The News Today

2012-05-19T01:04:00.002-07:00

US agonizes over apology to Pakistan

WASHINGTON: For nearly six months after US-led forces killed two dozen Pakistani troops at the Afghanistan border, officials at the highest reaches of the Obama administration have been locked in a heated debate over what might appear to be a small step—apologising for the loss.

A report published in Wall Street Journal said the US had expressed "regret" for the Nov. 26 deaths. But whether to publicly apologise, at the risk of appearing weak to Pakistan or American voters, was argued in dozens of video conference calls, nearly 20 high-level White House meetings and hundreds of confidential emails.

The administration came to the brink of saying sorry several times. One mission to deliver an apology by Secretary of State Hillary Clinton was aborted midflight.

Pakistan

kept closed an important supply route for US forces in Afghanistan while waiting, with the delay extracting a steep price that US officials say will only go up. Islamabad this week indicated that it would reopen the supply route in return for up to a 30-fold increase in the passage fees, officials said.

The US last year moved 35,000 shipping containers through Pakistan, paying the country nearly $200 in fees for each, congressional officials said.

The decision to reopen the supply route came as Pakistani President Asif Ali Zardari announced he would attend a two-day summit of the North Atlantic Treaty Organization that begins Sunday in Chicago. US officials said privately that Pakistan's proposed fee increase was unreasonable. A Pentagon spokesman said negotiations were continuing. Officials expect a compromise as early as the NATO meeting.

The drawn-out debate shows how the US remains confounded by efforts to repair relations with Pakistan. It was complicated by election year politics. And it revealed tensions within the Obama administration's national-security team, which on issues involving Afghanistan and Pakistan has struggled to reach consensus and deliver a coordinated message.

Advocates of apology, in particular among US diplomats, said it was the best way to mend relations. Opponents said it would be interpreted as US weakness just as Washington wanted to pressure Pakistan to root out militant havens along its border, including those launching attacks on US troops.

This account of the diplomatic tug of war is based on interviews with nearly a dozen current and former officials of the Obama administration, as well as Pakistani officials.

The debate began almost immediately after Nov. 26 last year. On that day, a 150-man US-Afghan commando team near the Pakistan border came under attack and called in air support, according to US officials. US helicopters fired on two Pakistani border posts. The Pentagon said Pakistani troops at the posts opened fire first, which Pakistan has denied. Pakistan has accused the US of deliberately firing at its troops.

For Pakistanis, the killings were another US affront to national pride. Only seven months earlier, the US sneaked elite special forces into the country to kill Osama bin Laden. An immediate apology, Pakistani officials argued in November, would ease tensions and ward off protests.

The US military believed an immediate apology amounted to an admission of fault. Even so, the Pentagon privately told Pakistan it was prepared to pay restitution to the families of those killed. Pakistan rejected the cash without an apology.

Vali Nasr, a former top adviser on Pakistan in the Obama administration, said people in Pakistan interpreted the US refusal to apologise to mean "it intended to kill the 24 people."

At the White House, officials rejected the first of several apology proposals, including one that called for President Barack Obama to personally deliver a condolence message to the Pakistani people.

In late December, the Pentagon released its investigation. The US concluded both American and Pakistan troops erred. Islamabad rejected the finding.

On Dec. 21, the night before the Pentagon's investigation was released, top US policy makers convened for a 5 p.m. secure video teleconference and agreed to apologize. Defense Secretary Leon Panetta wasn't enthusiastic but didn't object, Jeremy Bash, Mr. Panetta's chief of staff, told the group, according to officials.

Though divided about apologizing, defense officials wanted border supply crossings to reopen as soon as possible. The US and NATO allies had to route shipments through a northern route through Russia, Central Asia and the Caucasus, which cost 2½ times more per container than going through Pakistan, according to Pentagon estimates.

