SOURCE: Ausaf, Ummat, Daily Pak, Nawa-i-Waqt, Urdu Point, Daily Jinnah, Awami Awaz, Daily Dharti, Jasarat, Kawish, Daily Intekhab, Daily Times, Jang, Ibrat, Khabrain, Roznama Dunya, Hizb Media, Al Qalam Weekly, Baad-e-Shimal, Bang-e-Sahar.
CHINA
1. Jasarat and Ummat have welcomed China’s statement that America should vacate Afghanistan as early as possible. Since 2001 only the Taliban were asking America to leave Afghanistan; the Chinese call to the US is a major development. Currently Chinese interests in the region are larger than that of the US and hence China can do more in this regard and it is possible that Pakistan will become the first ally of China. (Jasarat Edit, Ummat Edit)
AFGHANISTAN
1. Hizb-e-Islami Chief Gulbuddin Hekmatyar left Iran after inputs that there was a conspiracy to murder him. The US, with the help of Iran, had twice targeted Hekmatyar in Paktika and Kunar. Hizb-e-Islami received concrete evidence of the involvement of Iran in the killing of former Afghan Taliban Chief Mullah Akhtar Mansour. (Ummat)
2. Roznama Dunya editorially commented on the Taliban attack on an Afghan court and on Pakistan’s check post. How long can the chain reaction of attacks continue? The Kabul administration is under Indian and American influence and wants to settle issues through force. It is in the interest of both the Taliban and Afghan government to settle demands through dialogue. If Pakistan has influence on some Taliban, it is not to spread terrorism through them, but to use its influence to reduce terrorist attacks. The US killing Mullah Akhtar Mansour is criticized because the new leader Mullah Haibatullah only believes in jihad, whereas Akhtar was ready for dialogues. Afghanistan could benefit from TAPI and CPEC projects but is running after Chabahar project which is just a mirage. (Roznama Dunya Edit)
3. The Afghan government should control terrorists attacking Pakistan. From Zahir Shah to Ashraf Ghani, Afghan leaders have not accepted Pakistan as an elder brother. Conferring the Indian PM Modi with one of the biggest Afghan awards is a clear message to Pakistan that Afghan has given permission to India to establish its 12 consulates in Afghanistan and that ultimately India has received Afghanistan’s consent to allow chaos and terrorism to spread through Pakistan through Afghan soil. While there have always been ups and downs in the Af-Pak relationship, the situation is now different as an international conspiracy of Afghanistan, Iran and India is isolating Pakistan with a basic purpose of obstructing CPEC so that Pakistan is declared a failed state. Pakistan should give priority to its security and protest against Afghanistan. (Khabrain Edit)
INDIA
1. Pakistan should stop one-sided friendship with India as that is its biggest weakness. It is time to take suitable action against Indian conspiracies and ensure that India is prevented from becoming a member NSG. (Nawa-i-Waqt Edit)
2. India is leading the movement to harm Pakistan’s national security and economic development interests. Besides making agreements with Afghanistan and Iran, India is now reaching out to other Central Asian countries. India’s other important project is to get membership of the Nuclear Suppliers Group with American help; that is why Modi has reached America. India wants to become a member of NSG so that it can stop Pakistan from becoming a member. Irrespective of what assurance Afghanistan and other countries give that their relations with India are not against Pakistan, Pakistan should keep its eyes open and not trust. (Jang Edit)
3. India is not demonstrating commitment to confidence building measures vis-à-vis Pakistan. At the same time, Pakistan’s confidence building measures are always linked to terrorism. Any relationship with India should be rejected until the resolution of the Kashmir issue. Pakistan’s stance is to discuss all issues with India but India does not want to discuss Kashmir. India not only has disputes with Pakistan but also with other countries. Arresting Hurriyat leaders has become a routine in J&K; hence the international community should take notice of incidents of violation of human rights in J&K (Ausaf Edit)
4. Senior analyst, Najam Sethi in a Geo program said: India does not want talks with Pakistan at this juncture. India has formed a long term anti-Pakistan strategy; though India has suffered not doing business with Pakistan, it still does not want talks. India wants no stability in Afghanistan so that the CPEC project fails. Pakistan is almost isolated in the world today. Pakistan’s foreign policy and national security policy have both failed. Till Pakistani politicians improve their credibility, the military establishment will not trust them. India has also agreed that the Pakistan government or Pakistani agencies were not involved in the Pathankot attack, but it wants action against JeM and Masood Azhar. (Jang)
5. Defence analyst Abdullah Gul writes: the decision to not give the Indian government access to Indian agent Kulbhushan Yadav was made by the GHQ and not the government, as the government is silent over the issue. He said that the Pakistani community has lost confidence in Pakistani politicians who were offering gifts to India. (Khabrain)
6. At Dunya Forum, foreign affairs experts said that Modi is destabilizing Pakistan. Maria Sultan said that the US wants to establish India’s superiority in the region and India is enhancing relations with those Muslim countries with which the US has good relations. Pakistan itself spoilt relations with Iran, and Afghanistan is also upset with Pakistan. Pakistan is in such a position that no one is ready to trust it. Pakistan will have to revisit its foreign policy. Former Foreign Affairs Advisor Akram Zaki said that it is a well-known fact that India is sending terrorists into Pakistan; the role that it played in Bangladesh is now the same game that it is playing in all of Pakistan. (Roznama Dunya)
