h1 Patterson terms remarks of Indian Army Chief as ’silly’

ISLAMABAD: US Ambassador to Pakistan Anne Patterson termed the recent remarks of Indian Army Chief General Kapoor as ’silly’ and said that India and Pakistan should address their issues bilaterally to ensure progress in both countries.

In an exclusive interview with DawnNews on Thursday night, the US envoy said that there was enormous potential for economic progress if India and Pakistan got together.

The countries have complementary markets and commercial implications of the good relations between them are enormous, she said.

Anne Patterson said that if the Pakistan government has any evidence of Indian involvement in Balochistan, her country will be keen to play a role in addressing the situation.

She felt the immediate need for reestarting composite dialogue between India and Pakistan and resumption of confidence building measure.

Appreciating the efforts of Pakistan army in combating the terrorists in Swat and South Waziristan the US envoy said, Pakistan army has pursued this war very courageously and they have rendered big sacrifices in it.

She expressed confidence in Pakistan government for spending KLB’s assistance money for development of infrastructure in FATA and South Waziristan.

She also lauded Benazir Income Support Programme saying this programme is being appreciated by the comity of nations adding there would be no harm if the money of US assistance reaches the deserving people through this programme.

To a question the American envoy said that withdrawal of US troops from Afghanistan would be condition- based.

“We have to train and equip the Afghan security forces to replace the US and Nato troops before leaving the country”, the Ambassador said.

Commenting on the reports of presence of US security officials in Gwadar the envoy said, they visited the area to advance the visit of aid directors to assess the projects being financed through KLB.

She said there was no American in Pakistan without visa or proper documentation adding some people were floating such speculations in the media to undermine the relationship of two countries.

“We do not have Blackwaters in Pakistan and all information in this regard in foreign and local media was nonsense,” she said.

Mystery Surrounds Contractors’ Role at CIA Base

Two of the seven CIA personnel killed in last week’s suicide bombing in Afghanistan worked as contractors for the company formerly known as Blackwater, but what role Dane Paresi and Jeremy Wise played at the CIA’s forward base in Khost remains unknown. The base collected intelligence used in the CIA’s drone attacks across the border in Pakistan, but CIA director Leon Panetta has said that the former Blackwater, now known as Xe Services, is no longer involved in the drone program.

Spokesman for both the CIA and Xe/Blackwater declined to comment whether Paresi and Wise were employed through Xe, but two private intelligence sources and one current government official familiar with CIA operations at the Afghanistan base confirmed to ABCNEWS.com that the two were there as Xe employees. A source familiar with Xe’s contracts said that their role was not to provide security for the base, but provided no further details.

Paresi and Wise were both former elite military commandos, and were killed when a Jordanian double agent detonated a suicide bomb at a meeting inside the CIA base near the Pakistan border. Wise was a 35-year-old former Navy SEAL from Virginia Beach, Va. A statement from the family of the 46-year-old Dane Paresi described him as having recently retired from 27 years in the Army, many in Special Operations. He was from Portland, Ore.

h1 Three consulate employees held in Gwadar, released

QUETTA: Police in Gwadar took into custody three employees of the US Consulate in Karachi and impounded their vehicle on Wednesday.

The number plate of the US Consulate vehicle was found to be fake, a senior police officer of Gwadar police said, while confirming the arrest of the three employees.

According to sources, police intercepted a vehicle with a diplomatic number plate at the Gwadar bypass, acting on information that a suspicious vehicle had entered the area. Police brought the vehicle and the three employees to Gwadar police station.

The three, Ghulam Jilani, assistant security officer, Muzafar and the driver, were released late on Wednesday.

The sources said the three had arrived in Turbat a day before and, after spending the night there, they left for Gwadar. The consulate employees refused to say anything about the purpose of their visit to Turbat and Gwadar.

“Yes, police took into custody three US Consulate employees who had come to Gwadar and Turbat without permission from competent authorities,” a senior officer told Dawn, adding that an investigation was under way to ascertain the purpose of their visit to the area.

Sources said that the employees had been released on the orders of some senior officials. However, police refused to hand over the vehicle because its documents had not been produced.

“We released the US Consulate employees,” Jumma Khan, SHO of Gwadar police station, said. But the vehicle was in police custody because its number plate was found to be fake.