Under the Dec. 21 plan, Pentagon press secretary George Little would issue an apology the next morning. "We mourn the loss of life and apologize for the weaknesses in our border coordination processes which contributed to this tragic accident," one early draft read.

At 10 p.m., Mr. Bash reported that top policy makers at the White House and the Pentagon had reversed course. White House National Security Adviser Tom Donilon was among the officials who asked that the word "apologize" be replaced by "deepest regret" and "sincere condolences." Mr. Panetta helped draft the changes, officials said.

In the hours that followed, State Department and some Pentagon officials urged the White House to reconsider the decision, arguing that "apology" would make a critical difference with Pakistan and wasn't much different from "regret."

U.S. Ambassador to Pakistan Cameron Munter told the group an apology would increase the chances of persuading Pakistan to reopen the border crossings.

Mrs. Clinton's chief policy aide, Jake Sullivan, told colleagues the US should acknowledge its mistakes. He argued that an apology would strengthen Washington's hand in pressing Pakistan to step up its fight against militants, according to officials in the debate.

Michele Flournoy, then the undersecretary of defense for policy, suggested language that apologized for the "unintentional and tragic" deaths but didn't accept full responsibility, officials said. Ms. Flournoy, who has since left the administration, told the group the US risked the issue festering.

On Dec. 22, Mr. Little, the Pentagon spokesman, read the revised expression of "regret" but without an apology.

Pakistan

wouldn't reopen the supply routes, prompting administration officials to rehash the debate in high-level meetings at the White House chaired by Mr. Donilon and his deputy, Denis McDonough, officials said.

One senior administration official said the potential for presumed Republican presidential candidate Mitt Romney to use an apology as a political attack didn't come up in these meetings. Other officials said concerns about giving the Romney campaign ammunition weighed on the minds of Mr. Obama's political advisers.

After first pressing for an immediate apology, some Pakistani officials in January and February said they wanted the US to wait until Pakistan's parliament completed a review, according to US officials. These Pakistani officials preferred any US apology to come in response to recommendations from parliament.

The mixed messages added to the confusion. Some US officials argued for an immediate apology to show Pakistan it couldn't dictate the timetable, according to U.S. officials. It "muddied the whole process," a US official said.

The Pentagon had prepared for a lengthy border closure by building stocks of fuel and ammunition in Afghanistan. The winter fighting lull eased demand for supplies, blunting the supply route closure.

But as spring approached, war planners wanted assurances the crossings would reopen ahead of the thaw, when the fighting would increase.

Officials debated having Central Command chief, Gen. James Mattis, deliver an apology to Pakistan's Army chief, Gen Ashfaq Parvez Kayani, during a proposed trip to Islamabad in February. White House officials told reporters the trip would be the first step toward thawing relations. It never materialized.

On Feb. 21, the White House approved a new plan. Army Gen. Martin Dempsey, the chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, would apologize by phone to Gen. Kayani the next day. Mrs. Clinton was scheduled to meet with Pakistani Foreign Minister Hina Rabbani Khar in London.

As Mrs. Clinton prepared to leave Washington on Feb. 22, a draft statement was prepared for her, officials said: "As Chairman Dempsey conveyed to Gen. Kayani, we apologize for our part in the accidental tragedy."

Mrs. Clinton took off from Andrews Air Force Base and while over the Atlantic, she received word: the apologies were off. Violent protests had broken out in Afghanistan after U.S. military personnel burned Islamic books, including Qurans, drawing an apology from Mr. Obama to Afghan President Hamid Karzai in a personal letter.

Apologizing to Afghanistan and Pakistan on the same day was too much for the Obama administration, officials said. "Two apologies at once would make it look like everything's unraveling," said a senior U.S. official. The White House worried it would "look weak," another official said.

During their meeting in London, Ms. Khar told Mrs. Clinton it was up to the US to determine the nature and the timing of the apology, according to US and Pakistani officials.

