NEWS

• Customs officials and security forces at the Torkham border have foiled an attempt to smuggle modern American weapons and recovered during checking modern American weapons from sacks full of onions in a vehicle. The weapons recovered include M4, Kalashnikov, magazines, thousands of bullets of various types, American rifle grenades, night vision sights and laser beam. The Afghan driver of the truck was detained. The attempt to smuggle weapons in huge quantities is a questionable sign of the Afghan government’s claims of not using the soil against Pakistan.  (Ummat)
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• After Britain, Germany has also started taking out Afghan spies working for it from Pakistan. The first flight arrived in Germany carrying 188 Afghans, who are scheduled to be housed in an old NATO military base. According to sources, due to Pakistan’s ambiguous position regarding Afghans working as spies with NATO forces, including the United States, during the American occupation, and illegal Afghan residents, the United Kingdom has asked for time till 31 December 2023 to take out its Afghan spies from Pakistan. Hundreds of Afghans have been evacuated from Islamabad by the UK since November 15. Like in the past, other NATO countries, including the United States, have put pressure on Pakistan through various means so that these Afghans are not expelled from Pakistan.  Germany started taking out the Afghans working with the German army. The repatriation will continue till January 31, 2024. The Afghan nationals will be trained in German language and culture and allowed to work. United States has also given the Pakistani authorities a priority list of about 20,000 Afghans and has requested time to repatriate them. According to sources, Washington has planned to transfer these Afghans to the US after Christmas, but the US elections are less than a year away. And immigration is a big issue in the US elections. Hence the US authorities are trying to gain more time to move these Afghans to America. On the other hand, the United Kingdom, through Qatar, has asked the Afghan Taliban to lift the ban on 200 Afghan ex-soldiers leaving the country.  However, the Taliban government has warned these ex-Afghan soldiers that their family members will face difficulties if they flee the country. According to Taliban sources, strict action will be taken against them if they try to escape from Afghanistan. (Ummat)

• Chairman of PPP Bilawal Bhutto has condemned the terrorism attack in Dera Ismail Khan yesterday. Addressing the Peshawar High Court Bar Association, he said that terrorism is rising again in the country, and politicians fighting among themselves will create more problems. When the country is in trouble, we should forget our differences and face these problems. He said that Pakistan has broken the back of the terrorists, but we do not know why Parliament, without taking the people into confidence, not only talked to the terrorists but also released from jail terrorists involved in serious terrorist attacks. Bilawal Bhutto said that when the Taliban government came to power in Afghanistan, it released many people from their jails who had committed terrorism in Pakistan. Instead of stopping them, we invited them to come and stay in the same tribal areas from where they were chased away. He demanded that this incident needs to be investigated and the accountability should be fixed.   (Aeen Today) 

• Thousands of people with disabilities protested against the Chaman passport condition, and a general meeting of all-parties was held in front of the Deputy Commissioner’s office. Addressing the meeting, the President of Laghari Alliance, Ghousullah Maulvi Abdul Manan, and other leaders, said that the dharna at the border has been going on for 54 days. These thousands of disabled people do not want any treatment. They used to work at the border for daily wages, and today they have come out to demand their right of work. They are demanding permission to work on the border with an ID card. Earlier, there was a historic demonstration of children whose jobs had been taken away. Those children also used to work on this border. But for the last two months, the government of Pakistan has made the passport mandatory at the border, which is not accepted by millions of people of Chaman. The dharna will continue until our legitimate demands are accepted. (Qudrat Daily) 

• The dharna continued at the Sariab Mill by the participants of the long march against the extrajudicial killing of Balach Baloch and others and the non-recovery of missing persons. Leaders of various political parties, including all groups of Balochistan National Party, PTM, National Party, and BSO, expressed solidarity with the participants of the long march. They said that a judicial inquiry should be ordered into missing persons   since 2021 so that the facts come out. And those responsible for it should be severely punished.  A judicial inquiry should be conducted for those killed in the encounter so that the facts come out. The dharna continued in Sariab Mill on the second day despite severe cold; hundreds of women, children, and elderly people remained in the camp to express solidarity with them. (Qudrat Daily) 

• Afghanistan’s interim government has pledged to investigate the terror attack in Dera Ismail Khan while saying that Kabul should not be blamed for every incident. The Interim Afghan Government Chief Spokesman Zabihullah Mujahid said that Kabul would investigate the attack. He said  we are surprised by the attack in Pakistan, and we would consider Pakistan’s demands. However, he also said that Afghanistan should not be blamed in every case and Pakistan should focus on its own security. The spokesman of the Taliban government said that the area where the attack took place, DI Khan, is hundreds of kilometers away from Afghanistan and it is Pakistan’s own territory. Pakistan has strong security forces and this attack should have been thwarted. He added that Kabul has not allowed anyone to use its territory against Pakistan or any other country, if we get information, we will investigate. It should be noted that Pakistan has long insisted that the outlawed TTP operates from Afghan soil, but the Taliban denies this allegation. (Dawn Daily) 

