<span class="apple-style-span"><b><span lang="EN-US" style="background: white; font-family: "Trebuchet MS";">Moving on <o:p></o:p></span></b></span></div>
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<span class="apple-style-span"><span lang="EN-US" style="background: white; font-family: "Trebuchet MS";">Khalid Shah from
Khyber Agency lives in Sufaid Dheri, a <st1:city w:st="on"><st1:place w:st="on">Peshawar</st1:place></st1:city>
neighbourhood that is home to an estimated 250 displaced families. Two years
ago, worried about the safety of his children as fighting escalated in the town
of <st1:city w:st="on"><st1:place w:st="on">Bara</st1:place></st1:city>, he
boarded up his small shop and left home. His first stop was Jalozai. <o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
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<span class="apple-style-span"><span lang="EN-US" style="background: white; font-family: "Trebuchet MS";">“Everyone told
me that going to the camp was the best idea. It was safe and there was food and
shelter. But after a couple of months, I couldn’t take it any more,” Shah, 42,
said. <o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
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<br /></div>
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<span class="apple-style-span"><span lang="EN-US" style="background: white; font-family: "Trebuchet MS";">He started
commuting from Jalozai to Sufaid Dheri, where he would earn a daily wage
loading and unloading goods in a market. Today, he lives in a two-room
apartment in the same neighbourhood with his family. He remains registered with
the Jalozai authorities, and often travels to the camp if he requires
assistance. <o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
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<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;">
<span class="apple-style-span"><span lang="EN-US" style="background: white; font-family: "Trebuchet MS";">“I have managed
to move here, but my brother and his family are still in Jalozai. He works here
with me but stays registered there. You never know,” said Shah. The brothers
also take turns visiting their land and their shop in Bara every month. <o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;">
<span class="apple-style-span"><span lang="EN-US" style="background: white; font-family: "Trebuchet MS";">For many
families, pessimistic about the prospects of peace in their villages and towns,
the next step is to plan for a new life away from Khyber. Many have sold their
land to buy property in and around <st1:city w:st="on"><st1:place w:st="on">Peshawar</st1:place></st1:city>.
Those with the money have set up businesses too. <o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;">
<span class="apple-style-span"><span lang="EN-US" style="background: white; font-family: "Trebuchet MS";">“The day I am
convinced Bara is peaceful, I am going back,” said Shah. <o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;">
<span class="apple-style-span"><span lang="EN-US" style="background: white; font-family: "Trebuchet MS";">However, those
without even modest financial resources are the real challenge for policymakers
in terms of a return strategy. The poorest of the IDPs have no option but to
register and live in camps like Jalozai, where the services provided are far
superior to what they could hope for back home. <o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;">
<span class="apple-style-span"><span lang="EN-US" style="background: white; font-family: "Trebuchet MS";">“The ones in the
camps are the most vulnerable. They have no other means or resources to set up
something else for themselves. They get health, education and food at the
camp,” said Faiz Muhammad of the KP government. <o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;">
<span class="apple-style-span"><span lang="EN-US" style="background: white; font-family: "Trebuchet MS";">“It’s an obvious
question: why would they go back?” <o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;">
<span class="apple-style-span"><b><span lang="EN-US" style="background: white; font-family: "Trebuchet MS";">Security fears <o:p></o:p></span></b></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;">
<span class="apple-style-span"><span lang="EN-US" style="background: white; font-family: "Trebuchet MS";">Pakistani
officials say return plans cannot be successful until peace is established in
the affected areas. <o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;">
<span class="apple-style-span"><span lang="EN-US" style="background: white; font-family: "Trebuchet MS";">“We can only
begin working on a return programme for IDPs after the government and the
military determine that the affected area is safe,” said Faiz Muhammad. <o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;">
<span class="apple-style-span"><span lang="EN-US" style="background: white; font-family: "Trebuchet MS";">In a refugee
camp on the outskirts of <st1:country-region w:st="on">Pakistan</st1:country-region>’s
capital <st1:city w:st="on">Islamabad</st1:city>, home to many families displaced
by the conflict on the border with <st1:country-region w:st="on"><st1:place w:st="on">Afghanistan</st1:place></st1:country-region>, Sher Mohammed, from
the Mohmand Agency in FATA, says the military has cleared his village, but his
family members that visited still fear militant attacks. <o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;">
<span class="apple-style-span"><span lang="EN-US" style="background: white; font-family: "Trebuchet MS";">“My cousins went
back last summer and they had to come back because it was still dangerous
there. I can’t afford to go back unless it is absolutely safe. It costs 50,000
rupees to take my family back. If it’s not safe, I’ll have to spend another
50,000 rupees to come back here,” said the 40-year-old. “I don’t have that kind
of money.”<o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;">
<br /></div>
</div>

How best to serve Pakistan’s 750,000 IDPs?

Photo: Rebecca Conway/IRIN Pakistani men displaced by fighting in Khyber tribal region drink tea outside a shop near Peshawar ...

Pakistan Taliban Threaten to Target Indians to Avenge Kasab's Hanging

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<br />
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;">
<st1:city w:st="on"><span lang="EN-US" style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-family: "Trebuchet MS";">ISLAMABAD</span></st1:city><span lang="EN-US" style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS'; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%;">  (NNN-PTI) -- The Pakistani Taliban on Thursday
threatened to target Indians "anywhere" in retaliation for the execution
of Ajmal Kasab and demanded that <st1:country-region w:st="on"><st1:place w:st="on">India</st1:place></st1:country-region> should return the body of the
LeT militant involved in the 2008 Mumbai attacks to his family.</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;">
<span lang="EN-US" style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-family: "Trebuchet MS";">In calls made to journalists in northwest <st1:country-region w:st="on">Pakistan</st1:country-region>, Tehrik-e-Taliban <st1:country-region w:st="on"><st1:place w:st="on">Pakistan</st1:place></st1:country-region>
spokesman Ihsanullah Ihsan said his group would target Indians and Indian
interests "anywhere" to avenge the hanging of Kasab.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;">
<span lang="EN-US" style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-family: "Trebuchet MS";">Ihsan further said Indian authorities should hand over Kasab's
body to his family or to the Taliban.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;">
<span lang="EN-US" style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-family: "Trebuchet MS";">He warned the Taliban would "capture Indians" and
"not return their bodies" if Kasab's body was not handed over.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;">
<span lang="EN-US" style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-family: "Trebuchet MS";">25-year-old Kasab, who belonged to <st1:country-region w:st="on">Pakistan</st1:country-region>'s
most populous <st1:placetype w:st="on">province</st1:placetype> of <st1:placename w:st="on">Punjab</st1:placename>, was executed in a Pune jail in the western
Indian state of <st1:place w:st="on">Maharashtra</st1:place> on Wednesday.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;">
<span lang="EN-US" style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-family: "Trebuchet MS";">His body was buried within the prison.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;">
<span lang="EN-US" style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-family: "Trebuchet MS";">The <st1:country-region w:st="on">Pakistan</st1:country-region>
government reacted cautiously to the hanging, with the Foreign Office spokesman
saying <st1:city w:st="on"><st1:place w:st="on">Islamabad</st1:place></st1:city>
was against all forms of terrorism and would cooperate with countries in the
region to tackle the menace.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;">
<span lang="EN-US" style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-family: "Trebuchet MS";">Kasab was the only surviving member of a 10-member team of
Lashkar-e-Taiba (LeT) terrorists who killed 166 people during a three-day
rampage in Mumbai nearly four years ago.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;">
<span lang="EN-US" style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-family: "Trebuchet MS";">Diplomatic sources said security measures at the Indian High
Commission, which are already very extensive, had been further tightened after
the Taliban threat. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;">
<span lang="EN-US" style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-family: "Trebuchet MS";">Indian diplomats in <st1:country-region w:st="on"><st1:place w:st="on">Pakistan</st1:place></st1:country-region> have faced threats in the
past too.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;">
<span lang="EN-US" style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-family: "Trebuchet MS";">In 2010, two deserters from a paramilitary force arrested for
terror links had revealed that militants aligned with the Pakistani Taliban had
plans to abduct Indian diplomats and target foreign missions.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;">
<span lang="EN-US" style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-family: "Trebuchet MS";">The men had revealed that militant groups had plans to kidnap
Indian diplomats, including the High Commissioner, to exchange them for militant
commanders being held by Pakistani authorities.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;">
<span lang="EN-US" style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-family: "Trebuchet MS";">At that time too, security had been tightened for Indian
diplomats and their families.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;">
<span lang="EN-US" style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-family: "Trebuchet MS";">On Wednesday, an unnamed LeT commander was quoted by media as
saying that the group regarded Kasab as a hero who would inspire more terror
attacks.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;">
<span lang="EN-US" style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-family: "Trebuchet MS";">Ihsan was quoted by the Pakistani media on Wednesday as saying
that the Taliban were shocked by Kasab's hanging. -- NNN-PTI<o:p></o:p></span></div>
</div>