In March and early April, the White House discussed having the U.S. special envoy to the region, Marc Grossman, or Deputy Secretary of State Thomas Nides deliver the message. Those plans went nowhere.

Officials then agreed to wait for Pakistan's parliamentary review. Released on April 12, the parliamentary report called for Islamabad to seek an "unconditional apology," among other demands, for the 24 deaths.

Ms. Khar argued an apology would smooth the path to resolve other contentious issues, according to US and Pakistani officials. The countries, for example, are at odds over the US use of drones to attack militants in Pakistan.

Her message to US officials during recent meetings was that the Pakistani public "noticed that you apologized for the Quran burning within 24 hours and here we are with 24 people killed and there's been no apology for five months," US officials recalled.

On April 15, militants launched coordinated attacks in Kabul. US and Afghan intelligence agencies blamed the Haqqani network, which is based in Pakistan and has ties to Pakistan's Inter-Services Intelligence agency.

"How can you apologize to a country that is providing through some parts of its government tacit support to the Haqqani network, which is actively attacking our guys," the senior administration official said. "This isn't about politics. This is about the message that would send to our troops and that's what no one in the military or the White House could countenance."

officials told the Pakistanis the April 15 attack effectively "killed" any chances of an apology for now, said officials on both sides.

"This goes to the fact that we don't know how to deal with the Pakistanis," one senior US official said. An official close to the Pakistan government likewise lamented: "If the apology would have occurred in the first or the second day, as it should have, we could have moved on.”

2012-05-19T01:00:00.002-07:00

34 killed in Vietnam bus accident

HANOI: A bus crashed through the side of a bridge while crossing a river in central Vietnam, leaving 34 people dead and at least 20 injured, authorities said Friday.

The vehicle was carrying 60 passengers from Dak Lak province to Ho Chi Minh City when the accident took place at 10 pm Thursday (1500 GMT Thursday), said Dinh Van Khiet, chairman of the provincial People’s Committee.

“We have initially verified 20 seriously injured, but people were sent to different hospitals during the night so we have not finished counting them,” said Doan Quoc Thu, the deputy director of Dak Lalk province, who was part of the rescue team.

Mr. Khiet said local authorities would give 300 dollars each to the families of the dead and 170 dollars each to the families of the injured

2012-05-19T00:58:00.003-07:00

More judges in district courts needed: CJP

ISLAMABAD: Meeting of the Law and Justice Commission of Pakistan (LJCP) was held today (Saturday) at the Supreme Court (SC) under the chairmanship of Chief Justice of Pakistan (CJP), Justice Iftikhar Muhammad Chaudhry.

While addressing the meeting, the CJP said that more judges are needed to be recruited in district courts in order to provide timely justice to the masses.

The formal announcement regarding the decisions made in the meeting will be made by evening.

The meeting was attended by Justice Agha Rafiq Ahmed Khan, Chief Justice Federal Shariat Court Justice Qazi Faez Isa, Chief Justice Balochistan High Court Justice Mushir Alam, Chief Justice Sindh High Court Justice Sh. Azmat Saeed, Chief Justice Lahore High Court Justice Dost Muhammad Khan, Chief Justice Peshawar High Court, Irfan Qadir, Attorney General of Pakistan, senior officials of the federal law ministry and some members of the legal community.

The commission considered several Law Reform Proposals, including amendments in Section 426 & 497 of the Criminal Procedure Code, (CPC) 1898, relating to the grant of bail to pregnant women and mothers of suckling babies, languishing in jails, enhancement of jurisdiction of Family Court and enhancing the scope of Smoking and Protection of Non-Smokers Health Ordinance, 2002.

2012-05-19T00:57:00.001-07:00

Pakistan adamant on Salala stance: Sherry Rehman

WASHINGTON: Pakistan Ambassador to US Sherry Rehman has refuted the impression that Pakistan had deviated the position of demanding apology from the US on the Salala firing incident.