• Like other serious crimes in Karachi, cases of child abduction and mysterious disappearance have also increased to an alarming extent. This year, about one and a half thousand children were abducted or mysteriously disappeared from Karachi. (Urdu Point)
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• Pakistan’s only ISO certified DNA lab is facing non-payment of dues, due to which the Sindh Forensic DNA Lab and Serology is likely to be closed from December 20. (Urdu Point)
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• The leader of the Baloch Ekjaheti Committee, Dr. Marang Baloch, has stated that the Government should punish those involved in the killing of Balach. Otherwise, they will take out a long march from Shal to Islamabad. (Urdu Point)
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• In Swat this year, 31 women were killed in the name of honor. The families of the murdered women are forced to struggle for justice, while the police started to cover up the cases by showing most such murders as suicide.  The sister of a woman who was killed in Madin area of Swat has stated that her sister was an employee in the Forest Department. She was killed for not giving her salary to her husband. The murder was brushed off as honor killing. We want justice, she stated. According to Irfan Hussain Babak, director of a private NGO in Swat and working for women’s rights, 31 women have been killed in the name of honor in Swat Valley in the year 2023 whereas 16 women were killed in the name of honor in 2022. He stated that due to poor investigation, the accused escape punishment. (Urdu Point)

• Despite all the claims of the government, spurt in inflation has pushed vegetables out of the reach of common people. Seasonal vegetables are in abundance but prices have skyrocketed.  Notwithstanding the arrival of onion crop, price of onion has gone up by 80 rupees within a week, and then within three days, it became dear by 30 rupees per kg. Today in the retail market, onions cost up to 200 rupees per kg. The shopkeepers said that onion prices in the vegetable market are skyrocketing, so the retail price is also increasing. (Jang) 
• Afaq Ahmad, Chairman of the Muhajir Qaumi Movement, has said the whole of Sindh is in ruins due to the corruption. If our children are deprived of jobs in Sindh then why the federation is it not supporting us? Why is the 18^th Amendment being tampered with at the behest of the Federation? The Federation should be asked whose subject the census is. While population of Dadu and Larkana is increasing, the population of Karachi is decreasing. If the Federation loved us, it would have counted us in full. He expressed these views while addressing Sindh Urban Graduate Forum on Wednesday. The Chairman of Muhajir Qaumi Movement said Biharis in the Red-Cross Camp in Bangladesh are being punished for their loyalty to Pakistan, and asked the government to bring them to Pakistan. (Jang) 
• Vice Admiral Ovais Ahmed Bilgrami has been appointed as Vice Chief of the Naval Staff. He was commissioned in the Operations Branch of the Pakistan Navy in 1989 and received the Sword of Honor from the Royal Naval College Dartmouth, UK. He served as Deputy Chief of Naval Staff (Operations). (Daily Khabrain, Daily Kashmir Express)

• Due to the incompleteness of the Mahmood Ghoram to Sur Jamandzai Road, the people and the business community of the area today blocked traffic by erecting obstacles on the Quetta -Karachi highway. The protestors said that the contractor who did the construction work of Mehmood Ghoram Tasoor- Jamandzai road has left the work unfinished. People are facing serious problems in transportation due to the bad condition of the road. Action should be taken against the contractor and the incomplete road should be completed soon. After successful negotiations with the administration, the highway was opened later in the day. (Roznama Intekhab)  

