Turkish capital hit by twin bombs, more than 80 dead, dozens injured

The twin bomb misery has roused many questions about the peaceful elections in the country.

On Saturday morning Turkish capital was hit by two devastating explosions; in the heart of Ankara. Which caused more than lives of 80 people who had gathered for a peace rally and heightening tensions just three weeks before snap parliamentary elections. As per reports two suspected suicide bombers hit a rally of pro-Kurdish and leftist activists outside Ankara’s main train station on Saturday, weeks ahead of an election, in the deadliest attack of its kind on Turkish soil.

Bodies covered by flags and banners, including those of the pro-Kurdish opposition Peoples’ Democratic Party (HDP), lay scattered on the road among bloodstains and body parts

“Like other terror attacks, the one at the Ankara train station targets our unity, togetherness, brotherhood and future,” President Tayyip Erdogan said in a statement, calling for “solidarity and determination”.

Health Minister Mehmet Muezzinoglu told a news conference that 86 people had been killed and 186 wounded, 28 of whom were in intensive care. The death toll could rise further.

Witnesses said the two explosions happened seconds apart shortly after 1000 a.m. as hundreds gathered for a planned march to protest over a conflict between Turkish security forces and Kurdish militants in the southeast.

“I heard one big explosion first and tried to cover myself as the windows broke. Right away there was the second one,” said Serdar, 37, who was working at a newspaper stand in the train station. “There was shouting and crying and I stayed under the newspapers for a while. I could smell burnt flesh.”

The country’s current instability has become increasingly intertwined with the broader unrest in the Middle East, an area whose fortunes Turkey has sought to shape in recent years by holding itself out as an example of a healthy democracy in the heart of the Muslim world.

One of the resident told to international media agency that any terrorist activity was expected before elections but no one had idea that it would be of this extent.

Turkey is facing a number of destabilizing forces: violence related to conflicts with Kurdish rebels and the Islamic State group, political instability, economic uncertainty and a growing flow of refugees from the civil war in Syria.

This can make more difficult situation for the authorities to maintain peaceful elections.

Link related to blog: ET

Syrian Christians are forced to be converted by ISIS or leave the land

The Islamic State (Isis) has given an ultimatum to the Christian population living in the Syrian city of Qaryatain to either pay exorbitant taxes, convert to Islam or leave.

The Sunni terror group had forced the Syrian forces loyal to President Bashar al-Assad out of the city in August. It captured the strategic town located along a road linking Palmyra with the eastern countryside of Qalamoun, north of Damascus.

According to the UK-based Syrian Observatory for Human Rights (SOHR), the Christians have been given a 48-hour ultimatum.

SOHR noted that most of the Christians are waiting for the Isis to return their identity cards so that they can leave the city.

The Isis had recently destroyed the 1,500-year-old Mar Elian Catholic monastery in Qaryatain and threw away the "sacred" remains of the popular saint.

The terror group had also kidnapped over 200 Christians, including women and children, in August. There has been no news of them since then.

The ISIS terror has causing loss of many lives and the humanity is in danger. Humans of Iraq and Syria feel insecure, no matter what religion they belong to.

Recently pictures of Syrians drowning and stranded in sea has captures international media's attention, but it is still of no use. Even the Muslims of the territory are suffering and leaving their hometown.

The ISIS is the new terrorist group upsurging in Iraq and Syria, in the name of Islam, which they does not practice at all, killing the humanity and telling the world who is responsible for all this.

Punjab's home minister Shuja Khanzada embraced martyrdom in suicidal attack

Another brave patriot gave his blood in return to save the homeland from terrorism.

On Sunday morning the news of bomb blast in Shadi Khan where Home minister Punjab's Dera( Political office) was located flashed on TV screens. After hours of struggle the authorities confirmed death of provincial minster and DSP along many died and injured.

Rescue and administration officials confirmed the death toll, adding that at least 17 other people were injured in the suicide blast, while rescue workers were still trying to recover the injured and dead from underneath the rubble.

According to reports, a jirga (open court) was underway at Khanzada’s political office in his native Shadi Khan village when the suicide attacker detonated his explosives. The blast caused the roof of the building to collapse under which the provincial home minister was trapped for several hours.

Several people were still trapped under the debris with rescue workers busy trying to rescue them.

The ISPR said that special search and rescue team equipped with high-tech machinery was aiding in the rescue operation in Attock.

Funeral prayers of the martyrs were offered in Attock Police Lines on Sunday night and attended by Chief Minister Punjab Shahbaz Sharif, Interior Minister Chaudhry Nisar Ali Khan and CM Khyber Pakhtunkhwa Pervez Khattak among others.

A former army-man, Khanzada assumed charge of the Punjab Home Ministry in October last year and was a major force in leading the law enforcement and security apparatus in several anti-terrorism operations. The provincial home minister was also the commander of the National Action Plan (NAP) in Punjab to combat militancy and terrorism.