TERRORISM & EXTREMISM
1. Talhe as Saif writes; the Taliban are the true followers of Allah and they have pledged that they will establish Sharia and will offer sacrifices for Sharia. Afghan Taliban has fulfilled the promise made to Allah and some of them had sacrificed their lives and others were waiting for their number to come to fight and obtain martyrdom in the way of Allah. Mullah Omer had held flag of Taliban and fought throughout his life but stood firm in front of challenges. Media might be discussing about how and who killed Mullah Mansour but for them it was the martyrdom that was important and the fact that Mullah Mansour continued his mission successfully and was not caught by the enemy. During the early period of Islam after martyrdom of one warrior, anther took up the flag of Islam and fought bravely. This continued till the war was won and similarly after the martyrdom of Mullah Mansour, the flag of Taliban has been taken up by Mullah Haibatullah. This time the flag of the Taliban is in the hands of a scholar rather than a fighter. (Al Qalam Weekly, 3-9 June)
2. Abu Jindal Shafique writers: Taliban chief Mullah Mansour was a shadow of God on this planet and whoever disrespects the shadow of Allah will face humiliation. Mullah Mansour followed the guidance of Mullah Omar and the reign of Mullah Mansour gave new spirit and energy to jihad. Mullah Mansour had given a tough time to enemies and his victories had shaken the satanic alliance of western forces. Jindal warns Afghan President Ashraf Ghani that the Taliban will continue its mission until it reaches Kabul. (Al Qalam Weekly, 3-9 June)
POLITICAL SCENE
1. Arif Bahar writes: COAS Gen Raheel Sharif said condemnation was not enough which Sharif had delivered in reaction to the US drone attack in Balochistan. If condemnation was not enough, then the other option was the same which was written once upon a time on the walls of AJK i.e. to repair, to amend and to retaliate. The cure for the drone attacks is retaliation. (Jasarat)
ECONOMY/WATER
1. PPP members in the Senate have demanded action against WAPDA Chairman for writing columns in favour of the controversial Kalabagh Dam. Senate Chairman Raza Rabbani observed that the dam is a very controversial issue; it has been rejected by three provincial governments and till those resolutions are in effect, the bureaucracy must show them respect. Syed Ghani of PPP pointed out that the WAPDA chief has been writing columns in favour of the dam and asked whether WAPDA was a national organization or whether it represented a specific area or persons. (Kawish)
2. Mahmood Idris Rajput, a Sindh water expert, writes: the current WAPDA chief is a retired Civil Services officer. Previously, he was a Secretary in the Federal Ministry for Water and Electricity and is from Punjab. After becoming WAPDA chief, he held meetings with several water experts on dams and other water related issues. The WAPDA chief has written 26 essays and articles to create a consensus on the Kalabagh Dam issue. The WAPDA chief claims he has done this in his personal capacity but he has in fact been using the entire WAPDA machinery and even the help of WAPDA officials to write these articles. He is also using the WAPDA website for the same. This work in not being done by the WAPDA Chief in his personal capacity but in his official capacity. The people of Sindh should now make a case regarding the water issue as it is a question of the survival of Sindh. Books on this subject should be translated into Sindhi and distributed amongst the people. One such book is the ‘Sindh Case’ by the late Wahab Sheikh. Another is a technical report by A.N.G Abbasi. Only Rs. 80,000 is needed to obtain the 500 copies of this report left with Prof. Aijaz Qureshi. Qureshi is now translating ‘Sindh Case’ by Wahab Sheikh and it will soon be ready for print. (Kawish)
KHYBER PAKHTHUNKHAWA (KP)
1. Corruption allegations against KP CM Pervez Khattak should be a matter of grave concern to the PTI Chief Imran Khan and as such he should ask Khattak to step down till the inquiry is over into the allegations. This is the course Imran is demanding in the case of Prime Minister Sharif in the wake of Panama Leaks. In a manner of speaking, Khattak’s removal will put pressure on PM Sharif to go. (Nawa-i-Waqt Edit)
PUNJAB
1. Roznama Dunya has editorially commented on the report that many banned outfits are getting active again in Punjab. Such reports should be seriously investigated. . (Roznama Dunya Edit)
POK/ G-B NEWS
1. Al-Khidmat Foundation has started Ramzan Package for poor families in Gilgit-Baltistan. (Baad-e-Shimal)
2. AJK Assembly elections will take place on 21st July. (Baad-e-Shimal, Daily Pak)
3. Federal Minister for AJK and Gilgit-Baltistan Affairs Barjees Tahir has said that the federal government has decided to start mega projects worth Rs.50 billion in AJK and that once in power, PML-N will implement these projects over 5 years. (Nawa-i-Waqt, Jang, Roznama Dunya, Daily Dharti)
4. Imran Khan while addressing a gathering at Pallandri said that there is more corruption in AJK than in Pakistan. He said that PTI will bring a strong accountability system to AJK and Pakistan. (Jang, Roznama Dunya)
5. Affected families of the Diamer Dam have decided to start a long march on 10th June to protest non-payment of compensation. They warned that if payments were not made, WAPDA workers would not be able to work openly. (Daily K2)
6. Gilgit-Baltistan Assembly Deputy Speaker Jafarullah criticized the provincial government for zero performance and said that the ruling party should stop fooling people under the guise of work on merit basis. (Baad-e-Shimal, Daily K2)