DINA for the issue of August 8, 2014

DAWN INTERNET NEWS ALERT	August 8, 2014 | Shawwal 11, 1435
The DAWN Internet News Alert (DINA) is a free daily news service from Pakistan's largest English language newspaper, the Daily DAWN.
Politicking in full swing as showdown approaches Khawar Ghumman ISLAMABAD: With the Pakistan Tehreek-i-Insaf’s (PTI) Azadi March scheduled to arrive in the capital in a week’s time, it seems this is crunch time for both the chest-thumping PTI and the ruling Pakistan Muslim League.	For suggestions and comments: Email: webmaster@dawn.com Website: http://www.dawn.com Fax: +92(21) 35693995 Karachi Stocks down 293.44 points : KARACHI, August 08 : At the close of trading, the KSE-100 index was 29382.97,down 293.44 po Forex Update : KARACHI, August 8: The Pakistani Rupee was traded at 98.95 to the US Dollar in the open market.
Widening of Zarb-i-Azb operation likely Zulfiqar Ali PESHAWAR: The government has asked people in Mirali and Shawal sub-divisions of the conflict-hit North Waziristan Agency to leave their homes amid reports of expansion of ground offensive to other areas. The people of Razmak, Spinwam, Shewa, Shawal, Eidek and other areas of the agency were exempted from evacuation before the launch of Zarb-i-Azb on June 15.
Qadri claims Sharifs trying to flee country Amjad Mahmood LAHORE: As the PML-N gove­rn­ment is taking ‘administrative’ measures to curtail the Pakistan Awami Tehreek’s protest plans, the latter’s chief has claimed that the Sharifs are trying to flee the country and have applied for US visas. The administration erected barricades and placed containers around Model Town, which houses the central offices of PAT and its sister organisation Minhajul Quran, adjacent Faisal Town and a portion of Garden Town. It caused hardship for the residents, including those wishing to visit nearby Jinnah Hospital, one of the city’s main health facilities.
US to stay neutral if govt is changed constitutionally Baqir Sajjad Syed ISLAMABAD: The United States has been quietly telling Pakistani politicians that it would stay neutral if the threatened agitation in the country leads to a government change through “constitutional means”, but would be opposed to a coup. This message from Washington has been delivered to government and opposition politicians and military leaders by US Ambassador Richard Olson ahead of next week’s planned agitation by the Pakistan Tehreek-i-Insaf and some other opposition parties amid worries that the situation could spiral out of control.
Analysis: Moment of truth for Sharif and Khan Arifa Noor EARLY on Thursday morning, Jamaat-i-Islami chief Sirajul Haq was busy meeting his aides in Islamabad and dealing with questions from the press. Wednesday evening had been equally hectic when he held meetings all over the capital, reaching across party lines to intransigent politicians holed up in their respective residences and positions.
Footprints: Where do we go from here? Aurangzaib Khan A CLUTCH of little girls burst through the narrow opening between a flowered tent wall, their laughter ringing in the school compound. Their bobbing ponytails, pink outfits and bright smiles betray the universal glee students feel when the school is closed for vacations. They are not on vacation here, nor is this their school. But for the moment, it is their home and their playground. It will be no more, come September and the end of the summer vacation. For the past two months, about 39 Christian families have lived in Saint John Basco, a girls school close to the Bannu cantonment. Nearly three generations of these families had lived in North Waziristan Agency, before they were displaced from Mirali and Miramshah in June. Even though they were not the only ones to find refuge in schools closed for the summer vacation, the shelter available in schools was a lifeline for the Christian community considering few had the support system available to the largely Pashtun population displaced from NWA.
Militants overrun several towns in northern Iraq AFP KIRKUK: Militants seized Iraq’s largest Christian town and surrounding areas on Thursday, sending tens of thousands of panicked residents fleeing in what is being called a humanitarian disaster, officials and witnesses said. The onslaught saw the Sunni extremist Islamic State (IS) extend its writ over northern Iraq and move within striking distance of autonomous Kurdistan, in one of the most dramatic developments of the two month-old conflict.
US ‘considering air strikes’ The Newspaper's Correspondent WASHINGTON: The White House said on Thursday that the United States was closely monitoring the situation in Iraq and might act to avoid a “humanitarian catastrophe.” But the White House also made it clear that it was not resending its troops to the country from where it withdrew its military in December 2011.
Gaza killings genocide: Pakistan Masood Haider UNITED NATIONS: Pakistan criticised the 193-member United Nations General Assem­bly for remaining silent as Israeli military wreaked havoc on Gaza for nearly one month, which it termed “genocide”. Pakistan’s UN Ambassador Masood Khan told a hurriedly-called UN General Assembly meeting on Wednesday — which was even not authorised to pass a resolution under pressure of Western countries — that the force used by Israel had been disproportionate, indiscriminate and lethal.
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