After graduating from Islamia College Peshawar in 1966, Khanzada joined the Pakistan Army in 1967. He later took part in the 1971 war that led to the creation of Bangladesh. Elected two times and remained in assembly.

Sources in the interior ministry claim that banned outfit Lashkar-e-Jhangvi (LeJ) has taken responsibility of the suicide attack on Khanzada. They alleged Khanzada was under threat following the killing of LeJ chief Malik Ishaq in July.

A government official said police could not rule out the involvement of banned sectarian militant outfits against whom the government had launched a crackdown.

Link related to blog: Dawn

Pakistan claims Indian spy agency’s involvement in terrorist activities

Foreign Secretary warns India for their involvement in militant acts.

The recent inhumane incident of extremist groups shakes whole nation. Ismailis are peaceful people and such attack on this community is one of it’s own kinds.

Recently Pakistan's Foreign Secretary Aizaz Ahmad Chaudhry claimed that Indian external intelligence agency RAW was involved in different acts of terrorism in the country.

In a press conference in Islamabad, he also said that Pakistan had taken up the issue of "RAW's activities" with Indian authorities on several occasions; and it will no longer tolerate it.

The foreign secretary said that two persons recently arrested in Karachi confessed to having received training for terrorism from the Indian spy agency; both of them belonged to a mass political party and are under interrogation; through the party denies their allegiance.

Chaudhry also talked about the bus attack in Karachi; if RAW was found involved in the massacre of Ismailis, Pakistan would take up the issue in all international forums, he added.

Foreign Secretary said the involvement of Islamic State cannot be established on the basis of a pamphlet purportedly left by the attackers at the site of the attack, reported on local media.

Pakistan is one of those countries who are facing extreme terrorism waves in country from past few years, lately in 2014 it saw the biggest massacre of the country, the APS attack, and now the Safoora Chorangi bus attack in a volatile city like Karachi has shocked the government and security agencies. 

The IS and Jundullah took the responsibility but Pakistan has doubts on India for it’s support to these terrorist groups.

Pakistan's army chief Gen Raheel Sharif had also expressed concerns over activities of RAW in the country last week and warned Indian agency for their actions.

'Kill them all', and then we saw another black day in history of Humanity by Karachi bus attack

We have not forgotten yet the massacre of APS children, we have not forgotten killing of Hazara people and Christian community, and we will also never forget the genocide of Ismaili sect which is considered as the minority in Pakistan; they are under target now.

Pakistan saw another black day, 6 gunmen on motorcycles boarded a bus in Karachi city and opened fire on commuters, killing at least 45.

The pink bus was pockmarked with bullet holes and blood saturated the seats and dripped out of the doors on to the concrete. This is not the first time that a minority community has been targeted like this, as far as my memory recalls, few years back, Shiite pilgrims were attacked by militants and many were killed when gunmen opened fire on them.

"As the gunmen climbed on to the bus, one of them shouted, 'Kill them all!' Then they started indiscriminately firing at everyone they saw," a wounded woman told a television channel by phone, Reuters reported.

Police superintendent Najib Khan said there were six gunmen and that all the passengers were Ismailis, a minority Shi'ite Muslim sect. Pakistan is mostly Sunni.

Qadir Baluch, a security guard at a nearby building, said he heard the gunshots and saw at least one of the militants wearing a police uniform. The attack riddled the bus with bullet holes, but its wounded driver still could drive it to a nearby hospital, said Mohammad Imran, a guard there.

Imran said when he got on the bus later, he saw blood still seeping across its seats and floor. Blood stained Imran's own hands and uniform. "I hardly saw any survivor," he said.

Militant group Jundullah, which has attacked Muslim minorities before, claimed responsibility. The group has links with the Pakistani Taliban and pledged allegiance to Islamic State in November.

"These killed people were Ismaili and we consider them kafir (non-Muslim). We had four attackers. In the coming days we will attack Ismailis, Shi'ites and Christians," spokesperson Ahmed Marwat said.

Later in the day, the Islamic State group said in a statement posted on jihadist Twitter accounts, "Thanks be to Allah, 43 apostates were killed and around 30 were wounded in an attack carried out by Islamic State soldiers on a bus transporting Shiite Ismaili infidels in the city of Karachi."

It was the first official claim of responsibility by the IS leadership of an attack in the Afghanistan-Pakistan region.

The nation is shocked by this and social media got overflowed with this inhumane incident. Ismailis are a peaceful community and this is the first attack of its kind on this community. They are asked to remain mum, so that they could be saved from more danger in future. Whole nation is in grief and feel that Pakistan has become an insecure place for minorities.

Source: Reuters 

HERSH: The White House is lying about the killing of Osama bin Laden

Pulitzer Prize-winning journalist Seymour Hersh has a startling new article claiming the White House fed the public lie after lie about how the US killed Osama bin Laden in May 2011.