“We have not stepped back from any of our demands. Foreign Office has issued a very clear statement that we will continue to press for apology for the 24 martyred soldiers in every meeting and diplomatic engagement with US. We have neither compromised on it, neither have done anything to indicate that only the US is furthering its gains”, she said in an interview with a private news channel.

She said Pakistan’s participation in the forthcoming Nato summit in Chicago would ensure that it is not in international isolation. Pakistan, she said, has always had a role in the region and the summit presented an opportunity to redefine it.

This unconditional invitation to Pakistan is a very positive development. We don’t want interference in Afghanistan, but want to support peaceful security transition, which can also bring stability in Pakistan”, she said.

“We must remember what we faced in 1990s in terms of refugee crisis, Pakistan changed a lot because of that. Our attitude and actions should always be for Afghan internal and sovereign process, which is a democratic process of national building. We should support that and not play a role, in terms of supporting any particular group”, she pointed out while recalling the tumultuous years after the soviet withdrawal in Afghanistan that also resulted in the US leaving Pakistan on its own. “We were absent from the global stage for the last 4-5 months on the Afghan issue, so we should have accepted this invitation”, she asserted.

Pakistan

, she recalled, had decided against attending Bonn Conference because it was not long after Salala incident. “However, this Nato summit is happening at a time when our discussions with Afghanistan are ongoing too and core group involving Pakistan, Afghanistan and US just recently met in Islamabad.

Therefore, it’s a continuation of that where we can play our constructive role for Afghanistan because it is mostly about them. If we are already involved at a smaller level, we ought to remain engaged at such higher forum too”, she stressed.

The Ambassador said that Pakistan would have been seen as playing a spoiler’s role, in case it decided to stay away from the Nato summit. “We are improving relations with India, so these are very important strategic shifts. We have to adopt a good neighbour policy vis-a-vis Afghanistan too. Relationship between President Karzai and President Zardari is much improved as compared to the previous regime, so we must take these diplomatic and political initiative”, she firmly said.

She said that the US officials were talking about their national interest while Pakistan was focusing on its own interests. “Every country watches its interest. Pakistan has never kept a superpower like the US on hold for four months, which should be given due consideration”, she stated while referring to the extensive exercise in the Parliament that reviewed the relationship with the United States in its entirety after tensions peaked after Salala tragedy.

Sherry, though, insisted that despite waiting for the Parliamentary review to complete, Pakistan had never been stubborn. However, the country would have been at a losing end in case it decided to skip a vital forum like the Nato summit, she believed while using the example of a fast running train to support her argument. “If there is a train running (with every country on board) and Pakistan is not part of it, then who is the loser of course, us”, she said.

When asked if she had any indications from her interactions with the US officials that they were ready to concede to Pakistani demands, she denied that there was any point scoring going on during negotiation. “It s not a matter of conceding or not conceding. The result of negotiations and any final outcome has to be with transparency”, she mentioned adding that the reports of Pakistan demanding immediate release of outstanding coalition support funds (CSF) before the impending budget did not have any basis.

There is no such timeline for demand of CSF. It is not like our budget will not be made without this money. We have not linked it to budget and neither can you gain any leverage from such linkages during negotiations. We want to be seen as a positive, constructive, international force in the region. We have taken a big stand on our sovereignty, which is a very important position for our public that Pakistan values and protects its sovereignty”, she reasoned.

“In the context of the situation in the region, we will have to take each step very carefully. We do look to take a moderate stance instead of extreme ones, but can’t compromise on national interest”, she made clear and believed that negotiations with the US were on the right track. “We will want our interest in all negotiations and they will do the same. It takes time and patience is required, but we can hope that these developments and negotiations move forward on a positive note”, she hoped.

Sherry agreed that the Nato conference in Chicago, although, was not bilateral, but it did have symbolic value. “Certainly there is symbolic value that Pakistan and US relationship, which we want to be forged on mutual self respect, should be like that”, she opined. She also said that terrorism was an internal issue for Pakistan and if the world was coming forward to assist the country to combat it, all such help should be availed. “You always need political and diplomatic support for it. I have always believed that we need to be globally responsible regional player”, she pointed out.

