Summarized News

Founder of Pakistan Quaid-e-Azam Jinnah’s Only  daughter Dina Wadia dies at 98 in New York

2-Nov-2017 : Dina Wadia, 98, the only daughter of Pakistan’s founder Quaid-i-Azam Mohammad Ali Jinnah, passed away at her home in New York on Thursday 2 Nov 2017.

Dina Wadia was the only child of Muhammad Ali Jinnah and his second wife Rattanbai Petit who was also known as Maryam Jinnah.  Dina Wadia is survived by her son and Wadia Group Chairman Nusli N Wadia, daughter Diana N Wadia, and grandsons Ness and Jeh Wadia, said the statement issued in Mumbai. Dina Wadia was born in London on August 15, 1919. Her paternal grandparents were from Gujarat, who moved to Karachi for business in the mid-1870s, where her father, Jinnah, was born. Though Dina never lived in Pakistan, she was seen as a historic figure not only because she was the only daughter of the nation’s founder, but also because she was one of the few who had witnessed the bloody partition of 1947.

She last visited Pakistan in 2004 during a landmark cricket series between Pakistan and India on the invitation of former president General (r) Pervez Musharraf. On the visit to Pakistan, she was accompanied by her son, Nasli Wadia, and grandchildren, Jehangir and Ness. “This has been very sad and wonderful for me. May his dream for Pakistan come true,” wrote Dina Wadia in the visitor’s book, during her visit at the mausoleum of Quaid-e-Azam. She had also visited the mausoleum of Madar-i-Millat Fatima Jinnah to pay respects to her aunt.

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(COAS) General Qamar Javed Bajwa three-day visit to Iran

Iran sees Pakistan’s security as its own: Iranian defence minister

Chief of Army Staff (COAS) General Qamar Javed Bajwa met Iranian Defence Minister Brigadier General Amir Hatami and visited Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC) headquarters where he interacted with their senior leadership during the visit.

The COAS highlighted that with improved special measures by the country on Pak-Afghan border, terrorists are likely to exploit Pak-Iran friendly border for which both countries need to put efforts to prevent its use by them.

Both sides agreed to prevent their soil from being used by any third party against any of the two countries. In this regard, stepsincluding establishment of hotline communication between the field commanders along Pak-Iran border, fencing by Iran on their side of the border, coordinated border patrolling, intelligence sharing and more frequent interactionswere agreed to.

The army chief also visited Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC) headquarters where he interacted with their senior leadership during the second day of his three-day visit to the neighbouring country.

Iran sees Pakistan’s security as its own and supports Pakistan’s defence and military achievements “within the framework of strengthening regional security and stability,” Amir Hatami said. He added, “Respect for territorial integrity, solidarity and national sovereignty of the regional countries is among the fixed principles of the Iranian foreign policies.”

The Iranian minister placed a lot of emphasis on furthering ties between Pakistan and Iran, stating that both countries share a common religion and culture. He expressed hope that cooperation between the two countries will lead to the establishment of peace in war-ravaged Afghanistan. Pakistan and Iran have decided to ensure that their soil will not be used by any ‘third party’ against any of the two neighbouring countries, the army’s media wing said.

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ISPR DG apprises Iranian media of Pak efforts, sacrifices in war on terror

Inter-Services Public Relations (ISPR) Director General Major General Asif Ghafoor apprised Iranian media about Pakistan’s efforts, achievements and sacrifices in the war against terror and towards regional peace. According to Iranian media, addressing a joint press conference with the Iranian Army Gen Staff Officer in Tehran, he said that Pakistan wishes peace in Afghanistan and supports all initiatives towards this end. He added, “We have done everything on the Pakistani side of the border. There are no terrorist sanctuaries inside Pakistan.”

He said ISIS is growing in Afghanistan as a threat to the region. He added that a regional approach is required to defeat the threat.  He also thanked Iranian supreme leader for his supportive statement on Kashmir, adding Kashmir is a long pending dispute between Pakistan and India. He added that regional peace and security remains at stake till its settlement according to the aspirations of Kashmiri people in line with the UN resolutions.

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Bin Laden had no help from state elements in Pakistan: CIA files

CIA releases massive new tranche of materials seized in 2011 bin Laden raid

The CIA has found nothing in a treasure trove of documents siezed during the 2011 Abbottabad raid that could suggest Osama bin Laden had support from the security establishment to hide in Pakistan. The al Qaeda chief was killed in a secret raid by US special forces at a compound near Pakistani military Academy in Abbottabad in May 2011. The raid, which strained relations between Islamabad and Washington, triggered intense speculation that America’s most wanted terrorist had support from elements in the Pakistani security establishment.  The CIA released some of the documents recovered from the Bin Laden compound, revealing a lot of new information about the shadowy terrorist group.