Hersh writes in his article

Pakistan's Inter-Services Intelligence (ISI) was holding bin Laden as a prisoner. A former senior Pakistani intelligence officer tipped the US off about bin Laden's whereabouts in exchange for $25 million

Here are the main takeaways:

• The White House's "most blatant" lie was that Pakistan's two most senior military officials were never informed of the mission, Hersh says.

• While US officials say they found bin Laden by tracking his trusted courier, Hersh says they discovered his whereabouts from a former Pakistani intelligence officer who wanted the $25 million reward the US was offering.

• The government claimed bin Laden was hiding out, but Hersh says the Pakistani intelligence agency had actually been holding him captive since 2006 to use him as leverage against Taliban and Al Qaeda activities in Pakistan and Afghanistan.

• While the White House has said it would have taken bin Laden alive if it could have and that he was killed in a firefight, Hersh says that wasn't the case. "There was no firefight as they moved into the compound; the ISI guards had gone," Hersh wrote.

• The article also takes issue with the White House's claim that bin Laden was buried at sea in a service that followed Islamic practices. "The remains, including his head, which had only a few bullet holes in it, were thrown into a body bag and, during the helicopter flight back to Jalalabad, some body parts were tossed out over the Hindu Kush mountains — or so the Seals claimed," Hersh reported, citing his senior US intelligence official.

Hersh says the White House did not respond to his requests for comment. Given that the US side of the story is based primarily on a single anonymous source, it should obviously be viewed with skepticism. 

the article is a startling read...

Who is Seymour Hersh?

He exposed the "My Lai massacre" and its cover-up during the "Vietnam War"

He uncovered the mistreatment of prisoners at Abu Ghraib in Iraq

Are we finally getting some version of the truth?

2,079 killed in Syria by US led strikes: report says

A group monitoring the war said on Thursday in a report about the killings in Syria.

The recently declared says that the most Human Rights activist nation killed a large number of humans. Air strikes by the U.S.-led coalition in Syria have killed 2,079 people, including 66 civilians, since the start of the aerial campaign against Islamic State militants last September.

The Britain-based Syrian Observatory for Human Rights said a majority of the deaths, some 1,922 were Islamic State fighters who were killed in the war on Syria.

The hardline group has seized tracts of territory in Syria and neighboring Iraq, where it has also been targeted by U.S.-led forces since last July.

The Observatory said ten of the civilians killed were children and six were women. It also said 90 members of the al Qaeda-affiliated Nusra Front were also killed in the air strikes, which started on September 23.

The United States has said it takes reports of civilian casualties seriously and says it has a process to investigate each allegation.

Washington justified its action in Syria under Article 51 of the U.N. Charter, which covers an individual or collective right to self-defense against armed attack.

Reuters reported that around 220,000 people have been killed in Syria's conflict, which is now in its fourth year, the United Nations has said. 

Links related to blog: Reuters

Hazara community under threat now, extremist groups kidnapping people

A wave of kidnappings followed by numerous beheading of members of Afghanistan’s Hazara ethnic group have spread alarm and anger among a people who historically have been this country’s most persecuted.

The police in Ghazni Province confirmed Sunday that four Hazara farmers kidnapped by the Taliban had been found beheaded in Ajristan District. Six more Hazaras from Daikundi Province who had been kidnapped by unknown assailants were also found dead, dumped in Ajristan, less than a week after their families began searching for them, officials confirmed on Monday.

Although the police have not yet recovered the bodies, local reports said they, too, had been beheaded.

Beheading is not normally a Taliban tactic, but the insurgents seem to be trying to make an ugly example of the Hazaras, in what some see as a bid for attention.

“The Taliban are trying to send out a new message that they are similar in their brutality to ISIS,” said Shahgul Rezaye, a Hazara Member of Parliament, referring to Islamic State extremists from Iraq and Syria, who reportedly have been trying to recruit supporters in Afghanistan. “They’re trying to show they are as bad as ISIS.”

It seems that Taliban fears of being degraded and now they are trying to tell that they are equally terrible and brutal. By targeting Hazara community they are trying to get back into the A list of terrorists but this is causing great harm to the Hazara community and Afghanistan. This community face genocide in Pakistan as well and in this game of ISIS and Taliban they will suffer most, New York Time reported.

Responding to the public pressure, President Ashraf Ghani invited relatives of the 31 missing men to attend his weekly National Security Council meeting last Wednesday, but they left dissatisfied.

Links related to blog: NY Times,

Bangladesh oppressing voice of secular people, slain second blogger

The second secularist blogger in less than a month was hacked to death in the streets of the capital, made it clear that people having secular ideals are not safe in Bangladesh.

A 25 year old blogger, Ananya Azad, said that “Anytime they can hit me or my like-minded friends,” he has written pieces that were critical of Islamic fundamentalism and politics driven by religion. He quit his job as a newspaper columnist and stopped writing blogs in recent months after receiving numerous threats, but still posts critical comments on Facebook.

In two months or so two bloggers were slayed while Ananya says he’s thinking about fleeing the country and spends much of his time indoors these days. “They don’t hesitate to kill in the name of their beliefs,” he said. “I’m an easy target for the fanatics.”