EDITORIALS

• In Dera Ismail Khan district, 25 soldiers were martyred and 27 terrorists were killed on Dec 12. According to the spokesperson of the Pakistan Army, large-scale suspicious activities were witnessed in Dera Ismail Khan at midnight on Dec 12.  An intelligence-based operation was conducted in Dera Ismail Khan. Another intelligence-based operation was conducted in Kalach in which the hideout of the terrorists was destroyed and 4 terrorists were killed. Two soldiers were martyred during the exchange of fire. On the morning of Dec 12, 6 attackers rammed a vehicle full of explosives into a police station building in Daraban area, where military personnel were also stationed. The building collapsed as a result of the suicide attack and 23 soldiers were martyred. According to BBC news, a school building located next to the police station was also damaged. As in the past, the responsibility of this incident has been accepted by a terrorist organization, Tehreek Jihad Pakistan. The martyrdom of 27 army men in the latest tragedy of terrorist attacks is an unusual happening. Several incidents of terrorism have occurred in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa for some time now involving political leaders like Maulana Fazlur Rehman and Sirajul Haq, but Allah has kept them safe. In recent days, Maulana Fazlur Rahman has also demanded the postponement of the upcoming elections. He said that peace has not been established in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa and Balochistan and it is not possible to run a free election campaign due to terrorism. In the background of this statement, the return of a new wave of terrorism in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa is very worrying. Former military dictator General Pervez Musharraf made Pakistan’s army and intelligence agencies US tools due to which the peaceful region of Pakistan became a victim of terrorism. After the withdrawal of American troops, peace seemed to be established in Afghanistan. But the incidents of terrorism are increasing in Pakistan. In the past, several military operations were conducted to eradicate terrorism, the highest cost of which was paid by Khyber Pakhtunkhwa and tribal areas. The nation also paid the price in the form of human rights violations and the serious problem of missing persons. The agony of internal migration was also borne by the patriotic citizens of Khyber Pakhtunkhwa and the sacrifices of tribal areas are at the forefront in ensuring the internal security of the homeland. After the withdrawal of American troops from Afghanistan, those watching the politics of the region feared that Afghanistan would fall victim to a civil war, but despite the American conspiracies, a stable government of the Taliban was established in Afghanistan and it also ensured its writ. But the chain of terrorism has continued in Pakistan and in this phase institutions and officials responsible for keeping an eye on the security of the country have become involved in the internal politics.  For this reason, they are not paying attention to the security issues. Instead of focusing on their own internal weaknesses, they are making matters worse with the government of Afghanistan.  The basic condition on which the Afghan Taliban signed an agreement with the US is that the territory of Afghanistan will not be used for terrorism against any other country. On the basis of this condition, the Afghan government should pay attention to the fact that peace is needed in both countries. (Edit Jasarat)

• The terror network is not only well organized, but terrorists are powerful enough as evident from terror incident at D I Khan, KPK where 27 terrorists have died and 25 jawans were martyred during an operation in the midnight of Dec. 10-11. Pakistan has been facing worst kind of terror attacks over the decades but terrorism when polls are just two months away is something to be seriously worried about. Our rulers should keep this in mind that such wars against terrorists cannot be won only with weapons, it also requires peoples’ support. The terror networks cannot be dismantled without removing their nurseries. Pakistan’s neighbouring country, Afghanistan, should also act like a responsible neighbour. On several occasions, we have got evidence that Afghanistan’s land has been used for attacks in Pakistan. Those who have been brought up due to our wrong policies have started attacking us now. Hence, mere tall claims and repeated statements from rulers that we have weakened terror networks will not help. Our policy makers are well aware that Pakistan has become a battlefield in the war of interests of other countries. Hence, we will have to accordingly review our foreign policies and we will have to see to it that our lands are no longer used in pursuit of others’ interests. (Pahenji, Edit, Dec.13)

• Need of the hour is to take action not just against terror networks but also against their facilitators. We should implement the National Action Plan immediately to dismantle terrorists’ nurseries. We need to take harsh and bold steps to check the new terror wave.  We also demand that all obstacles and threats coming in the way of imminent polls should be taken care of without any loss of time and thus pave the way for ideal conditions for holding polls. Conspiracy, if any, to defer polls should be nipped in the bud. Country’s political and economic stability are connected with polls only. The election results will decide who will form government and it is new government only that will take decisions on policies to be pursued in view of conditions at home and abroad. (Kawish, Edit, Dec.13)

• Once upon a time, Sindh used to be known as the land of Sufis. People used to greet one another with affection and brotherly attitudes. Peace and principles used to be part of life in Sindh. But, these good old times and traditions are steadily becoming matters of the past. Tolerance unto one another is no longer part of the society and one little and petty difference or dispute is enough to trigger big kabila violence. There can be several reasons for our society being divided into several kabilas and other such divisive “isms” today, but one reason topping the list is peoples’ economic condition. Once upon a time, Sindh was rich and resourceful and used to be often under attacks from plunderers, but people are starving in the very same Sindh today. Nothing is being done to bring in agricultural reforms. Water too is equally a big issue here. At times, we have big floods and at times we have drought and water scarcity. Neither the government nor the enlightened class is giving any attention to these issues. Be it PPP or any other party, they give tickets to such candidates who know how to win without peoples’ support and hence these parties and their candidates show no concern for people. The end-result of all this is there is no progress and no betterment in society; there are no job opportunities; people keep getting more and more restive. The simmering anger and resentment in people comes out on slightest provocation. When people are upset and confused due to their poor economic conditions, they find an outlet for their anger and resentment in the form of outbursts and violence. In order to check such trends, and to create constructive mindset, government and enlightened sections will have to play their roles. The print media is doing its part, but what is being done on social media and even electronic media, is taking our society backward. Hence, let us put in efforts to make Sindh once again a land of peace and principles; let us inspire our youth to pave way for making Sindh a better society. (Ibrat, Edit)