Pakistan’s role in the war on terror, and the help American forces have received in the capture of some senior al Qaeda operatives down the years, has swayed US administrations in the past. But there have also been concerns that there is a state sponsored militant support group which helps terrorists like Bin Laden take safe shelter in the country.

US, under the Donald Trump administration has increased pressure on Pakistan to ‘do more’ against terrorists and has repeatedly asked the government to not provide safe havens to terror groups. A claim that Islamabad has vehemently denied.

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Pakistan was not aware of Osama bin Laden’s presence in Abbotabad: Obama

NEW DELHI   (December 1, 2017)  |  Former United States President Barack Obama dismissed the conjecture that Islamabad was aware of the presence of al Qaeda chief Osama bin Laden in Pakistan. Obama made the statement during a question and answer session following his address at the 15th Hindustan Times Leadership Summit at Hyatt Regency in New Delhi. “We had no evidence that Pakistani government was aware of Osama bin Laden’s presence in Abbottabad,” he confirmed. “We obviously looked at it.”  Barack Obama said Pakistan has comparatively remained a better partner of the United States. Obama said Islamabad “has been a partner in many ways”.

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PM Abbasi inaugurates LNG terminal in Karachi

20 Nov, 2017| KARACHI  Prime Minister Shahid Khaqan Abbasi on Monday inaugurated Liquefied Natural Gas (LNG) import terminal at Port Qasim in Karachi. The cost has been estimated at Rs50 billion. Addressing the media, the prime minister said that Pakistan was suffering from severe shortage of power when the Pakistan Muslim League-Nawaz (PML-N) came into power. He added that the government took serious steps to control the shortage and started importing gas as it was the only solution to mitigate energy issue. Cabinet members, Governor Sindh Mohammad Zubair and other officials were present on the occasion on the occasion. The LNG terminal, a project of Pakistan Gas Company Limited, has been completed in a short period. It will facilitate in supplying LNG to the industries.

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PM Abbasi inaugurates coal power plant in Port Qasim

The power plant is the first to be completed under CPEC

(27 Dec, 2017) The premier, while addressing the inaugural ceremony, said the foundation for the power plant in Port Qasim was laid in 2015 and it was the first to be completed under CPEC.

He also noted that the coal power plant project was favourable for the environment. According to officials, the first unit of the power plant would provide 660 megawatts of electricity to the national grid.

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CPEC TO GIVE NEW DIMENSION TO BILATERAL RELATIONS BETWEEN BEIJING, ISLAMABAD: PRESIDENT Mamnoon

7 Nov, 2017 | President Mamnoon Hussain has expressed the confidence that Bank of China operations in Pakistan will help accelerate infrastructure development and overall economic growth of the country. He was speaking at the official opening ceremony of Bank of China Pakistan Operations in Islamabad. The President said Pakistan is an attractive investment destination because of its ideal location and business friendly policies of the government. He assured every possible cooperation to Bank of China from the government and the State Bank of Pakistan. The President expressed the confidence that fruits of China-Pakistan Economic Corridor would soon start reaching people of the two countries. He said the corridor would give a new dimension to political and economic relations of the two countries.

Mamnoon Hussain expressed the pleasure that China has emerged as a major investor and strategic partner of Pakistan in its zest for economic development and prosperity.

On the occasion, Acting Ambassador of China to Pakistan Zhao Lijian said that both Pakistan and China have made remarkable achievements in the economic field. He said that the opening of Bank of China marks the confidence of Chinese financial institutions in the economic development of Pakistan. Chairman of Bank of China Siqing Chen said Karachi branch of the bank is the first in South Asia which reflects the importance China gives to Pakistan.

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Pakistani diplomatic staffer shot dead in Afghanistan’s Jalalabad

ISLAMABAD/KABUL: (6 Nov, 2017) A Pakistani diplomatic staffer was shot dead by unidentified assailants in the eastern Afghan city of Jalalabad(Foreign Office). Unknown assailants shot Rana Nayyar outside his residence in Jalalabad, Afghanistan. The FO condemned the killing of the staffer in the eastern city of the war-ravaged country and demanded increased security from Afghan authorities for its diplomatics staff and missions in the country. The unidentified assailants were riding motorbikes, diplomatic sources say. “When he went to the hospital he was pronounced dead,” said Pakistan’s ambassador to Afghanistan Zahid Nasrullah Khan.

