CHINA
1. Nawa-i-Waqt and Jinnah carried editorials on ISI Chief Ahmed Shujaa Pasha’s hurried trip to China after news broke out that Uighur militants who recently launched an attack were trained in Pakistan. The two dailies said: Pakistan should not let China entertain doubts about Pakistan as it is important to minimize the country’s dependence on USA. The issue should be looked into closely to see if US or Indian agents were involved in the guise of Muslim extremists in order to create a rift between China and Pakistan. (Nawa-i-Waqt Edit, Jinnah Edit)
BANGLADESH
1. In Urdupoint, columnist Arshad Ahmed Irshad writes on Bangladesh –India relations. He says: People in Bangladesh are in search of their Islamic identity; however the Haseena Wajid government is pro-India and is pursuing anti-Islam policies. In the past Shaikh Mujib was punished by the people as they had a hatred for India and a passion for Islam; India helped Haseena’s government to arrest the killers of Shaikh Mujib and they were then hanged. Common Bangladeshi hates India. Indian agencies and the Indian government are quick to point fingers at Bangladesh whenever something wrong happens in India. (Urdupoint)
UNITED STATES
1. Jasarat’s editorial is on the US-Pak spat over the movement of American diplomats in Pakistan. It says: Peshawar seems to have become a favourite destination for diplomats and others. Suspected people have been seen in diplomatic vehicles recently. Tribal areas have become dangerous after the invasion of Afghanistan; resistance will continue till the US leaves Afghanistan. Edit also writes that America has given birth to terrorism in the region by accepting the Indian occupation of Kashmir despite UN resolutions against this action. (Jasarat Edit)
2. Nawa-i-Waqt has editorially commented on Admiral Mike Mullen’s comment that the Haqqani network is operating in Pakistan. It said the Pakistan Army is no longer taking orders blindly from the US and hence US has increased threats and propaganda against Pakistan. (Nawa-i-Waqt Edit)
INDIA
1. The PML-N Britain leader Raja Haq Nawaz said that the Pakistan Foreign Ministers visit to India has disappointed the Kashmiri people. (Khabrain)
AFGHANISTAN
1. A mass grave of 200 Taliban who were buried alive when America had attacked Afghanistan were discovered by a road construction company in the northern province Kapesa. (Ummat)
DEFENCE
1. Spokesperson for the Pakistan army, Maj. Gen. Athar Abbas, has termed the report of Human Rights Commission on missing persons and mutilated bodies in Balochistan as a conspiracy to destabilize and defame Pakistan. He said that the source of funding for organizations such as the Human Rights Commission needs to be investigated as the same forces that support such institutions and report on Balochistan want to destabilize Pakistan. Abbas said that the international media has carried reports stating that India was behind the deteriorating situation in Balochistan. Pakistan army is working to promote development in Balochistan, he said adding that there is tension only in a few areas where the Frontier Corp. was deployed to bring peace and ensure economic progress. (Urdupoint)
2 .Daily Intekhab in its editorial said: Those who are clamouring for recalling the Army under Art. 190 are the remnants of dictatorship and they are scrambling to get to power. They should understand that the real power is in the hands of the President and if PM Gilani steps down the government will have no problems and President Zardari will not let the Army take over. (Daily Intekhab Edit)
3 .Editorial in Nawa-i-Waqt says foreign elements are responsible for unrest in Karachi and Balochistan but the government is not doing anything to nab these elements. (Nawa-i-Waqt Edit)
4. Prime Minister Gilani held meeting with Joint COAS Gen. Khalid Shamim Wynne on Tuesday and discussed national security issues. (Baad-e-Shimal, Khabrain, Jinnah, Dailypak).