Pakistan Taliban Threaten to Target Indians to Avenge Kasab's Hanging

ISLAMABAD (NNN-PTI) -- The Pakistani Taliban on Thursday threatened to target Indians "anywhere" in retaliation for the execu...

PAKISTAN: 8 Killed as Gunmen Attack Fuel Station

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<br />
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;">
<span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS";">  <o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;">
<st1:city w:st="on"><span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS";">ISLAMABAD</span></st1:city><span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS";"> (NNN-Xinhua) -- At least eight people were
killed and a dozen others injured when gunmen opened fire at a petrol station
in <st1:country-region w:st="on">Pakistan</st1:country-region>'s southwest <st1:place w:st="on"><st1:placetype w:st="on">province</st1:placetype> of <st1:placename w:st="on">Balochistan</st1:placename></st1:place> on Friday afternoon, local
media reported.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;">
<span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS";">Dunya
TV reported that the incident happened at about 2:20 p.m. local time when an
unknown number of gunmen targeted the fuel station as soon as a passenger van
carrying 16 people stopped at the station for refueling in Khuzdar area, a main
town located in the eastern part of the province.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;">
<span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS";">Eyewitnesses
said that the unknown gunmen were driving a car when they targeted the fuel
station.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;">
<span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS";">District
Police Officer of Khuzdar said that following the firing incident, fire
engulfed the whole petrol station and the passenger van. He said that a
rickshaw and two motorbikes were also destroyed in the incident.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;">
<span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS";">All
the dead people were the van passengers; however, the injured include fuel
station staff, passersby and passengers.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;">
<span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS";">The
injured have been shifted to nearby hospital where nine of them were in
critical condition as they got serious burnt injuries all over their bodies.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;">
<span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS";">The
attackers fled from the scene after the incident.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;">
<span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS";">No
group claimed responsibility for the attack yet.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;">
<span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS";">Police
and paramilitary troops cordoned off the area following the attack and a search
operation for the escaped gunmen has been kicked off. -- NNN-XINHUA<o:p></o:p></span></div>
</div>

PAKISTAN: 8 Killed as Gunmen Attack Fuel Station

ISLAMABAD (NNN-Xinhua) -- At least eight people were killed and a dozen others injured when gunmen opened fire at a petrol sta...