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AIG Hamid Shakeel among three martyred in Quetta suicide blast

(Nov 9-2017)   QUETTA: Terrorists once again struck Balochistan capital Quetta with a suicide attack martyring three officers including Additional Inspector General (AIG) Hamid Shakeel Durrani on Thursday 9 Nov, 2017.  As per reports, the blast targetted AIG Hamid Shakil’s vehicle when he was leaving his house in Quetta’s Chaman Housing Scheme on airport road. Assistant Sub-Inspector (ASI) Ramzan and driver Jalil Ahmed also lost their lives while eight others including civilians sustained severe injuries in the explosion. Prime Minister Shahid Khaqan Abbasi, Chief of Army Staff (COAS) General Qamar Javed Bajwa also condemned the suicide blast and acknowledged the contributions of the police and other law enforcement agencies (LEAs) for peace in the country stating that their sacrifices shall not go waste.

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SP, three family members gunned down in Quetta

QUETTA: Investigation Police Superintendent of Police (SP) Muhammad Ilyas and three members of his family were martyred, while a minor girl was injured, when unidentified miscreants attacked his vehicle in the provincial capital. Police said that armed men ambushed the vehicle of the police official while it was passing through Nawan Kaley area of Quetta. Acting SP Investigation Mohammad Ilyas, his son Ali, daughter in-law and a grandson were martyred in the armed attack, while a two-and-a-half-year-old girl sustained bullet wounds.The attackers fled the scene after committing the quadruplet murder.

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AIG Ashraf Nur, guard killed in Peshawar suicide blast

PESHAWAR – According to details, the Additional Inspector General  was travelling to work when the explosion targeted his vehicle as a result of which it caught fire killing Asharf Nur and his guard. Five other people including three policemen were injured in the incident and were shifted to Hayatabad medical complex. Capital City Police Officer (CCPO) Tahir Khan said that the attack was pre-planned. He told that the suicide bomber was riding a motorcycle and detonated his explosives after approaching the IG’s vehicle.

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Suicide Bomber Hits Pakistan Security Convoy in Quetta , Kills 5 injured 20

( 25-11-2017) QUETTA,   (Frontier Corps)  officer Abdur Razzaq Cheema said the suicide attack took place near a bus terminal in the city’s outskirts. The target was the vehicle of an army colonel but the officer was not in the vehicle at the time of attack, he said. Explosive experts concluded that some 10 kilograms of explosives with steel balls were used in the suicide vest, Cheema said.

Pakistan’s Taliban group claimed responsibility for the suicide attack. Baluchistan is at the center of an economic corridor being built in Pakistan with billions of Chinese dollars.

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Nine martyred , 38 injured as terrorists attack Peshawar’s Agriculture Directorate of Agriculture institute

PESHAWAR (Dec 1st , 2017)  In a joint operation, security forces killed all the terrorists, who opened firing at the Agriculture Directorate located in front of Peshawar University. According to Inter-Services Public Relations (ISPR), five burqa-clad terrorists stormed the building and resorted to intermittent firing. The gunmen arrived at the campus in an auto-rickshaw, disguised in the burqas worn by many women in the region, Peshawar police chief Tahir Khan said.

A wounded student, Ahteshan ul-Haq, told Reuters the university hostel usually houses nearly 400 students, but most had gone home for a long holiday weekend and only about 120 students remained.

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15 bullet-riddled bodies found in Balochistan’s Turbat

QUETTA: (15 Nov, 2017) According to details, the paramilitary Levies found the bodies in the Gorak area of Buleda tehsil’ Kech District. “All the victims received multiple bullets from a close range,” said an official, adding that the victims appeared to belong to various districts of Punjab. The victims were labourers or illegal immigrants trying to enter Iran on their way to Europe, the official said. A large number of people from Punjab and other parts of Pakistan attempt to sneak into Iran illegally on their way to Greece and other European countries in search of a better future. Kech district is considered to be one of the sensitive districts in the province.

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Pak forces killed  terrorist involved in 15 massacre of laborers in Turbat

AWALPINDI: 17-11-2017: According to ISPR, the media wing of the military, Younis Taukali was killed in an operation carried out by Frontier Crops in Alandur, Abdul Rehman village of Turbat on the basis of intelligence information. The ISPR said Taukali, one of the main leaders of the banned Balochistan Liberation Front (BLF), was killed during a shootout. Authorities on Wednesday 15 Nov, found 15 bullet-ridden bodies of kidnap victims in Balochstan near the border with Iran. The bodies were found abandoned in a mountainous region of Buleda, in Baluchistan province, 600 km (370 miles) south of the provincial capital of Quetta.

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Five more bullet-riddled bodies of Punjabis found in Balochistan’s Turbat

NOV 18, 2017 : QUETTA:  Another five bullet-riddled bodies were found in the Tajban area of Turbat tehsil in Kech district on Saturday just two days after 15 bodies were found in the Grock mountainous area in the same district’s Buleda tehsil. According to Commissioner of Makran division Bashir Ahmed Bangulzai, documents and identity cards found with the bodies have confirmed that the victims hailed from different villages of Punjab’s Gujrat district. He said the five victims might have been kidnapped on Nov 15 with the other 15 people whose bodies were found the same day. The kidnappers might have kept these five people in captivity and killed them.