In many ways, the divide is clear- The bloggers want authorities to ban religion—based politics, while the Islamists are pressing for blasphemy laws so that nobody can undermine Islam’s holy book, the prophet or basic pillars of being a Muslim.

Islam is Bangladesh’s state religion, but the country is governed by secular laws based on British common law. Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina has repeatedly said she will not give in to religious extremism.

The past few weeks have seen a spike in radical attacks.

First, a prominent Bangladeshi-American blogger and writer, Avijit Roy, was hacked to death by unidentified attackers in late February while he was walking with his wife. Roy bled to death while his wife, also a blogger, was critically injured.

Roy was an atheist who promoted secularism through his blog, books and newspaper articles. A previously unknown Muslim militant group, Ansar Bangla 7, claimed responsibility for the attack.

On Monday, 27-year-old Oyasiqur Rahman Babu was attacked in daylight as he left his house. Unlike Roy, who had been on the radar of radical Islamists and had regularly received death threats, Babu was a low-profile online activist.

Two of the three men believed to have attacked Babu were caught by passers-by and handed over to the police. A third man fled the scene. The two captured men, students at local madrasas, told police they neither knew Babu nor were familiar with his writings.

Instead, they said a fourth man had showed them Babu’s photographs and some of his writings, and then asked them to kill him. They followed the instructions, they said, because they believed it was their duty as Muslims, according to police.

While on the other hand Islamist political parties have denied any involvement in the killings. Writing has never been a particularly safe profession in Bangladesh. Bangladesh ranks 146 out of 180 countries on the press freedom index of the group “Reporters without Borders”.

Media reports say radical Muslim groups have compiled lists of bloggers and writers they view as anti-Islam.

Many of those under threat, including fearful Ananya, demand the banning of Jamaat-e-Islami, Bangladesh’s largest Islamic party and a key ally of the Nationalists. Ananya is also among those who called for a senior Jamaat-e-Islami leader to be executed for his role in war crimes during Bangladesh’s bloody war of independence in 1971.

The radicals has ruined the image of Islam and if someone talks against their religion, rather than having a debate on it they use weapons to suppress their voices. The assassinations in Bangladesh made all seculars alerted about their security and people like Ananya want to leave their hometown. Fleeing from their country cannot save them because many new seculars will arise, radicals cannot stop brains to think and hands to write.

Originally published in The Hindu

Beware! Pakistan is a dangerous place to live

Since past few years the terrorism situation in Pakistan has ruined its image worldwide. A recent study has showed that Pakistan has emerged as the world's eighth most dangerous country in a latest analysis of the top 10 danger zones based on terrorist and rebel activity.

The IntelCenter's 'Top 10 Most Dangerous Countries' list as of March 2015 is topped by the Middle East, with Iraq and Syria ranked No 1 and 2 respectively.

IntelCenter's Country Threat Index (CTI) examines the volume of terrorist and rebel alerts, messaging traffic, videos, photos, incidents and the number killed and injured in a country and runs it through an algorithm to assign the country its CTI.

The higher the CTI the greater the risk. Pakistan with a CTI of 122 is joined by Afghanistan with a CTI of 186 and ranked fifth.

"A low CTI does not necessarily reflect the absence of risk as the US in the lead-up to 9/11 would have had a low CTI. It does, however, reflect a lower level of activity over the preceding 30 days (of the analysis), which means high-volume activity is unlikely but one-off events are always a possibility," IntelCenter, a Washington-based company working for intelligence agencies said in a statement.

"The CTI should never be the sole measure of risk in a country but rather one factor to take into consideration. The CTI is based solely on terrorist and rebel related activity. It does not evaluate other risk factors such as crime and political instability," it said.

The countries completing the top 10 include Nigeria (3rd), Somalia (4th), Libya (6th), Yemen (7th), Ukraine (9th) and Egypt (10th).

The present situation has made Pakistan a vulnerable state for minorities, journalists and women. Well the state which is unable to give justice to its citizens and keep itself involving in others war, it would make Pakistan economically weak and security issues will keep arising.

Foreign fighters joining terrorist organizations: UN reports

Reportedly record numbers of foreign fighters from more than half of the world`s countries are joining Extremist Muslim and al Qaeda groups, mostly in Syria, Iraq and increasingly in Libya, said in a UN report.

More than 25,000 foreign fighters are involved in armed conflicts from over 100 countries, the report by a UN panel of experts said.

"The rate of flow is higher than it has ever been historically, and is mainly focused on movement into the Syrian Arab Republic and Iraq, with a growing problem also evident in Libya", said the report obtained by AFP.

The latest figures cast a pall over UN efforts to stem the flow of foreign extremists which the report described as an "urgent global security problem."

The Security Council adopted a resolution in September that called on governments to make it a serious crime for their nationals to enlist as a foreign fighter.

The report cited a 71 percent increase in the number of foreign fighters worldwide between the middle of 2014 to March 2015, with European and Asian countries reporting sharp increases.

