WASHINGTON: Carnage in Pakistan and America’’s bloodiest month in Afghanistan are sharpening President Barack Obama’’s dilemma on troop deployments while stoking political demands for swifter action.

“We watch this situation continue to deteriorate while this long protracted process of decision making goes on,” Republican Senator John McCain told media on Wednesday.

“We are not operating in a vacuum. The president of the United States needs to make this decision and soon. Our allies are nervous and our military leadership is becoming frustrated.”

The White House counters that Obama’’s soul searching is justified by the gravity of his choice on whether to plunge tens of thousands of people into the worsening war.

“I don”t think the American people agree with Senator McCain on that,” Obama spokesman Robert Gibbs said. “I think it’’s important to hear and to get this right.”

Already fragile US public opinion on the war is being tested by a rush of recent casualties in Afghanistan, with October the bloodiest month for American troops of the eight-year conflict so far.

Vicious bombings in Pakistan — the latest killing 92 people in a Peshawar market Wednesday — are meanwhile stirring new fears of instability and concern for the US-allied government in Islamabad.

And the fraud-tainted Afghan election, political maneuvering over the run-off, and a brazen Taliban attack on a UN compound in Kabul which killed eight people will hardly stem skepticism of the US Afghan mission.

Republicans see the turmoil of recent days as a sign Obama must honor war commander General Stanley McChrystal’’s request for 40,000 more troops.

But Democratic Senator Russ Feingold spoke for many war opponents when he said he wanted success in Afghanistan but not at any price.

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Karachi

Although schools have been opened after a lapse of one week, children are mostly tense, fearful and pretty confused as to what is going

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ISLAMABAD: President Asif Ali Zardari on Wednesday said that the democracies of the world can help speed up the process of healing and development by helping democracy in Pakistan and rendering assistance in critical areas of social and economic development.

In a meeting with US delegation, headed by US Secretary of State Hillary Rodham Clinton which called on President Asif Ali Zardari at Aiwan-e-Sadr, matters related to bilateral relations, strategic partnership, fight against militancy, mutual cooperation and assistance to Pakistan were also discussed.

Welcoming Ms. Clinton, the President said that her visit at a difficult time is a clear reflection of the deepening relationship between the two countries.

It is a ?relationship based on respect for democracy and sovereignty? and is marked by our joint commitment to fight the forces of extremism ad militancy and a long term political and strategic partnership based on mutual interest, common values and shared goals, he added.

The President said that the government of Pakistan People?s Party has a clear vision and strategy.

?We are determined to root out militancy from our soil and purge our country of militants. We are pursuing policies of public-private partnership to promote investment. We are undertaking all possible efforts to meet the energy challenge head on,? President Zardari added.

He said social integration through reforms and poverty alleviation is the top most priority of the government.

The President said that Pakistan needed assistance for stabilizing its economy through investment promotion, overcoming the energy crisis, facilitation in getting market access, capacity building of civilian institutions and securing the needed investment in education and social sector as measures for long term fight against the militant mindset.

He also urged for the speedy delivery of equipment to fight insurgency.

Issues relating to peace in the region were also discussed in the meeting.

The President said that dialogue was the only way forward as the absence of dialogue created doubts and tensions.

US Secretary of State thanked the President for the warm welcome extended to her during her visit.

She said that US is looking for long-term sustained and multidimensional partnership with the democratic government and people of Pakistan.

She said the United States is committed to support the people of Pakistan at this critical hour and would extend all possible help to promote stability, strengthening of democratic institutions and help the people of Pakistan through investment in education and social sector.

Those who attended the meeting included among others Foreign Minister Makhdoom Shah Mehmood Qureshi, Interior Minister Rehman A. Malik, Finance Minister Shaukat Tarin, Information Minister Qamar-uz-Zaman Kaira, Secretary General Salman Faruqui and other senior officials.

US Ambassador in Islamabad Ms. Anne W. Patterson and Mr.Richard C. Holbrooke were also present during the meeting.

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Karachi

As several areas of the city experienced up to eight hours of power failures, the Karachi Electric Supply Company (KESC) claimed that i

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KARACHI: Justice Maqbool Baqar of the Sindh High Court on Tuesday ordered issuance of notices to the Sindh home secretary and the IG police in crimina

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ISLAMABAD: Qazi Muhammad Anwar, belonging to Hamid Khan group, has won the presidential elections of Supreme Court Bar Association (SCBA) as per unofficial results as he has eminent lead on his opponent in Supreme Court Lahore Registry (SCBR), Geo news reported on Wednesday.

According to unofficial results, he got 401 votes while his opponent barrister Bacha Khan got 340 votes in SC LR.

The voting for SCBA held in SCLR while the official results will be announced on October 31, sources said.

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ISLAMABAD: Pakistani troops massed outside a key Taliban base and killed 25 militants, fighting back in a major tribal belt offensive after a devastating market bomb attack, the military said Wednesday.

The latest death toll brings to 264 the total number of insurgents reported to have been killed since the operation was launched in the rugged tribal terrain of South Waziristan on October 17.

No information provided by the army can be verified, however, as communication lines are down and access to the area on the wild Afghan border is banned to journalists and aid workers.

“Security forces have surrounded Kanigurram from three sides,” military spokesman Major General Athar Abbas told a news conference.

The town was considered the “operational centre” of Tehreek-e-Taliban Pakistan (TTP), he said. It was a major terror stronghold and an important base for Uzbek fighters in the area, he added.

Abbas also said troops were within four kilometres (2.5 miles) of another major Taliban hub, Sararogha, which lies to the east.

The military spokesman condemned Wednesday’’s carnage in the northwestern city of Peshawar where a bomb killed 92 people in a crowded market frequented mostly by women. “This cowardly act shows their desperation,” he said.

Despite the attack, which was apparently calculated to exact maximum casualties, Abbas insisted the militants were on the defensive as troops were making steady gains into TTP territory.

“Their leadership is on the run,” he said, claiming that 25 training centres and nine caves had been recently destroyed.

Around 30,000 troops are taking part in the offensive against an estimated 10-12,000 militants in the semi-autonomous and lawless tribal belt. Relief workers say more than 200,000 people have been displaced by the fighting.

Numerous previous offensives in the tribal belt have had limited success, costing the lives of 2,000 troops and ending generally with peace agreements that critics say gave the insurgents a chance to re-arm.

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Karachi

Women who passed the tests for various posts of teachers will be awarded 20 extra marks as ?gender relaxation? for the first time in th

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KARACHI: Justice Maqbool Baqar of the Sindh High Court on Tuesday ordered issuance of notices to the Sindh home secretary and the IG police in crimina

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PESHAWAR: NWFP has devised a new security plan to ensure safety of students in government schools under which metal detectors worth Rs. 800 million will be provided to all the government schools.

NWFP Education Minister Sadar Hussein Babak told Geo News on Wednesday that government schools in NWFP will reopen on November 2. He said that strict security measures have been adopted for schools.

A 17-pronged security plan for schools have been formulated. According to which schools will be provided with metal detectors and a procedural closure for schools have been scheduled.

The education minister said that car parking inside and around the school buildings will be prohibited, whereas identity cards will be issued to the students.

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