PAKISTAN: Sectarian Violence Slipping Out of Control in Balochistan

<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on"><br />
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;"><table cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="float: left; margin-right: 1em; text-align: left;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj_hbxvFC7akooKaqpmGFbM38aynWwFKGgljRAlNfTQnH6odYd8BLpngHXVvIMXJKBF-yigthyphenhyphen7zAg6avgrfTBjeJRS2MZnZ6QNTnSH_CJ39MMZtWgTtxoBTf3TN-9TX-1kMHgdcej501M/s1600/201111170827050625.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj_hbxvFC7akooKaqpmGFbM38aynWwFKGgljRAlNfTQnH6odYd8BLpngHXVvIMXJKBF-yigthyphenhyphen7zAg6avgrfTBjeJRS2MZnZ6QNTnSH_CJ39MMZtWgTtxoBTf3TN-9TX-1kMHgdcej501M/s1600/201111170827050625.jpg" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><div align="center" class="MsoNoSpacing" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS","sans-serif"; font-size: 10.0pt; mso-bidi-font-size: 9.0pt;">Photo: <a href="http://www.irinnews.org/photo/"><span style="color: windowtext; text-decoration: none; text-underline: none;">Kamila Hyat/IRIN</span></a><o:p></o:p></span></div><div align="center" class="MsoNoSpacing" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS","sans-serif"; font-size: 10.0pt; mso-bidi-font-size: 9.0pt;">Relatives of missing persons stage <o:p></o:p></span></div><div align="center" class="MsoNoSpacing" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS","sans-serif"; font-size: 10.0pt; mso-bidi-font-size: 9.0pt;">a protest in Balochistan<o:p></o:p></span></div><div align="center" class="MsoNoSpacing" style="text-align: center;"><br />
</div></td></tr>
</tbody></table><span class="apple-style-span"><span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS","sans-serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-family: Arial;">QUETTA,Pakistan (IRIN) - Ethnic and religious minorities in Pakistan’s southwestern province of Balochistan have faced increasing intimidation and violence since 2009, according to a recent</span></span><span class="apple-converted-space"><span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS","sans-serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-family: Arial;"> </span></span><span class="apple-style-span"><span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS","sans-serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-family: Arial;">fact-finding mission</span></span><span class="apple-converted-space"><span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS","sans-serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-family: Arial;"> </span></span><span class="apple-style-span"><span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS","sans-serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-family: Arial;">by the Human Rights Commission of Pakistan (HRCP).<o:p></o:p></span></span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;"><span class="apple-style-span"><span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS","sans-serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-family: Arial;"> </span></span><span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS","sans-serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-family: Arial;"><br />
<span class="apple-style-span">“Settlers” i.e. people who have settled in the province and are not of Baloch ethnicity (a term used by Balochi nationalists even for people whose ancestors came to the region before the Pakistani state was created in 1947) are being targeted.</span><br />
<span class="apple-style-span"> </span><br />
<span class="apple-style-span">Heavy locks on two empty houses in a residential suburb of Quetta, the provincial capital, stand as a testimony to what is happening - in this case the occupants chose to vacate their properties quietly in the dead of night.</span><br />
<span class="apple-style-span"> </span><br />
<span class="apple-style-span">“These persons were `settlers’ in Balochistan, from the Punjab. They were good people; we had known them for years, but they had to leave because it is no longer safe for people from other provinces to live in Balochistan,” a neighbour who asked not to be named, told IRIN.<o:p></o:p></span></span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;"><span class="apple-style-span"><span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS","sans-serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-family: Arial;"> </span></span><span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS","sans-serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-family: Arial;"><br />
<span class="apple-style-span">With violence increasing in 2010, the central government informed the country’s Senate that</span><span class="apple-converted-space"> </span><span class="apple-style-span">100,000</span><span class="apple-converted-space"> </span><span class="apple-style-span">people had fled Balochistan. According to HRCP, thousands more have fled since then. At least 2,000 “settler” children have been taken out of school by their parents since 2011, the HRCP report says.</span><br />
<span class="apple-style-span"> </span><br />
<span class="apple-style-span">About half of Balochistan’s 7.8 million people are non-Baloch; they live mainly in Quetta and Pakhtoon-dominated areas.<o:p></o:p></span></span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;"><span class="apple-style-span"><span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS","sans-serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-family: Arial;"> </span></span><span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS","sans-serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-family: Arial;"><br />
<span class="apple-style-span">“My family has lived in Quetta since the 1930s. It is the only home I know. But things are getting too dangerous for anyone who is non-Baloch,” said Khawar Jhandro, an ethnic Sindhi.</span><br />
<span class="apple-style-span"> </span><br />
<span class="apple-style-span">The teacher, 40, said he had already moved his family to Karachi, as “I was terrified about the safety of my children who were asked their ethnicity even at school.”</span><br />
<span class="apple-style-span"> </span><br />
<span class="apple-style-span">The problem, according to Tahir Hussain Khan, a Quetta-based lawyer and human rights activist, is tied to the nationalist struggle by Baloch groups, which began in the 1950s but intensified after the 2006 killing of a key Baloch nationalist leader Nawab Akbar Bugti.</span><br />
<span class="apple-style-span"> </span><br />
<span class="apple-style-span">Baloch Baloch, a spokesman for the nationalist Baloch Republican Army, an armed militia fighting for autonomy of the region, told IRIN over the telephone: “We believe Balochistan should be mainly for the Baloch people and not be taken over by those who have moved in from outside and settled here… Balochistan’s resources have been taken away by the Punjab, aided by the central government.”</span><br />
<span class="apple-style-span"> </span><br />
<span class="apple-style-span">HRCP says underdevelopment is one of the factors driving the grievances. According to official statistics, the province is the country’s poorest with the lowest literacy rate (30 percent).</span><span class="apple-converted-space"> <o:p></o:p></span></span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;"><span class="apple-style-span"><span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS","sans-serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-family: Arial;"> </span></span><span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS","sans-serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-family: Arial;"><br />
<span class="apple-style-span">According to the</span><span class="apple-converted-space"> </span><span class="apple-style-span">South Asian Terrorism Portal</span><span class="apple-converted-space"> </span><span class="apple-style-span">which bases its data on media reports and is run by the New Delhi-based Institute for Conflict Management, 711 persons, including civilians, nationalist militants and personnel from security forces were killed in</span><span class="apple-converted-space"> </span><span class="apple-style-span">Balochistan</span><span class="apple-converted-space"> </span><span class="apple-style-span">in 2011, and 347 the previous year. HRCP reported the discovery of 57 bodies of people who had gone missing from various parts of the province in 2012 alone.</span><br />
<span class="apple-style-span"> </span><br />
<span class="apple-style-span">Sectarian violence has also started to target the</span><span class="apple-converted-space"> </span><span class="apple-style-span">Hazara, a Shiite minority. Sardar Saadat Ali, chief of the Hazara community in Balochistan, told IRIN: “Our protests are ignored. The extremists targeting us on a sectarian basis just escape, scot-free.”<o:p></o:p></span></span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;"><span class="apple-style-span"><span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS","sans-serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-family: Arial;"> </span></span><span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS","sans-serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-family: Arial;"><br />
<strong><span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS","sans-serif"; mso-bidi-font-family: Arial;">Balochs also targeted<o:p></o:p></span></strong></span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;"><span class="apple-style-span"><span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS","sans-serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-family: Arial;"> </span></span><span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS","sans-serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-family: Arial;"><br />
<span class="apple-style-span">Even the Balochi nationalists themselves have become a target and many have gone missing. “There are at least 500 or more missing persons in the province,” Baloch Baloch told IRIN. According to the HRCP report, the disappearance of 198 people has been officially recorded since 2000.</span><span class="apple-converted-space"> <o:p></o:p></span></span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;"><span class="apple-style-span"><span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS","sans-serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-family: Arial;"> </span></span><span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS","sans-serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-family: Arial;"><br />
<span class="apple-style-span">A</span><span class="apple-converted-space"> </span><span class="apple-style-span">2010 report</span><span class="apple-converted-space"> </span><span class="apple-style-span">by Human Rights Watch said the Frontier Corps (FC), a paramilitary organization commanded by Pakistan’s military, was behind many of the disappearances.</span><br />
<span class="apple-style-span"> <o:p></o:p></span></span></div><table align="right" border="1" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="MediumShading2" style="border-collapse: collapse; border: none; margin-bottom: 3.75pt; margin-left: 6.0pt; margin-right: 6.0pt; margin-top: -.75pt; mso-border-bottom-alt: solid windowtext 2.25pt; mso-border-top-alt: solid windowtext 2.25pt; mso-padding-alt: 0in 5.4pt 0in 5.4pt; mso-table-anchor-horizontal: column; mso-table-anchor-vertical: paragraph; mso-table-bspace: 6.0pt; mso-table-left: right; mso-table-lspace: 8.25pt; mso-table-rspace: 8.25pt; mso-table-top: middle; mso-table-tspace: 1.5pt; mso-yfti-tbllook: 1184; width: 220px;"><tbody>
<tr style="mso-yfti-firstrow: yes; mso-yfti-irow: -1; mso-yfti-lastrow: yes;">   <td style="background: black; border-bottom: solid windowtext 2.25pt; border-left: none; border-right: none; border-top: solid windowtext 2.25pt; mso-background-themecolor: text1; padding: 0in 5.4pt 0in 5.4pt;" valign="top"><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in; mso-element-anchor-horizontal: column; mso-element-anchor-vertical: paragraph; mso-element-frame-hspace: 8.25pt; mso-element-frame-vspace: 1.5pt; mso-element-left: right; mso-element-top: middle; mso-element-wrap: around; mso-element: frame; mso-height-rule: exactly; mso-yfti-cnfc: 517; text-align: justify;"><b><span style="color: white; font-family: "Trebuchet MS","sans-serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; mso-bidi-font-family: Tahoma; mso-no-proof: yes; mso-themecolor: background1;"><v:shapetype coordsize="21600,21600" filled="f" id="_x0000_t75" o:preferrelative="t" o:spt="75" path="m@4@5l@4@11@9@11@9@5xe" stroked="f">    <v:stroke joinstyle="miter">    <v:formulas>     <v:f eqn="if lineDrawn pixelLineWidth 0">     <v:f eqn="sum @0 1 0">     <v:f eqn="sum 0 0 @1">     <v:f eqn="prod @2 1 2">     <v:f eqn="prod @3 21600 pixelWidth">     <v:f eqn="prod @3 21600 pixelHeight">     <v:f eqn="sum @0 0 1">     <v:f eqn="prod @6 1 2">     <v:f eqn="prod @7 21600 pixelWidth">     <v:f eqn="sum @8 21600 0">     <v:f eqn="prod @7 21600 pixelHeight">     <v:f eqn="sum @10 21600 0">    </v:f></v:f></v:f></v:f></v:f></v:f></v:f></v:f></v:f></v:f></v:f></v:f></v:formulas>    <v:path gradientshapeok="t" o:connecttype="rect" o:extrusionok="f">    <o:lock aspectratio="t" v:ext="edit">   </o:lock></v:path></v:stroke></v:shapetype><v:shape alt="''" id="Picture_x0020_1" o:spid="_x0000_i1026" style="height: 13.5pt; mso-wrap-style: square; visibility: visible; width: 17.25pt;" type="#_x0000_t75">    <v:imagedata o:title="''" src="file:///C:\Users\GHAZAN~1\AppData\Local\Temp\msohtmlclip1\01\clip_image001.jpg">   </v:imagedata></v:shape></span></b><span style="color: white; font-family: "Trebuchet MS","sans-serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; mso-bidi-font-family: Tahoma; mso-themecolor: background1;">My family   has lived in Quetta since the 1930s. It is the only home I know. But things   are getting too dangerous for anyone who is non-Baloch<b><span style="mso-no-proof: yes;"><v:shape alt="''" id="Picture_x0020_2" o:spid="_x0000_i1025" style="height: 13.5pt; mso-wrap-style: square; visibility: visible; width: 17.25pt;" type="#_x0000_t75">    <v:imagedata o:title="''" src="file:///C:\Users\GHAZAN~1\AppData\Local\Temp\msohtmlclip1\01\clip_image002.jpg">   </v:imagedata></v:shape></span><o:p></o:p></b></span></div></td>  </tr>
</tbody></table><div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;"><span class="apple-style-span"><span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS","sans-serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-family: Arial;">The central government is concerned that it is losing control of the region. The country’s top court,</span></span><span class="apple-converted-space"><span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS","sans-serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-family: Arial;"> </span></span><span class="apple-style-span"><span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS","sans-serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-family: Arial;">hearing a case</span></span><span class="apple-converted-space"><span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS","sans-serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-family: Arial;"> </span></span><span class="apple-style-span"><span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS","sans-serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-family: Arial;">regarding law and order in Balochistan brought before it by NGOs and families of the missing, has repeatedly ordered the provincial government to take action. So has the prime minister. But these interventions, backed by the military muscle of the FC are seen by some as interfering in local affairs.</span></span><span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS","sans-serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-family: Arial;"><br />
<span class="apple-style-span"> </span><br />
<span class="apple-style-span">“Basically, the FC has seized all control, follows its own plans and does not allow us to function,” a senior police officer in Quetta, who asked not to be named, told IRIN.</span><br />
<span class="apple-style-span"> </span><br />
<span class="apple-style-span">“The military has intervened too often in the affairs of Balochistan, handicapping civilian rule,” said I.A. Rehman, secretary-general of the HRCP. Balochistan has a long history of military intervention against those fighting for more autonomy, dating back to the 1950s.<o:p></o:p></span></span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;"><span class="apple-style-span"><span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS","sans-serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-family: Arial;"> </span></span><span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS","sans-serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-family: Arial;"><br />
<strong><span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS","sans-serif"; mso-bidi-font-family: Arial;">Fear</span></strong><span class="apple-converted-space"><b> </b></span><br />
<span class="apple-style-span"> </span><br />
<span class="apple-style-span">The result of this administrative disarray is fear. Tens of thousands across Balochistan are affected.</span><span class="apple-converted-space"> <o:p></o:p></span></span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;"><span class="apple-style-span"><span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS","sans-serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-family: Arial;"> </span></span><span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS","sans-serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-family: Arial;"><br />
<span class="apple-style-span">“It is unsafe to go out of the house after 4 or 5pm. I, in fact, try not to let my college-going sons leave the house at any time, except for their studies, because I am afraid they may be `picked up’ as nationalists or get caught up in some terrorist incident,” said Shaista Bibi, a mother of three - and an ethnic Baloch.</span><br />
<span class="apple-style-span"> </span><br />
<span class="apple-style-span">An ethnic Pakhtoon mother was just as fearful. “We will have to leave here soon. It is no longer safe for my four young children,” said Ameera Gul, 30, who had moved to Balochistan from Khyber Pakhtoonkhwa Province 10 years ago. The family is now planning to leave as soon as it can.</span></span><span style="background: white; font-family: "Trebuchet MS","sans-serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;"><o:p></o:p></span></div></div>

