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MIAMI: US military prosecutors had filed new charges against the self-described mastermind of the Sept. 11, 2001, attacks, Khalid Sheikh Mohammed, and four alleged co-conspirators held at the Guantanamo detention camp.

The conspiracy and mass murder charges were expected to be announced later on Tuesday, sources involved in the Guantanamo tribunals said.

All five defendants had previously been charged in the war crimes tribunals at the Guantanamo Bay U.S. naval base in Cuba with plotting the hijacked plane attacks that killed nearly 3,000 people.

The charges, which carried the death penalty, were dropped while the Obama administration tried to move the trials into the federal civilian courts.

President Barack Obama yielded to political pressure in April and had announced that the prosecutions would be moved back to Guantanamo.

ISLAMABAD: Chief of Naval Staff Admiral Noman Bashir and other senior officials of Pakistan Navy are not attending the meeting of the Senate’s Standing Committee on Defence , Express 24/7 reported on Tuesday.

The committee, meeting in Islamabad with Senator Javed Ashraf Qazi in the chair, is being briefed by navy officials on the PNS Mehran attack.

Members of the committee expressed their annoyance at the absence of Bashir and top officials of the Navy.

During the meeting, the members expressed concern over inadequate security arrangements at the naval airbase and said that these arrangements had resulted in the loss of lives and material during the attack.

The Senate body has also expressed surprise that a few terrorists had occupied the base and kept security officials engaged for over 16 hours.

Four new charges added to FIR

Police have added four new charges to the FIR report against the terrorists who attacked PNS Mehran.

Three new charges have been filed on possession of illegal weapons and one on possession of illegal explosive material. Fresh charges were added after police found weapons and explosive material from the terrorist killed in the operation.

A group of between four and six militants had besieged the base for 16 hours and destroyed two P-3C Orion aircraft from the Unites States, crucial for Pakistan’s maritime surveillance capabilities.

The Tehrik-i-Taliban, which is allied to al Qaeda, claimed responsibility for the attack on the base.

This private maneuvering is even more surprising since the Punjab government, led by Pakistan Muslim League – Nawaz (PML-N), has criticised the intelligence agencies on the floor of the house for its interference in the political and administrative affairs of the country. However, the official said, the proposal will sent to the federal government after the chief minister approves it.

A senior home department official said that this proposal is still in the discussion stage and simply reflects the view of the Punjab government. It will only become law if the federal government decides to go through with it.

Ironically, according to an official involved with the development, the proposal comes after the Supreme Court of Pakistan directed the federal government to pass legislation defining the functions of the intelligence agencies. The SC order was meant to tackle the prevalence of incidents where people are picked up and declared ‘missing’.

Currently, the police and Federal Investigation Agency can only conduct raids and arrest suspects under section 54 of the Criminal Procedure Code after an FIR is filed. The Pakistan Rangers, under an exception granted by the interior ministry, can make arrests under national security grounds but only within a four-kilometre radius of the border.

A senior police official said giving the intelligence agencies this power would give them a free hand to pick up anyone suspected of being involved in anti-state activities and terrorism. The police official said that the chance of this extra power being misused is high.

Senior advocate Muhammad Anwer Shaheen said the role of intelligence agencies should be limited to the collection of intelligence, which should then be passed on to law-enforcement agencies.

Published in The Express Tribune, May 31^st, 2011.

The new proposed price for E-10 gasoline is Rs85.17 per litre, down from its current price of Rs85.91.

The prime minister is likely to approve the summary on Tuesday, but there is a possibility the government may choose to ignore the Ogra proposals and let the oil prices stay at their current levels.

According to documents obtained by The Express Tribune, Ogra has proposed a cut of 74 paisa per litre in petrol price.

The price of high-octane blending component (HOBC) has been proposed to be reduced by 67 paisa per litre, kerosene oil by Rs5.05 per litre, high-speed diesel (HSD) by Rs3.20 per litre, light diesel oil (LDO) by Rs5.19 per litre, JP-1 by Rs5.87 per litre, JP-8 by Rs 5.86 per litre and JP-4 by Rs4.53 a litre.

If the proposed cuts are approved, the new prices of petroleum products would stand at Rs 86.67 per litre petrol, Rs 99.25 per litre HOBC, Rs 84.65 per litre kerosene oil, Rs 94.11 per litre HSD, Rs 83.11 per litre LDO, Rs 80.57 per litre JP-1, Rs80.29 per litre JP-8 and Rs 75.52 per litre JP-4.

