pakistán Pakistan announces first flight to repatriate stranded students from Wuhan By feedproxy.google.com Published On :: Sat, 09 May 2020 06:00:00 +0500 ISLAMABAD: Special Assistant to the Prime Minister for Overseas Pakistanis Zulfi Bukhari announced Friday that Pakistan would sent its first flight on May 18, 2020 to repatriate students from Wuhan,... [[ This is a content summary only. Visit my website for full links, other content, and more! ]] Full Article
pakistán Pakistan to make own ventilators in two months: Asad By feedproxy.google.com Published On :: Sat, 09 May 2020 06:00:00 +0500 ISLAMABAD: Federal Minister for Planning, Development, Reforms, and Special Initiatives Asad Umer Friday said Pakistan would be manufacturing its own ventilators in next two months.Talking in a... [[ This is a content summary only. Visit my website for full links, other content, and more! ]] Full Article
pakistán Pakistan to record 5m births in nine months since Covid-19 declared as pandemic By feedproxy.google.com Published On :: Sat, 09 May 2020 06:00:00 +0500 NEW DELHI: Pakistan is projected to record five million births in the nine months since the COVID-19 was declared pandemic in March and these births expected to take place between March and December,... [[ This is a content summary only. Visit my website for full links, other content, and more! ]] Full Article
pakistán Pakistanis, other ethnics more at risk from COVID-19 in UK By feedproxy.google.com Published On :: Sat, 09 May 2020 06:00:00 +0500 LONDON: Black people and men of Bangladeshi and Pakistani origin are nearly twice as likely to die from the COVID-19 disease than whites, even when adjusting data for deprivation, a new British... [[ This is a content summary only. Visit my website for full links, other content, and more! ]] Full Article
pakistán China continues supporting Pakistan to fight epidemic By feedproxy.google.com Published On :: Sat, 09 May 2020 06:00:00 +0500 ISLAMABAD: All sections of Chinese society are generously supporting Pakistan, donating medical supplies and funds, sharing experience of anti-epidemic and dispatching medical experts to overcome COVID-19 virous.According to Gwadar Pro, in recent fortnight, Chinese government and the people,... Full Article
pakistán Pakistanis crowd markets as virus lockdown eased By www.dailystar.com.lb Published On :: 2020-05-09T18:28:00.0000000 Pakistanis crowded markets Saturday after a nationwide coronavirus lockdown was eased, despite the country declaring its second highest daily infection toll. Full Article World
pakistán Pakistan sincerely supports Afghan peace process: Gen Bajwa By feedproxy.google.com Published On :: Sat, 09 May 2020 06:00:00 +0500 RAWALPINDI: US Special Representative for Afghan Reconciliation Zalmay Khalilzad Friday called on Chief of Army Staff General Qamar Javed Bajwa here on Friday. During the meeting, issues of mutual interest and overall regional security situation, including Afghan reconciliation process, came... Full Article
pakistán Impact of Covid-19 pandemic: Pakistan's GDP to contract by 1.6pc in current fiscal, says Economist Intelligence Unit By feedproxy.google.com Published On :: Sat, 09 May 2020 06:00:00 +0500 ISLAMABAD: Keeping in view the impact of COVID-19 pandemic, Pakistan’s GDP is going to contract by 1.6 percent in the ongoing fiscal 2019-20 and will grow to 2.9 percent in the next financial year 2020-21 and the loans from IMF and other multilateral and bilateral donors will help to ease... Full Article
pakistán Corona cases surge ahead of lockdown ease: Pakistan slips two points in two days By feedproxy.google.com Published On :: Sat, 09 May 2020 06:00:00 +0500 ISLAMABAD/LAHORE: Pakistan’s position in the global ranking in respect of COVID-19 dropped from 24th to 22nd on Friday after the number of positive cases increased to 26,806 with addition of 1,791 new cases.The country ranked 20th and 29th in the global ranking on May 6 after reporting 1,000... Full Article
pakistán Pakistan sincerely supports Afghan peace process: Gen Bajwa By feedproxy.google.com Published On :: Sat, 09 May 2020 06:00:00 +0500 RAWALPINDI: US Special Representative for Afghan Reconciliation Zalmay Khalilzad Friday called on Chief of Army Staff General Qamar Javed Bajwa here on Friday.During the meeting, issues of mutual interest and overall regional security situation, including Afghan reconciliation process, came under... Full Article
pakistán Impact of COVID-19 pandemic: Pakistan's GDP to contract by 1.6pc in current fiscal, says Economist Intelligence Unit By feedproxy.google.com Published On :: Sat, 09 May 2020 06:00:00 +0500 ISLAMABAD: Keeping in view the impact of COVID-19 pandemic, Pakistan’s GDP is going to contract by 1.6 percent in the ongoing fiscal 2019-20 and will grow to 2.9 percent in the next financial year 2020-21 and the loans from IMF and other multilateral and bilateral donors will help to ease... Full Article
pakistán Corona cases surge ahead of lockdown ease: Pakistan slips two points in two days By feedproxy.google.com Published On :: Sat, 09 May 2020 06:00:00 +0500 Ag APPISLAMABAD: Pakistan’s position in the global ranking in respect of COVID-19 dropped from 24th to 22nd on Friday after the number of positive cases increased to 26,806 with addition of 1,791 new cases.The country ranked 20th and 29th in the global ranking on May 6 after reporting 1,000... Full Article
pakistán Pakistan to make own ventilators in two months: Asad Umer By feedproxy.google.com Published On :: Sat, 09 May 2020 06:00:00 +0500 ISLAMABAD: Federal Minister for Planning, Development, Reforms, and Special Initiatives Asad Umer Friday said Pakistan would be manufacturing its own ventilators in next two months. Talking in a private news channel programme, he said Pakistan had taken all possible measures to fight against the... Full Article
pakistán Pakistan sincerely supports Afghan peace process: General Qamar Javed Bajwa By feedproxy.google.com Published On :: Sat, 09 May 2020 06:00:00 +0500 RAWALPINDI: US Special Representative for Afghan Reconciliation Zalmay Khalilzad Friday called on Chief of Army Staff General Qamar Javed Bajwa here on Friday.During the meeting, issues of mutual interest and overall regional security situation, including Afghan reconciliation process, came under... Full Article