Case registered against held US consulate employees

QUETTA: Police have refused to release employees of the US consulate in Karachi till completion of investigation and determining the motive of their visit to Turbat and Gwadar.

The consulate’s deputy security officer Ghulam Gilani, driver Muzaffar Ali Shah and their guard were arrested on Wednesday night when they were travelling in a vehicle with a fake number plate.

Sources said that after initial investigation police allowed them to make a phone call to inform their superiors about their detention. “The three employees are still in police custody for interrogation,” a senior official of the provincial government told Dawn on Friday.

He said the federal government and the Foreign Office had been informed about the case. The sources said that a case had been registered against them under section 468, 471 and 109. They said the excise department had confirmed that the number-plate on the US consulate vehicle was fake.

The sources also said the consulate employees had not taken prior permission from the competent authorities for their visit to Gwadar and Turbat that was required of diplomats and staff of foreign missions for visiting any area in the country.

The sources said that although the employees were Pakistanis, they were working for a foreign mission and travelling in the consulate’s official vehicle with fake number plate.

“Till they clarify the purpose of their visit to Turbat and Gwadar without seeking permission from the authorities concerned they will not be released,” said the official. He said that the employees had not informed even the Foreign Office about the visit.

He said the US consulate had been informed that till the completion of investigation the employees would remain in detention.

Interview: Author of ‘Confessions of an Economic Hitman’

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Increase in American ISI-Phobia

Allegations that ISI has ’stepped up harassment of U.S. Embassy’ in Islamabad

Various reports in the American press (including the below excerpt from ‘Politico‘ blog) have come out blaming Pakistan’s premier intelligence agency, the ISI (Inter-Services Intelligence) of ‘unnecessarily harassing’ US Embassy officials in Pakistan – after a number of US diplomatic staff and Embassy employees have recently been caught engaging in illegal and anti-state activities.

Politico reports: As the U.S. Embassy in Islamabad publicly complained yesterday of the systematic harassment of U.S. officials in Pakistan, a longtime American Af-Pak hand says the Pakistani intelligence service the ISI appears to be deeply involved in the campaign.

“Seems the ISI has been putting pictures (with addresses) of houses containing [Embassy] Americans in the Urdu newspapers as a provocation,” the AfPak hand writes. “Several times recently the RSO (Regional Security officer) at the Embassy has had to contact folks in their offices during the day, and tell them that they can’t go home to their house tonight because of the unwanted attention caused by the ISI/Journalist provocations. Station and Emb have complained to ISI – but no acknowlegement (not surprising) and no abatement of the activity (worrisome).”

“The United States Embassy in Pakistan complained publicly Thursday that its staff members were being harassed and detained as they traveled around the country, a rare public protest reflecting the tensions as America expanded its presence here,” the Associated Press reports.

“American officials say they need to expand the embassy staff to help disburse $7.5 billion in aid to Pakistan. But many Pakistanis believe that the United States is bringing in spies to destabilize the country and to take over its nuclear program. American diplomats have faced delays in approvals for visas and visa extensions. Some have been stopped at checkpoints.”

Zaid Hamid in Sahir Lodhi Show – 8th Jan10

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ISPR Documentary – Life of a Siachen Soldier (Pakistan Army)

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The Sinking Boat of India

By Ibne Qasim

There was yet another daring assault in the heart of Srinagar Lal chowk by two fidayeen armed with Ak-47’s and grenades. They were able to take stronghold in a Punjab hotel building and took on the security forces for more than 30 hours. According to the local sources, two Mujahideen and dozens of soldier including a major and a subeydar were killed and the gun battle ended with the Indian forces burning down the hotel building. This was perhaps because they were unable to apprehend the Mujahideen. The responsibility for the attack was claimed by Jamiat ul Mujahideen, but the Indian forces believe that this attack has the hallmarks of Lashkar e Taiba, an outfit that they also blame for the Mumbai attacks. This attack was highly symbolic in nature and was demonstrative of the fear that the Indian Army has of LET fighters who they believe are well equipped, daring , and even better trained than the most prestigious BLACK CAT and MARCOS of Indian army. An Indian army officer told this writer on condition of anonymity that “the LET has a habit of attacking Indian military installations and camps and they often do not take responsibility for it. Instead they use a different name to confuse the Intelligence agencies and continue with their work.” It has also been reported that there is growing sympathy for them among the people of Kashmir mainly because they never target or attack civilians, their enemy is the Indian military which is involved in heinous acts of state-terrorism in the Indian Occupied Kashmir.