Transportation charges have also been revised upwards. Ogra has also allowed an increase of 45 per cent in cartage freight rate effective from May 1 because of the strike by the All Pakistan Oil Tankers Association. Inland freight equalisation margin has been increased by 80 paisa per litre on petrol, Rs1.01 per litre HOBC, 69 paisa per litre kerosene oil, 46 paisa per litre HSD and 22 paisa per litre LDO.

Published in The Express Tribune, May 31^st, 2011.

Defence secretaries from both countries began two days of closed-door talks in New Delhi on Monday on withdrawing forces from the mountainous no-man’s land above the Siachen glacier in disputed Himalayan territory , where they have faced off since 1984.

“The talks were held in a constructive framework. Both sides apprised each other of their perception about the Siachen issue and also discussed the surrounding issues,” Defence Ministry officials said, The Hindu reported.

Defence Secretary Pradeep Kumar led the Indian delegation at the talks with his Pakistani counterpart Lt. General (Retd) Syed Ather Ali.

The decision to take the dialogue process forward between the two countries was taken last year during the meeting of Prime Minister Manmohan Singh and his Pakistani counterpart Yousaf Raza Gilani in Thimpu.

While the Pakistani delegation has two civilian officials and four military officers, the Indian side includes Special Secretary R K Mathur, Director General of Military Operations (DGMO) Lt. General A M Verma and Surveyor General S Subha Rao.

The Pakistani Defence Secretary met Defence Minister A K Antony in the afternoon for over 20 minutes. The two sides may come up with a joint statement tomorrow after the talks, the officials said.

Point of disagreement

“The AGPL is not clearly marked beyond the grid reference point of NJ—9842. The two countries have decided to demilitarise the Siachen Glacier, but the matter is stuck as there are apprehensions on both sides,” officials said.

India wants Pakistan to authenticate the AGPL, both on the maps and the ground, as it occupies most of the dominating posts on the Saltoro Ridge, they said. Pakistan, in turn, has been insisting on maintaining the pre-1972 troop positions as agreed in the Simla Agreement.

During the talks, the two sides are also expected to take up the issue of the existing ceasefire along the Line of Control (LoC) and the AGPL, sources said.

Both countries have long accepted the need to demilitarise Siachen, located as high as 20,000 feet (6,000 metres) above sea level, and military experts say the inhospitable climate and avalanche-prone terrain has claimed more lives than gunfire.

“Success could be measured in various terms but I would say the real barometer would be any progress over Siachen,” a senior Indian government official said on condition of anonymity because of the sensitivity of the discussions.

Published in The Express Tribune, May 31^st, 2011.

The Americans, whose names and ranks are not known, were training a special group of the Pakistan Army at the Ghazi area of Tarbela Dam. They are likely to return to the US in next few days, an official said.

Earlier this month, the Pakistan Army had demanded from the US to cut its troop presence in the country to a “minimum” in the wake of a unilateral operation undertaken by the US in Abbottabad which killed al Qaeda chief Osama bin Laden.

When contacted for confirmation, Press Attaché at US Embassy in Islamabad Alberto Rodriguez said: “I can neither confirm the number of Americans nor the execution of the demand at this juncture.”  

Published in The Express Tribune, May 31^st, 2011.

A closed-door joint session of parliament had recommended earlier this month that the government set up a commission to probe the air-borne raid that had killed al Qaeda chief Osama bin Laden.

The opposition’s warning comes a day after Interior Minister Rehman Malik sought to soothe frayed tempers of the opposition, saying that the proposed commission would be set up within a couple of days.

The warning was made by leader of the opposition in the National Assembly Chaudhry Nisar Ali Khan after a meeting with opposition parties at the Parliament House in Islamabad on Monday.

The opposition parties warned of a “collective response” if the proposed commission was not set up before the budget session of Parliament.

They kept the media guessing about their “collective response”.  But  has already made its intentions clear. It has announced plans to launch a “decisive protest campaign” against the government.

The PML-N has started contacting other opposition parties to muster as much support as possible. And Monday’s session was part of this campaign where Chaudhry Nisar met with JUI-F’s Maulana Gul Naseeb Khan and Maulana Ghafoor Haideri, PPP-Sherpao chief Aftab Ahmed Khan Sherpao, Prof Khursheed Ahmed from Jamaat-e-Islami, and Abdul Rahim Mandookhel of the Pakhtunkhwa Awami Milli Party.