High numbers of foreign fighters are traveling from Tunisia, Morocco, France and Russia, but the report cited new flows of jihadists coming from the Maldives, Finland, and Trinidad, Tobago as well as from some countries in sub-Saharan Africa.

The strategic threat is even greater in 2015 and in the years that stretch ahead. the experts said.

"The strategic threat is even greater in 2015 and in the years that stretch ahead," the experts said.

Syria and Iraq have become a "veritable finishing school" for jihadists as was the case in Afghanistan during the 1990s, the report said.

While those two countries have by far the largest numbers of foreign jihadists, Afghanistan is the battleground for 6,500 foreign fighters, and others are found in Yemen, Pakistan, Somalia and Libya.

The experts called for effective policies to counter violent extremism with "counter-messaging" to young people and said intelligence-sharing was key to address the threat from returning foreign fighters.

This situation is alarming as the youth is very much affected from the messaged shared by extremist groups. If the security measures are not taken this will increase the number or terrorists and the situation will become worsen especially for foreigner Muslims. We have not forgotten what price Muslims paid after 9/11.

Saudi’s airstrikes killed dozens in Yemen

History says that no war has resolved any issue. But the recent war of Emirates is going to start that dark side of cruelty again

As per media reports, at least 35 people have lost their lives and dozens of others sustained injuries as Saudi Arabia pushes ahead with its airstrikes against neighboring Yemen.

Doctor Ali Sarieh, director of medical emergencies at the Yemeni Health Ministry, told the official military news service, 26september, on Sunday that Saudi airborne attacks on Yemen killed 35 people and wounded 88 others overnight.

He added that the Saudi military aircraft pounded areas in Sana'a province, where Ansarullah revolutionaries are in charge of the embattled seat of government, as well as the northwestern and western provinces of Sa’ada and Hudaydah.

On March 26, the Al Saud regime unleashed deadly air raids against Yemen in an attempt to restore power to fugitive Yemeni president, Abd Rabbuh Mansur Hadi, a close ally of Riyadh.

Hadi stepped down in January and refused to reconsider the decision despite calls by Ansarullah revolutionaries. The Yemeni parliament did not approve his resignation.

Gradually, as the Yemeni government failed to provide security and properly run the affairs of the country, the Ansarullah fighters started to take control of state matters to contain corruption and terror.

The fugitive president fled Aden to the Saudi capital city of Riyadh after Ansarullah revolutionaries advanced toward Aden, where he had sought to set up a rival power base, and withdrew his resignation.

The Houthis, however, say Hadi lost his legitimacy as president of the country after he escaped the capital in February.

Hadi left the 26th Arab League summit in Egypt for Saudi Arabia on Saturday, and his Foreign Minister Riyadh Yassin said he will not return to Aden "for now."

The many media reports justify the war while it is evident that war is not solution of anything. The innocents will suffer a lot and it has started. As capital punishment is prohibited so the war should also be prohibited for saving many lives.

Pakistani’s left in the lurch in Yemen

With the tense situation of Arab Emirates, many Pakistanis are waiting to come back while they are unable to do so. On Saturday Pakistani officials said they were preparing to evacuate its citizens and diplomatic staff stranded in Yemen; and two planes are on standby for them.

“Pursuant to the directive of the prime minister, the government of Pakistan is making all necessary arrangements for immediate evacuation of Pakistani community members and embassy personnel from Yemen,”said in a statement from the foreign office.

There are around 3,000 Pakistanis in Yemen and the foreign office said stranded citizens were being taken to safer cities from where special PIA flights will be arranged to bring them home.

A convoy of 12 buses would transport 500 people to the western port city of Hudaidah on Saturday, it said, with two PIA planes on standby.

“We are also in contact with all neighboring countries of Yemen for evacuation of Pakistanis there without visa by any safe means,” it said in a tweet.

Pursuant to the directive of the prime minister, the government of Pakistan is making all necessary arrangements for immediate evacuation of Pakistani community members and embassy personnel from Yemen. Foreign Office

In an earlier tweet, the foreign office said it was facing problems evacuating stranded citizens, with the main airports dysfunctional while routes to operating airports and the sea were unsafe.

Pakistani television channels aired live Skype and telephone interviews with citizens left in lurch in Yemen who complained that they were being threatened by rebels.

On Friday, Pakistan’s defense minister said it was ready to defend Yemen’s “territorial integrity” but had not yet decided to join the Saudi-led coalition fighting the Shiite Houthi rebels.

The media reports say hundreds of Pakistanis are on the rocks and waiting to be rescued. The miserable condition of them has distressed many people and wishing to bring those stone broke bring back to our land sooner and safely.

What’s for Pakistan in Yemen War?

The Saudi interest engages the United States with Yemen on a level well beyond counter-terrorism. Saudi Arabia is far and away America’s most important Arab ally left standing. Its critical role in the global energy market as well as its cooperation with the United States in the dual struggle against both Iran and the Islamic State (ISIS) mean that the United States cares deeply about what happens to Saudi Arabia. 

