Pakistan

Mir Ali, October 18: Militants fired on helicopter gunships and attacked Pakistani troops advancing into their main sanctuary near the Afghan border, residents and those fleeing reported Sunday, as the Army pressed ahead with its most critical offensive yet against al Qaeda and the Taliban.

The assault in South Waziristan comes following repeated requests from the US to take on the jihadists behind soaring terrorist attacks in the nuclear-armed nation and al Qaeda and other extremists believed to be plotting strikes in the West.

Islamabad: The Pakistan Crime Investigation Department (CID) has released its ‘Red book’ that includes name and profiles of almost 70 most wanted criminals, but it surprisingly does not include any terrorists from the LeT or JeM.

The ‘red book’ contains data of terrorists suspected of sowing death and destruction in Islamabad, including the Marriot Hotel bombing of September 20 last year, according to the Dawn.

Syed Ibraruddin, 28, a Peshawar resident has been named as the most wanted suspect for the Marriot Hotel suicide attack.

Islamabad, October 18: Pakistani jets and artillery bombarded militant hideouts for a second day on Sunday killing over 25 militants in the lawless Waziristan region, as ground forces moving in from three directions took control of two key areas in face of stiff resistance in the Taliban stronghold.

The Army yesterday launched a major offensive to “dismantle the network” of the Tehrik-e-Taliban Pakistan and to flush out militants in South Waziristan who were responsible for 80 percent of recent terrorist attacks in the country, military spokesman Maj Gen Athar Abbas said.

Peshawar, October 18: Pakistani forces fought fierce battles with Taliban militants on Sunday, a day after launching a long-awaited offensive aimed at bringing the writ of state to lawless tribal lands on the Afghan border.

The offensive on the global Islamist hub of South Waziristan follows a string of brazen militant attacks in different parts of the country, including an assault on army headquarters, in which more than 150 people were killed.

Islamabad, October 18: Pakistani soldiers attacked militant bases in the main al Qaida and Taliban stronghold along the Afghan border on Saturday, as the nuclear-armed country launched its most critical offensive yet against insurgents threatening its stability.

Five soldiers and 11 militants were killed as the more than 30,000 troops deployed to the region met stiff resistance in parts of South Waziristan, a possible hide-out of Osama bin Laden and a base for jihadists bent on overthrowing the US-backed government, attacking the West and scuttling the US war effort in Afghanistan.

Peshawar, October 18: The Pakistan army moved troops into Taliban strongholds in South Waziristan, at the start of a much-awaited military operation to uproot militants from the region.

“The military operation will be restricted to the heartland of Baitullah Mehsud group,” Major General Ather Abbas, the director general of inter services public relations (ISPR), told.

“The objective of this operation is to take the control of the area, which is the headquarters of 10,000 local and 1500 foreign militants.”

Islamabad, October 18: The Pakistan army’s long-awaited ground offensive in South Waziristan was under way last night, as up to 30,000 troops began moving into the Taliban stronghold.

After months of airstrikes to soften up key targets, witnesses said soldiers began the fourth attempt to crush militants in the tribal borderlands since 2001.

Initial reports claimed 11 insurgents had been killed. One soldier died when a roadside bomb hit a military convoy, and four were killed and 12 others wounded in firefights around the region.

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Karachi, October 18: Pakistani and Afghan jehadi groups have decided to start battle of evil and just, as the Afghan fighters assured Pakistani militants of complete support in their fight against Pak army in South Waziristan.

According to sources, it was decided in a meeting of the commanders of al-Qaeda, Hakmatyar group, Afghan Taliban and Pakistani jehadi organisations, which was held in Afghanistan.

Karachi, October 18: Pakistani fighter jets have pounded the militants’ hideouts in South Waziristan, killing at least 11 insurgents, as the security forces began a fresh offensive against the Taliban in the area, the Online news agency reported.

Sources said the latest offensive that began Saturday has left two soldiers dead and five injured.

One of the soldiers was killed when militants detonated a bomb through a remote control device near a security vehicle in Karkunray area of South Waziristan.

Islamabad, October 17: Pakistani forces launched a ground offensive against Taliban militants in South Waziristan on the Afghan border on Saturday, with soldiers advancing from three directions, officials said.

The assault follows a string of militant attacks that began on October 5 with the suicide bombing of a U.N. office in Islamabad and included assaults on the army headquarters, police and the public in which more than 150 people were killed.

Islamabad, October 17: A Pakistani anti-terror court conducting the trial of seven suspects, including Lashker-e-Taiba (LeT) commander Zakiur Rehman Lakhvi, for alleged involvement in the Mumbai attacks on Saturday adjourned the matter for a week even as defence lawyers boycotted the proceedings

The lawyers boycotted the proceedings apparently to protest Judge Baqir Ali Rana’s decision to formally charge the suspects in their absence at the last hearing on October 10, sources told PTI

There was no official word on the proceedings due to a gag order issued by the court.
–PTI

Islamabad, October 17: Pakistan’s army began a ground operation against Taliban militants in the South Waziristan region on the Afghan border today, with soldiers advancing from three directions, officials said.

The assault follows a string of brazen militant attacks that began on October 5 with a suicide bomb attack on a UN office in Islamabad and included assaults on the army headquarters, police and the public in which more than 150 people were killed.