Chaudhry Nisar regretted that the prime minister had ignored his letter wherein he had requested him to form the commission proposed in the parliamentary resolution to investigate the Abbottabad fiasco.

In the letter, he proposed Justice (retd) Shafiur Rehman, Justice (retd) Nasir Aslam Zahid, Justice (retd) Fakhruddin G Ebarhim, Majeed Nizami, Asma Jahangir and Mehmood Khan Achakzai be made part of the commission.

Citing last week’s terrorist attack at Pakistan Navy’s airbase PNS Mehran, the opposition leader said that the incident accentuated concerns about the capacity of the government and its security forces to fight militancy.

The fact that Bin Laden lived undetected for years right under the military’s nose in Abbottabad raised questions about Pakistan’s commitment in the fight against terror with US officials saying that Pakistan’s military was either “incompetent or complacent”.

Chaudhry Nisar criticised the government for “not taking the country’s political leadership into confidence” on the recent interactions with US Secretary of State Hilary Clinton and Chairman Joint Chiefs of Staff Admiral Mike Mullen.

He said the opposition parties would meet again on June 3 to devise a future course of action if their demand was not met by then. He added that the PML-Q (Likeminded Group) would also be invited to that session.

Published in The Express Tribune, May 31^st, 2011.

Under a presidential ordinance approved in the early hours of Tuesday morning, the government announced that it would levy a 15% surcharge on 2011 income taxes. This surcharge applies to the amount paid in taxes, not the income itself.

For example, if a person owed Rs5,000 in taxes on an income of Rs50,000, they will now owe Rs6,500.

The surcharge applies only to income earned in the fiscal year ending June 30, 2011 and will not apply to taxes being paid on previous years’ incomes or even advance taxation for next years’ incomes.

The ordinance will apply only for the month of June 2011.

Published in The Express Tribune, May 31^st, 2011.

The BISP management had asked for Rs120 billion to give monthly stipends of Rs1,000 to seven million households, but the government is considering allocating it only Rs45 billion. Over the past two fiscal years, the BISP has not been able to meet its target.

The proposed allocation effectively represents a slash in BISP funding. In the fiscal year 2009-10, the government had poured Rs70 billion into the BISP, for providing coverage to five million households. However, BISP statistics show that there were actually fewer than three million beneficiaries.

In the current fiscal year, the BISP was allocated a 50-billion-rupee budget out of which, according to finance ministry sources, Rs32.5 billion have been disbursed. A BISP spokesman says that so far more than Rs35 billion have been given to 3.2 million beneficiaries. He expects the full amount allocated to the BISP will be spent by the
end of the fiscal year and the final figures will include four million beneficiaries.

“The number of beneficiaries is increasing after the nationwide poverty survey was launched and the eligible families were included in the BISP net after the completion of the data entry process,” the spokesman added.

A senior finance ministry official said because of administrative constraints, the BISP could not reach as many households as it had originally planned, adding that the finance ministry had decided to make a realistic allocation, instead of putting more funds into a programme which cannot fully deliver.

The sources said the BISP and the finance ministry are trying to arrive at a consensus on the budget allocation issue.

Published in The Express Tribune, May 31^st, 2011.

Intelligence agencies detained Kamran Ahmed Malik and Zaman Malik from Lahore on Friday, five days after the attack in Karachi. Two “visitors” were also picked up from Abdullah Engineering workshop, which the brothers had rented.

Sources said that Kamran was court-martialled 10 years ago for assaulting a senior officer. He was subsequently admitted to the Combined Military Hospital and upon release went on to work as a seller of prize bonds. During his service, Malik had worked at the PNS Mehran and PNS Iqbal naval bases.

After his removal, he remained jobless for a few years and reportedly had developed “psychological problems”.

According to Reuters news agency, an earlier arrest of a suspect in the PNS Mehran attack led to the arrest of the Malik brothers. “The suspect arrested earlier said Ahmed provided information about the base to a militant network, which carried out the attack,” an intelligence official said.

According to a local resident, Kamran was considered a “normal, religious person”.

