Whatmore to take charge of Pakistan – PCB source
Whatmore to take charge of Pakistan – PCB source KARACHI (Reuters) – Australian Dav Whatmore will replace the Pakistan team‘s interim coach Mohsin Khan after their one-day series against England ends this month, a Pakistan Cricket Board (PCB) source told Reuters on Sunday. The source said Whatmore would take charge as head coach for the Asia Cup tournament in Bangladesh next month. “It has been decided to release Mohsin from his coaching assignment after the England series and Whatmore has been chosen as the man to guide our team over the next two years,” the source said. Whatmore, 57, coached the Sri Lanka side who won the 1996 World Cup. He coached Bangladesh from 2003 to 2007, leading them to their first test victory in early 2005 against Zimbabwe and also guided them into the super eight stage of the 2007 World Cup where they defeated India and South Africa. [...]
Balochistan resolution in US Congress drives Pakistan crazy
Balochistan resolution in US Congress drives Pakistan crazy WASHINGTON: A resolution moved by a group of US Congressmen calling for right to self-determination for the Baloch people has driven Pakistan to hysteria, with its leaders from the Prime Minister down questioning Washington’s commitment to the country’s sovereignty. Following a Congressional hearing last week on the human rights situation in Balochistan, the Obama administration had assured Islamabad that it is committed to the country’s unity and integrity, but suspicion runs deep in Pakistan that Washington is intent on fingering the country on account of its covert support for terrorists. Some hardline American analysts have suggested that the Washington help the Baloch break away from the federation so that American and Nato forces can have unfettered access to landlocked Afghanistan, given how Pakistan has been holding the US to ransom. While the hearing itself had caused much disquiet in Islamabad and pushed [...]
Categories: Breaking News Tags: Balochistan, Congress, Crazy, drives, Pakistan, resolution
Hamid Karzai, Mahmoud Ahmadinejad in Pakistan for challenging summit
Hamid Karzai, Mahmoud Ahmadinejad in Pakistan for challenging summit ISLAMABAD, Pakistan — On a day when U.S. drone-fired missiles struck twice in the militant havens of Pakistan’s tribal region, reportedly killing 14 fighters, the talk in Islamabad was all about how to produce peace in war-weary Afghanistan. Afghan President Hamid Karzai and Iranian President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad arrived here Thursday for a two-day summit with Pakistani leaders, all of whom have a stake in promoting a stable Afghanistan. But while the three neighboring countries share an interest in finding a political settlement to the war, their solutions have not always coincided — with one other or with those proposed by the United States. All parties, including the Taliban, suspect the others’ motives. Just before he left Kabul, Karzai told the Wall Street Journal he thought the Taliban was “definitely” interested in a settlement. At the same time, Karzai has expressed concern [...]
Categories: India News Tags: Ahmadinejad, Challenging, Hamid, Karzai, Mahmoud, Pakistan, summit
Toll from Pakistan suicide blast reaches 32
Toll from Pakistan suicide blast reaches 32 PESHAWAR, Pakistan (AP) — A local official says the death toll from a suicide attack in a majority-Shiite Pakistan town close to the Afghan border has reached 32. Wajid Ali, who is an administrator in the town of Parachinar in the Kurram region, said Saturday that nine people had died in hospitals since the Friday blast, which was initially reported to have killed 23. Another 67 were injured when on a motorcyclist detonated his explosives in the Parachinar’s market. Ali said security forces later shot and killed four people who took to the streets to protest. Violence by Sunni extremists against Shiites is common in Sunni-dominated Pakistan. The Kurram region has seen outbreaks of sectarian bloodshed in recent years. Toll from Pakistan suicide blast reaches 32
Fearing infiltration, Afghan army gives soldiers with ties to Pakistan an ultimatum
Fearing infiltration, Afghan army gives soldiers with ties to Pakistan an ultimatum KANDAHAR, Afghanistan — In an effort to rid the army of Taliban infiltrators, Afghan officials have begun ordering soldiers with families in Pakistan to either move their relatives to Afghanistan or leave the military. Afghan defense officials say the policy was crafted in response to a recent spate of incidents in which soldiers who were secretly working for the Taliban carried out attacks against NATO or Afghan troops. According to the army’s counterintelligence findings, those men often have ties to insurgent havens in Pakistan. Graphic Special report: Faces of the Fallen But the ultimatum could force painful choices for thousands of Afghan troops, and it is likely to stoke ethnic tensions just as the country’s leadership is seeking a negotiated end to the war. Purging members of the military with family in Pakistan also has the potential to [...]
