DINA for the issuse of 12 February 2012

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D A W N I n t e r n e t N e w s A l e r t
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February 12, 2012 Sunday Rabi-ul-Awwal 19, 1433
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The DAWN Internet News Alert (DINA) is a free daily news-service
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(c) Pakistan Herald Publications (Pvt.) Ltd., Pakistan - 2012

The link at the end of each extract can be used to access the
complete story on DAWN - the Internet Edition.


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Feb-March interest rate unchanged: Deficits pose big challenge, warns SBP
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By Shahid Iqbal
KARACHI, Feb 11: The State Bank kept the policy interest rate unchanged at 12 per cent on Saturday, saying the real challenge lay in financing the fiscal and external current account deficits.

The Governor of SBP, Yaseen Anwar, explained the difficulties being faced by economy as well as problems in monetary management during a media briefing where he announced the monetary policy for the February-March period...

http://www.dawn.com/2012/02/12/feb-march-interest-rate-unchanged-deficits-pose-big-challenge-warns-sbp-2.html

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FIR against FC on Levies' complaint
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By Saleem Shahid
QUETTA, Feb 11: The Levies Force has got registered a case against eight personnel of the Frontier Corps for allegedly killing two persons in a shooting last week on demonstrators protesting the murder of the wife and daughter of MPA Mir Bakhtiar Khan Domki in Karachi.

The two women were shot dead, along with their driver, two weeks ago while they were returning home after attending a marriage ceremony...

http://www.dawn.com/2012/02/12/fir-against-fc-on-levies-complaint.html

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US keen on early end to review process
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By Anwar Iqbal
WASHINGTON, Feb 11: US officials, who have publicly urged Pakistan to expedite a parliamentary review of their relations with the United States, expect Islamabad to complete the process by the end of next week.

The understanding follows a series of meetings between US and Pakistani officials in Washington and Islamabad aimed at resuming a relationship that started to go sour early last year when a CIA contractor, Raymond Davis, killed two Pakistanis in Lahore. The May 2 US raid on an Abbottabad compound, which killed Al Qaeda leader Osama bin Laden, further strained this relationship. And a Nov 26 Nato air raids that killed 24 Pakistani soldiers led to the suspension of Nato supply routes to Afghanistan...

http://www.dawn.com/2012/02/12/us-keen-on-early-end-to-review-process-2.html

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Taliban condemn attacks on troops
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By Our Correspondent
MIRAMSHAH, Feb 11: The Taliban Shura has condemned attacks on security forces in North Waziristan Agency and said they would abide by the peace agreement with the government.

A statement issued by the five-member Shura-i-Muraqiba (Observation Council) in Miramshah on Friday warned that some elements were trying to destabilise North Waziristan by firing rockets and exploding remote-controlled bombs (improvised explosive devices)...

http://www.dawn.com/2012/02/12/taliban-condemn-attacks-on-troops.html

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Brigadier's court martial begins
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ISLAMABAD, Feb 11: The Pakistan Army has started court martial proceedings against five officers over suspected ties to a banned extremist group that has called for ousting the government, security officials said on Saturday.

Brig Ali Khan and four other officers were detained in May, 2011 for suspected links to Hizbut Tahrir. Brig Khan was working at the army's headquarters in Rawalpindi at the time of his arrest...

http://www.dawn.com/2012/02/12/brigadiers-court-martial-begins.html

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Pakistan, S. Lanka sign three MoUs
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By Amin Ahmed
ISLAMABAD, Feb 11: Pakistan and Sri Lanka signed three memoranda of understanding on Saturday to promote cooperation in the fields of trade, technical education and media.

Prime Minister Yousuf Raza Gilani and Sri Lankan President Mahinda Rajapaksa were present at the signing ceremony held in the Prime Minister's House...

http://www.dawn.com/2012/02/12/pakistan-s-lanka-sign-three-mous.html

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PM vows to stand by party, nation
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By Our Staff Correspondent
FAISALABAD, Feb 11: Prime Minister Yousuf Raza Gilani on Saturday vowed to stand by the nation and his party just two days before he was to appear in the Supreme Court in a contempt of court case.