2012-05-19T00:53:00.001-07:00

IPL: Shiv Sena targets SRK

NEW DELHI: The Shiv Sena on Saturday lashed out at actor Shah Rukh Khan for the Wankhede brawl episode, saying he should have been handed a life ban by the Mumbai Cricket Association (MCA).

The party said in its mouthpiece 'Saamna', "Shah Rukh Khan has been insulted several times by the security at American airports but we didn't see him lose his cool there. The rich make their own law in this country, which is why he shoved around a security guard."

It added, "Saif received a Padma for indulging in a brawl in a hotel. Now Shah Rukh Khan will at least be made a nominated member of the Rajya Sabha... He was supposed to be handed a life ban from the MCA… Now it's only for 5 years.

"If pressure comes from Delhi, it will be further reduced to 5 minutes. Shah Rukh Khan should stay away from such brawls and stop abusing people. He should not try and make a 'My Name Is Khan' out of the episode at Wankhade."

2012-05-19T00:40:00.003-07:00

Chen on way to airport, bound for U.S.

BEIJING: China has allowed blind legal activist Chen Guangcheng to leave a hospital in Beijing for the United States, a U.S.-based Christian advocacy group said on Saturday.

Chen Guangcheng told Bob Fu, the president of Texas-based China Aid, that he and his family were heading to the Beijing airport now, according to an emailed statement from the group.

Chen and his family "were informed to pack up and get ready to leave China" for the United States on Saturday, the statement said. Chen could not immediately be reached for comment.

Chen Guangcheng's escape from house arrest in north eastern China last month and subsequent refuge in the U.S. embassy caused huge embarrassment for China, and led to a serious diplomatic rift between the two superpowers while U.S. Secretary of State Hillary Clinton was visiting Beijing.

2012-05-19T00:38:00.001-07:00

Australia PM's plane fault delays Nato trip

TOWNSVILLE: PRIME Minister Julia Gillard's VIP plane has broken down, delaying her arrival in the US city of Chicago for a major NATO summit.

AAP understands Ms Gillard's plane was unable to fly out of Townsville at the scheduled time because of a mechanical failure.

A replacement plane has been sent from Canberra but Ms Gillard is now expected to arrive much later than expected - meaning she may miss some scheduled bilateral meetings.

Ms Gillard was bound for Chicago, where she will meet US President Barack Obama and other NATO and International Security Assistance Force leaders for three days of talks about Afghanistan.

A spokeswoman for the prime minister later said Ms Gillard would not miss any talks in Chicago.

"She didn't have meetings planned at the other end so she won't be missing anything," the spokeswoman said.

The prime minister's plane is expected to take off about four hours after originally planned.

2012-05-19T00:34:00.001-07:00

Olympics: London 2012 torch relay starts in Britain

LAND'S END: Sailor Ben Ainslie was the first torchbearer as the Olympic flame began its 70-day journey around Britain and Ireland on Saturday ahead of the 2012 London Games.

The flame arrived in Britain from Greece on Friday and was flown to Land's End, the southwesterly tip of England, on Saturday by a Royal Navy helicopter before it was used to light the torch for the start of the 8,000-mile (12,875-kilometre) relay.

Ainslie, who has won gold medals in sailing at the last three Olympics, then walked just 300 metres, allowing some of the hundreds of spectators lining the route in the morning sunshine to touch the gold-coloured torch.

The yachtsman, wearing the number 001 on his T-shirt as the first torchbearer, then passed on the torch to 18-year-old Anastassia Swallow, a surfer who is hoping that her sport will one day become an Olympic discipline.

The torch will be carried by 8,000 people as it makes its way around the United Kingdom, with its final destination the Olympic Stadium in east London for the opening ceremony on July 27.