Categories: India News Tags: Afghan, Army, Fearing, Gives, infiltration, Pakistan, soldiers, Ties, ultimatum
Fearing infiltration, Afghan army gives soldiers with ties to Pakistan an ultimatum
Fearing infiltration, Afghan army gives soldiers with ties to Pakistan an ultimatum KANDAHAR, Afghanistan — In an effort to rid the army of Taliban infiltrators, Afghan officials have begun ordering soldiers with families in Pakistan to either move their relatives to Afghanistan or leave the military. Afghan defense officials say the policy was crafted in response to a recent spate of incidents in which soldiers who were secretly working for the Taliban carried out attacks against NATO or Afghan troops. According to the army’s counterintelligence findings, those men often have ties to insurgent havens in Pakistan. Graphic Special report: Faces of the Fallen But the ultimatum could force painful choices for thousands of Afghan troops, and it is likely to stoke ethnic tensions just as the country’s leadership is seeking a negotiated end to the war. Purging members of the military with family in Pakistan also has the potential to [...]
Categories: World News Tags: Afghan, Army, Fearing, Gives, infiltration, Pakistan, soldiers, Ties, ultimatum
Pakistan Tempers Expectations On Taliban Peace Hopes
Pakistan Tempers Expectations On Taliban Peace Hopes ISLAMABAD — Pakistan’s foreign minister said Friday it would be “preposterous” for Afghanistan to expect Islamabad to deliver the Taliban’s leader to the negotiating table, as talks between the two countries on the peace process ended with little sign of progress. The apparent gridlock shows the difficulties inherent in the peace process, which the United States is strongly pushing as a way to end the 10-year-old Afghan war and allow it to withdraw most of its combat troops by 2014 without the country further descending into chaos. Pakistan is seen as key to the process because Taliban chief Mullah Omar and other senior commanders are believed to be based in the country. Islamabad has close historical ties to the group but has always denied that the Taliban leadership is based within its borders. Analysts say Pakistan can either help the talks or act [...]
Categories: World News Tags: Expectations, hopes, Pakistan, Peace, Taliban, tempers
Pakistan army tries 5 officers over extremist ties
Pakistan army tries 5 officers over extremist ties ISLAMABAD (AP) — The Pakistani army has started court martial proceedings against five officers over suspected ties to a banned extremist group that has called for ousting the U.S.-backed government, security officials said Saturday. Brig. Ali Khan and four other officers were detained in May, 2011 for suspected links to the Hizb-ut-Tahrir group. Khan was working at the army’s headquarters near the capital Islamabad at the time of his arrest. Khan’s family has denied the allegations against him. Two senior security officials, speaking on condition of anonymity because of the sensitivity of the issue, said the military trial started recently but did not provide any other details. It was also not clear yet where the trial is taking place and what punishment the officers face, if convicted. Hizb-ut-Tahrir is banned in Pakistan because of its extremist propaganda. The group also works to [...]
NATO, Pakistan and Afghan military officials in border talks, Pakistani army says
NATO, Pakistan and Afghan military officials in border talks, Pakistani army says ISLAMABAD, Pakistan — In a sign that a months-long estrangement between the United States and Pakistan might be easing, NATO, Pakistani and Afghan military officials held talks Wednesday in hopes of better coordinating operations on the Afghan border, the Pakistani army said. The announcement came on the same day that U.S.-fired drone missiles killed nine militants in Pakistan’s North Waziristan tribal region, according to security officials there. They said the dead included members of the Haqqani network, a group that launches frequent attacks against Western and Afghan forces across the Afghan border. Graphic The two countries are allies but their relationship has been plagued by mistrust over the last 50 years. Drone strikes are widely unpopular here and a continuing source of strain between Pakistan and the United States. Recently, however, the on-and-off counterterrorism allies have been warily [...]
NATO, Pakistan and Afghan military officials in border talks, Pakistani army says
NATO, Pakistan and Afghan military officials in border talks, Pakistani army says ISLAMABAD, Pakistan — In a sign that a months-long estrangement between the United States and Pakistan might be easing, NATO, Pakistani and Afghan military officials held talks Wednesday in hopes of better coordinating operations on the Afghan border, the Pakistani army said. The announcement came on the same day that U.S.-fired drone missiles killed nine militants in Pakistan’s North Waziristan tribal region, according to security officials there. They said the dead included members of the Haqqani network, a group that launches frequent attacks against Western and Afghan forces across the Afghan border. Graphic The two countries are allies but their relationship has been plagued by mistrust over the last 50 years. Drone strikes are widely unpopular here and a continuing source of strain between Pakistan and the United States. Recently, however, the on-and-off counterterrorism allies have been warily [...]
