KHI 18-12-2011_Layout 1 12/18/2011 1:28 AM Page 1
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ISLAMABAD: Women cook food on a makeshift stove on Saturday as the federal capital and other cities across Pakistan suffer from acute gas shortage. online
Army, executive on same page: PM Gilani says army and judiciary don’t want to derail democratic process g Says he has succeeded in bringing Zardari and Kayani closer g Calls PTI old wine in new bottle g
ISLAMABAD MIAn ABrAr
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Army officer, two soldiers killed in Kurram explosion PESHAWAR: A lieutenant and two personnel of Pakistan Army were killed in a landmine explosion in the Gadda Sarayee area of Kurram Agency on Saturday, while officials claimed killing more than 30 militants in a military operation in Orakzai Agency in the last two days. The officials said a contingent of security forces was advancing during action against
militants in the Gadda Sarayee area of Kurram Agency when a landmine planted by militants exploded. The explosion killed three officials and injured several others. In retaliation, the forces initiated action against the militants and also launched a door-to-door search in the area. On the other hand, officials said the security forces continued action against militants in the Khadezai area of Orakzai on
the second consecutive day. Backed by helicopter gunships and artillery, the forces killed at least seven militants on Saturday, besides destroying two terrorist dens. Officials had on Friday claimed killing around 29 militants in retaliation after a landmine attack on the security forces in the same area. One soldier was killed and 22 others injured in that landmine explosion. StAff RepoRt
Sunday, 18 december, 2011 Muharram-ul-Haram 22, 1433
ITh the tension over the “memogate” scandal apparently defused, Prime Minister Yousaf Raza Gilani on Saturday said there was no confrontation between the army and executive and both were on the same page on the memo issue. Talking to a select group of journalists, the PM said the army and judiciary were “pro-democracy” and both “did not want to derail the democratic process”. he said he had succeeded in getting President Asif Ali Zardari and army chief General Ashfaq Kayani closer, stating that both Zardari and Kayani had a telephonic chat on Friday night during his meeting with Kayani. Gilani spoke candidly on almost all aspects of the country’s complex politics and economic situation and tried to clear the air on the stand-off between the army and government and tension with the judiciary, besides making some specific attacks on Imran Khan’s Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaaf (PTI), which is rapidly gaining popularity. Surprisingly for the first time, Gilani hit out at Imran Khan’s party, calling it old wine in a new
bottle, and contributed forty percent of his speech to those politicians, who he said were rejected by the people and comrades of dictators and were now joining Imran. During his one-and-a-halfhour long conversation, he came down hard on the media for “uselessly” creating hype over the memo issue, claiming that the memo held no ground following the affidavit by General James Jones, the retired marine corps officer of the US. “When most of the journalists even don’t know the exact meaning of the memo, why do they make an issue out of it?” he asserted. Gilani said that during his meeting with Gen Kayani on Friday, President Zardari called him and asked what he was doing. “I told the president that I was in a meeting with the army chief. he asked me to convey his good wishes to Kayani. When I told Gen Kayani, he said that wanted to talk to the president. Later they spoke and I don’t know about the content of their talk,” the PM said. Asked if the president would attend the death anniversary of Benazir Bhutto in Naudero on December 27, Gilani said, “Who can stop him if the doctors allow him?” Continued on page 04
SC sends fresh notices to president, pM, iSi DG in memo case MonItorIng DeSk The Supreme Court on Saturday issued fresh notices to President Asif Ali Zardari and Prime Minister Yousaf Raza Gilani in connection with the memogate case in response to a letter faxed to the court by a Pakistani residing in Canada, a private TV channel said on Saturday. The notices refer to the letter in which the writer claimed that he and his family faced threat to their lives from the Pakistani government. The letter stated that the government was not serious about investigating into the memo affair and that the government was “endangering his and the lives of his family members by collaborating with Pakistan’s enemies”. The writer also said all his family members were serving in the Pakistan Army. Notices were also issued to ISI DG Ahmed Shuja Pasha and Attorney General Maulvi Anwarul haq for December 19. The notices said the allegations leveled by the Pakistani citizen were directly related to national security.
Text of replies filed by coas, isi dg and foreign and interior ministries in memo case