pakistán Over 240 stranded Pakistanis fly home from Qatar By feedproxy.google.com Published On :: Sat, 09 May 2020 06:00:00 +0500 PESHAWAR: Over 240 Pakistanis stranded in Qatar landed at the Bacha Khan International Airport here on Friday.Upon landing at the Peshawar airport, Qatar Airways flight was disinfected and the passengers went through a screening process and later shifted to a quarantine facility.Earlier, at least... Full Article
pakistán Pakistan sees sharp spike in virus cases as curbs ease today By feedproxy.google.com Published On :: Sat, 09 May 2020 06:00:00 +0500 By News DeskISLAMABAD: Senate Chairman Sadiq Sanjrani has summoned a session of the Upper House on Tuesday, as the country witnessed its sharpest spike in confirmed coronavirus cases in a 24 hour period with nearly over 1,900 new cases and 35 more deaths.According to a press release issued by the... Full Article
pakistán Corona cases surge ahead of lockdown ease: Pakistan slips two points in two days By feedproxy.google.com Published On :: Sat, 09 May 2020 06:00:00 +0500 The NCC, under Imran Khan, had decided to substantially ease the lockdown from Saturday (today) after detailed deliberations and consultations with the provinces Full Article
pakistán Pakistan among countries with most corona cases in Asia Pacific By feedproxy.google.com Published On :: Sat, 09 May 2020 06:00:00 +0500 Islamabad : Iran, China, India, Pakistan, Indonesia and the Philippines have the most cases of COVID-19 and related deaths in the Asia Pacific region.The COVID-19 situation of Asia Pacific was highlighted in the Second COVID-19 Situation Report Asia Pacific released by United Nations Population... Full Article
pakistán Provinces announce easing lockdown even as Pakistan witnesses record rise in coronavirus cases By feedproxy.google.com Published On :: Fri, 08 May 2020 20:30:19 +0500 The governments of Punjab, Sindh, Khyber Pakhtunkhwa and Balochistan on Friday announced the partial easing of lockdown measures imposed to curb the spread of the coronavirus, even as the number of infections in the country registered a record daily increase. On Thursday, Prime Minister Imran Khan had announced the lifting of the countrywide lockdown in phases from Saturday by reopening all construction-related industries and shopping centres for five days a week from Fajr (early morning) till 5pm and outpatient departments (OPDs) in hospitals. The premier, who had announced the decision after a meeting of the National Coordination Committee (NCC) attended by the chief ministers of the four provinces, had acknowledged that the lockdown was being eased "at a time when our curve is going up" but maintained that "it is not edging up as we were expecting.” The trend continued on Friday, with the country recording 1,807 cases of Covid-19 from the three provinces of Punjab, Sindh and KP alone, and the national tally nearing 27,000. It is the highest daily increase in the number of infections since Pakistan confirmed its first case on February 26. Also read: Pakistan's Covid-19 death toll doubles in last 10 days Khyber Pakhtunkhwa A notification issued by the KP relief department said businesses associated with the construction industry will be exempt from closure subject to them following the standard operating procedures (SOPs) already issued for industrial units and sale points. Businesses of steel and PVC pipes, electric appliances, manufacturers of steel and aluminium equipment, ceramic and paint industries, sanitary, paints, steel and aluminium works, and hardware stores will be allowed to open four days a week, not later than 4:00pm. They will remain closed on Fridays, Saturdays and Sundays. KP relief department notification. All factories which are not included in the negative lists of factories will also be allowed to resume operations. According to the notification, all shops will be allowed to remain open for four days a week and not later than 4:00pm, subject to their implementation of the government's SOPs. Meanwhile, Adviser to the Khyber Pakhtunkhwa chief minister on information, Ajmal Wazir, told a press conference in Peshawar that educational institutions in the province will reopen as per the federal government's instructions and the province will not take an independent decision in this regard. He added that discussions were being held on inter-district and intra-district transport with transporters and the decision will be shared with the public whenever it is taken. Punjab Punjab Information Minister Fayyazul Hassan Chohan said that the provincial government will submit a recommendation to the Centre for not lifting the lockdown in the province's major cities. Speaking to reporters in Lahore, he said: "We have seen that there is a hype about coronavirus in some big cities. Therefore, we are submitting this recommendation to the federal government and if it is approved, then the lockdown and standard operating procedures will remain in big cities like Lahore, Rawalpindi, Multan and Gujranwala." Examine: The lockdown dilemma He added that higher secondary board examinations in Punjab will be cancelled and students will be promoted based on last year's grades. Schools will reopen on July 15. As per the federal government's decision, OPDs in the province will open from May 9, Chohan said. He added that the SOPs for congregational and Taraweeh prayers in mosques as announced by President Arif Alvi will remain in place. The first session of the Punjab Assembly since the pandemic began was also to be held today. Sindh Sindh Chief Minister Murad Ali Shah told a press conference in Karachi that under "phase two" of the easing of the restrictions, businesses linked to construction industries will be allowed to open while observing the preventive guidelines. Selective OPDs will also be allowed to resume services. Industries will no longer be required to submit an application to resume operations; however, they will have to submit an undertaking and forward the details of their employees to the government. Shops will be allowed to open after sehri (dawn) and will be required to close at 5pm. They will remain closed on Saturdays and Sundays which will be "safe days with 100 per cent lockdown", the chief minister said. The businesses permitted to resume from Monday include shops in rural areas and neighbourhood shops situated in residential localities, excluding large market places. Shah said marriage halls, shopping malls, hotels and restaurants in the province will remain closed and there will be no congregations or sports events either. "These guidelines will remain applicable until May 31. This is what the federal government has outlined and we are ready to comply with these