Aamir Faheem, the owner of the Abdullah Engineering workshop, said that Kamran had rented the shop a month ago. Kamran would sit in the shop for his prize bond business and in the evening he and his brother Zaman’s brother-in-laws would use the shop as a tuition centre.

Faheem said that at 10am on Friday, 10 people riding in three vehicles – including a white Corolla and a blue and black four-wheeler – stormed the workshop. One of the persons of the raiding party was in a police uniform and some were armed.

Faheem said the team shortly emerged from the first floor of the shop with the three men. Later, they also detained Zaman who was present near the workshop, he said.

Family pleads innocence

Kamran’s family claimed that he has had no links with the navy since his court-martial. His father Sadruddin said that accusations were false and a judicial investigation should be conducted.

Kamran’s mother Shamshad Bibi told The Express Tribune that when they contacted their sons’ phones after they were detained, an unidentified person attended the call and informed the family that Kamran had been picked up but did not give further details. Later, both phones were switched off and no official of police or any agency has contacted the family for three days.

Kamran’s uncle Qamaruddin said the agencies had picked up his nephew without fulfilling legal obligations. He went on to declare the incident “extra-judicial”. He demanded the chief justice of Pakistan to immediately intervene.

Air force guards were told to stay ‘on their side’

Although Pakistan Rangers personnel were allowed to enter the area under the jurisdiction of PNS Mehran airbase on the night it was attacked, gunmen from the Pakistan Air Force (PAF) were not.

“Our Rapid Action Force had responded within minutes and navy Special Services Group commandos also arrived immediately. We did not want any confusion or injuries caused by friendly fire in the middle of the commando operation,” a senior navy official told reporters on Monday at a special briefing on the incident.

PAF gunmen were restricted to the runway’s other side, which falls under the jurisdiction of the PAF Faisal Base.

Although navy officials insisted that responsibility will only be fixed once investigators complete their report, their presentation repeatedly mentioned that at 10:15pm, the four terrorists scaled the perimeter fence on the PAF’s side, walked down 800 metres and circumvented the common runway strip used by aviation wings of all forces.

Junior navy guards spotted the attackers but by the time the response force was alerted, terrorists had attacked the P-3C Orion with at least seven RPG rockets.

Another navy official, who gave a tour of PNS Mehran, said that during the attack there were around 200 navy personnel present. About 30 to 40 of them were armed.

Two more check posts, manned by two gunmen each, have been set up near the runway.

Target

Even after a week of the assault, carcasses of the Pakistan Navy’s prized assets and targets of the attack – the American-manufactured P-3C Orion – stood scattered on the tarmac near the runway.

Reporters were told about the unsung heroes of the night of May 22, the ‘Tiger group’ of fire-fighters, who attempted to save the aircraft. Three of them died in the attack.

Four aircraft were parked on the tarmac when rockets were fired, destroying two planes. The other two planes were towed to safety.

Navy officials suspect that foreigners present at the airbase were also on the terrorists’ hit list. The attackers split into pairs after blowing up the aircraft. One pair hid in the bushes near the tarmac while the other headed towards the building of the 27 Squadron Fokker Line where they remained holed up until they were killed.

Bullet holes and damage caused to the building by RPG rockets were still visible. The Chinese were staying in a building next to the 27 Squadron’s, where an attacker also blew himself up. A senior navy official confirmed that some Chinese engineers, who were being evacuated in a bulletproof Land Cruiser, had had a very narrow escape. “One of the attackers stood right in front of the vehicle and fired a volley of machine gunfire head on. Our navy driver kept his nerve and tried to ram into him but the attacker kept firing at point blank range and dived just seconds before the vehicle got close enough,” he said. The Americans were housed at a distance and remained safe.

Officials did not say if any suspects were arrested or whether any terrorist had managed to escape. However, privately they admitted that the attack couldn’t have taken place unless someone within the navy had given precise information.

ADDITIONAL INPUT FROM REUTERS

Published in The Express Tribune, May 31^st, 2011.

The meeting of the corps commanders, which is to be chaired by Army Chief General Ashfaq Parvez Kayani, comes in the backdrop of reports suggesting that the government has finally agreed to accept a longstanding US demand to carry out a military offensive in North Waziristan.

However, a military official told The Express Tribune that no such decision had been taken.

According to Reuters, humanitarian agencies active in Pakistan’s northwest have been quietly told to prepare for up to 365,000 displaced people in advance of a military offensive against North Waziristan.