PAKISTAN: Sectarian Violence Slipping Out of Control in Balochistan

Photo: Kamila Hyat/IRIN Relatives of missing persons stage a protest in Balochistan QUETTA,Pakistan (IRIN) - Ethnic and religious mino...

Pakistan Tests Nuclear-Capable Missile

<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on"><br />
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;"><span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS","sans-serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-size: 11.0pt;">Pakistan has successfully test-fired a cruise missile capable of carrying a nuclear warhead.<o:p></o:p></span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;"><br />
</div><div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;"><span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS","sans-serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-size: 11.0pt;">Pakistan's army says the missile has a range of 700 kilometers and was launched Monday from an undisclosed location.<o:p></o:p></span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;"><br />
</div><div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;"><span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS","sans-serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-size: 11.0pt;">An army statement says the missile has stealth features and is capable of flying low to the ground.<o:p></o:p></span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;"><br />
</div><div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;"><span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS","sans-serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-size: 11.0pt;">Pakistan and its arch-rival and neighbor India, which is also nuclear armed, routinely test their missiles and generally notify each other about test dates.<o:p></o:p></span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;"><br />
</div><div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;"><span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS","sans-serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-size: 11.0pt;">The two countries have fought three wars since they gained independence from Britain in 1947.---VOA News<o:p></o:p></span></div></div>

Pakistan Tests Nuclear-Capable Missile

Pakistan has successfully test-fired a cruise missile capable of carrying a nuclear warhead. Pakistan's army says the missile has a ra...