• We know Pakistan is capable of countering any form of terrorism. Hence, countries and forces trying to scare away Pakistan people by triggering terror attacks in Pakistan like the terrorist violence at D I Khan, KPK   must realise that any country can go to any extent when it comes to its security related matters. The terror attacks taking place in Pakistan are not at all acceptable to the people, not even to our government. Hence, the need of the hour is to expose these terror elements at global for a. (Sindh Exp, Edit)

• Saudi oil company Aramco’s investment of 10 million dollars in Pakistan is a development that will play an important role in breaking the status quo regarding foreign direct investment in the country and will have a positive impact on the country’s economy. Aramco is one of the leading energy companies in the world that is pursuing a strategy to expand its business globally. So, Pakistan should make the most of this opportunity. After this well-known Saudi company, other big companies of the world can also be attracted to invest in Pakistan. But for this purpose, the government needs to improve its economic strategy. Although the first step has been taken in this direction with the establishment of the Special Investment Facilitation Council in June of this year, the government’s efforts need to be accelerated. Coherent and consistent economic policies are   are indispensable to gain the confidence of global investors.   (Edit-Dunya Daily) 

• Incidents of terrorism in Khyber-Pakhtunkhwa and Balochistan demand that terrorism should be rooted out from the ground for which all needed actions should be taken including talks with the Afghanistan’s interim government and reactivating the concerned regional forum.  Pakistan has always helped Afghanistan in difficult times, but today terrorists are operating from there to maim Pakistan. It would be great if the brotherly nations sit together and find a solution. (Jang Edit) 
• Fertilizer crisis has been brewing for a long time and it is well known to the government who is really responsible for this. No effort should be spared in solving crisis since it will have a direct bearing on the country’s economy and food security. Those who create the fertilizer crisis do not deserve any mercy, more so since they are playing with national security for the sake of a few rupees. Similarly, crackdown should be done against  hoarders and black marketers and the fertilizers recovered from their warehouses should be distributed free of charge to the small farmers. (Edit, Daily Khabrain)

COLUMNS

• The issue of suspending the decision of the Supreme Court to stop trials of civilians in military courts has become a topic of debate in Pakistan. The Supreme Court declared these trials unconstitutional three months ago, but after intra-court appeals, the Supreme Court on Wednesday allowed trials in military courts. Constitutional and legal experts are also divided on the court’s decision. Former Attorney General of Pakistan Ishtar Ali Ausaf said that although the earlier court decision was unanimous, many things were not taken into consideration. The judgment did not say anything about ground facts. Even the detailed verdict of that decision did not come. Former president of the Supreme Court Bar Association Yasin Azad opines that he is not in favor of military courts. Can a soldier’s case be tried in a civil court? Talking to Voice of America, he said the constitution does not allow civilian cases to be tried in military courts. Cases of ordinary citizens should be tried in civil courts. He further said that military courts have been functioning even in Imran Khan’s government, but no one raised their voice at that time. But it was made a controversy after the events of May 9, in which one thing is clear that whatever happened on May 9 never happened in Pakistan. It should be noted that the government has decided to prosecute the accused involved in the incidents of May 9 and May 10 in military courts. According to the government, the arrested persons are involved in the attack on GHQ Rawalpindi, Corps Commander House in Lahore, ISI Civil Lines Faisalabad and PAF Base in Mianwali. Yasin Azad says  the past is a witness that there has been pressure on the judiciary from time to time. Former Chief Justice Naseem Hasan Shah admitted in his book that the establishment puts pressure on the judiciary. In the opinion of Ishtar Ali Ausaf, the impression that courts make decisions under pressure is not correct. He said that both the constitution and law of Pakistan have levels related to the judiciary in which there is a system of subordinate courts and then the Supreme Court. According to him, all these courts have been created so that wrong decisions can be corrected. He said that the Universal Declaration of Human Rights also says that the parties should have at least one right of appeal against the decision. That is why right of appeal is given. According to Yasin Azad, Article 10A of the Constitution calls for a transparent trial of any person in which the accused is allowed to have a lawyer of his choice. Ashtar Ali Ausaf believes that all the personal freedoms mentioned in the constitution are subject to the security of the country. It does not give any individual the right to harm national security installations or to do any act that would conflict with the security of the country. Ashtar Ali says that there are more or less 32 countries in the world, including the United States, that allow the trail of a civilian who has attacked/ spied on military installations in the military courts. (Zia ur Rahman, Urdu Voice of America)