The United States has long been calling for an operation, specifically targeting the Haqqani network, in North Waziristan. The killing of al Qaeda chief Osama bin Laden in Abbottabad has renewed  US pressure on Pakistan to eliminate “terrorist sanctuaries” from its tribal belt. Last week, US Secretary of State Hillary Clinton and top US commander Admiral Mike Mullen held extensive discussions with the senior Pakistani civilian and military leaders to defeat al Qaeda and the Taliban.

The US administration placed on the table certain demands seeking action against militant leaders, including Sirajuddin Haqqani, who heads the deadliest militant group fighting Nato forces in Afghanistan.

Secretary Clinton told reporters at a news conference in Islamabad that Pakistan has agreed to take “specific actions” to show its commitment in the fight against terror. However, she did not elaborate what specific measures Pakistan would undertake in days ahead. “All these issues will be debated in the corps commanders meeting,” said another military official.

He also indicated that a detailed statement is expected to be released after the meeting, clarifying the government’s position on certain issues, including the North Waziristan operation.

“There is a lot being said in the media and you will get our response very soon,” the official added.

He added that Pakistan alone will decide the timing of the North Waziristan operation. “We have more troops in North Waziristan than any other tribal agency but we need to take into account several factors before launching a military offensive there,” the official added. “The Americans certainly want us to do it sooner than later.” But the real question is to analyse the repercussions of the North Waziristan offensive, he added.

“All people in North Wazir­istan are anti-American but do all of them pose a threat to the US interests,” he asked, saying that it was a fundamental issue the US is not ready to understand it. However, some officials did not rule out the possibility of a surgical operation in the tribal agency.

Meanwhile in the background briefing for a select group of journalists, senior defence officials said a Swat-like national consensus was required to launch an assault in North Waziristan.

Published in The Express Tribune, May 31^st, 2011.

ISLAMABAD: Humanitarian agencies active in Pakistan’s northwest have been quietly told to prepare for up to 365,000 displaced people in advance of a military offensive against North Waziristan, a senior official with an international humanitarian agency said on Monday.

The official, who requested anonymity because of the sensitivity of the subject, was responding to a media report in a local newspaper that Pakistan will launch a military offensive against Al Qaeda and Taliban safe havens in the Afghan border regions.

“Humanitarian agencies operating in the Federally Administered Tribal Areas (FATA) and Khyber-Pakhtunkhwa were given the heads up two weeks ago by the authorities of a possible displacement of up to 50,000 families,” he said, referring to the FATA and the northwest province.

A similar tip-off in 2009 preceded a military offensive in neighbouring South Waziristan by about five months, he said. Other aid agencies were not immediately available for comment.

The report in Pakistan’s The News newspaper comes just days after US Secretary of State Hillary Clinton reiterated a U.S. demand to tackle sanctuaries for Al Qaeda and the Taliban on the Afghan border.

An understanding for an offensive in North Waziristan, the main sanctuary in Pakistan for militants fighting in Afghanistan, was reached when Clinton and Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff Admiral Mike Mullen visited Pakistan last week, the News reported.

The United States has long demanded that Pakistan attack the region to eliminate the Haqqani network, one of the deadliest Afghan militant factions fighting US troops in Afghanistan.

Pakistan has been reluctant to do so, but it has come under more pressure and its performance in fighting militancy is under scrutiny after Osama bin Laden was discovered living in the country.

The News quoted unidentified “highly placed sources” as saying Pakistan’s air force would soften up militant targets under the “targeted military offensive” before ground operations were launched.

Pakistani officials were not immediately available for comment. A US embassy official had no immediate comment. The newspaper said a “joint operation” with allies had been discussed but no decision had been taken because of sensitivities.

Sensitivity of a Pak-US joint operation

“In case the two sides agreed to go for a joint action, it would be the first time in the present war (on militancy) that foreign boots will get a chance to be on Pakistani soil with the consent of the host country.”

That could be highly risky for Pakistan’s generals.

Some analysts say any joint US-Pakistani operation would subject the army to even more public criticism in a country where anti-US feeling runs deep.

“The reaction could be even more vociferous, just because everybody is so suspicious — as well as dismissive – of American interference,” said Imtiaz Gul, author of “The Most Dangerous Place”, a book about Pakistan’s militant strongholds.

