ISLAMABAD: Two days before the signing of a US-Taliban deal, Pakistan said on Thursday it had done its best to facilitate the Afghan peace process.
“There will be positive results from this deal. Nobody wants peace in Afghanistan more than Pakistan. We are hoping for the best,” military spokesman Maj. Gen. Babar Iftikhar told reporters at the Pakistan Army headquarters in Rawalpindi.
The US and Afghan Taliban are due to sign the peace agreement in Doha, Qatar, on Saturday.
The army spokesman added that Pakistan’s relationship with Afghanistan is “cordial” as there are no reasons for it to turn sour.
As Thursday’s conference was Iftikhar’s first since he took office in January, he underlined the army’s success in eliminating militancy and restoring normality in Pakistan. As evidence of the success, he cited increasing tourism activity and the return of international cricket to the country.
The ongoing Pakistan Super League is held on home soil for the first time, as security concerns had caused most games in previous years to be played abroad.
The army spokesman also said Pakistan does not seek open conflict with India, but is fully prepared to respond to any misadventure.
“There is no space for war between two nuclear powers, as this will have uncontrollable and unintended consequences. Things will spiral out of control,” he said, adding that the military is “prepared for all scenarios” and will “effectively respond” if there is any challenge to Pakistan’s security and integrity.
The statement comes exactly a year after two Indian fighter jets were downed for violating Pakistan’s airspace in an operation dubbed “Swift Retort” on Feb. 27, 2019.
Pakistan 'facilitated' Afghan peace deal, says army spokesman
https://arab.news/phw98
Pakistan 'facilitated' Afghan peace deal, says army spokesman
- Babar Iftikhar rejects rumors that US-Taliban peace deal may be delayed
- Underlines the army’s success in eliminating militancy
Imran Khan has allowed party to submit demands to Pakistan government in writing — aide
- Second round of discussions between both sides ended inconclusively last week after Khan’s party demanded more time to consult ex-PM
- PM’s special assistant on political affairs says negotiations to resume after National Assembly Speaker Ayaz Sadiq returns from overseas trip
ISLAMABAD: Former prime minister Imran Khan has allowed his Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) party to submit its demands in writing to the government during the next round of negotiations between the two sides, Khan’s top aide and PTI Chairman Gohar Ali Khan said on Wednesday, as both sides attempt to break the political deadlock in the country.
The second round of discussions between the two sides took place on Jan. 2 ended inconclusively after Khan’s party demanded more time to meet and consult the ex-PM before submitting their demands in writing.
Khan’s ouster in a parliamentary no-trust vote in 2022 has plunged Pakistan into a political crisis, particularly since he was jailed in August 2023 on corruption and other charges. His party has regularly held protests to demand his release, with many of the demonstrations turning violent.
“Today Khan has said that you can give our demands in writing [to the government],” Gohar Ali Khan told reporters after his meeting with the former prime minister at the central prison in Rawalpindi. “So we will give our demands at the negotiation table in writing.”
Khan’s party has previously stated two demands: the release of all political prisoners and the establishment of judicial commissions to investigate protests on May 9, 2023, and Nov. 26, 2024, which the government says involved Khan supporters, accusing them of attacking military installations and government buildings.
“We will present our two demands in writing because even though there is no need to do so, we don’t want it to [delay the talks] by using it as a reason,” he said.
At a press conference on Wednesday evening, Special Assistant to the Prime Minister on Political Affairs Rana Sanaullah said talks between both sides had been paused as National Assembly Speaker Ayaz Sadiq, who is heading the government’s delegation, has left the country on an “emergency” visit to a foreign country.
“As soon as he returns, the second meeting that they want [with Imran Khan] will be held and after that we expect that they will present their demands seriously,” Sanaullah told reporters.
The next date for talks between the PTI and the government has not been finalized. Last week, Senator Irfan Siddiqui, a member of the government’s negotiation committee, said the talks could encounter “serious hurdles” due to the PTI’s failure to submit its demands in writing at the next meeting.