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24 killed, 66 injured in bus crash near Chakwal

(November 9, 2017) CHAKWAL: According to news, the accident took place was caused by brake failure. The passenger bus was going from Raiwind to Kohat with more than 90 people on board. Most of the passengers were members of Tableeghi Jamaat and were returning home after attending their annual congregation there.

Khairpur road accident leaves 20 dead, seven injured

(20 Nov, 2017) According to police officials, a truck laden with coal en route from Ranipur to Sukkur attempted to overtake a passenger van on the Shah Hussain bypass.  ASP Rai Mazhar Iqbal told that the heavily loaded truck lost control while overtaking and fell on the van, which was on its way to Punjab from Karachi.

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Advantage Pakistan, Worries Indian Army

India cancels $500 million deal for Israeli missiles

By:  Vishnu Som | November 20, 2017 

The Indian military, which currently uses an inferior anti-tank missile that does not work well at night, reportedly expressed concerns that the decision to scrap the Spike deal would negatively affect its preparedness, and that there was “operational urgency” for the Israeli missile. India has exited advanced negotiations to buy 1,600 Spike anti-tank guided missiles because it wants a similar missile, which would boost the army’s firepower, to be developed and built at home as part of Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s push to reduce the country’s dependence on importing arms. Spike is a man-portable “fire and forget’ missile that can hit moving targets such as a tank. It is versatile since the missile independently tracks the target upon being fired.  This allows the infantry soldier who has fired the missile to quickly move for cover. Spike is produced by Israel’s Rafael Advanced Defence Systems. “The Spike missile, which is in use in 26 countries, was chosen by India after a lengthy process, in which the system was inspected and successfully performed in a wide variety of scenarios,” Rafael said in a statement.

Pakistan has portable anti-tank missiles for its infantry soldiers which can strike Indian tanks and bunkers that are at a distance of 3-4 km; India’s equivalent missiles have a range of just 2 km. Pakistani foot soldiers operate a locally-made variant of the Chinese HJ-8 missile that can strike targets almost twice as far away as the missiles currently operated by the Indian Army. Pakistan’s infantry also operates the US-built TOW missile which can strike targets such as tanks and bunkers even further away.

The Chinese HJ-8, which Pakistan calls the “Baktar-Shikan”, is designed to defeat the latest generation of explosive reactive armour mounted on the T-90, the spearhead of the Indian Army’s tank formations. These missiles are meant to strike deep inside Pakistani territory in the event of a war. The Baktar-Shikan has a range of between 3 and 4 kilometres. Pakistani’s TOW missiles, once the mainstay for US forces, can hit targets 4 kilometres away and has been extensively proven in combat.

By contrast, the Indian Army’s infantry soldiers carry either the French-German Milan 2T or the Russian 9M113 ‘Konkurs’ missile, both of which have a range of just 2 kilometres.  ‘Courtesy Indian news’

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Love for Pakistan at Guru Nanak celebrations

(Nov 04, 2017) NANKANA Sahib – Sikh pilgrims from various parts of the world, including India, Canada, UK and inside the country, especially Khyber Pakhtunkhwa, reached Nankana Sahib to take part in Baba Guru Nanak’s 549th birth anniversary celebrations at main Palki procession on Saturday 4 Nov, 2017. According to Sikh rituals, all the pilgrims wash their feet before entering Janam Asthan. Sikh girls from Peer Baba, Swat, were wearing religious attires for Guru Nanak’s birthday celebrations .

Jatha Singh Harri of village Mehal Khurdo, tehsil Mehal Kala of district Barnala, India, said Sikhs have built a mosque for 10 Muslim families in their village. He praised Pakistan ‘s arrangements for yatrees, stating they have won their hearts. “My family lives in Australia and Canada, but I have asked my children to love Pakistan as Baba Guru Nanak was born here,” Jatha Singh said.  On the occasion, Khalistan Referendum 2020 banners could be seen on all walls of Janam Asthan along with pictures of Bhindranwala Singh who was killed during 1984 the Operation Blue Star carried out at Golden Temple in Amritsar by the Indian army.

Group leader Sardar Gurmeet Singh said the Sikh pilgrims always bring message of peace, friendship and harmony to Pakistan and receive very friendly response from the people here. “Pakistan is the land of Sikh Gurus, so Sikhs love this land promote Sikh-Muslim friendship,” he said.  All the three committees of Sikhs, Pakistan Sikh Gurdwara Parbandhak Committee (PSGPC), Gurdwara Parbandhak Committee Delhi and Shiromani Gurdwara Prabandhak Committee (SGPC) of India, have sent their delegates for Baba Guru Nanak birth anniversary celebrations

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