While Pakistan offered help to Saudi Arab in war against Yemen. Reason the Sharif Government has deepest corner for Saudis and want to be America’s apple of the eye. With one indulgence they want to get into America’s and Saudi Arab’s good books. May be it is high time to repay price of the gifted animals and birds; but it’s costing high.

Opposition leader in the National Assembly Khursheed Shah on Friday warned that Pakistan should not take part in the ongoing conflict in the Middle East. “First, we were thrust into the war in Afghanistan. That fire engulfed Pakistan,” he said, cautioning the government not be forced into participating in another war.

Speaking on the floor of the assembly, the Pakistan People's Party senior leader said he expected that Parliament would be taken into confidence over the current developments in the Middle East and Yemen.

“Today, we read in the newspapers that the government has decided to go and protect Saudi Arabia,” he said. “The House should be taken into confidence before taking any decision,” he added, warning that if Pakistan will be “engulfed in fire if we decide go into this war”.

Shah said that Pakistan should go to the Middle East to restore peace and not to participate in war. Same opinion was of PTI leader Imran Khan.

Pakistan is not the only one interested in war against Yemen. The 10 countries involved in the intervention in Yemen are: Saudi Arabia, Bahrain, Qatar, Kuwait, UAE, Egypt, Jordan, Morocco, Sudan, and Pakistan. 

World mourns for blasphemy accused Farkhunda, Women led her Funeral

A woman, named Farkhanda, was beaten with sticks and stones later on set on fire for burning the Quran near mosque in Kabul, capital of Afghanistan.

An Afghani news agency quoted the parents of the woman as saying that she had been suffering from a mental illness for 16 years and that she had not "intentionally" burnt the Quran.

Video of the assault taken with cellphones has circulated widely since the attack on Thursday. The killing has shocked many Afghans and led to renewed calls for justice and reform.

Many rights activists, however, said the killing cut to the core of how women are treated as second-class citizens in Afghan society.

Hundreds of people gathered at a graveyard Sunday in the middle-class suburb near Farkhunda's home. With the permission of her father, the women in black carried her coffin from an ambulance to an open-air prayer ground, and then to her grave, rituals that are usually attended only by men.

"She is a sister to you all, and it is your duty to bury her," Farkhunda's brother Najibullah, standing graveside, told the crowd.

This was considered the most eye popping moment when we saw women carrying her funeral and captured media’s attention worldwide.

The human rights activists say that Afghan women are deprived but they are living a miserable life. According to reports four men were nabbed but police say investigation is under process.

27 years old Farkhunda lost her life for being mentally ill but if we people around so many Farkhunda and Naeem will not open our eyes and minds, the day is not far our bodies will also by lynched and thrown into rivers for any misunderstanding.

Christian community of Lahore targeted, bomb blast near churches killed more than 10

Once again the city is flooded with blood of innocent people and minorities are on target now. At least 15 people were killed and more than 80 injured when two Taliban suicide bombers attacked churches in Lahore on Sunday. Violent mob sparked and which caused two other suspected militants dead.

Tehreek-i-Taliban Pakistan (TTP) splinter group Jamatul Ahrar claimed responsibility for the twin blasts near Saint John Catholic Church and Christ Church in Youhanabad area. It is the country’s biggest Christian locality, housing at least one million people, mostly belonging to lower middle and middle class.

According to the reports, the blasts went off minutes apart in a majority Christian suburb of the eastern city. Police said it seemed they targeted two churches, one Catholic and one Protestant that are very close to each other.

Police cordoned-off the entire area and the injured were shifted to Lahore General Hospital. The condition of several wounded is reported as critical. A large number of people have gathered at the hospital.

Following the blasts, enraged residents lynched two men they suspected of involvement, a police official said.

However, police present there did not stop the mob from 'executing' the suspects, reports said.

We did not stop the enraged mob as there could have been a clash between the police and the mob. Deputy Inspector General (DIG) Lahore Haider Ashraf said.

"We did not stop the enraged mob as there could have been a clash between the police and the mob," Deputy Inspector General (DIG) Lahore Haider Ashraf said.

"Both attacks were suicide blasts. Police personnel were deployed at the gate of the Churches. Two policemen lost their lives in the blasts," Ashraf said, adding that it is always difficult to stop a suicide bomber.

The DIG further said, "It was the police and local security that deterred the suicide bombers from entering the churches otherwise the loss would have been colossal."

According to sources, some unknown miscreants opened fire near one Church after which the blast occurred whereas a suicide bomber explode himself outside the second Church on being stopped at the gate.

Meanwhile, protesters launched a demonstration outside General Hospital against the Punjab government. Sloganeering continues against the Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif. The enraged protesters demand accountability, and said proper security was not provided to the churches, a Dawn report said.

As per media reports, members of the Christian community also took to the streets and staged protests in Karachi's Esa Nagri area against the bomb attacks on churches in Lahore.