directives," he said. The chief minister appealed to citizens to stay at home as much as possible. "If you are allowed to leave your homes, according to the directives issued by the government, then make sure to follow standard operating procedures. Wear a mask," he said. Referring to the increase in Covid-19 infections, he added: "I am seeing the rise in cases, but for national integrity and uniform policy we are going along." In a statement released by the CM House later in the day, Shah denied media reports stating that the lockdown will end on Monday, saying: "We are entering the second phase of the lockdown with some extra restrictions, particularly at hotspots." He maintained that air, train and public transport will continue to remain suspended. Balochistan In Balochistan, a meeting chaired by Chief Minister Jam Kamal Khan approved the move to turn the lockdown imposed in the province into a 'smart lockdown', under which restrictions are enforced in virus hotspots only, according to Balochistan government spokesperson Liaquat Shahwani. He announced that markets will be allowed to open from 3am till 5 in the evening. Shopkeepers and traders will be bound to implement SOPs for precautionary measures while legal action will be taken against the violators, Shahwani said in a tweet. Full Article Pakistan
pakistán Pakistan backs Afghan talks, Bajwa tells US special envoy By feedproxy.google.com Published On :: Sat, 09 May 2020 04:38:30 +0500 ISLAMABAD: Chief of the Army Staff Gen Qamar Javed Bajwa has said Pakistan’s support for the Afghan reconciliation process is a proof of its sincerity for peace in Afghanistan. Talking to US Special Envoy for Afghan Reconciliation Dr Zalmay Khalilzad on Friday, the army chief said: “Our support towards peace process is a manifestation of our goodwill towards the cause.” Dr Khalilzad was visiting Pakistan after a meeting with Taliban leaders in Doha and a stopover in Delhi, where he met Indian External Affairs Minister Subrahmanyam Jaishankar and National Security Adviser Ajit Doval. The Indian leaders, according to reports in Indian media, blamed a recent spike in violence in Afghanistan to alleged “sanctuaries” on Pakistani soil and emphasised their elimination. The Indian allegations have come in the backdrop of renewed terror accusations against Pakistan in India-held Kashmir. Pakistan has strongly rejected all Indian allegations and has asked the United Nations to seek proofs from India about the alleged “launch pads” and “infiltration bids” at the Line of Control. Khalilzad scheduled to return to Doha for resumption of negotiations with Taliban Dr Khalilzad, according to Inter-Services Public Relations (ISPR), praised continuing Pakistani efforts for peace and stability in the region. India, despite the special envoy’s recent visits to Delhi, is uneasy because its viewpoint on Afghanistan is getting little weightage in Washington. Pakistan had facilitated long-drawn US-Taliban talks, which culminated with the signing of a landmark peace deal in Doha in February between the two adversaries that have been at war for 19 years. Under the deal, the Afghan Taliban gave counterterrorism assurances and agreed to engage in dialogue with the Afghan government for ending war. The peace agreement was expected to pave the way for the withdrawal of US troops from Afghanistan. However, the progress towards start of intra-Afghan peace talks have been sluggish because of trust deficit between the Afghan factions and slow release of prisoners by both sides. Intra-Afghan talks were, according to the original plan, to commence on March 10 after release of 5,000 Taliban prisoners by Kabul, while the militant group was to set free 1,000 government personnel. So far the Afghan government has released 933 of the 5,000 Taliban prisoners, while the Taliban have freed 155 captives. In recent weeks, the Taliban finally intensified attacks against government forces. On Thursday, Khost police chief Ahmad Babazai was killed in a landmine attack. Dr Khalilzad said he had in his “lengthy” overnight meeting with the head of Taliban political office in Doha emphasised “reduction in violence, humanitarian ceasefire as demanded by the international community to allow for better cooperation on managing Covid-19 pandemic in Afghanistan, acceleration of prisoner releases by both sides, actions necessary to secure the freedom of US citizen Mark Frerichs, regional and international support for the peace process, and movement to intra-Afghan negotiations ASAP”. The special envoy will travel back to Doha from Islamabad for continuing his discussions with Taliban leaders. Published in Dawn, May 9th, 2020 Full Article Newspaper
pakistán Five million babies expected to be born in Pakistan in 9 months since Covid-19 outbreak: Unicef By feedproxy.google.com Published On :: Fri, 08 May 2020 21:05:41 +0500 An estimated 29 million babies will be born in South Asia in the nine months after the Covid-19 outbreak was classified as a pandemic by the World Health Organisation (WHO), while five million births will be reported in Pakistan, according to a report released by the United Nations Children's Fund (Unicef). The report — released on May 6 — has predicted that an estimated 116 million babies will be born across the world in the 40-week period between March 11 and December 16, with almost a quarter of them in South Asia. India is expected to report 20 million births, the highest in the region, during this period, the report said, followed by Pakistan, Bangladesh (2.4 million) and Afghanistan (one million). The report also warned that lockdown measures imposed to curb the spread of the coronavirus may cause disruptions in life-saving health services "putting millions of pregnant mothers and their babies at great risk". "The continuing rapid spread of Covid-19 across South Asia means new mothers and newborns will be greeted by harsh realities, including global containment measures such as lockdowns and curfews, health centres overwhelmed with response efforts, supply and equipment shortages, and a lack of sufficient skilled birth attendants as health workers [...] are redeployed to treat Covid-19 patients. "Unicef cautions that although evidence suggests that pregnant mothers are not more affected by Covid-19 than others, countries need to ensure they still have access to antenatal, delivery and post-natal services. "Likewise, sick newborns need emergency services as they are at high risk of death. New families require care to ensure the