“People already feel so humiliated because of this Osama bin Laden thing and now they will have another reason to react.”

But the South Asian nation, dependent on billions of dollars in US aid, is under more pressure than ever to show it is serious about tackling militancy.

Attacking US enemies in North Waziristan may be one way of repairing ties with Washington which were badly damaged by the Bin Laden affair.

Pakistan maintains about 140,000 troops in the northwest, including about 34,000 in North Waziristan, but says they are too stretched fighting Pakistani Taliban insurgents in other parts of the region to tackle North Waziristan.

Despite leading the side to close series-losses against England and South Africa before beating New Zealand, leading Pakistan to the semi-final of the 2011 World Cup and winning the One-Day International (ODI) series 3-2 in the West Indies, Afridi was sacked as the ODI captain reportedly as punishment for speaking out against the team management.

Afridi confirmed the decision to a private TV channel late last night from England where he arrived from the US in order to fulfil his county commitments.

“I won’t play for Pakistan under the current PCB setup,” said Afridi who pulled out of the Ireland series due to his father’s illness. “Self-respect is something I hold in high esteem and this board has done nothing but downgraded me. I’ve had enough of this and took this decision after careful consideration.”

Afridi, who retired from Test cricket one match into his comeback last summer, did keep the door open for a comeback at a point in the future, citing the immense support he had from the nation and his love for the sport. The all-rounder, while hinting at the omnipresent division in the dressing-room, blamed the “Lahore and Punjab group” for his removal from captaincy, adding that “it made things easier for them”. He was also unhappy with the PCB’s method of appointing captain on a series-by series basis, adding to the instability and insecurity that prevented a strong side from being built.

“I was never given the required confidence by the PCB. I didn’t know whether I’d be captain for the next series or not. I wasn’t asked for input on selection matters. I was punished for speaking the truth [after his return from the West Indies]. I’m the captain, if the media asked the questions and I don’t answer them, who else will?”

While the PCB refused to comment on the retirement, officials of the board and Ijaz Butt’s snub to the captain last week have confirmed that the PCB is in no mood to approach the all-rounder and woe him back into the squad.

“Actions speak louder than words,” a PCB official told The Express Tribune.

“His attitude has been reckless not only on the field but off it as well and I think we need to put our foot down and say that no player is bigger than the board.”

Published in The Express Tribune, May 31^st, 2011.

NEW DEHLI: India and Pakistan Monday discussed demilitarization of Siachen Glacier, the world’s highest militarised zone, in a “constructive framework”, picking up threads of the issue after a gap of three years, Press Trust of India PTI news agency reported.

The issue was discussed at 12th round of two-day Defence Secretary level talks between two sides. “The talks were held in a constructive framework. Both sides apprised each other of their perception about Siachen issue and also discussed the surrounding issues,” Indian Defence Ministry officials said. Defence Secretary Pradeep Kumar led the Indian delegation with his Pakistani counterpart Lt General (Retd) Syed Ather Ali.

The Pakistani Defence Secretary met Indian Defence Minister A K Antony in the afternoon for over 20 minutes, PTI said.

The decision to resume talks between the two countries was taken last year during a meeting between Prime Minister Manmohan Singh and his Pakistani counterpart Yusuf Raza Gilani in Thimpu, Bhutan when they decided to take forward the dialogue process.

Pakistan delegation has two civilian officials and four military officers. The Indian side includes Special Secretary R K Mathur, Director General of Military Operations (DGMO) Lt General A M Verma and Surveyor General S Subha Rao.

The two sides may come up with a joint statement tomorrow after the talks on Tuesday, Indian officials said.

Siachen, with an area of over 2500 sq km, the world’s highest militarised zone, has been a long pending issue between India and Pakistan over differences on the location of 110-km long Actual Ground Position Line (AGPL) which passes through Soltoro Ridge and Siachen Glacier.

ISLAMABAD: The opposition gave an ultimatum of three days to the government for implementation of the Parliament joint resolution to set up an independent inquiry commission for the Abbottabad raid.

A meeting of opposition leaders was held in Parliament, presided by PML-N’s Chaudhry Nisar. Effects of the Abbottabad operation and Parliament’s resolution were discussed in detailed.

Speaking to the media afterwards, Chaudhry Nisar said a meeting of the opposition will take place again on Thursday, in which the next strategy will be finalised.

The PML-N also rejected the 20th amendment suggestion.