Angry Christians also did not allow two ministers, top police and district administration officials to visit the blast sites. Christians in Faisalabad, Nankana Sahib, Sargodha, Multan, Karachi and Peshawar also took to the streets to protest the attack on churches.

However, Bishop of Lahore, Irfan Jamil, has appealed to Christians to stay calm and not let terrorists succeed in their design.

"Terrorists want to destroy the peace of this country. They are attacking mosques, Imam bargahs and markets. Like minorities they are also attacking Muslims," he said.

Due to the deadly blasts, all missionary schools in Pakistan would remain closed to mourn those killed in the attacks. Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif also condemned the attack and called it a cowardly act.

Meanwhile, the Lahore police have registered two separate cases -- one against the attack on the two churches and the other against the people involved in killing of the two 'suspects' who were lynched and burnt alive.

According to an initial police report, the terrorists wearing the suicide jacket had stuffed it with five kg of explosives each.

Punjab Chief Minister Shahbaz Sharif has announced Rs. 500,000 for those killed in the attack and Rs. 75,000 for the injured.

The most wealthiest and populous city of Pakistan is unable to save its citizens. It seems like genocide of minorities belonging to other religions or sects will suffer and they have to quit their day to day activities if they want to live here.

The city was considered peaceful some time back but even after security checks in all over Lahore such horrible incident stolen lives of many.

And the Islamophobic Award goes to ‘Charlie Hebdo’

Two months ago, 12 Charlie Hebdo staff members were shot dead as gunmen stormed into their office for printing blasphemous images of the Prophet Muhammad (PBUH)

The Islamic Human Rights Organisation conferred their annual international “Islamophobia’ award on controversial French satirical magazine Charlie Hebdo, according to The Independent.

The awards, which were devised by the IHRC, a non-profit organisation a British group that campaigns against terrorism took place at a ceremony on Saturday.

Beating Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, US president Barack Obama and American television host Bill Maher to the title, Charlie Hebdo was awarded ‘the world’s most Islamophobic person or publication’ in 2015.

However, the award has been termed “insensitive”, as it comes in the wake of the massacre on January 7 this year, in which brothers Saïd and Chérif Kouachi forced their way into the Paris offices and killed a dozen journalists and cartoonists.

But the IHRC, a prominent Muslim group with ties to the United Nations, insisted that the awards were supposed to be taken as “tongue in cheek”.

“The annual Islamophobia awards have come to be known as a tongue in cheek swipe at those in public life who have perpetrated or perpetuated acts of hatred against Muslims and their faith,” a spokesperson said.

Undeterred by the attacks, Charlie Hebdo published a ‘special edition’ also featuring sacrilegious cartoons and sold more than five million copies.

Other winners of the awards were Theresa May, who won ‘Islamophobe of the year’, Maajid Nawaz, ‘UK Islamophobe of the year’, American Sniper for ‘Islamophobe film of the year’ and Fox News for ‘media Islamophobes of the year’.

Massoud Shadjareh, the group’s chairman, told the International Business Times that it was “a satirical thing”, and was designed to counter the image of Muslims as “dry and angry”.

“If people think Muslims should be on the receiving end of satire, then why cannot Muslims give it, too?” he said, adding: “We have a sense of humor and we can give it back.”

The ‘survivor issue’ of Charlie Hebdo sparked protests across the Muslim world.

In my opinion Shadjareh is right that western world always make Islam the most aggressive religion and keep criticizing whatever Muslims or Muslim world does so what you sow you shall reap fits in this 

West has freedom of expression when they can be extremists and humiliate any religion especially Islam in perky acts then Muslims also have freedom of speech and expression and they can give them back what they are giving us, but in a respectable way.

Originally published in Tribune

It look like the mystry of long awaiting case of Benazir murder is solved

As Pakistani, we all respect our first ever lady Pakistani Prime Minister, late Benazir Bhutto. It look like the mystry of long awaiting case of Benazir murder is solved.  Benazir murder case hearing was held at ATC special court and it was started by Justice Pervez Ismail at Adiala Jail, Rawalpindi. There were two FIA Peshawar Inspectors named Naseer Ahmed and Sub-Inspector Adnan who came to the court and acknowledged court regarding the killing of Benazir Bhutto that Darul Uloom Haqqania’s students were involved in it and they also presented proof regarding their statements. The director education of Darul Uloom Haqqania named Wisal Ahmed also provided his statement and he confessed that suicide bomber Abdullah alias Saddam Nadir alias Qari Ismail and arrested believes Rasheed alias Turabi and Faiz Muhammad studied at the same center and he also told that their education center doesn’t support any involvement of such people. He also said that few of them who attempted her murder also left their education without completing their education.

Former director general of Crisis Management Cell Brigadier (retd) Javeid Iqbal Cheema also sub division of interior ministry also visited court and he also recorded his testimonial there. He also said that the press conference which was held after the few hours of that incident was also held according to the orders provided by Pervez Musharraf. President General (retd). He mentioned that what else he commented during that conference was not her own views and that was according to that present government at that time. The court held this special hearing more than 300 times.