health and well-being of mothers, support to start breastfeeding, and to get medicines, vaccines and nutrition to keep their babies healthy," the report said. The UN body urged governments and healthcare providers to take a few steps to save lives in the coming months by: Helping women receive regular checkups during their pregnancy, skilled delivery care and post-delivery care Ensuring health workers are provided with the necessary personal protective equipment and priority testing and vaccination for Covid-19 when it becomes available Ensuring that all infection prevention and control measures are being followed at health facilities Allowing healthcare workers to reach pregnant women through home visits, encouraging women living in rural areas to visit maternal waiting homes, and using mobile health strategies for tele-consultations Training, protecting and equipping health workers with kits to attend to home births Allocating resources to lifesaving services and supplies for maternal and child health The report also urged pregnant women to take precautionary measures by practicing social distancing, avoiding physical gatherings and using online health services. Read: Mothers may pass coronavirus to unborn children, say Chinese doctors It also advised them to continue breastfeeding their children even if they are infected as "the virus has not been found in samples of breast milk". "Mothers with Covid-19 should wear a mask when feeding their baby, wash hands before and after touching the baby, and routinely clean and disinfect surfaces," it cautioned. Full Article Pakistan
pakistán Pakistani students stranded in Wuhan to begin flying back from May 18 By feedproxy.google.com Published On :: Sat, 09 May 2020 13:40:36 +0500 The government of Pakistan has decided to bring back via special flights its students stuck in Wuhan, China, ground zero of the novel coronavirus. Special Assistant to Prime Minister on Overseas Pakistanis Zulfiqar Bukhari tweeted the development on Friday night, referring to those stranded there as "the bravest soldiers". Pakistan International Airline (PIA) has been tasked to bring the first batch of Pakistanis – mostly students – beginning May 18, when around 250 individuals are expected to return. Pakistanis who had been studying in Wuhan and other cities in the Chinese province of Hubei – first region in the world to be put under a strict lockdown on Jan 20 after being declared a virus epicenter – had appealed at the time to be evacuated. Multiple requests for evacuation were made not only by the stranded students but also by their families back home. However, the government said it would not repatriate them immediately and would follow guidelines and processes put in place by China in this regard. To allay the fears of the students and their families, the Foreign Office in February sent two of its officials from the Beijing embassy to Wuhan while the strict lockdown was still in place. The FO said the staffers were to remain in Wuhan till the lockdown ended and would meet students in different universities to get an update on their well-being and safety. In March, President Arif Alvi and Minister for Foreign Affairs Shah Mahmood Qureshi visited China and interacted with Pakistani citizens there via video link. Upon returning from the trip, both the foreign minister and President Alvi briefed the media and said that the students were in a good condition and had only requested that Pakistani food be provided to them. On March 28, China began lifting the lockdown in Wuhan. By April 8, the restrictions were completely lifted and some of the the students celebrated by cooking themselves a meal. Full Article Pakistan
pakistán ADB President, Pakistan Minister of Economic Affairs Discuss Scaling Up Support to Combat COVID-19 By feedproxy.google.com Published On :: 2020-04-24 00:00:00 ADB President Masatsugu Asakawa and Pakistan’s Federal Minister for Economic Affairs and ADB Governor Makhdoom Khusro Bukhtiar today discussed how ADB can scale up its support for the government’s response to the COVID-19... Full Article
pakistán Pakistan: Punjab Irrigated Agriculture Investment Program–Tranche 2 By feedproxy.google.com Published On :: 2019-12-27 00:00:00 In December 2006, the Asian Development Bank (ADB) approved a $900.0 million equivalent multitranche financing facility (MFF) for the Punjab Irrigated Agriculture Investment Program (PIAIP) to finance improvements to Punjab’s irrigation sector. At the same time, two loans for tranche 1 totaling $227.8 million equivalent were approved using the MFF for $217.8 million equivalent from ADB’s ordinary capital resources and $10.0 million equivalent from ADB’s Asian Development Fund (ADF). Full Article Evaluation Document
pakistán Pakistan: National Trade Corridor Highway Investment Program (Tranche 1) By feedproxy.google.com Published On :: 2019-12-27 00:00:00 The government requested financing from the Asian Development Bank (ADB) to support the National Highway Authority (NHA) in constructing new roads and improving existing ones along the backbone from Peshawar to Karachi, to Gwadar Port in Baluchistan, as well as connections between Pakistan and the People’s Republic of China. Following the completion of loan preparatory activities in May 2007 and loan negotiations in October 2007, the ADB Board in December 2007 approved a multitranche financing facility (MFF) for $900 million to support the NTCIP–Tranche 1. Full Article Evaluation Document
pakistán How ADB is Helping Pakistan Fight COVID-19 By feedproxy.google.com Published On :: 2020-04-22 00:00:00 Responding rapidly to the COVID-19 situation in Pakistan, ADB is providing much-needed medical supplies and equipment to medical facilities and health workers on the frontline. Full Article
pakistán Gilgit to Guwahati: Why Doordarshan’s new weather forecast will up temperatures in Pakistan By in.news.yahoo.com Published On :: Sat, 09 May 2020 01:46:51 -0500 New Delhi, May 08: From Gilgit to Guwahati, Doordarshan and All India Radio have started forecasting the weather from across the territory of India. These Weather reports cover every small detail from every nook and corner of the country while highlighting Full Article
pakistán Australia beat Pakistan to qualify for World Cup semis By feeds.reuters.com Published On :: Mon, 08 Mar 2010 21:06:47 +0530 Tournament favourites Australia advanced into the semi-finals of the men's hockey World Cup on Monday after they beat Pakistan 2-1 in a pulsating match to finish top of Pool B. Full Article worldOfSport
