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Wednesday, November 23, 2011

Pakistani Taliban declare nationwide cease-fire


The Pakistani Taliban has declared a cease-fire to encourage nascent peace talks with the government, a senior commanders said, a move that appears to show the deadly group’s willingness to strike a deal with state. The commander said the cease-fire has been in effect for the past month and was valid throughout the country. ”We are not attacking the Pakistan army and government installations because of the peace process,” he said late Monday. The commander is close to Hakimullah Mehsud, the leader of the Taliban. He spoke on condition of anonymity because he was not the official spokesman of the insurgent network. His statement adds credence to recent announcements by anonymous Taliban and intelligence officials that government intermediaries recently met Taliban commanders to talk about a possible peace deal. The government has not officially commented, and on Tuesday the Pakistani army denied it was involved in any talks. The Pakistan Taliban, an umbrella grouping of militants allied with al-Qaida and based in the northwest close to the Afghan border, has been behind many of the scores of bloody suicide attacks around Pakistan over the last 4 1/2 years. At least 35,000 people have been killed in the bloodshed. The United States wants Pakistan to keep the pressure on insurgents and would likely be concerned about any effort to strike a deal. Many of its fiercest foes in Afghanistan, as well as al-Qaida operatives from around the world, live alongside the Pakistan Taliban in North Waziristan. Much remains unclear about the nature of the talks and their potential. Both the army and the militants have engaged in misinformation before. Some reports have said any deal would only cover one region in the northwest, South Waziristan, but could be extended. The Pakistan Taliban is believed to be divided. Many of its leaders and foot soldiers have been killed in US drone attacks and Pakistani army offensives over the last few years. Some faction and allied groups are still committed to war against the state, and there been several insurgent attacks over the last month.

Egyptians converge on Tahrir Square for 4th day


Egyptians responding to a call for a mass rally began flowing onto Cairo s central Tahrir Square Tuesday as protests demanding the country s military rulers to step down entered a fourth day despite a crackdown by police that has killed at least 29 people. Activists are hoping to increase the number of protesters in the square which was the epicenter of the revolt that ousted Hosni Mubarak in mid-February with a demonstration to bolster popular support for a "second revolution." Violence also continued, with black-clad security forces backed by military troops firing volleys of tear gas and rubber bullets to block protesters, who responded by hurling stones and fire bombs. The two sides have been engaged in intense clashes since the unrest began on Saturday. Egypt s state-TV reported that three people were killed overnight in the Suez Canal city of Ismailia, east of Cairo, raising the overall death toll from the protests to 29. Hundreds of protesters arrived early Tuesday to join several thousand who have been camping on Tahrir Square, sleeping in tents or on the grass rolled up in blankets despite efforts by police to clear the area. The crowds hoisted a giant Egyptian flag and chanted slogans demanding the generals immediately step down in favor of a presidential civilian council. One man held a sign reading "ministry of thuggery" with photos of Mubarak, the senior military ruler, Field Marshal Hussein Tantawi, Prime Minister Essam Sharaf and others. A few hundred young men nearby chanted "say it, don t fear, the council must go" and "the people want to execute the field marshal." The rally, dubbed "Egypt s Salvation," came a day after the civilian Cabinet of Prime Minister Essam Sharaf submitted its resignation to the military council, a move that had been widely expected given the government s perceived inefficiency and its almost complete subordination to the generals. The ruling military council gave no word if the offer had been accepted, but regardless, it failed to satisfy the protesters. "That was a game, like playing the joker in a game of cards. We want the military council to resign," said 60-year-old protester Mustafa Mursi, who wore a pair of goggles on his forehead with a gas mask and a laminated picture of his slain son around his neck. Mursi, who has been at the square since the latest protests began on Saturday, said that his son Mohammed was shot in head on Jan. 28 during clashes with security forces in the earlier uprising. "I ll stay until military rule ends and there is civilian rule," he said. The clashes came few days before the country s first parliamentary elections since Mubarak was forced to step down. Fears were high that the turmoil would disrupt elections due to begin on Nov. 28. Amnesty International harshly criticized the military rulers in a new report, saying they have "completely failed to live up their promises to Egyptians to improve human rights." The London-based group documented steps by the military that have fallen short of increasing human rights and in some cases have made matters worse than under Mubarak. "The euphoria of the uprising has been replaced by fears that one repressive rule has simply been replaced with another," according to the report, issued early Tuesday. The report called for repeal of the Mubarak-era "emergency laws," expanded to cover "thuggery" and criticizing the military. It said the army has placed arbitrary restrictions on media and other outlets. Egyptian security forces have continued to use torture against demonstrators, the report said, and some 12,000 civilians have been tried in military trials, which it called "unfair." A military spokesman, meanwhile, told The Associated Press that the military has set up barbed wire and barricades around the security headquarters to prevent protesters from storming the building. "We are only here to protect the interior ministry," he said. The spokesman, who asked not to be identified because he wasn t authorized to release the information, also said army officers and soldiers had been forbidden to enter Tahrir Square. The unrest had immediate impact of Egypt s benchmark stock index which plunged for a third day. The EGX30 index fell by over 3 percent within minutes of the market s opening on Tuesday, building on the previous day s 4 percent decline.

Ambassador Haqqani 'removed', put in the dock


Haqqani, the Pakistani ambassador to the United States, was questioned by the top civil and military leadership at the President House. President Zardari, PM Gilani, COAS General Ashfaq Parvez Kayani and ISI DG Gen Shujaa Pasha attended the grilling session that lasted for hours. Sources said Haqqani was questioned about every aspect of the memo scandal. The questions asked were prepared by the military top brass at a high-level meeting yesterday, sources said. Addressing the media after the questioning at the President House, Hussain Haqqani said that he has tendered his resignation as he doesn’t want to be a stumbling block to the continuation of democracy in the country. Sources said that his resignation has been accepted. However, official account in this regard is yet to come. The relevant companies would be contacted regarding Blackberry and computer record of Haqqani as part of inquiry against him, sources said. "The Prime Minister asked Pakistan Ambassador to the US Hussain Haqqani to submit his resignation," Gilani s spokesman said in a statement, adding that the government had ordered a "detailed investigation" into the issue. Haqqani has offered to resign over the row, but has denied any involvement with the document. The spokesman said, "all concerned would be afforded sufficient and fair opportunity to present their views and the investigation shall be carried out fairly, objectively and without bias". "As a result of controversy generated by the alleged memo which had been drafted, formulated and further admitted to have been received by authority in the US, it has become necessary in national interest to formally arrive at the actual and true facts". The alleged memo was revealed last month by American businessman Mansoor Ijaz. In an opinion piece in the UK s Financial Times on October 10, Ijaz wrote that a "senior Pakistani diplomat" telephoned him in May soon after bin Laden s death, urging him to deliver a message to the White House bypassing Pakistan s military and intelligence chiefs. "The president feared a military takeover was imminent" and "needed an American fist on his army chief s desk to end any misguided notions of a coup -- and fast," he wrote. He said a memo was delivered to Mullen on May 10, offering that a "new national security team" would end relations between Pakistani intelligence and Afghan militants, namely the Taliban and its Haqqani faction. Meanwhile, Haqqani called for a transparent inquiry into the controversy to strengthen the hands of elected Pakistani leadership. "A transparent inquiry will strengthen the hands of elected leaders whom I strived to strengthen," he said in a message sent to reporters in Islamabad on Tuesday. He said,"to me, Pakistan and Pakistan s democracy are far more important than any artificially created crisis over an insignificant memo written by a self-centred businessman." "I have served Pakistan to the best of my ability and will continue to do so."