Pakistan Summons US Diplomat Over Drone Strikes

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<div class="MsoNormal" style="direction: ltr; text-align: justify; unicode-bidi: embed;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="line-height: 18px;"><br />
</span></span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="direction: ltr; text-align: justify; unicode-bidi: embed;"><span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS","sans-serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;">By VOA News<o:p></o:p></span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="direction: ltr; text-align: justify; unicode-bidi: embed;"><span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS","sans-serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;"><br />
</span></div><table cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="float: left; margin-right: 1em; text-align: left;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEigDdjgrhUxJFrwgHeNo4-YwzeWiLYwAdAzciZfiq1QEa2a9ZclCxvHMffq5eJSPlH3S_uIgvHZARaT_L7hQz5dlnDwW9Dwzk2v5CIn3C2Qp77CcibKkK3eywzQJKQ4cJCjs_E1d29AdcU/s1600/71ED9E71-36FE-4C57-BB9A-56BD263CD9E2_w640_r1_s.png" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="225" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEigDdjgrhUxJFrwgHeNo4-YwzeWiLYwAdAzciZfiq1QEa2a9ZclCxvHMffq5eJSPlH3S_uIgvHZARaT_L7hQz5dlnDwW9Dwzk2v5CIn3C2Qp77CcibKkK3eywzQJKQ4cJCjs_E1d29AdcU/s400/71ED9E71-36FE-4C57-BB9A-56BD263CD9E2_w640_r1_s.png" width="400" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS","sans-serif"; font-size: 10.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-ansi-language: EN-US; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-bidi-language: AR-SA; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-bidi; mso-fareast-font-family: Calibri; mso-fareast-language: EN-US; mso-fareast-theme-font: minor-latin;">Photo © VOA News</span></td></tr>
</tbody></table><div class="MsoNormal" style="direction: ltr; text-align: justify; unicode-bidi: embed;"><span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS","sans-serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;">Pakistan has summoned a senior U.S. diplomat to protest against drone strikes on Pakistani soil.<o:p></o:p></span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="direction: ltr; text-align: justify; unicode-bidi: embed;"><br />
</div><div class="MsoNormal" style="direction: ltr; text-align: justify; unicode-bidi: embed;"><span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS","sans-serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;">Three separate attacks in the last week have killed at least 16 suspected militants in the North Waziristan tribal agency, a known hub for al-Qaida and Taliban-linked militants.<o:p></o:p></span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="direction: ltr; text-align: justify; unicode-bidi: embed;"><br />
</div><div class="MsoNormal" style="direction: ltr; text-align: justify; unicode-bidi: embed;"><span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS","sans-serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;">Pakistan's foreign ministry said Thursday the American diplomat was informed that the strikes were "unlawful, against international law and a violation of Pakistan's sovereignty."<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">  </span>The ministry said such attacks are "unacceptable."<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">  </span>It did not name the senior diplomat.<o:p></o:p></span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="direction: ltr; text-align: justify; unicode-bidi: embed;"><br />
</div><div class="MsoNormal" style="direction: ltr; text-align: justify; unicode-bidi: embed;"><span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS","sans-serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;">Pakistan has repeatedly called for an end to U.S. drone strikes, but U.S. officials say they are an important tool in the effort to defeat al-Qaida.<o:p></o:p></span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="direction: ltr; text-align: justify; unicode-bidi: embed;"><br />
</div><div class="MsoNormal" style="direction: ltr; text-align: justify; unicode-bidi: embed;"><span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS","sans-serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;">Authorities say militants ambushed a police patrol in the northwestern province of Khyber Paktunkhwa Thursday, killing three policemen. The Taliban claimed responsibility for the attack in the town of Kotki in Hangu district.<o:p></o:p></span></div></div>

Pakistan Summons US Diplomat Over Drone Strikes

By VOA News Photo © VOA News Pakistan has summoned a senior U.S. diplomat to protest against drone strikes on Pakistani soil. Three s...

Pakistan Central Bank Allows 2 Lenders to Open Branches in India

<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on"><br />
<div class="MsoNormal" style="direction: ltr; text-align: justify; unicode-bidi: embed;"><br />
</div><div class="MsoNormal" style="direction: ltr; text-align: justify; unicode-bidi: embed;"><span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS","sans-serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;">ISLAMABAD (NNN-PTI) -- Following India's move to allow investments from the neighbouring country, Pakistan's central bank has allowed two banks to open branches in India as part of efforts to normalise economic and trade relations between the two countries. <o:p></o:p></span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="direction: ltr; text-align: justify; unicode-bidi: embed;"><br />
</div><div class="MsoNormal" style="direction: ltr; text-align: justify; unicode-bidi: embed;"><span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS","sans-serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;">State Bank of Pakistan (SBP) Governor Yasin Anwar told the media that the National Bank of Pakistan and the United Bank Ltd had been given the "green signal" to operate in India.<o:p></o:p></span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="direction: ltr; text-align: justify; unicode-bidi: embed;"><br />
</div><div class="MsoNormal" style="direction: ltr; text-align: justify; unicode-bidi: embed;"><span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS","sans-serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;">Anwar's remarks came in the wake of India's decision to allow investments by Pakistanis in all sectors except defence, space and atomic energy.<o:p></o:p></span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="direction: ltr; text-align: justify; unicode-bidi: embed;"><br />
</div><div class="MsoNormal" style="direction: ltr; text-align: justify; unicode-bidi: embed;"><span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS","sans-serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;">He said the Reserve Bank of India had been informed of SBP's decision of allowing the Pakistani banks to explore opportunities in India.<o:p></o:p></span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="direction: ltr; text-align: justify; unicode-bidi: embed;"><br />
</div><div class="MsoNormal" style="direction: ltr; text-align: justify; unicode-bidi: embed;"><span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS","sans-serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;">In a major decision, India on Wednesday allowed investment from Pakistan paving way for Islamabad to normalise bilateral economic ties by implementing much-delayed Most Favoured Nation (MFN) status for New Delhi.<o:p></o:p></span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="direction: ltr; text-align: justify; unicode-bidi: embed;"><br />
</div><div class="MsoNormal" style="direction: ltr; text-align: justify; unicode-bidi: embed;"><span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS","sans-serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;">India's move to allow Pakistani investments has been welcomed by businessmen on both sides of the border.<o:p></o:p></span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="direction: ltr; text-align: justify; unicode-bidi: embed;"><br />
</div><div class="MsoNormal" style="direction: ltr; text-align: justify; unicode-bidi: embed;"><span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS","sans-serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;">Earlier this year, Pakistan switched over to a negative list regime for trade with India, paving the way for giving the Most Favoured Nation-status to the neighbouring country.<o:p></o:p></span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="direction: ltr; text-align: justify; unicode-bidi: embed;"><br />
</div><div class="MsoNormal" style="direction: ltr; text-align: justify; unicode-bidi: embed;"><span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS","sans-serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;">However, recent reports have indicated that Pakistan has decided to link progress in normalising trade relations to the resolution of other issues, like the Kashmir issue and the Sir Creek border dispute.<o:p></o:p></span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="direction: ltr; text-align: justify; unicode-bidi: embed;"><br />
</div><div class="MsoNormal" style="direction: ltr; text-align: justify; unicode-bidi: embed;"><span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS","sans-serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;">Trade between India and Pakistan is worth a little more than USD 2 billion dollars and the two sides have agreed to increase it to $6 billion dollars by 2014. -- NNN-PTI<o:p></o:p></span></div></div>

Pakistan Central Bank Allows 2 Lenders to Open Branches in India

ISLAMABAD (NNN-PTI) -- Following India's move to allow investments from the neighbouring country, Pakistan's central bank has allo...

