March 17 (Bloomberg) — A suspected suicide bomber killed seven people and wounded 20 others in Pakistan’s garrison city of Rawalpindi, drawing condemnation from the government as it struggles to control Islamic militants in the country.
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WASHINGTON: U.S. Secretary of State Hillary Clinton told Pakistan’’s president and opposition leader over the weekend U.S. aid could be at risk unless they defused a crisis over a top judge, U.S. officials said on Monday.In a surprise move, Pakistan’’s government announced on Monday it would reinstate Iftikhar Chaudhry as chief justice, aiming to defuse a crisis and end protests by lawyers and activists that threatened to turn violent.The officials said Clinton telephoned on Saturday both President Asif Ali Zardari and his rival, former Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif, who had backed the anti-government lawyers.The officials said Clinton, who coordinated with British Foreign Secretary David Miliband, had exerted strong pressure for a deal.Clinton told reporters the decision to reinstate Chaudhry was a first step for much-needed reconciliation and political compromise in Pakistan.She avoided answering when asked if she had linked continued U.S. aid to a deal.The stability of nuclear-armed Pakistan has emerged as a key worry in Washington, which also needs its help to combat a Taliban insurgency in neighboring AfghanistanAsked if the political turmoil was distracting Islamabad from taking on the militants, Clinton replied: “They understand what is at stake.”U.S. officials said Clinton told both Zardari and Sharif congressional lawmakers might balk at sending Pakistan more aid while the crisis persisted.”She warned them that congressional appropriations would be at risk,” said one U.S. official, who asked not to be named.A senior State Department official said “many” in Congress had expressed concern over what was happening in Pakistan.”The secretary’’s friendly advice to the Pakistani leadership is that we have got to get this situation under control,” the official said.U.S. special representative to Afghanistan and Pakistan, Richard Holbrooke, also spoke several times over the weekend to Pakistani politicians.”This was all done with great respect for Pakistan’’s sovereignty and sensibility but with great concern for the strategic and political implications of a protracted confrontation,” a Holbrooke aide quoted him as saying.
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CHARSADDA: Police clamed arresting an alleged suicide bomber including his two associates here on Tuesday, police sources said.According to police sources, police raided on a house in Qasim Muhall, located in the outskirts of Charsadda and arrested three persons including an alleged suicide bomber Qari Shahid Ali (24), seizing a jacket laden with explosives.Later, police declared the jacket was a suicide jacket. Meanwhile, police have launched investigation, sources added.
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LAHORE: Custom officials claimed capturing three drug-traffickers including a woman and seized drugs worth of 110 million rupees from Wagah border here on Monday.According to custom official sources, Shah Alam, a resident of Lahore, was arrested as he was taking embroidery clothes, which had drugs in their concealed pockets, to India through Wagha border. The custom officers searched him on suspicion and found drugs worth of 110 million rupees.He was accompanied with his wife Mehmooda and another associate Arif, sources added while custom officials have registered cases against them.
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March 17 (Bloomberg) — Pakistan plans to raise $500 million in the next 12 months through bonds aimed at Middle East investors as a debt sale in other overseas markets would be too expensive, central bank Governor Syed Salim Raza said.
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Islamabad: Hundreds of Rawalpindi lawyers went to the residence of Iftikhar Muhammad Chaudhry here on Monday and presented bouquets to him on his rein
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Pakistan News
LAHORE: Kudos to Chief of the Army Staff (COAS) General Ashfaq Parvez Kayani for honouring his repeated pledge, unlike his four predecessors, to keep
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ISLAMABAD: Adviser to Prime Minister on Finance, Shaukat Tarin said on Monday that political solidity would help in achieving economic stability in th
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KARACHI: South Asian Federation of Exchanges (SAFE) in collaboration with Dow Jones Indexes, New York, has launched the first-ever Dow Jones SAFE 100
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The promised reinstatement of Pakistan’s chief justice defused a protest movement threatening the U.S.-allied government, but it could still spell trouble for the country’s struggling president.
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