Government to form independent inquiry commission

Federal Minister Syed Khursheed Shah said an inquiry commission will be formed to probe the Abbottabad raid before the upcoming National Assembly session.

Talking to the media at the Parliament House in Islamabad, the minister said that the commission would be set up after consultation with the opposition leader.

He also asserted that the body would be an independent commission and its members will not be from political parties.

ISLAMABAD: The Supreme Court on Monday directed the State Bank of Pakistan (SBP) to expedite the recovery of loans written off on political bases.

Commercial banks have written off loans worth Rs 256 billion on political and other bases.

Chief Justice Iftikhar Muhammad Chaudhry, during the hearing of the case, remarked that the common man loses his assets if he does not pay back the loan, but influential people went free in case of defaulting.

He said the loans should be recovered as it was tax payers’ money, which was used for paying salaries and running the day to day business of the country.

A three-member bench is hearing a case in which the apex court took suo motu notice of all loans written off by commercial banks between 1971 and 2009, an amount that comes to over Rs256 billion over the 28-year period. While the amount of loans written off may sound like a lot, it is in fact equal to less than 4.6% of the total assets of the banking system as of April 2011.

ISLAMABAD: Pakistan has decided to launch an air and ground military offensive in North Waziristan, the main sanctuary for al Qaeda and Taliban on the border with Afghanistan, a report in The News said on Monday.

The United States has long demanded that Pakistan launch an offensive in the region to hunt down the Haqqani network, one of the deadliest Afghan militant factions fighting American troops in Afghanistan. Pakistan has been reluctant, but has come under intense US pressure to launch an operation there.

The News newspaper quoted unnamed “highly placed sources” as saying Pakistani airforce planes would soften up militant targets under the “targeted military offensive” before ground operations were launched.

The report said an understanding had been reached over the offensive during last week’s visit by US Secretary of State Hillary Clinton. A US embassy official said he was checking into the report. Pakistani officials were not immediately available for comment.

Pakistan has maintained that its troops were already too stretched fighting Pakistani Taliban insurgents in other parts of the northwest to tackle North Waziristan.

Project Officer (PO) Pakistan Rangers (Punjab) spent Rs69 million for supply of construction material in district Sialkot but did not record the measurements to assess the consumption of material.

The office of the Auditor General of Pakistan (AGP) pointed out that funds were withdrawn on an irregular basis due to weak internal and financial controls in March 2009.

While the department replied that the construction material was purchased through the contractor, and its consumption maintained properly on stock register, the AGP termed the reply not satisfactory due to lack of documentary evidence.

The PO also awarded a contract to a firm that did not fulfill the criteria mentioned in the tender, causing a loss of Rs58 million to the national exchequer. The firm, M/s Zecon Engineers, was registered with the Pakistan Engineering Council for undertaking projects worth less than Rs10 million, and the contract was awarded for construction work in district Sialkot worth Rs58 million.

The office of the PO said the firm was authorised to undertake projects up to Rs100 million, not Rs10 million but the auditors said the reply was ‘not maintainable.’

In another instance, the PO made a payment of Rs43 million for procurement of material without inviting tenders as per the public procurement rules.

Auditors continued to reveal massive irregularities in Pakistan Rangers when they observed that Rangers administration did not pay stamp duty and capital value tax while purchasing land from State Bank of Pakistan, causing a loss of Rs27 million to the exchequer.

Further investigations revealed that Ministry of Interior granted permission to Pakistan Rangers (Punjab) for construction of accommodation under seven different projects worth Rs26 million on their own authority without inviting tenders.

The POs purchased material such as cement, steel crush and sand through contractors without approval of authorities concerned and never invited tenders for them.

The AGP observed that these practices were in clear violation of the procurement rules.

Published in The Express Tribune, May 30^th, 2011.

However, the talks – first of their kind in four-years – are unlikely to produce any major breakthrough, a Pakistani defence official told The Express Tribune.

The negotiations on Siachen between Pakistan Defence Secretary Lt. General (retd) Syed Athar Ali and his Indian counterpart Pradeep Kumar are part of the composite dialogue the two countries had agreed to resume in April this year.

The peace process remained suspended for almost two and a half years following the November 2008 Mumbai attacks, which India blamed on Laskhar-e-Taiba which is allegedly based in Pakistan.