PAKISTAN: Rough ride for bomb blast victims and their families

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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgclmB2kkcUu8HCo9l_lRPt1udbEnefNvF4gK1vRBMbCsBlL7pXLkSLVncfebtYq9QkrvYsS-oOkvtk0VWKtqxZ6CL7f7ceB_7aKZH6YYa8iI0uAzMIgJVmhtlTL48nz7i-lQ0JVDJEj08/s1600/200911090904270640.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgclmB2kkcUu8HCo9l_lRPt1udbEnefNvF4gK1vRBMbCsBlL7pXLkSLVncfebtYq9QkrvYsS-oOkvtk0VWKtqxZ6CL7f7ceB_7aKZH6YYa8iI0uAzMIgJVmhtlTL48nz7i-lQ0JVDJEj08/s1600/200911090904270640.jpg" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><div align="center" class="MsoNoSpacing"><span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS","sans-serif"; font-size: 10.0pt;">Photo: </span><a href="http://www.irinnews.org/photo.aspx"><span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS","sans-serif"; font-size: 10.0pt;">Abdul Majeed Goraya/IRIN</span></a><span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS","sans-serif"; font-size: 10.0pt;"><o:p></o:p></span></div><div align="center" class="MsoNoSpacing"><span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS","sans-serif"; font-size: 10.0pt;">A bomb blast in October 2009 left 117 people dead<o:p></o:p></span></div></td></tr>
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<div class="MsoNormal" style="direction: ltr; text-align: justify; unicode-bidi: embed;"><span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS","sans-serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-language: HI;">ISLAMABAD</span><span lang="HI" style="font-family: "Mangal","serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-ascii-font-family: "Trebuchet MS"; mso-bidi-language: HI; mso-hansi-font-family: "Trebuchet MS";"> (</span><span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS","sans-serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-language: HI;">IRIN) - With bombs causing nearly </span><span lang="HI" style="font-family: "Mangal","serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-ascii-font-family: "Trebuchet MS"; mso-bidi-language: HI; mso-hansi-font-family: "Trebuchet MS";">600</span><span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS","sans-serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-language: HI;"> deaths and over </span><span lang="HI" style="font-family: "Mangal","serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-ascii-font-family: "Trebuchet MS"; mso-bidi-language: HI; mso-hansi-font-family: "Trebuchet MS";">1,400</span><span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS","sans-serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-language: HI;"> injuries in Pakistan in the first half of </span><span lang="HI" style="font-family: "Mangal","serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-ascii-font-family: "Trebuchet MS"; mso-bidi-language: HI; mso-hansi-font-family: "Trebuchet MS";">2012</span><span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS","sans-serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-language: HI;"> alone, a new scheme to help those directly affected by such explosions is being put to the test.<o:p></o:p></span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="direction: ltr; text-align: justify; unicode-bidi: embed;"><br />
</div><div class="MsoNormal" style="direction: ltr; text-align: justify; unicode-bidi: embed;"><span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS","sans-serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-language: HI;">In November </span><span lang="HI" style="font-family: "Mangal","serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-ascii-font-family: "Trebuchet MS"; mso-bidi-language: HI; mso-hansi-font-family: "Trebuchet MS";">2011</span><span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS","sans-serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-language: HI;"> the government decided to provide an assistance package for victims of “terrorist” attacks under the Benazir Income Support Programme (BISP), which was set up in </span><span lang="HI" style="font-family: "Mangal","serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-ascii-font-family: "Trebuchet MS"; mso-bidi-language: HI; mso-hansi-font-family: "Trebuchet MS";">2008</span><span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS","sans-serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-language: HI;"> with initial government funding of US</span><span lang="HI" style="font-family: "Mangal","serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-ascii-font-family: "Trebuchet MS"; mso-bidi-language: HI; mso-hansi-font-family: "Trebuchet MS";">425</span><span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS","sans-serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-language: HI;"> million and is designed to help the needy. <o:p></o:p></span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="direction: ltr; text-align: justify; unicode-bidi: embed;"><br />
</div><div class="MsoNormal" style="direction: ltr; text-align: justify; unicode-bidi: embed;"><span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS","sans-serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-language: HI;">Muhammad Ahsan, a media assistant at BISP, told IRIN: “We are currently assisting some </span><span lang="HI" style="font-family: "Mangal","serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-ascii-font-family: "Trebuchet MS"; mso-bidi-language: HI; mso-hansi-font-family: "Trebuchet MS";">1,500</span><span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS","sans-serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-language: HI;"> blast victims with a stipend of Rs </span><span lang="HI" style="font-family: "Mangal","serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-ascii-font-family: "Trebuchet MS"; mso-bidi-language: HI; mso-hansi-font-family: "Trebuchet MS";">1,000 [</span><span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS","sans-serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-language: HI;">US</span><span lang="HI" style="font-family: "Mangal","serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-ascii-font-family: "Trebuchet MS"; mso-bidi-language: HI; mso-hansi-font-family: "Trebuchet MS";">$11] </span><span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS","sans-serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-language: HI;">per month. He said the amount was the same as that offered to other families across the country - and was given out as cash. <o:p></o:p></span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="direction: ltr; text-align: justify; unicode-bidi: embed;"><br />
</div><div class="MsoNormal" style="direction: ltr; text-align: justify; unicode-bidi: embed;"><span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS","sans-serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-language: HI;">Ahsan explained that the verification process to determine who is a victim is carried out by the National Database and Registration Authority. “There are some problems involved in this, as many terrorism victims come from tribal areas, and may lack documentation. This is especially true for women. In this case we seek help from local union councillors or other officials to ensure the claim is correct,” he said, adding: “The stipend helps support family income and offers some help.”<o:p></o:p></span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="direction: ltr; text-align: justify; unicode-bidi: embed;"><br />
</div><div class="MsoNormal" style="direction: ltr; text-align: justify; unicode-bidi: embed;"><span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS","sans-serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-language: HI;">Thousands of victims need help, with violence “peaking in the country after </span><span lang="HI" style="font-family: "Mangal","serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-ascii-font-family: "Trebuchet MS"; mso-bidi-language: HI; mso-hansi-font-family: "Trebuchet MS";">2001</span><span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS","sans-serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-language: HI;">, when Pakistan made the crucial decision to join the US as an ally in the war against Taliban militants,” according to Peshawar-based analyst Rahimullah Yusufzai. He told IRIN: “Civilians have become caught up in this conflict.”<o:p></o:p></span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="direction: ltr; text-align: justify; unicode-bidi: embed;"><br />
</div><div class="MsoNormal" style="direction: ltr; text-align: justify; unicode-bidi: embed;"><span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS","sans-serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-language: HI;">According to the South Asian Terrorism Portal maintained by the New Delhi-based Institute for Conflict Management, </span><span lang="HI" style="font-family: "Mangal","serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-ascii-font-family: "Trebuchet MS"; mso-bidi-language: HI; mso-hansi-font-family: "Trebuchet MS";">598</span><span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS","sans-serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-language: HI;"> people were killed and </span><span lang="HI" style="font-family: "Mangal","serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-ascii-font-family: "Trebuchet MS"; mso-bidi-language: HI; mso-hansi-font-family: "Trebuchet MS";">1,453</span><span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS","sans-serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-language: HI;"> injured in various blasts up to </span><span lang="HI" style="font-family: "Mangal","serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-ascii-font-family: "Trebuchet MS"; mso-bidi-language: HI; mso-hansi-font-family: "Trebuchet MS";">22</span><span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS","sans-serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-language: HI;"> July. Previous years have also been violent, with </span><span lang="HI" style="font-family: "Mangal","serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-ascii-font-family: "Trebuchet MS"; mso-bidi-language: HI; mso-hansi-font-family: "Trebuchet MS";">1,508</span><span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS","sans-serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-language: HI;"> killed in </span><span lang="HI" style="font-family: "Mangal","serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-ascii-font-family: "Trebuchet MS"; mso-bidi-language: HI; mso-hansi-font-family: "Trebuchet MS";">2009</span><span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS","sans-serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-language: HI;">, for example. The figures are based on news reports.<o:p></o:p></span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="direction: ltr; text-align: justify; unicode-bidi: embed;"><br />