From June 3-7, it will visit Northern Ireland and then the Republic of Ireland - the only country outside the United Kingdom on the torch route. (AFP)

2012-05-19T00:32:00.000-07:00

IPL: Bookie claims to have paid Sri Lanka cricketer Rs100 million

MUMBAI: Bookie Sonu Yogendra Jalan alias Malad has told the crime branch that he paid Rs100 million to a Sri Lankan cricket player for fixing a match. He also mentioned that some Indian cricketers ...

2012-05-19T00:30:00.001-07:00

Haqqani warns Pakistan not to overplay ‘Nato route’ trump card

NEW YORK: Former Pakistani Ambassador to the United States Husain Haqqani Friday warned Pakistan not to overplay its trump card - control of the Nato supply routes through the country. In a CNN interview with Christiane Amanpour, he said: “Pakistanis have to wake up to the fact that whatever advantages they have as the ground line of communication provider, that advantage is not going to last forever.

As the Americans withdraw, yes, they need Pakistan to withdraw their heavy equipment. But in a worst case scenario, they can say ‘Blow up the equipment, let’s get out of here through other means.’”

The former envoy also claimed that his life was in danger in Pakistan, and he would only return to the country once radicalism there had been completely eradicated. He rejected the possibility of facing the memo commission saying that his life was at risk in Pakistan. Commenting on the unceremonious end to his own ambassadorship, Haqqani held, “I did not come to a very good end as ambassador. I ended up being accused of all sorts of things because I was trying to explain to people in Pakistan that the sentiment in America was now turning against our country. And I kept telling people in America that they need to be a little more understanding of what’s going on in Pakistan. So the proverbial middleman, I got punched by both sides.”

In response to a question, Haqqani maintained that Pakistan had serious reservations concerning Afghanistan’s future, and that the United States’ lack of confidence in Pakistan was uncalled for. He added that in order to solve a myriad of issues the United States would have to first understand the sentiments of the people of Pakistan and both countries would have to resolve their conflicting issues, adding that both Islamabad and Washington enjoyed “parallel narratives.”

“Pakistanis think that the United States is an untrustworthy ally, the Americans think that Pakistanis don’t always fulfil their end of the bargain, especially when it comes to terrorism,” Haqqani attested, adding that breaking the deadlock would not be easy.

“Remember, we need to crack down on these extremists for Pakistan’s sake. More Pakistanis have been killed by them than they have killed Americans. America will leave Afghanistan someday but we will still be haunted by the remnants,” he said.

“I am among those who feel that there are elements in Pakistani society who don’t allow us to have an honest and realistic debate about foreign policy. We just want to blame our neighbours, our enemies,” said Haqqani, “[and] we don’t want to take account of what’s wrong at home.”

2012-05-19T00:21:00.004-07:00

Hopes fading for swift US, Pakistan deal on Afghan supply routes

“There’s a distinct possibility that we may not see an agreement before the end of this weekend,” the US official said on condition of anonymity. “But talks are progressing and we do expect to reach a deal in the near future.”

Earlier this week, as Pakistani President Asif Ali Zardari accepted a last-minute Nato invitation to the May 20-21 summit, many US officials were optimistic they could finally make a deal to reopen key Nato ground routes into Afghanistan. Pakistan shut the routes in protest when US aircraft killed 24 Pakistani soldiers along the Afghan border in November.

Zardari’s appearance at the summit was seen as a potential breakthrough after the border deaths plunged perennially poor US-Pakistan ties into a deep freeze for months.

Now, as the two countries continue to disagree about details of a possible deal, that optimism appears to have faded.

Nato nations, grappling with severe fiscal pressure at home, are anxious to reach an agreement under which Pakistan would allow Nato trucks to once again travel on Pakistani roads, in part because shipping supplies into land-locked Afghanistan from the north is much more expensive.

