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Pakistan exerting Pakistan continues to insufficient pressure consider India existenon militant groups: CIA tial threat: US PAGE 22
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NATIONAL | PAGE 06
PM will be indicted if Zardari immunity is not proved: SC ISLAMABAD
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USTICe Nasirul Mulk, the head of the seven-member special bench of the Supreme Court (SC) hearing the National Reconciliation Ordinance (NRO) implementation case, told Aitzaz Ahsen, counsel for Prime Minister Yousaf Raza Gilani, during a hearing on Wednesday to convince the court that President Asif Ali Zardari had immunity or the court would indict the prime minister for contempt of court. Ahsen stuck to his position that no mala fide was involved in the prime minister’s statement before the court and it should be treated as informal. His argument was that the prime minister was an ordinary citizen, but the court did not agree to his submission and questioned how he could be an ordinary citizen when all resources of the government were available to him and he was also a legislator. Ahsen, however, did not budge from his position that the letter to the Swiss authorities could not be written as long as the president was in office. He also said there was no harm in case the letter was written but argued that if the letter was not written, it did not warrant contempt of court. From his arguments before the court, it seems that the government is adamant not to reopen cases against President Zardari as the court was again informed that the letter could not be written because the president enjoyed immunity under Article 248 of the constitution. The special bench, headed by Justice Mulk and comprising Justice Asif
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Saeed Khan Khosa, Justice Sarmad Jalal Osmany, Justice ejaz Afzal Khan, Justice Ijaz Ahmed Chaudhry, Justice Gulzar Ahmed and Justice Muhammad Ather Saeed, told Aitzaz Ahsen to conclude his preliminary arguments by Thursday (today). Justice Mulk told Ahsen that if he could not convince the court that President Zardari enjoyed complete immunity under Article 248 of the constitution, it would proceed in the matter in accordance with the law and frame charges against the prime minister. He said the prime minister should have written to Swiss authorities to reopen graft cases against the president before invoking the defence of immunity for the president. Ahsen then requested the court to give the premier the benefit of doubt, as he said his client had obtained proper advice and then decided not to write letter to the Swiss authorities. Justice Mulk told Ahsen that if he proved the president’s immunity, the court would not proceed further in the matter. Ahsen continued to argue that the prime minister honestly believed the president enjoyed immunity. Justice Mulk noted that the prime minister had stated before the court that the decision of not writing the letter was his own. Justice Khosa noted that the prime minister had stated that he was ready to go to jail but would not write the letter. “Is that not disobedience of the court order?” he asked. He said further that the prime minister was acting on the advice of his subordinates but was not ready to obey court orders. Continued on page 04
thursday, 2 February, 2012 Rabi-ul-awal 9, 1433
Pakistan not aiding taliBan Secret NaTO report says ISI aware of the locations of senior Taliban leaders g Khar says charges are ‘old wine in an even older bottle’ g
ISLAMABAD/LONDON Shaiq huSSaiN/aGENCiES
Pakistan strongly refuted NATO allegations on Wednesday that it was assisting Taliban militants fighting the US-led foreign troops in Afghanistan, warning that such baseless accusations could further harm the already strained relations between Islamabad and Washington. A secret NATO report obtained by the British Broadcasting Corporation (BBC) had said the Taliban in Afghanistan were being directly assisted by Pakistani security services. “The leaked report, derived from thousands of interrogations, claims the Taliban remain defiant and have wide support among the Afghan people,” the
KaBul: foreign Minister hina rabbani Khar shakes hands with her afghan counterpart zalmai rasool after a joint press conference on Wednesday. afp BBC said. “A BBC correspondent says the report is painful reading for international forces and the Afghan government,” it added. The report also alleges that Pakistan knows the locations of senior Taliban leaders. However, Foreign Office Spokesman Abdul Basit said in a statement: “We are committed
to non-interference in Afghanistan. Pakistan has suffered enormously because of the long conflict in Afghanistan. A stable and peaceful Afghanistan is in our own interest and we are very much cognizant of this.” Continued on page 04
15 FC men, 7 militants killed in Bolan gun battle QUETTA Shahzada zulfiqar
At least 15 soldiers of the Frontier Corps Balochistan were killed and 12 others left injured in a fierce gun battle between security forces and Baloch militants in Bolan district, the FC said on Wednesday. Seven attackers were also reported to have been killed in the clash, however, no official source or militant group confirmed the toll. The Balochistan Liberation Army claimed responsibility for the attack later at night, however, the
FC had held Baloch self-exiled leader Nawabzada Hairbyar Marri responsible. According to reports, the Baloch militants were estimated to be over three dozen in number and attacked checkposts in the coalmine fields of Margut area of Bolan on Tuesday afternoon using light and heavy weapons. The paramilitary forces returned fire that led both parties into a gun battle which lasted several hours in the difficult mountainous region. Due to darkness and difficult terrain, reinforcements could not reach the battle site on Tuesday. However on
Wednesday morning, reinforcements and choppers were sent to the Margut area to collect the dead and injured. All dead bodies and injured were moved through a helicopter to Quetta. The injured were admitted to Combined Military Hospital (CMH) for treatment while the bodies were sent to their ancestral villages for burial. Some sources reported that the FC Balochistan personnel on Tuesday came across seven bodies of civilians during a search operation, believed to be those of the attackers. However, official sources as well as FC spokesman did not confirm.