pakistán Pakistan army: Roadside bomb in remote area kills 6 troops By news.yahoo.com Published On :: Fri, 08 May 2020 13:04:26 -0400 Full Article
pakistán Pakistan's Nida Dar ready to make WBBL history with Sydney Thunder By www.abc.net.au Published On :: Fri, 18 Oct 2019 15:29:00 +1100 Nida Dar has overcome more than her fair share of challenges during her career and she is now looking to leave her mark on the WBBL as the first Pakistani cricketer to play in the tournament. Full Article ABC Radio Sydney sydney Sport:All:All Sport:Cricket:All Sport:Cricket:Twenty20 Australia:NSW:Homebush 2140
pakistán Australia's Twenty20 International against Pakistan at SCG abandoned because of rain By www.abc.net.au Published On :: Sun, 03 Nov 2019 18:50:00 +1100 Rain washes away Australia's Twenty20 series opener against Pakistan at the SCG, despite captain Aaron Finch's best efforts with the bat. Full Article ABC Radio Sydney sydney Sport:All:All Sport:Cricket:All Australia:All:All Australia:NSW:All Australia:NSW:Sydney 2000
pakistán Pakistani Taliban Leader Charged in Terrorism Conspiracy Resulting in Murder of Seven Americans in Afghanistan By www.justice.gov Published On :: Wed, 1 Sep 2010 12:36:59 EDT Hakimullah Mehsud, the self-proclaimed emir of the Pakistani Taliban, has been charged by criminal complaint for his alleged involvement in the murder of seven American citizens on Dec. 30, 2009, at a U.S. military base in Afghanistan. Full Article OPA Press Releases
pakistán Six Individuals Charged for Providing Material Support to the Pakistani Taliban By www.justice.gov Published On :: Sat, 14 May 2011 09:55:38 EDT Six individuals located in South Florida and Pakistan have been indicted in the Southern District of Florida on charges of providing financing and other material support to the Pakistani Taliban, a designated foreign terrorist organization. Full Article OPA Press Releases
pakistán Two Charged with Conspiring to Act as Unregistered Agents of Pakistani Government By www.justice.gov Published On :: Tue, 19 Jul 2011 12:15:05 EDT Two individuals have been charged with participating in a long-term conspiracy to act as agents of the Pakistani government in the United States without disclosing their affiliation with the Pakistani government as required by law. Full Article OPA Press Releases
pakistán Three Plead Guilty to Conspiracy to Provide Material Support to the Pakistani Taliban By www.justice.gov Published On :: Mon, 12 Sep 2011 16:25:28 EDT At a hearing today before U.S. District Judge John D. Bates in Washington, D.C., Irfan Ul Haq, 37; Qasim Ali, 32; and Zahid Yousaf, 43, each pleaded guilty to one count of conspiracy to provide material support to a designated foreign terrorist organization. Full Article OPA Press Releases
pakistán Virginia Man Pleads Guilty in Scheme to Conceal Pakistan Government Funding for His U.S. Lobbying Efforts By www.justice.gov Published On :: Wed, 7 Dec 2011 12:08:52 EST Syed Ghulam Nabi Fai, 62, a U.S. citizen and resident of Fairfax, Va., pleaded guilty today to conspiracy and tax violations in connection with a decades-long scheme to conceal the transfer of at least $3.5 million from the government of Pakistan to fund his lobbying efforts in America related to Kashmir. Full Article OPA Press Releases
pakistán Pakistani Citizen Sentenced to 50 Months in Prison for Conspiracy to Provide Material Support to the Pakistani Taliban By www.justice.gov Published On :: Thu, 5 Jan 2012 19:30:33 EST A Pakistani citizen was sentenced today in the District of Columbia to 50 months in prison for conspiracy to provide material support to the Tehrik-e Taliban Pakistan (TTP), often referred to as the Pakistani Taliban, a designated foreign terrorist organization. Full Article OPA Press Releases
pakistán Virginia Man Sentenced to 24 Months for Scheme to Conceal Pakistan Government Funding for His U.S. Lobbying Efforts By www.justice.gov Published On :: Fri, 30 Mar 2012 13:32:15 EDT Syed Ghulam Nabi Fai, 62, a U.S. citizen and resident of Fairfax, Va., was sentenced today to 24 months in prison, followed by three years of supervised release, for conspiracy and tax violations in connection with a decades-long scheme to conceal the transfer of at least $3.5 million from the government of Pakistan to fund his lobbying efforts in America related to Kashmir. Full Article OPA Press Releases
pakistán Pakistani Citizen Sentenced to 31 Months in Prison for Human Smuggling Conspiracy Charge By www.justice.gov Published On :: Tue, 10 Apr 2012 12:05:55 EDT Muhammad Abid Hussain, 27, was sentenced by U.S. District Judge John D. Bates. Full Article OPA Press Releases
pakistán Two Pakistani Nationals Indicted for Conspiring to Illegally Ship Pharmaceuticals into the US By www.justice.gov Published On :: Wed, 7 Nov 2012 15:13:51 EST Two Pakistani nationals have been indicted by a federal grand jury in the District of Columbia on charges alleging that they operated Internet sites that illegally shipped pharmaceuticals from Pakistan and the United Kingdom to customers in the United States. Full Article OPA Press Releases
pakistán Reno Man Charged with Conspiring to Provide Material Support to Terrorism Groups in India and Pakistan By www.justice.gov Published On :: Wed, 18 Dec 2013 18:27:52 EST A Reno, Nev. man has been charged with providing material support to terrorism groups in India and Pakistan in order to intimidate the Indian government and to harm persons that were not supporting their cause. Full Article OPA Press Releases
pakistán India and Pakistan's 'red zones' keep COVID-19 trajectory on rise By asia.nikkei.com Published On :: Full Article
pakistán Idea Exchange with Pakistan High Commissioner to India Salman Bashir: Send us your questions By archive.indianexpress.com Published On :: Mon, 06 Aug 2012 05:32:25 GMT Salman Bashir, Pakistan High Commissioner to India, will be our guest at Idea Exchange. Send us your questions. Full Article
pakistán On April 30, 2020, Vanda Felbab-Brown participated in an event with the Middle East Institute on the “Pandemic in Pakistan and Afghanistan: The Potential Social, Political and Economic Impact.” By webfeeds.brookings.edu Published On :: Fri, 01 May 2020 20:51:33 +0000 On April 30, 2020, Vanda Felbab-Brown participated in an event with the Middle East Institute on the "Pandemic in Pakistan and Afghanistan: The Potential Social, Political and Economic Impact." Full Article