The LET have on many occasions helped the Kashmiri people in supporting their economy that has been sabotaged by the Indian government with the help of Hindu extremists. One such example is the shrine board issue.

It is evident that the Indian military is unable to tackle these situations. In Kashmir alone, they have failed to handle a handful of militants for days and weeks. Another example of this is the fight that took place in Kupwara jungle where the Indian army fought with thousands of troops for nine straight days and six of these militants were able to escape the siege after showing tremendous heart in dense jungle. This single attack shows the capability of guerrillas to hit anywhere anytime. If the Indian intelligence agencies dared to cause havoc on Pakistani soil they should expect the taste of their own medicine. It has long been a dream of the Chankia-driven ideology of the Indian establishment and military to wipe out the few hundred militants from the valley of Kashmir but this struggle seems far from over as the resilient Kashmiri freedom fighters continue to fight the battle for their freedom from Indian occupation. India has always mistaken the strategic silence of militants for their weakness and any attempt to neutralize the guerrillas has failed time and time again. Earlier this week Chidambaram said “Every hour, every day and every month, India’s capacity to meet the challenges to internal security is growing. We are stronger today than we were a year ago, and we will be stronger a year from now than we are today.” Indian hopes for a stable and secure India have long been dashed. The ideology of hatred and barbarism that India has let loose on her neighbours and on the weak and poor within her own borders has ensured that the insurgencies and separatist movements in India will remain a constant threat to its existence until and unless the oppressive policies are abandoned and due rights of the people are given to them.

This particular attack in Punjab is a message for Deepak Kapoor from the Kashmiri fighters, that instead of dreaming about taking on Pakistan and China, the Indians should really be worrying about dealing with the valiant sons and daughters of Kashmir for they will not be oppressed for much longer. The time is very near, Insha’Allah, when the fragrant and fertile valley of Kashmir will once again become a haven for its peace and freedom loving inhabitants. This is what every Kashmiri and Pakistani believes. The Kashmiri freedom movement is far from over, it is alive and Kashmiri Mujahideen are a force to be reckoned with. No matter how much they deny it publicly, this fact is well understood by Indian naitas in Lok Sabha and the generals in Delhi HQ.

The Kashmiri freedom movement must be given unconditional support by the Pakistani government in order to heal the Indian war fever that seems to be taking India to her imminent death, and also to provide a ray of hope and the prospect of a new and respectable way of life for all deprived and hostage communities and people living in India.

History Rising: Burj Dubai Claims the Skies

A Muslim Country UAE has marked History, by erecting the World’s tallest icon, probably the only superscraper, giving the Muslims a reason to celebrate. It is the only tallest man made structure. It is the first time the Muslim world has claimed of having the title of the world’s tallest building since 1311, when Lincoln Cathedral exceeded the height of the Great Pyramid of Giza in Egypt.

Khaleej Times - 4 January 2010

In January 2004, Dubai announced Burj Dubai to the world with the claim, ‘History Rising’. Six years on and history has most certainly ‘risen’.

Burj Dubai will soon be transformed into a vibrant community for thousands of residents, employees, hotel guests and tourists. Up to 12,000 people will live, work and play inside the world’s tallest building.

The tower is the focal point of the 500-acre master planned community Downtown Burj Dubai, which is widely described as the most prestigious square kilometre on earth.

Burj Dubai is the development’s crowing glory in every sense, a building that has pushed the boundaries of design and engineering further than many thought possible.

My responsibility - My Two By Two!

They day we understand what this gentleman is saying; that day, for sure, we will become the greatest Nation on earth, but first you, you have to understand what he is saying. Tell us what you think he is is saying? Leave you comments!.

Ali Khan

The Editor

Police, rangers launch search operation in Lyari

KARACHI: Police and rangers have reportedly launched a joint crackdown against suspected miscreants in Lyari locality and have also arrested scores of suspects following reports of intensive firing in the area on Sunday night.

According to sources, following the reports of fresh clashes between some rival groups and in view of recent target killings in the area,police and rangers have jointly commenced search operation and as a result, nabbed a number of people from there.

Search operation in still underway, meanwhile, locally resident women have come out of their homes and chanting slogans against police operation, witnesses said.