Posts published in “Day: November 5, 2016”

KARACHI: Sindh’s apex committee has decided to take the necessary measures, including preparing lists of madrasa students and other people who have been to war-torn Syria, Iraq or Afghanistan, to make peace in the province sustainable. This and other important decisions were made on Thursday at the 17th meeting of the apex committee set up under the National Action Plan (NAP) aimed at eliminating terrorism from the country. The huddle, chaired by Chief Minister Syed…

The recent resumption of peace talks between the Afghan government and the Taliban, overseen by the US, in Doha had one notable absentee. Pakistan was long thought to be indispensable to any eventual leverage because it was the only country thought to have any leverage over the militant group. Now, however, the Afghan Taliban have been moving away from Pakistan after many of their members were targeted in Operation Zarb-e-Azb and their chief Mullah Mansour…

he Chief Executive Abdullah Abdullah said terrorism including the Islamic State of Iraq and Syria (ISIS) terrorist group poses major threat to the region. Speaking during the Shanghai Cooperation Organization (SCO) summit in Bishkek, Abdulllah said “We are all fully aware that terrorism and extremism, which involves ISIL or Daish, are major threats to our shared peace and stability. Terrorism is the enemy of all humanity, and terrorists belong to no particular ethnicity, region or…

At least 30 civilians and 2 US soldiers were killed during an operation in northern Kunduz province as reports suggest the civilians were killed in airstrikes called to protect the Afghan and US forces. Provincial governor’s spokesman Syed Mahmood Danish said the Afghan special forces were trapped near Pul-e-Alchin area and several people were killed or wounded as additional forces were deployed to end the siege. He said at least 30 civilians were killed and…

KARACHI: The government will likely renegotiate the terms and conditions of handing over K-Electric to new investor Shanghai Electric Power Company in the greater interest of consumers and Karachi, which remains the lifeline of Pakistan, said Minister of State for Water and Power Abid Sher Ali on Thursday. He expressed confidence in Shanghai Electric Power Company, saying it “would surely overcome the power crisis in Karachi.” He was talking to the media on the sidelines…

KARACHI: Standard Chartered has taken the lead in conducting a roadshow in Pakistan to inform businessmen that hurdles to trade with China in local currencies – Pakistani rupee and Chinese renminbi – have been razed. Until now, the two countries were trading in dollars, which caused hurdles in the way of banking transactions for traders. The two nations signed a currency swap agreement a couple of years ago. Standard Chartered Pakistan Chief Executive Officer Shazad…

China has launched the most powerful space rocket it has ever built from a base on southern Hainan Island. The Long March CZ-5 blasted off from the Wenchang space launch base at 8:43pm on Thursday. It means China has finally developed rockets of equal power to those currently used by the US space programme. The CZ-5 belongs to a new generation of rockets that will be used in China’s future space projects. It will be…

The Communist Party’s designation of Chinese President Xi Jinping as its “core” leader last week made him unequivocally its highest authority. Days later, the party has detailed how it will ensure that members obey. New directives centralize control over discipline inspectors nationwide and impose greater supervision on regional governments, some of whom have used their local clout to evade Beijing’s scrutiny. Guidelines spell out how cadres should supervise each other at nearly every level of…

Mainland China’s Communist Party would be overthrown by the people if it failed to properly deal with Taiwanese pro-independence, President Xi Jinping told the head of the Kuomintang party in Beijing this week, according to the self-ruled island’s media. The reports, including by United Daily News, quoted unidentified sources who attended the meeting on Tuesday as saying Xi said Beijing’s opposition to Taiwanese independence was “based on the prospect of the great rejuvenation of the…

Once India had gone down the path of targeting Pakistani officials in the high commission in New Delhi, there was a weary certainty of a similar response by Pakistan. Eight Indian diplomats in Islamabad have now been identified via leaks to the media as belonging to Indian intelligence agencies. It can be assumed that the individuals were in fact sent to Pakistan as undercover operatives; it is an established tradition, with carefully observed though secretive…