TERRORISM- EXTREMISM
1. Quoting a Quranic verse on jihad, Dr Ahmed Omer says: Muslims should not be saddened by the death of Osama Bin Laden as sometimes God gives martyrdom to the truthful and then they get eternal peace in heaven. Real loss will be if people abandon Jihad in front of non-believers. … Muslims will win the war…The signs of victory have already begun to appear. (Al Qalam Weekly, 29 July to 4 August)
2 .Punjab government has banned the collection of alms and Zakat by 23 defunct organizations including Taliban, JuD, Lashkar-e-Jhangvi, Balochistan Republican Army, Sipah-e-Sahaba, LeT, Jaish-e-Muhammad, Hizb-ut-Tahrir, and Lashkar-e-Balochistan. The Additional SSP Lahore, Shaukat Abbas said that people should not have any dealings with these defunct organizations as any dealing with such organizations is an offence. (Jasarat, Urdupoint, Jinnah)
POLITICAL DEVELOPMENTS
1. PM Gilani denied that he had said anything against Mohajirs saying he too is a Mohajir since his family had come from Baghdad. He also clarified that COAS Kayani’s statement on Balochistan saying it merely stated that dialogue with the Baloch leaders is the government’s job. (Ibrat)
2. MQM staged a walk-out in the national assembly criticising that separatist movements take off whenever the PPP is in power. Other parties did not join the walk out. …. Altaf Hussain has asked the people of Karachi to stock enough rations using any means possible since the present unrest in the city is unlikely to end soon. (Ibrat, Kawish)
3. The PPP has said that Mohajir Quami Movement should be accepted as a political party. (Ummat)
4. MQM London leadership has ordered all sectors under his control to continue target killings of Balochs and Pashtuns in order to increase pressure on the government against the restoration of the Commissionerate System. (Ummat)
5. PTI chairman Imran Khan has held PML-N responsible for the weak opposition in Pakistan. (Khabrain)
6. Director of Hajj programme in Lahore, Malik Muhammad Saeed, was found guilty of receiving lakhs of rupees in exchange for allotting Hajj quotas to tour operators. (Ummat)
AML Chief Sheikh Rashid has said that corruption has infiltrated the entire railway system from top to bottom. (Ummat)
7. JuD chief Hafiz Saeed said that there could be no peace in South Asia without resolving the Kashmir dispute, He urged the government to become self-reliant and get rid of dependence on foreign aid. (Dailypak)
8. Khabrain editorial has warned the government against messing up with the judiciary. If the government goes ahead challenging the judiciary, the judges will either resign or call in the armed forces. (Khabrain Edit)
PUNJAB
1. The PPP has decided to present a resolution in the assembly for a separate Seraiki province in South Punjab; PML-N leadership has asked its leaders not to oppose the proposal as they need to keep the wishes of the people of South Punjab in mind. (Baad-e-Shimal)
SINDH
1.At a high level law and order review meeting, it was decided that anybody identifying target killers would be given a reward of Rs.5 million and anybody who turns in a photo and a video of the target killers will get Rs.10 million. The names of persons giving information will be kept confidential. It was also decided to undertake aerial monitoring of Karachi and confer special powers on the FC. (Ibrat, Kawish, Dailypak)
2. Mithal Haskani writes in Ibrat that Karachi has been reduced to a battlefield with red-alerts and high-alerts becoming almost a daily feature. (Ibrat)
ECONOMY
1. As per a State Bank report, the present government has begun the new financial year by taking out a large loan of Rs. 32 billion loan in the first 23 days. (Dailypak, Ummat)
2. Ausaf editorial is critical of the hike in petroleum products. “Democracy is a sham in Pakistan and all financial decisions are taken on lines set by the IMF and Washington”. (Ausaf Edit, 2 August)
POK NEWS
1. The Muslim Conference has asked for three ministerial berths in the AJK government and a post of advisor to the PM. However the PPP (AJK) is not relenting. (Ausaf, 2 August)
2. Baad-e-Shimal editorial is on the plight of people affected by the Attabad landslide. It says people affected by the landslide complain of not being paid sufficient compensation for rehabilitation, whereas the Government claims that it has paid more funds to them as compared to other areas. Upper Gojal was the worst hit as it got completely cut off. People of the area have threatened to block entry to tourist destination of Khanjrab, if their demands for rehabilitation and restoration of the Karakoram Highway are not met. (Baad-e-Shimal Edit)
3. Athar Masood Dani writes in Baad-e-Shimal that Kashmiri leaders, in their meeting with Pakistan’s Foreign Minister demanded their representation in Indo-Pak talks but this still remains a far cry from reality since the present PPP government is following Musharraf’s policy of understating the Kashmir issue. (Baad-e-Shimal)
