2.Afghan TV has claimed that Taliban leader Mullah Omer is dead whereas Taliban spokespersons Zabihullah and Qari Yusuf have denied the report. (Daily Pak)

DEFENCE
1.Chief of General Staff Lieutenant Gen. Wahid Arshad is on China tour; he visited China’s National Defence University and took part in a debate organized by their Strategic Studies Department. The discussion focused specially on Pakistan and Afghanistan. Many Pakistani army officials are currently participating in various training courses in CNDU. (Urdupoint)

2.Two Pakistani Naval ships, PNS Shamsher and PNS Nasar, have reached China’s naval port Kandao to participate in the 60 years of Sino-Pak friendship celebration. (Baad-e-Shimal, Nawa-i-Waqt)

3.A frigate and two small submarines have been inducted into Pakistan’s Navy. (Ummat)

4. A 24-member delegation of Sri Lankan Command and Staff College visited the Corps head quarters at Lahore and Pakistan Naval War College. (Daily Pak)

5. Several influential former Army officials spoke at a forum Center for Discussions and Solutions convened by JI Chief Qazi Hussain Ahmed. While Hamid Gul reiterated the youth should be trained to achieve revolutionary goals, Ahsanul Haq said that instead of think tanks there should be ‘action tanks’.  Ayaz Wazir said that the situation in Balochistan is delicate and sending in the army might not be viewed favourably by Baloch tribes. He also said these tribes do not view the War on terror as their own.  Aslam Beg said that he has been in contact with the Army’s high command and has been advising them not to wait for approval from the government and take action. Beg said that instead of waiting to a point where the Army has to institute martial law it should step in and take action in crucial areas. Mushahid Hussein Syed said that the government has pushed the judiciary up against a wall but very soon the Brown Civil Society and Bureaucracy will come together to take action on judicial decisions and thus a change will come. (By Irfan Siddiqui in Jang)

6. Nawa-i-Waqt editorially criticised the decision to let CIA agents once again into Pakistan and said Pakistan should not allow the U.S. to use its Blue Force tracking technology within the country. (Nawa-i-Waqt)

TERRORISM & EXTREMISM
1.JuD (Women’s Wing) has conducted a 10 day ‘Summer Quran Course’ successfully in Karachi in which girls from colleges and universities participated. (Jasarat)

2. US ‘Home Land Security’ has issued a warning that al-Qaeda, under the leadership of Al Zawahiri, plans to strike American interests in Pakistan and Africa, reports the Wall Street Journal. The main targets could be embassies and military installations. (Urdupoint)

3.Maulana Muhammad Mansoor Ahmed writes in his Al Qalam Weekly column that the Muslims nations are falling under the pressure of Western forces and people are being tortured from Palestine to Kashmir. ‘Quran teaches Muslim to struggle and this is why the ‘Sessions on the verses of the Quran related to Jihad’ is being conducted in mosques. Each session lasts six- days and more than 550 verses of the Quran related to Jihad are highlighted. The participants are told that all these verses of the Quran are the truth and that these are easily implementable. (Al Qalam Weekly, 15-21 July)

4. Baad-e-Shimal’s editorial on Mumbai’s 13th July horror is relieved that Indo-Pak talks have not been derailed. It says India has realized its mistake of blaming Pakistan for the last attack they had faced. (Baad-e-Shimal Edit)

POLITICAL DEVELOPMENTS
1.Election Commission has registered Musharraf’s All Pakistan Muslim League (APML) and thus cleared the decks for its participation in the next polls. (Ibrat, Jasarat)

2.PML-N Chief Nawaz Sharif has asked party men not to make any statements with regard to the MQM and especially on MQM’s return to the PPP-led ruling alliance. (Awami Awaz, 19 July, Kawish)

3.Plagued by problems as serious as terrorism, energy crunch, and economic slide down, Pakistan is moving down a path similar to Yugoslavia and a revolution will take place if the country’s leaders do not wake up. (By Makhdum Javed Hashmi in Ausaf, 19 July)