However, the two neighbours revived the process when Prime Minister Yousaf Raza Gilani, at the invitation of his Indian counterpart Manmohan Singh, visited Mohali to watch the 2011 World Cup cricket semi-final between the two archrivals.

Indian media has reported that New Delhi is expected to press Pakistan to authenticate the 110-km Actual Ground Position Line (AGPL) along the Siachen Glacier-Saltoro ridge in Jammu and Kashmir when the defence secretaries meet.

However, a Pakistani official says this will be the most contentious debate between the two countries’ negotiators.

“Pakistan cannot authentic AGPL along the Siachen Glacier,” said the official.

The conflict began in 1984 when Indian forces launched a successful operation to force Pakistani troops to retreat west of the Saltoro ridge. Since then the two countries fought intermittently in the region, as high as 20,000 feet, until it ended in a ceasefire in 2003.

Former president Pervez Musharraf once stated that Pakistan lost almost 900 square miles of territory in Siachen due to the Indian operation. Over 2,000 troops have died from both sides, majority of them not because of clashes but due to harsh weather.

“It is a false ego that prevents the two countries from the resolution of the Siachen dispute,” commented defence analyst Lt. General (retd) Talat Masood.

“We have agreements on the table on Siachen and it’s just a question of political parties to make the next decisive move,” he added. But, given the history, he said he expected “some movement” in the talks but not any major breakthrough.

History shows that apart from the Indus Water Treaty signed in 1960, Pakistan and India have yet to resolve a single issue bilaterally.

Published in The Express Tribune, May 30^th, 2011.

The team will include members from police, rangers and Pakistan Navy as well as intelligence agencies, including the Inter-Services Intelligence, the Intelligence Bureau, Military Intelligence and the Federal Investigation Agency. The committee has been formed following orders from the interior ministry and, within 15 days, submit a report to Sindh police chief before presenting its findings to Sindh Chief Minister Qaim Ali Shah.

Sindh home department officials said that eight members of the team will record the statements of all navy and air force officials who were present at the PAF and PNS Mehran bases at the time of attack.

“The team can conduct raids with the help of police and law enforcement agencies to apprehend suspects. It can also interrogate foreigners who witnessed the attack,” sources said.

Adviser to the provincial home department Sharfuddin Memon told The Express Tribune that initial reports had been submitted by agencies already investigating the attack and this team will try to determine the losses incurred in the attack. Memon said the team’s preliminary role will be to gather details of people posted at the bases. “We have devised a comprehensive strategy to look into the matter but it cannot be shared at this time,” he said.

He said that officials of the Sindh police’s Crime Investigation Department (CID) and Special Investigation Unit (SIU) are also part of the team.

Official sources said the team will acquire telephone records of the officials witness to the attack and examine their incoming and outgoing calls for at least one month.

CID and SIU officials have been tasked to interrogate militants in various jails in the province. Sources said some raids have been conducted on information provided by militants under arrest.

Sources said that police investigators had also forwarded a report to the interior ministry according to which the attack was conducted by four terrorists, who had information that foreigners were inside the base. The report said that navy personnel had informed the police soon after the attack and officials from District East rushed to the spot. The report confirms that two P-3C Orion aircraft had been damaged while one was partially affected. It also confirms that ten navy and rangers personnel were killed while 15 were injured and four terrorists were killed on the spot.

According to the report, four sub-machine guns, two rocket launchers, seven RPG rockets, 12 hand-grenades, one walkie-talkie set, two suicide jackets and two ladders were found from the spot.

Suspect released

Meanwhile, a suspect taken into custody in Faisalabad has been released by law enforcement agencies after interrogation.

Qari Qaisar, 30, runs a religious seminary in a village in Satiana, about 40 kilometres from Faisalabad. A joint police and intelligence team took him into custody two days ago and shifted him to an undisclosed place for interrogation. Sources said that Qari Qaisar, who hails from Dera Ghazi Khan, was arrested as he had received a suspect phone call on the day and time of attack.

On Sunday, May 29, Qari Qaisar reached his madressah in Satiana and told residents and students that he was taken to an undeclared location for interrogation and was released after investigators found him “innocent”.

He said that he was handed Rs300 and thrown in a deserted place near Lahore from where he travelled to Faisalabad by bus.
Additional reporting by Shamsul Islam in Faisalabad

Published in The Express Tribune, May 30^th, 2011.