pakistán Pakistan teeters on the edge of potential disaster with the coronavirus By webfeeds.brookings.edu Published On :: Fri, 27 Mar 2020 13:41:57 +0000 As of March 26, coronavirus cases in Pakistan — the world’s fifth most populous country — climbed to 1,190; nine people have died. Pakistan currently has the highest number of cases in South Asia, more even than its far larger neighbor, India. In this densely populated country of more than 210 million, with megacities Lahore… Full Article
pakistán How is Pakistan balancing religion and politics in its response to the coronavirus? By webfeeds.brookings.edu Published On :: Fri, 24 Apr 2020 21:26:05 +0000 As Ramadan begins, Pakistan has loosened social distancing restrictions on gatherings in mosques, allowing communal prayers to go forward during the holy month. David Rubenstein Fellow Madiha Afzal explains how Prime Minister Imran Khan's political compromise with the religious right and cash assistance programs for the poor help burnish his populist image, while leaving it… Full Article
pakistán On April 30, 2020, Vanda Felbab-Brown participated in an event with the Middle East Institute on the “Pandemic in Pakistan and Afghanistan: The Potential Social, Political and Economic Impact.” By webfeeds.brookings.edu Published On :: Fri, 01 May 2020 20:51:33 +0000 On April 30, 2020, Vanda Felbab-Brown participated in an event with the Middle East Institute on the "Pandemic in Pakistan and Afghanistan: The Potential Social, Political and Economic Impact." Full Article
pakistán Pakistan’s dangerous capitulation to the religious right on the coronavirus By webfeeds.brookings.edu Published On :: Mon, 04 May 2020 20:00:05 +0000 Perform your ablutions at home. Bring your own prayer mats, place them six feet apart. Wear masks. Use the provided hand sanitizer. No handshakes or hugs allowed. No talking in the mosque. No one over 50 years old can enter. No children allowed. These guidelines are part of a list of 20 standard operating procedures that Pakistan’s… Full Article
pakistán Blame Pakistani spy service for attack on Indian air force base By webfeeds.brookings.edu Published On :: Tue, 05 Jan 2016 12:00:00 -0500 The Pakistani intelligence service is behind the recent attack on a major Indian air force base in Punjab using a terrorist group it created 15 years ago, according to well-informed press and other knowledgeable sources. The attack is designed to prevent any detente between India and Pakistan after Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s surprise Christmas Day visit to Pakistan. The escalating violence between the two nuclear-weapons states, which have already fought four wars, threatens to get worse. The Pakistani intelligence service has the capability to launch more attacks with little notice, at some point prompting a vigorous Indian response. On Dec. 31, a team of terrorists infiltrated across the Pakistani border into India. On Saturday they assaulted the Pathankot air base, one of India’s largest air force installations near the border. At least seven Indian soldiers were killed in the fighting, which lasted for days. On Sunday, the Indian Consulate in Mazar-e Sharif in northern Afghanistan was also attacked by gunmen. Both attacks are the work of the Pakistani terror group Jaish e Muhammad, according to reliable press reports. JEM was created in 2000 by Mualana Masoud Azhar, a longtime Pakistani terrorist leader. Azhar was captured in India in 1994 after taking western hostages in Kashmir. In December 1999 a group of terrorists hijacked an Air India jet flying from Nepal to India and diverted it to Afghanistan. They demanded the release of Azhar and his colleagues in return for the passengers and crew. And they got it, thanks to help from the Pakistani intelligence service ISI and al Qaeda leader Osama bin Laden, according to accounts of the hijacking based on the Indian officials who negotiated with the terrorists for the hostages’ freedom. The Afghan Taliban assisted the hijackers once they got to Afghanistan. Once Azhar was traded for the hostages, the ISI took him on a public victory tour through Pakistan to raise money for the jihad against India, and he announced the formation of Jaish e Muhammad, or the Army of Muhammad, in early 2000. JEM received training and weapons from the ISI and worked closely with al Qaeda. In December 2001, JEM terrorists working with terrorists from another ISI-backed group, Lashkar e Tayyiba (LET), attacked the Indian parliament building in New Delhi. That attack prompted India to mobilize its military, and a tense standoff went on for nine months. Only intense mediation by President Bush’s national security team averted war. Azhar kept a low profile for several years after LET’s 2008 attack on Mumbai, but he reappeared publicly in 2014, giving fiery calls for more attacks on India and the United States. His group is technically illegal in Pakistan but enjoys the continuing patronage of the ISI. The ISI is under the generals’ command and is composed of army officers, so the spies are controlled by the Pakistani army, which justifies its large budget and nuclear weapons program by citing the Indian menace. Any diminution in tensions with India might risk the army’s lock on its control of Pakistan’s national security policy. The army continues to distinguish between “good” terrorists like JEM and LET and “bad” terrorists like the Pakistani Taliban, despite decades of lectures from American leaders. The army has long distrusted Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif, who has advocated a detente with India since the 1990s. An army coup in 1999 sent him into exile in Saudi Arabia for a decade. His warm embrace of Modi on Christmas Day in his home in Lahore undoubtedly angered the generals. Modi’s visit was the first by an Indian prime minister in more than a decade. It was also Sharif’s birthday and the birthday of Pakistan’s founder, Muhammad Jinnah. Modi’s decision to visit and the warm family greeting Sharif extended set the stage for a planned resumption of formal diplomatic negotiations between the two countries scheduled for later this month. So far New Delhi has not canceled the planned talks. Modi’s advisers are well aware of the double game the Pakistani army plays and the differences inside the Pakistani establishment. After four wars with Pakistan and a nuclear arms race, Indian experts understand the complexity of the dynamics inside Islamabad. The Indians have accepted Prime Minister Sharif’s public condemnation of the attack and promised to provide evidence of JEM’s role to his government, including cellphones captured in the attack. Washington put JEM on the terrorist sanctions list years ago—but it continues to coddle the Pakistani army. Gen. Raheel Sharif, the army’s boss (and no relation to the prime minister) got a warm embrace from the Pentagon last fall—despite the ISI’s support for the Afghan Taliban’s offensive against the Kabul government and despite the Pakistani military’s backing of terror groups like JEM. This piece was originally published by The Daily Beast. Authors Bruce Riedel Publication: The Daily Beast Image Source: © Mukesh Gupta / Reuters Full Article