"The Pakistan People's Party will continue the politics of reconciliation," he told a public meeting in Jaranwala, 35km from here...

http://www.dawn.com/2012/02/12/pm-vows-to-stand-by-party-nation.html

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Unrest engulfs new Balochistan areas
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By Baqir Sajjad Syed
ISLAMABAD, Feb 11: In a worrisome development, the insurgency in Balochistan is spreading to non-tribal western parts of the province, beyond the traditional stronghold of the rebels, while attacks against security forces by "emboldened insurgents" have risen, according to security sources.

Violence, however, is limited to five of thirty Balochistan districts, with Khuzdar and Turbat the new additions to the list of trouble-hit parts, the sources said. These areas were secure and stable, but are now witnessing growing militant activities...

http://www.dawn.com/2012/02/12/unrest-engulfs-new-balochistan-areas.html

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Protests in Kashmir after youth slain by army
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SRINAGAR, Feb 11: Protesters blocked a main highway in Indian-held Kashmir on Saturday after a young man was shot dead by the army in what military officials described as an "accidental" shooting.

Ashiq Hussain Rather, 22, was killed on Friday night when a soldier accidentally fired his rifle as security forces combed the area for militants, the army said. The killing occurred in the Baramulla district of the scenic valley...

http://www.dawn.com/2012/02/12/protests-in-kashmir-after-youth-slain-by-army.html

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Army general assassinated in Damascus
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DAMASCUS, Feb 11: Gunmen assassinated an army general in Damascus on Saturday in the first killing of a high ranking military officer in the Syrian capital since the uprising against President Bashar Al-Assad's regime began in March, the state-run news agency said.

The attack is a sign that violence in Syria is reaching the tightly controlled capital, which has been relatively quiet compared to other cities. Though there was no immediate claim of responsibility, the attack could indicate that dissident soldiers who have risen up in numerous cities and towns are trying to step up action in Damascus...

http://www.dawn.com/2012/02/12/army-general-assassinated-in-damascus.html

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Taliban say two kidnapped foreigners in their custody
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DERA ISMAIL KHAN, Feb 11: Two western aid workers kidnapped in January were being held by the Taliban near the border with Afghanistan, a senior militant commander said on Saturday.Gunmen stormed a house in Multan on Jan 19 and drove away with two foreigners — one an Italian citizen and the other believed to be a German.

"The two NGO (non-governmental organisation) workers who were kidnapped in Multan nearly a month ago are in our custody near the border. We haven't made any demands yet," a senior Taliban commander said...

http://www.dawn.com/2012/02/12/taliban-say-two-kidnapped-foreigners-in-their-custody.html

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'Displaced people to be rehabilitated'
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ISLAMABAD, Feb 11: Balochistan Chief Minister Nawab Aslam Raisani told President Asif Ali Zardari on Saturday that the provincial government would give land and money to people affected by the anti-encroachment drive of Pakistan Railways in the province.
The chief minister said his government would take every measure to resolve the matter amicably...

http://www.dawn.com/2012/02/12/displaced-people-to-be-rehabilitated.html

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Afghans kidnap, kill two Pakistanis
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By Our Staff Correspondent
QUETTA, Feb 11: Afghan forces reportedly killed two Pakistani men after kidnapping them from a border village in the Badini area of Qila Saifullah district on Saturday.

Sources said the Afghan soldiers, after crossing into the Pakistani side of the border late on Friday night, barged into a house in village Tarkha Ghagi and took the two men to Afghanistan...

http://www.dawn.com/2012/02/12/afghans-kidnap-kill-two-pakistanis.html

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Seven killed in Peshawar
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Monitoring Desk
KARACHI, Feb 11: Seven people were killed and at least three others injured when an explosive device went off in Frontier Region Peshawar late on Saturday night, television reports said.

The explosion took place in a house located in Jana Kod area, the reports said, quoting police...

http://www.dawn.com/2012/02/12/seven-killed-in-peshawar.html

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Benazir was murdered for backing Lal Masjid operation, court told
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By Malik Asad
RAWALPINDI, Feb 11: An anti-terrorism court was told on Saturday that Benazir Bhutto was killed because she supported the Lal Masjid operation.

Magistrate Taufiq Ahmed, who had recorded confessional statements of Rafaqat Hussain, Husnain Gul and Aitzaz Shah on Feb 13, 2008, said the accused told him that they wanted to kill only Ms Bhutto and because of the deaths of 23 other people in the attack, which they regretted, they would accept any punishment awarded to them...

http://www.dawn.com/2012/02/12/benazir-was-murdered-for-backing-lal-masjid-operation-court-told.html


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