Being able to transit across Pakistan becomes even more important as US commanders prepare for the monumental logistical task of withdrawing most of the 128,000 Nato soldiers in Afghanistan – and the equipment they have accumulated since 2001 – by the end of 2014.

Negotiations between US and Pakistani officials in Islamabad have dragged on.

From the beginning, Zardari’s government has demanded a high-level apology for the border deaths, which Nato said were accidental but which enraged Pakistanis.

The Obama administration, loathe exposing itself to further Republican criticism, has refused to apologise.

The US official said a “wide gulf” remained on the amount Nato nations would be charged for transporting equipment into Afghanistan, the central stumbling block in those talks.

Pakistan

says its roads require millions of dollars in repairs after years of Nato truck going back and forth. The amount that Pakistani officials believe should be charged is far higher than what US officials have offered.

“The fees proposed by the Pakistanis are unacceptable, not just to the United States but to our Nato allies,” the official said.

Lack of an agreement could add strains to interactions between President Barack Obama and other senior US officials and Pakistani leaders during the summit. US officials have long complained that Pakistan has failed to act sufficiently against militants fighting US troops in Afghanistan.

The White House said on Thursday that Obama had no plans for a one-on-one meeting with Zardari.

Still, Zardari’s government supports reopening the supply routes once a deal can be reached that satisfies both sides. For that reason the Obama administration expects to ultimately find an arrangement on the supply routes and on the precise amount of US military assistance Washington owes Pakistan. (Reuters)

2012-05-19T00:15:00.001-07:00

Funeral of 13-year old student offered in Faisalabad

FAISALABAD: The funeral of thirteen-year old Umer, who committed suicide by self-immolation after getting dismissed from his school by the headmaster of a school over non-attendance, was offered Saturday morning. He had succumbed to his burn injuries Friday night.

Umer’s mother fell unconscious after receiving the news of her son’s demise.

According to Umer's father, they had gone for a family wedding and when the child went to school after two days he was dismissed by the headmaster.

The suicide attempt left 80 percent of the child's body severely burnt.

The next day they sent an explanation note with the child, but the headmaster did not accept it. On the third day, the father accompanied his son to school but the headmaster refused to listen to him.

When they reached home, Umer went outside and set himself on fire. He was rushed to the hospital in critical condition.

According to Doctors, Umer had received severe burns.

Headmaster Ghulam Fareed said that the father of the child had been called over his repeated absences, after which this incident took place.

According to the DCO Faisalabad, Umer had been absent several times and the school administration had summoned his parents about this.

When the student returned home and asked his father to come to school, the father refused. It was after this that the student attempted suicide by self-immolation.

2012-05-18T23:03:00.003-07:00

Teacher Nafees Khan’s lawyer tortured

SARGODHA: Unknown men tortured schoolteacher Nafees Khan’s lawyer, Shahid Nazir Khan and broke his arm, Geo News reported Saturday.

According to sources, Shahid Khan was on his way to drop his children to school when at least six men stopped him and tortured him in the middle of market. Due to severe beating, one of his arms was fractured while the culprits escaped from the scene.

The lawyers protested the incident while the District Bar Association has called for one-day strike against the brutal incident.

While talking to Geo News, Shahid Khan told that he was already receiving threats from Aslam Madhiana’s men who have attacked him now.

Shahid Khan is representing the schoolteacher, Nafees Khan, who was tortured by Aslam Madhiana.

An anti-terrorism court of Sargodha has already indicted former MPA of Pakistan People’s Party (PPP) Aslam Madhiana and his six associates in teacher torture case on Thursday, May 17.

The court had summoned witnesses for further proceedings.

The court had upheld all the sections of terrorism act against the accused. However, Madhiana denied all the charges against him.

It should be mentioned that Aslam Madhiana was booked by police in a case for breaking legs of Nafees Khan, who had been raising voice against the alleged crimes of the former lawmaker in his hometown.