pakistán "They are riding a tiger that they cannot control": Pakistan and the future of Afghanistan By webfeeds.brookings.edu Published On :: Wed, 27 Jan 2016 08:30:00 -0500 2016 is shaping up to be a potentially critical year for Afghanistan. ISIS is rising there, the Taliban is gaining ground, the stability of the Afghan government is deteriorating by the day, and national elections are coming in October. The US, China, Pakistan, and the Afghan government are currently holding talks aimed at bringing the Taliban to the table to try negotiate an end to the war. Of those countries, it's Pakistan that is the most significant. Pakistan has probably the most influence of anyone over whether those talks will succeed in getting the Taliban to agree to sit down and negotiate a peace agreement with the Afghan government. But there's a lot more going on with the peace talks that are perhaps the country's best or only remaining hope. To understand how this works and why it matters, I spoke to Vanda Felbab-Brown, a senior fellow in the Center for 21st Century Security and Intelligence at the Brookings Institution and an expert on Afghanistan. What follows is a transcript of our conversation, lightly edited for clarity and length. Jennifer Williams: Could you start by just explaining how Pakistan has been involved in the conflict between the Taliban and Afghanistan historically? Vanda Felbab-Brown: That goes back to the creation of independent Pakistan, with issues having to do with the Pashtun minority in Pakistan, which is also the majority population of Afghanistan, and irredentist claims by Afghan Pashtun politicians, as well as the Cold War rivalry between the Soviet Union and the United States, who at different times supported either Pakistan or Afghanistan and played the two against each other. Then you have the Taliban emerging in the 1990s, and Pakistan fully supports the Taliban: They help equip it, they provide intelligence, advisers, and during the Taliban era when they ruled country, Pakistan is one of only three countries that recognize the Taliban regime. They continued supporting the Taliban throughout the past decade, and US-Pakistan relations became very fraught and complicated. It's never been easy. Pakistanis sometimes use the expression that the United States treats Pakistan like a condom: uses it when they need it then discards it when they are finished with it. It's a fairly common saying in Pakistan, especially in the military. So there is a sense of betrayal on the part of the United States, untrustworthiness, that it's an exploitative relationship on the part of the US toward Pakistan. I should also say that Pakistan has long supported many Islamic extremist groups as part of its asymmetric policy toward India, and some of these groups have now mutated, or they slipped Pakistan's full control. Even with respect to the Afghan Taliban, there is a lot of support from the Pakistani state intelligence services and military to the Afghan Taliban. At the same time, Pakistan has been under enormous US and international pressure to act against them, and so they will take the occasional action against the Afghan Taliban as well. But those actions are mostly seen as halfhearted, incomplete window dressing. JW: So what role is Pakistan playing today? I know that they just had the four-party talks and that Pakistan has been insisting that these talks take place in Pakistan. Are they trying to speak for the Taliban? VFB: I'm not sure that it's a fair characterization that they are speaking for the Taliban. Certainly the Afghan government, including in the latest talks, often insinuates or alleges that Pakistan speaks for the Taliban. But they clearly do not. The relationship between the Taliban and Pakistan is hardly smooth and perfect. Many members of the Afghan Taliban deeply resent the level of Pakistani interference, even as the group has been supported by Pakistan. There is a lot of Afghan Pashtun nationalism also among the Taliban that deeply resents the influence and attempts at control by the Pakistani state. Part of the key issue in the relationship is that although Pakistan supports the Afghan Taliban, and although it has historically supported other extremist groups, it does not have perfect control. And arguably, its control is diminishing. And so they posture, they do their double game. They want to appear strong, and so they posture that they have much greater control than they have, but at the same time they deny that they have any nefarious role. In reality, they are playing both sides against the middle, and they often have much less capacity to control and rein in the extremist groups, including the Afghan Taliban, than many assume. The widespread criticism of Pakistan is one of its duplicity and its nefarious activity and its lack of willingness to act against the Afghan Taliban. Those are true, but they are also coupled with limits to their capacity. They are riding a tiger that they cannot control fully. So they have been hosting these four-way talks that involve them, the US government, the Afghan government, and the Chinese government. The Afghan government is desperate to achieve some sort of negotiated deal with the Taliban. It feels under tremendous pressure, the military is taking a pounding from the Taliban, and the government lacks legitimacy. The US has similar views on the notion that the way out of the predicament in Afghanistan is a negotiated deal. The Chinese also like the idea. They have their own influence in Pakistan. China would very much like to say that they finally achieved what the US failed to do over the past decade, that they will bring peace to Afghanistan, and that they will do it by enabling the negotiations. Pakistan is responsive to China. Their relationship with China is much stronger than their relationship with the United States. They often tell the US that