</div><div class="MsoNormal" style="direction: ltr; text-align: justify; unicode-bidi: embed;"><span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS","sans-serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-language: HI;">“It is vital for the future of our country that the militants are defeated, Mian Iftikhar Hussain, minister of information for Khyber Pakhtoonkhwa Province, who lost his own son in a </span><span lang="HI" style="font-family: "Mangal","serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-ascii-font-family: "Trebuchet MS"; mso-bidi-language: HI; mso-hansi-font-family: "Trebuchet MS";">2010</span><span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS","sans-serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-language: HI;"> attack, told IRIN.<o:p></o:p></span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="direction: ltr; text-align: justify; unicode-bidi: embed;"><br />
</div><div class="MsoNormal" style="direction: ltr; text-align: justify; unicode-bidi: embed;"><span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS","sans-serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-language: HI;">But many families of victims are most concerned about their own future. Kulsoom Bibi, </span><span lang="HI" style="font-family: "Mangal","serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-ascii-font-family: "Trebuchet MS"; mso-bidi-language: HI; mso-hansi-font-family: "Trebuchet MS";">50</span><span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS","sans-serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-language: HI;">, who lost her husband and eldest son in a </span><span lang="HI" style="font-family: "Mangal","serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-ascii-font-family: "Trebuchet MS"; mso-bidi-language: HI; mso-hansi-font-family: "Trebuchet MS";">2009</span><span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS","sans-serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-language: HI;"> blast at a Peshawar bazaar, now lives with her sister in Rawalpindi, a city adjoining Islamabad. “We lost two wage-earners in that blast. My son was only </span><span lang="HI" style="font-family: "Mangal","serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-ascii-font-family: "Trebuchet MS"; mso-bidi-language: HI; mso-hansi-font-family: "Trebuchet MS";">22. </span><span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS","sans-serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-language: HI;">My two teenage daughters and I now sew, to keep my youngest son, Arsalan, </span><span lang="HI" style="font-family: "Mangal","serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-ascii-font-family: "Trebuchet MS"; mso-bidi-language: HI; mso-hansi-font-family: "Trebuchet MS";">13</span><span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS","sans-serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-language: HI;">, at school as I do not like to depend on my brother-in-law, but we earn little and I worry my son may have to drop out of school.” <o:p></o:p></span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="direction: ltr; text-align: justify; unicode-bidi: embed;"><br />
</div><div class="MsoNormal" style="direction: ltr; text-align: justify; unicode-bidi: embed;"><span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS","sans-serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-language: HI;">She said she had not heard of the BISP programme, but commented: “What can such a small amount bring us anyway?”<o:p></o:p></span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="direction: ltr; text-align: justify; unicode-bidi: embed;"><br />
</div><div class="MsoNormal" style="direction: ltr; text-align: justify; unicode-bidi: embed;"><b><span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS","sans-serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-language: HI;">Livelihoods lost<o:p></o:p></span></b></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="direction: ltr; text-align: justify; unicode-bidi: embed;"><br />
</div><div class="MsoNormal" style="direction: ltr; text-align: justify; unicode-bidi: embed;"><span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS","sans-serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-language: HI;">Livelihoods have been lost as a result of blast injuries. Hazar Gul, </span><span lang="HI" style="font-family: "Mangal","serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-ascii-font-family: "Trebuchet MS"; mso-bidi-language: HI; mso-hansi-font-family: "Trebuchet MS";">60</span><span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS","sans-serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-language: HI;">, who says he was injured in both legs following a </span><span lang="HI" style="font-family: "Mangal","serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-ascii-font-family: "Trebuchet MS"; mso-bidi-language: HI; mso-hansi-font-family: "Trebuchet MS";">2006</span><span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS","sans-serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-language: HI;"> blast in Bajaur, now begs on a Rawalpindi roadside. “I used to drive a wagon, but of course I can no longer do that. My sight has also been affected by the explosion,” he told IRIN.<o:p></o:p></span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="direction: ltr; text-align: justify; unicode-bidi: embed;"><br />
</div><div class="MsoNormal" style="direction: ltr; text-align: justify; unicode-bidi: embed;"><span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS","sans-serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-language: HI;">Sometimes the authorities “compensate” blast victims by distributing cheques among the heirs of victims or those injured in such attacks. <o:p></o:p></span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="direction: ltr; text-align: justify; unicode-bidi: embed;"><br />
</div><div class="MsoNormal" style="direction: ltr; text-align: justify; unicode-bidi: embed;"><span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS","sans-serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-language: HI;">“In some cases cheques handed over at ceremonies have proved very difficult to cash, as these victims - especially women - lack documents like national ID cards… Also [some] people have no bank accounts so cheques in their names are very hard to cash,” a government official in Peshawar who asked not to be named, told IRIN, adding: “I have seen families of those killed in bomb blasts suffer - sometimes for years.<o:p></o:p></span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="direction: ltr; text-align: justify; unicode-bidi: embed;"><br />
</div><div class="MsoNormal" style="direction: ltr; text-align: justify; unicode-bidi: embed;"><b><span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS","sans-serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-language: HI;">Psychological problems <o:p></o:p></span></b></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="direction: ltr; text-align: justify; unicode-bidi: embed;"><br />
</div><div class="MsoNormal" style="direction: ltr; text-align: justify; unicode-bidi: embed;"><span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS","sans-serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-language: HI;">Twelve-year-old Adnan Hussain, who lost nine family members in the same Peshawar blast, says he is “very depressed” and feels today that there is no point in building “any life for myself”.<o:p></o:p></span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="direction: ltr; text-align: justify; unicode-bidi: embed;"><br />
</div><div class="MsoNormal" style="direction: ltr; text-align: justify; unicode-bidi: embed;"><span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS","sans-serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-language: HI;">“Psychological problems are common among people caught up in blasts, or those who have lost relatives in them, but sadly, mainly because of their socio-economic backgrounds, few seek professional help,” Rubina Shaheen, a psychologist at a private hospital in Rawalpindi, told IRIN.<o:p></o:p></span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="direction: ltr; text-align: justify; unicode-bidi: embed;"><br />
</div><div class="MsoNormal" style="direction: ltr; text-align: justify; unicode-bidi: embed;"><span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS","sans-serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-language: HI;">I have seen families of those killed in bomb blasts suffer - sometimes for yearsThere have also been concerns about delays by patients injured by blasts in seeking treatment, leading to serious medical complications, or poor treatment offered by hospitals in remote areas. <o:p></o:p></span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="direction: ltr; text-align: justify; unicode-bidi: embed;"><br />
</div><div class="MsoNormal" style="direction: ltr; text-align: justify; unicode-bidi: embed;"><span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS","sans-serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-language: HI;">Fawad Khan, health director for the Federally Administered Tribal Areas (FATA), told the media in </span><span lang="HI" style="font-family: "Mangal","serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-ascii-font-family: "Trebuchet MS"; mso-bidi-language: HI; mso-hansi-font-family: "Trebuchet MS";">2010: </span><span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS","sans-serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-language: HI;">“A combination of medical facilities destroyed by militants, poverty and a lack of education among FATA residents are why people are not getting the treatment they need right away, resulting in amputations and deformities,” he said.<o:p></o:p></span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="direction: ltr; text-align: justify; unicode-bidi: embed;"><br />
</div><div class="MsoNormal" style="direction: ltr; text-align: justify; unicode-bidi: embed;"><span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS","sans-serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-language: HI;">The situation remains largely unchanged today. Fruit vendor Muhammad Dawar Khan, </span><span lang="HI" style="font-family: "Mangal","serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-ascii-font-family: "Trebuchet MS"; mso-bidi-language: HI; mso-hansi-font-family: "Trebuchet MS";">40</span><span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS","sans-serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-language: HI;">, was injured in both legs in a blast targeting a bus in Peshawar in June </span><span lang="HI" style="font-family: "Mangal","serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-ascii-font-family: "Trebuchet MS"; mso-bidi-language: HI; mso-hansi-font-family: "Trebuchet MS";">2012. </span><span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS","sans-serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-language: HI;"><o:p></o:p></span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="direction: ltr; text-align: justify; unicode-bidi: embed;"><br />
</div><div class="MsoNormal" style="direction: ltr; text-align: justify; unicode-bidi: embed;"><span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS","sans-serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-language: HI;">“Doctors at the time just bandaged both shins, but I have been feeling sharp pain continuously and have now been told after X-rays that I have metal embedded in one leg and will need surgery to remove it. I need to find a way to pay for this surgery, and also make up for the time taken off work,” he said.<o:p></o:p></span></div></div>