Afghanistan hire Younis Khan as mentor for Champions Trophy in Pakistan
- Younis Khan, 47, played 118 Tests, 265 ODIs and 25 T20Is for Pakistan before retiring in 2017
- Afghanistan is in Champions Trophy Group B with England, Australia and South Africa
ISLAMABAD: Afghanistan has hired former Pakistan captain Younis Khan as a mentor for its men’s cricket team at next month’s Champions Trophy in Pakistan.
The Afghanistan Cricket Board (ACB) said in a statement on Wednesday that the 47-year-old batting great will join the team in Pakistan ahead of the Champions Trophy and will stay with Afghanistan at the tournament.
Younis, who played 118 tests, 265 ODIs and 25 T20s for Pakistan, retired from international cricket in 2017 and briefly worked with the national team as batting coach in 2021 before quitting after differences with the Pakistan Cricket Board.
Afghanistan is in Group B with England, Australia and South Africa. It will play its first match against South Africa at Karachi on Feb. 21.
More than 160 UK politicians have urged England to refuse to play against Afghanistan. The politicians wrote asking the England and Wales Cricket Board to take a stand against the Taliban regime’s assault on women’s rights.
It will be a second stint for Younis with Afghanistan, having previously worked with the team at a training camp in Abu Dhabi in 2022.
It will be the third straight major ICC tournament where Afghanistan has utilized local expertise by appointing a mentor, after former India international Ajay Jadeja for the 2023 World Cup in India, and Dwayne Bravo as bowling consultant at the 2024 T20 World Cup in the West Indies and US
“Since the Champions Trophy is being held in Pakistan, it was required to assign a talented and experienced player as mentor from the hosting country,” ACB chief executive Naseeb Khan said.
Afghanistan finished sixth at the World Cup in India after beating England, Pakistan and Sri Lanka to seal its Champions Trophy place. At the T20 World Cup, Afghanistan advanced to the semifinals.
The Champions Trophy will begin Feb. 19 in Karachi.
India, which is in Group A with Pakistan, New Zealand and Bangladesh, will play all its games in Dubai.
Pakistani women require permission from male guardians to perform Hajj alone — religion ministry
- Saudi Arabia allowed women to perform Umrah and Hajj on their own in October 2022
- Number of women applicants for solo Hajj has nearly doubled from last year, says official
ISLAMABAD: Women intending to perform Hajj alone need permission from their male guardians such as fathers, husbands or in the absence of both, other close male relatives, officials of Pakistan’s religion ministry and the Council of Islamic Ideology (CII) said on Wednesday.
In October 2022, Saudi Arabia allowed women to perform the Islamic pilgrimages of Umrah and Hajj without “a mahram,” a male with whom Islam forbids a woman to marry due to her close relationship with them. Examples of a mahram for a woman include her father, husband, son and brother, among others.
The CII, a constitutional body responsible for advising the government on matters related to Islam, ruled in June 2023 that a woman will be allowed to perform Hajj without her male guardian subject to two conditions: that she has permission from her spouse or parents for the pilgrimage, and that she has a “group of reliable female pilgrims and there is no threat to her dignity.”
Pakistan’s religious affairs ministry spokesperson, Muhammad Umer Butt, said women wishing to perform Hajj without a male guardian were required to submit written permission from their father, husband, or other guardians along with their Hajj 2025 application.
“Last year we facilitated single women for Hajj, and they are allowed again this year with the number of applicants nearly doubling from 3,027 in 2024 to 6,028 this year,” Butt told Arab News.
He said that after the Saudi government’s decision to allow women to perform Hajj on their own, Pakistan’s Ministry of Religious Affairs sought guidance from the CII and implemented their recommendations.
“The ministry has ensured that these women will travel in women-only groups, prioritizing their safety and comfort,” Butt said.
Butt said the majority of female pilgrims who have applied for Hajj this year are accompanied by mahrams. A small number of women faced difficulties in the availability of mahrams and have opted to travel for the pilgrimage alone, he said.