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Peshawar, October 17: Pakistani ground troops backed by warplanes launched a major operation against Taliban in South Waziristan where they were locked in clashes with well-armed fighters, officials said Saturday.

The mountain district is part of the tribal belt on the Afghan border that US officials call the most dangerous place in the world and a stronghold for Pakistani Taliban chief Baitullah Mehsud, who was killed in a US drone attack.

Islamabad, October 17: Two intelligence officials say a military ground offensive has started in Pakistan’s South Waziristan tribal region.

The officials say the operation began early on Saturday in the region, a major stronghold of al-Qaida and the Taliban.

They gave few details but said Taliban positions were being targeted by ground troops.

One said air strikes were also being used.

Pakistan has spent months using airstrikes against militant targets in the region to soften up their defenses ahead of a ground operation.

Islamabad, October 17: Three suicide bombers, including a woman, detonated two blasts outside a police station in the north-western Pakistani city of Peshawar yesterday, killing 13 people. Suspicion fell on the Taliban, who have been blamed for two weeks of attacks, killing more than 150 people.

Washington, October 17: Senior U.S. officials travel to Pakistan next week to hammer out strategies to tackle the country’s chronic electricity crisis and find ways to lure foreign investment into the crumbling sector.

But U.S. officials and experts said there could be no “quick fix” to resolving the power shortages, a problem that is a hot-button political issue in Pakistan and is seen by economists as undermining growth potential in the country.

Islamabad, October 17: Pakistani authorities imposed a curfew on Saturday in the Taliban’s South Waziristan bastion ahead of an imminent assault on the Al Qaeda-linked militants.

In a show of unity in advance of the ground offensive, government and political party leaders gave the military full backing on Friday, vowing to weed out militants and restore the writ of the state.

Police officers check vehicles at a checkpoint in Lahore. – AP

ANALYSIS:

Pakistan faces its worst-case scenario

Can things get any worse for Pakistan?

Why is Pakistan aiming at Waziristan?

Islamabad, October 17: Pakistan imposes an indefinite curfew in parts of the South Waziristan Agency beginning from Saturday while at least 14 people are killed in clashes with security forces.

The government decision to impose an indefinite curfew has come in connection with a possible military operation against the pro-Taliban militants in the region, officials told a Press TV correspondent on Friday. The curfew will begin from 7 a.m. on Saturday.

Islamabad, October 17: The reluctance of the Pakistani military leadership to launch a much-needed army operation in South Waziristan, the stronghold of the al Qaeda-linked Tehrik-i-Taliban Pakistan (TTP), has led to serious differences between president Asif Ali Zardari and army chief general Ashfaq Kayani amid rumours that the Pakistan People’s Party chairman may eventually sack Kayani in his capacity as the supreme commander of the armed forces.

Peshawar, October 17: A woman bomber blew herself up at a police compound in the Pakistani city of Peshawar on Friday, October 16, killing at least 11 people, in the first such assault in the south Asian Muslim country.

“According to eyewitnesses, a burqa-clad woman alighted from a motorbike, in front of the entrance of the investigation center,” Peshawar police chief Karim Khan.

“As one of the police guards deputed there tried to stop her, she removed her veil, and blew herself up.

Lahore, October 17: The government on Friday banned pillion on motorcycles riding in Islamabad, Karachi and Hyderabad for a month, a private TV channel reported.

According to the channel, Interior Minister Rehman Malik had ordered law-enforcement agencies to heighten security at all entry and exit points of the federal capital. Separately, the Sindh government has also banned pillion riding in Karachi and Hyderabad for the next 30 days.

Disabled and old citizens, children, women, journalists and law-enforcement agencies personnel have been exempted from the ban.

Islamabad, October 16: Terrorists today struck in the northwest Pakistani city of Peshawar for the second straight day as a suicide bomber rammed an explosives-laden vehicle into a police station near a mosque, killing at least 11 people and injuring 16 others.

The police station in the cantonment area of North West Frontier Province’s capital city targeted by the attacker also housed the office of the Crime Investigation Agency (CIA). A nearby mosque was also severely damaged by the powerful blast.

Peshawar, October 16: A bomb explodes near a police facility in Pakistan’s northwest city of Peshawar, a day after a spate of violent attacks across the country left at least 40 people dead.

The blast happened on Friday morning near a police investigation bureau in the troubled city where insurgency has skyrocketed over some past few months.

Initial reports said at least eleven people were killed in the lethal blast.

The death toll is expected to rise as some of the injured were said to be in critical condition.

Islamabad, October 16: As his militants wrought havoc in Lahore by a series of attacks and suicide blasts,
Pakistani Taliban chief Hakimullah Mehsud has threatened to dispatch terrorists to fight India, once an Islamic state had been created in Pakistan.

“We want an Islamic state. If we get that, then we will go to the borders and help fight the Indians,” Hakimullah said in footage aired by Britain’s Sky News channel.

Islamabad, October 16: Pakistan was reeling last night after the Taliban intensified its bloody campaign of violence, launching five separate attacks in a single day, including the first ever with female assailants.

At least 28 victims died in three attacks carried out by gunmen on police targets in Lahore and two car bombs in Kohat and Peshawar. “The enemy has started a guerrilla war,” said the Interior Minister Rehman Malik. “The whole nation should be united against these handful of terrorists, and God willing we will defeat them.”