PAKISTAN: Rough ride for bomb blast victims and their families

Photo: Abdul Majeed Goraya/IRIN A bomb blast in October 2009 left 117 people dead ISLAMABAD ( IRIN) - With bombs causing nearly 600 ...

Pakistanis Protest against NATO Supply Reopening

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<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjfXoSzTtMepmDuZDTz9i3nddSQ30peOVoHmBo4AwKaNSQwoHXzLGqP22HvGVvQLXhoQX0TDs6SzbIUOpJfbqSKzGCuqmMea8ArBFMx1wHKpzjryIi57aumd8b6FfQ85N0CdzCK1U6U7P0/s1600/2012070612144744.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="480" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjfXoSzTtMepmDuZDTz9i3nddSQ30peOVoHmBo4AwKaNSQwoHXzLGqP22HvGVvQLXhoQX0TDs6SzbIUOpJfbqSKzGCuqmMea8ArBFMx1wHKpzjryIi57aumd8b6FfQ85N0CdzCK1U6U7P0/s640/2012070612144744.jpg" width="640" /></a></div><div class="MsoNormal"><br />
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</div><div class="MsoNormal"><br />
</div><div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;"><span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS","sans-serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman";">Supporters of the Islami Jamiat Talaba shout slogans during a protest against the government for reopening the NATO supply route to Afghanistan in Karachi, Pakistan on 5 July 2012. Pakistan’s cabinet on 4 July 2012 approved the re-opening of supply routes to NATO troops in Afghanistan, after a suspension of more than seven months. The shipments were discontinued in Nov after 24 Pakistani soldiers were killed by a NATO airstrike in the north-western tribal region along the Afghan border. The decision was made after the US government complied with Islamabad’s demand to apologise for the soldiers’s deaths. Photo courtesy nation.com.pk ---NNN<o:p></o:p></span></div></div>

Pakistanis Protest against NATO Supply Reopening

Supporters of the Islami Jamiat Talaba shout slogans during a protest against the government for reopening the NATO supply route to Afgh...

India Pakistan Foreign Secretaries level talks on Peace and Security Conclude

<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on"><br />
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;"><br />
</div><div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;"><span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS","sans-serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman";">NEW DELHI (PIB) --- During the second-round of the resumed dialogue process, the Foreign Secretaries of India and Pakistan met in New Delhi on July 4-5, 2012 for bilateral talks on Peace and Security including CBMs, Jammu & Kashmir and Promotion of Friendly Exchanges. <o:p></o:p></span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;"><br />
</div><div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;"><span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS","sans-serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman";">The talks were held in a frank and constructive atmosphere. Both sides reiterated their desire to carry forward the dialogue process in a purposeful and result-oriented manner.<o:p></o:p></span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;"><br />
</div><div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;"><span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS","sans-serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman";">The issue of Peace and Security, including CBMs, was discussed in a comprehensive manner. Both sides emphasized the need to promote greater trust and mutual understanding through constructive dialogue. <o:p></o:p></span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;"><br />
</div><div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;"><span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS","sans-serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman";">The Foreign Secretaries reviewed the ongoing implementation of the already adopted Nuclear and Conventional CBMs. It was decided that separate meetings of the Expert Level Groups on Nuclear and Conventional CBMs will be held to discuss implementation and strengthening of the existing CBMs and suggest additional mutually acceptable steps that could build greater trust and confidence between the two countries, thereby contributing to peace and security. The dates for the meetings of Expert Level Groups will be determined through diplomatic channels. <o:p></o:p></span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;"><br />
</div><div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;"><span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS","sans-serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman";">The Foreign Secretaries noted that both countries recognize that terrorism poses a continuing threat to peace and security. They reaffirmed the strong commitment of the two countries to fight and eliminate terrorism in an effective and comprehensive manner so as to eliminate the scourge in all its forms and manifestations. <o:p></o:p></span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;"><br />
</div><div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;"><span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS","sans-serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman";">The Foreign Secretaries had a comprehensive exchange of views on the issue of Jammu & Kashmir and agreed to continue discussions in a purposeful and forward looking manner with the view to finding a peaceful solution by narrowing divergences and building convergences. Both sides recognized the need to strengthen the existing Cross-LoC CBMs for streamlining the arrangements to facilitate travel and trade across LOC. They decided to convene a meeting of the Working Group on Cross-LoC CBMs on July 19, 2012 in Islamabad to recommend steps for strengthening and streamlining and effectively implementing the existing trade and travel arrangements and propose modalities for introducing additional cross LoC CBMs. <o:p></o:p></span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;"><br />
</div><div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;"><span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS","sans-serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman";">Both sides underlined the importance of greater people to people contacts and friendly exchanges in building a relationship of trust and friendship between the two countries. They noted that the text of a revised bilateral Visa Agreement has already been finalized and decided to work for its early signing. They emphasized the importance of greater parliamentary exchanges; promotion of cooperation in various fields including facilitating visits to Religious Shrines and cessation of hostile propaganda against each other. <o:p></o:p></span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;"><br />
</div><div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;"><span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS","sans-serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman";">The Foreign Secretaries also emphasized the need to promote media and sports contacts. <o:p></o:p></span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;"><br />
</div><div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;"><span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS","sans-serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman";">During his visit the Foreign Secretary of Pakistan will be calling on Minister of External Affairs of India, S.M. Krishna and National Security Adviser Shivshankar Menon. <o:p></o:p></span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;"><br />
</div><div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;"><span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS","sans-serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman";">The Foreign Secretaries will meet again in Islamabad, on a date to be decided through diplomatic channels, to prepare for the meeting of the External Affairs/ Foreign Ministers in September 2012.<o:p></o:p></span></div></div>

India Pakistan Foreign Secretaries level talks on Peace and Security Conclude

NEW DELHI (PIB) --- During the second-round of the resumed dialogue process, the Foreign Secretaries of India and Pakistan met in New Delh...