Afghan-Pakistan ties: Aligning policy with reality

President Ashraf Ghani's outreach is but an effort to normalize relations with Pakistan, though it may seem a bit drastic in view of the often skewed nature of relations between the two neighbors, who share much in common.

Hamid Karzai’s strategy civilization bogged down the country for many years and now Ghani has started to establish good relations. Afghanistan has arrested mass murderers of military school at Peshawar by TTP and now Afghanistan is ready to deliver TTP Latif  Mehsud and his other members to Pakistan and also started security at border with collaboration and previously Karzai suspended because he didn’t like to call "Durand Line"  as “border” in projected cooperation agreement and also accepted Pakistan old offer to allow afghan army for training that was hold by Karzai due to request for weapon from India. Ghanis has direct coordination with military made possible this old policy. Afghanistan is giving importance to its neighboring countries which shares borders but It is also improving relation with neighboring country which doesn’t share border like India, who having a historic ties between them. The biggest suggestions of the matter most probably are not gone on the new Afghan leadership as they will have parsed the expected question of how well India's support to Afghanistan could possibly cost, his visited  Pakistan and China but not India and Iran showing actual interest of improving relation on priority basis. India showing interest in Iran’s Chabahar port due to trade with Pakistan for delivery of heavy machinery for development projects and may be military equipments to Afghanistan. 

India is making the Delaram-Zaranj Highway which attach Afghanistan's National Ring Road with the Iranian border India is making the Delaram-Zaranj Highway which attach Afghanistan's National Ring Road with the Iranian border, but Ghani's giving importance on the Lapis Lazuli route shows of Indian-support for  Chabahar route on the back-burner  right now. Karzai formed and used HPC for peace process during his leadership that he was better situated than his competitor to win over the Taliban. . Powerful leader Abdurrab Rasoul Sayyaf said that it’s an unlawful and doctorial step without asking people of Afghanistan regarding relationship with neighboring countries. Ghani's efforts seem honest and significant, but their provisions very much depend on Pakistan grabbing this as important dealings.

Sharif calls for action against seminaries backing terrorism

QUETTA: Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif has directed the provincial governments to implement the National Action Plan (NAP) and take stern action against terrorist organizations and proceed speedily on those death penalty cases in which mercy petitions have been rejected.

Presiding over a meeting of the Baluchistan Apex Committee, he said religious seminaries and organizations involved in terrorist activities should be identified and proceeded against. No terrorist or militant organization should be spared.

The meeting was attended by Army Chief General Raheel Sharif, Baluchistan Governor Mohammad Khan Achakzai, Chief Minister Dr. Abdul Malik Baloch, Defense Minister Khawaja Mohammad Asif, ISI Director General Lt Gen Rizwan Akhtar, federal ministers Khawaja Saad Rafeeq and Jam Mohammad Kamal, Commander Southern Command Lt Gen Nasser Khan Janjua, Senior Minister and PML-N’s Baluchistan President Sardar Sanaullah Zehri, Home Minister Mir Sarfarz Bugti, former prime minister Mir Zafarullah Jamali, Chief Secretary Saifullah Chattha, Home Secretary Mohammad Akbar Durrani, Baluchistan Inspector General Mohammad Amlish Khan and Frontier Corps (Baluchistan) IG Maj Gen Shair Afghan.

The prime minister stressed that terrorism must be dealt with sternly and militant and terrorist organizations which were not ready to hold peace talks with the government would have to face action.

Referring to the implementation of the action plan in Baluchistan, he said that the federal government and the army would fully support the provincial government in its efforts to get rid of the province of terrorists and extremists. Durable peace in the province is one of the objectives of the plan.

Mr. Sharif asked all provincial governments to take steps for capacity building of police and other law-enforcement agencies. “The federal government has been providing funds to all the provinces, including Baluchistan, for the purpose so that their police and law-enforcement agencies could play an effective role in the war against terrorism,” he said. The provincial governments would have to pay special attention to law and order and free law-enforcement forces of political interference.

He said the strength of counter-terrorism departments should be increased to enable them to effectively deal with the menace of terrorism. The prime minister said his government and the army were on the same page and working jointly to root out terrorism. “Civil and military leadership and all political parties had been taken on board while formulating the NAP,” he said. Elements out to destroy peace will not be allowed to continue their violent activities.

He claimed that efforts by the federal and Baluchistan governments had controlled target killings and attacks on the Hazara community had been reduced. He directed the authorities to provide security and protection to communities facing sectarian violence. The prime minister said the parliament had amended the Army Act to make the National Action Plan more effective.

Chief Minister Malik Baloch and Chief Secretary Saifullah Chattha briefed the meeting on measures being taken to implement the action plan in Baluchistan. They said that a number of steps had been taken against militant and terrorist groups under the plan. He further said that about 80,000 unverified mobile phone Sims have been blocked over the past few days.