CII spokesperson Rana Zahid explained the religious body’s 2023 decision, saying that women were permitted by Shariah to perform Hajj alone if they were unable to find male guardians.
“However, this permission is subject to certain conditions and the woman must obtain consent from her father, husband (if married), or guardian,” Zahid said.
He said such women must also travel with a trustworthy group of women or “reliable companions,” ensuring there is no apparent risk or threat to her safety and dignity.
Saudi Arabia has allotted Pakistan a total quota of 179,210 pilgrims for the upcoming Hajj pilgrimage, to be divided equally between the government and private schemes.
Pakistan sisters set father on fire after rape — police
- Sisters took petrol from motorcycle and set fire to father while he slept on Jan. 1, say police
- Father had been raping eldest girl for a year, twice attempted to rape younger one, sisters allege
LAHORE: Two teenage sisters were arrested in Pakistan for killing their father by setting him on fire in revenge for rape, police said Wednesday.
The father was attacked in the Punjabi city of Gujranwala on January 1 and taken to hospital where he died on Tuesday.
“The girls said that they decided among themselves to find a ‘permanent solution’,” Rizwan Tariq, a senior police official in the city, told AFP.
They then took petrol from a motorcycle and set their father on fire as he slept, he added.
The pair, who are step-sisters, said their father had been raping the eldest girl for a year, and had twice attempted to rape the younger girl.
Their mothers — who are both married to the man — knew about the abuse but did not know of the revenge plan.
AFP has not named the man in order to protect the identities of the girls, one of whom is from a previous marriage.
One of the wives has also been arrested while the second is being questioned.
“We expect to present them before the court in a few days, as soon as we finish the investigation,” Tariq added.
Pakistan dispatches convoy of 40 aid trucks for violence-hit Kurram district
- Tribal and sectarian clashes have caused medicine, food and fuel shortages in Kurram district
- Armed men attacked aid convoy en route to Kurram district on Saturday, injuring five persons
PESHAWAR: The government in Pakistan’s northwestern Khyber Pakhtunkhwa (KP) province on Wednesday dispatched a convoy of 40 vehicles carrying relief items for the violence-hit Kurram district, an official confirmed, days after an aid convoy en route to the area came under attack.
Five people, including a top administration official, were injured when armed men shot at an aid convoy en route to Kurram district near Bagan, a tense locality in the district, on Saturday. The convoy was stalled as the provincial government vowed stern action against the culprits and their facilitators.
Kurram, a northwestern district of around 600,000 people in the KP province, has been rocked by tribal and sectarian clashes since Nov. 21 when gunmen attacked a convoy of Shia passengers, killing 52. Sporadic clashes since then have killed at least 136 people before the provincial government brokered a ceasefire between the warring tribes last week.
“A convoy of 40 vehicles carrying relief items for Kurram district was sent safely today,” Muhammad Ali Saif, a spokesperson for the KP government, said in a statement.
Saif said a convoy of 10 vehicles had reached Bagan while another comprising 30 vehicles will arrive at Parachinar, the district’s capital, and Upper Kurram “soon.”
“The convoy was sent after successful negotiations with local protesters till late last night,” the spokesperson said.
The violence in the district forced authorities to block a main road connecting Kurram’s main town of Parachinar with the provincial capital of Peshawar, causing medicine, food and fuel shortages in the area.
Saif said more aid convoys will be sent to the district after peace is established there.
The Saturday gun attack took place days after a grand jirga, or council of political and tribal elders formed by the KP provincial government, brokered a peace agreement between the warring Shia and Sunni tribes on Jan. 1, following weeks of efforts.
Under the peace agreement, both sides had agreed on the demolition of bunkers and the handover of heavy weapons to the authorities within two weeks.
It was also decided that land disputes in the volatile district will be settled on a priority basis with the cooperation of local tribes and the district administration.
The agreement said opening of banned outfits’ offices will be prohibited in the district, while social media accounts spreading hate will be discouraged via collective efforts backed by the government.