BALOCHISTAN
1.Unidentified armed men have kidnapped eight persons working for an American NGO for refugees (American Refugee Committee) when they were returning after distributing food. (Kawish, Daily Intekhab)

2. Daily Intekhab in its editorial has voiced grave concern over kidnappings and abductions of foreign nationals and asked the government to deal with the menace sternly; otherwise Pakistan’s image will be hit. (Daily Intekhab Edit)

3. Nawa-i-Waqt has editorially said Shahzain Bugti’s name is on ECL list and as such he should not be allowed to proceed to the UK for treatment to his ailing mother. (Nawa-i-Waqt Edit)

4. Balochistan CM Nawab Aslam Raeesani has said that registered madrassas will be given grants from the Alms Fund. (Daily Intekhab)

5. In support of beleaguered Balochs, JI has held protest rallies in Lahore, Faisalabad, Gujranwala, Multan, Hyderabad and Quetta among other places. (Khabrain, Jinnah, Daily Pak)

6. PEPCO has suffered a loss of Rs.38 crores due to turmoil in Balochistan. (Daily Intekhab)

2. Grain merchants from the Hindu community at Kandkot went on a strike to protest the killing of Dr. Puranlal and a Hindu youth – Sunil Kumar at Jacobabad. Hindu community led by the PPP Minority wing General Secretary, held dharnas demanding arrest of the killers and protection for the minority community. Agitators said that the abduction and killings of minorities are a conspiracy to force them to leave the country but such plans will not succeed as the minority community – Hindus – will not leave their motherland, Sindh. (Awami Awaz, 19 July)

3. Sindh Tarqui Pasand’s leader Qadir Magsi is currently on a visit to Mecca in Saudi and he gave a speech to the Sindhi business community on the discrimination against Sindhis and the presence of the Mohajir community in Sindh-Pakistan. (Awami Awaz, 19 July)

3.Chief of the ANP’s Sindh unit Shahi Syed expressed concern over the killing of innocents due to ethnic discriminations. He said that an operation against such elements is inevitable. A Loya jirga is being convened today to discuss the prevailing political situation. (Ibrat)

4. Sindh nationalist groups have asked the PPP to reveal the talks held with the MQM that led to the return of the MQM to the government and reinstatement of Ishratul Ibad as Sindh Governor. (Awami Awaz, 19 July)

2. Angered by prolonged power cuts, hundreds of people have out on roads and pelted stones in Karachi’s Kaurangi area. (Ibrat)

3. Irrigation expert Fateh Gandapur opines that a dam at Attock will cost just Rs.3billion as against Rs.11 billion for the Bhasha Dam. He also advocates construction of two smaller dams on the Swat River. He is strongly opposed to Kalabagh. (Daily Pak)  

2. Muslim Conference leaders and PPP Leaders have said that merger with Pakistan is the real target of Kashmiris and the freedom struggle will continue till the end. (Daily Dharti)

3. Planning Division has informed the Senate’s committee about the under developed districts in the country; Four of these districts are from Punjab, 8 from Sindh, 9 from Khyber Pakhtunkhwah, 24 from Balochistan and all the districts of AJK and the tribal areas are considered underdeveloped. (Ausaf, 19 July)

4. The G B construction minister has said that action will be taken against contractors who have not finished their work and they will be black-listed; action will also be taken against officers who have paid the bills of contractors who have not finished their works.(Baad-e-Shimal)

5. DHQ Ghahkoch hospital (Gilgit Baltistan) has no doctors. First aide accessories are not available in the hospital and apparatus’ meant for surgery have rusted due to the absence of surgeon. (Ausaf, 19 July)

6. As many as 400 flood-affected families in Yasin (Gilgit Baltistan) are forced to live under open skies while the Watan Cards meant for them have been distributed among the local tahsildars, administrators and undeserving people. (Ausaf, 19 July)

7. People of Khashroot (Gilgit Baltistan) are fed up by the poor quality of drinking water and constant load shedding. Dirty water is causing various diseases. (Ausaf, 19 July)

8. Daily Dharti has asked the AJK government to handover control of ‘Mission Polio” to private groups as it does not have sufficient means to accomplish the task. (Daily Dharti Edit)