China is their old friend, that China is the country that hasn't betrayed them, unlike the United States. China has promised massive economic development in Pakistan at $40 billion. The Pakistanis often say to the US that the Pakistan-China relationship is "greater than the Himalayas and deeper than the ocean." Very flowery. JW: What's the relationship like between the Afghan government and Pakistan today? VFB: The crucial man there really is the Pakistani chief of the army staff Raheel Sharif; no relation to [Prime Minister] Nawaz Sharif. I think that there is sort of goodwill and motivation right now, even on the army staff — but that is juxtaposed with, again, the limits of control even the chief has. With almost clockwork regularity you have a round of negotiations in Pakistan or you have a meeting between Raheel Sharif and [Afghan President Ashraf] Ghani, and the next day a bomb goes off in Kabul and people die, or the Indian consulate is attacked. All those ploys are meant to destroy any beginning of a more positive relationship and have been very effective in subverting the process. The same goes on between Pakistan and India. Meanwhile, Ghani is taking an enormously risky strategy with respect to the negotiations. It's vastly unpopular in Afghanistan, and many, many Afghans hate Pakistan and blame it for all of their troubles. They use Pakistan as the explanation of everything that ever goes wrong in Afghanistan. And the Pakistanis are responsible for a lot, but there's much, much blame and responsibility that lies on Afghan politicians and Afghan people. So Ghani's outreach and engagement with Pakistan is extremely unpopular. He's spending an extreme amount of political capital, and does not have support from his partner in the government, Abdullah Abdullah, and the northern Tajik factions that hate Pakistan with great vitriol. So the more Pakistan is unable to deliver things like the Haqqani network, reducing or stopping its attacks in Kabul, the more politically impossible for Ghani the process will be. JW: So what does that mean in terms of the stability of Afghanistan's unity government? VFB: The unity government is extremely strained. "Unity" it isn't. The Pakistani negotiation angle is just too big for the strain. It might be strategically important. It might be a very significant element in getting any negotiation going, but it's also extremely politically costly, and the longer it doesn't produce anything, the more politically costly and unsustainable it will be. In October, there are supposed to be parliamentary elections and district elections in Afghanistan, and, more important, this loya jirga [a national assembly of Afghan elders]. And unless there is some sort of major breakthrough by the summer, a lot of the negotiations and political process with both the Taliban and Pakistan will be put on ice, because it will just be politically impossible in the context of the loya jirga and the elections. So they really have until the summer to make some sort of breakthrough, and then you will have months of morass and extreme political instability in Afghanistan, but it will also not be conducive in any way to improving either the relationship with Pakistan or the negotiations. JW: How does Pakistan fit into the rise of ISIS in Afghanistan? What's the relationship there? And how might this affect the peace negotiations? VFB: The rise of ISIS-Khorasan is one of the most interesting developments. It complicates the negotiations for the Taliban. They oppose the negotiations, and they're a big problem for Mullah Mansour and those who want to negotiate. They enable defections, make them easy, and make them costly. At the same time, it is interesting because ISIS does not have the same linkages to Pakistan that the Afghan Taliban had, even though ISIS includes many defectors from the Taliban. They quite specifically reject what they call the "yoke" that Pakistan has put on the Afghan Taliban, and they call the Afghan Taliban leadership traitors because of the close relationship with Pakistan. Moreover, ISIS-Khorasan also has quite a few members of various Pakistani extremist groups like Lashkar-e Taiba and members of TTP [Tehrik-e Taliban Pakistan]. So there is also a lot of resentment and hostility toward Pakistan. I think the rise of ISIS might make Pakistan be cooperative to some extent, but on the other hand, I think it will also reinforce in the mind of many Pakistan security controllers that it's important to cultivate the Afghan Taliban as friends against the bigger danger of ISIS. JW: Now that ISIS-Khorasan has directly targeted Pakistan, the consulate in Jalalabad, do you think Pakistan will take action? VFB: I think they'll take action against ISIS and groups like Tehrik-e Taliban. I don't think it will produce more resolve to go after the Afghan Taliban. That's my view. Others are hoping that they will finally accept the realities and really believe that they have to fight all of the insurgents, all of the terrorists, and that they cannot differentiate among them. I am not persuaded that that will, in fact, happen. JW: So what does this all mean for the prospects for peace? Are you hopeful at all? VFB: I think the peace negotiations are important, but I am skeptical that anything will happen quickly. I think that if by summer the Taliban has been willing to join the negotiating table, that will be an important breakthrough, but nothing will be agreed. The summer will be very bloody, and then there will be the political [wrangling] associated with the loya jirga and the elections. In my view, even if the Taliban comes to the negotiating table, we are looking at years of negotiations, and certainly no breakthrough before 2017 and likely much longer. And so the question is whether we, the United States, are prepared to stand by with Afghanistan for that long and whether the Afghans will have the resolve. So it's really important that the military and the police fight as hard as they can, because the weaker they fight, the more they defect, the more intimidated they are, the more brain drain that flows from Afghanistan, the stronger the Taliban is viewed and the more intransigent they will be in the negotiations. Now the negotiations will be very much about the military battlefield as much as they will about what's happening at the table for a long time. This interview was originally published by Vox. Authors Vanda Felbab-BrownJennifer Williams Publication: Vox Image Source: © Omar Sobhani / Reuters Full Article