• During the last three months, a total of 850,000 Afghans have been expelled by Pakistan and Iran. Despite warnings from the United Nations of a harsh winter and an uncertain future for Afghan nationals returning to home, the crackdown on illegal Afghans in both neighboring countries continues. The Minister of Refugees of the Taliban government, Abdul Rahman Rashid, told ‘Tolo News’ that Iran has deported around 345,000 Afghan citizens since the last week of September. Without giving further details, Rashid said that the Taliban administration has provided cash and other immediate necessities to every family that has returned to the country. On their part, the Iranian authorities claim that they have deported Afghan citizens living illegally. Pakistani authorities say since the announcement of the ongoing crackdown against illegal immigrants, around 490,000 people have returned to Afghanistan. Federal Interior Minister Sarfraz Bugti, while holding a press conference in Islamabad over the weekend, claimed that more than 90 percent of Afghan citizens without documents returned voluntarily. The United Nations Office for Refugees (UNHCR) says that the number of Afghan citizens returning to Afghanistan from Pakistan has gradually decreased in recent days. However, it says that another 280,000 people are expected to return to Afghanistan by July 2024. The World Health Organization (WHO) warned last week that risks for returnees would increase during severe weather, resulting in a greater need for life-saving health facilities. The Pakistani government has justified the drive to repatriate Afghan nationals, saying it is in line with the country’s immigration laws and the same is done to violators of such rules around the world. Pakistan has made it clear that Afghan refugees who have legal documents can stay here. It should be noted that the Taliban have set up temporary camps on the border for returning citizens to stay until they are sent back to their homelands. (Ayaz Gul, Urdu Voice of America)

• The agricultural sector is being deliberately weakened in Sindh and all this is happening because of the corruption factor. Despite big budget, the agricultural sector, instead of making any progress, is going backward. For example, October-December is the season for wheat sowing. But sowings are getting affected/ delayed because of wrong policies and scarcity of fertilizer. There are also complaints from farmers that seeds are not of standard quality. Though officials claim that meetings are being convened under orders from caretaker Sindh CM, there is no improvement in the situation. Sadly, as soon as the wheat sowing season began, the director general, Sindh agriculture department retired. The post has been lying vacant even as it is busy wheat sowing season. There is shortage of fertilizer and the seeds’ bag of 50 kgs now costs Rs.7500. Yet our agricultural department is playing the role of meek spectator. (Ibrat, Rehmatallah, B) 

• We all know what kind of polls are held in our country, it is no secret as to what kind of polls we are going to have next year too. Every time polls are held and results declared, their transparency is challenged. Elections are always controversial and seen as engineered ones; in other words, elections are often seen as “fixed matches” where results are already decided. All this is because Punjab is the principal election constituency. Punjab is one such force that exploits the rest of provinces in the country. And, the party winning Punjab wins the country, forms the government in the country. Meanwhile, Nawaz Sharif is still adamant on making all those accountable who removed him from power and brought Imran Khan in his place in corridors of power in Islamabad. Apparently, he calls all this as accountability and not revenge. But, we all know behind accountability, it is revenge at play in our country. But, so far in country’s we have seen politicians who have been made victims of revenge and it has never happened against any dictator in the country’s history. If any civilian ruler has tried it, he/she has met with very ugly consequences. Nowadays, the PPP says, “Let us forget the past and move ahead”. Such statements are coming from a PPP that has made several sacrifices for the sake of democracy in the country. Nowadays, it does not seem to be supporting the accountability process. Though Nawaz Sharif will never succeed in making those accountable who removed him from power to bring Imran Khan in his place. But yet political parties should be on one page to leave behind the impression that if they are together, no non-political force can touch them and dislodge civilian governments. But, a look around tells that all parties are scattered instead of being on one page and hence Nawaz Sharif’s stand does not seem to be holding much water when he says that he wants to make all those accountable who removed him from power. Most often, our political parties in the country are busy in leg pulling off one another in pursuit of their political gains forgetting that this will do more harm than any good to them in the long run. The more these parties are together, the more they will be powerful. Only then such parties can push back non-civilian forces. But sadly, today’s scenario suggests that all parties are looking up to the establishment for taking over power and at the end of day political parties not only agree to the establishment’s terms and conditions but all parties also keep weakening themselves and the political system too in the country. It will be a big success if Nawaz Sharif succeeds in making all those who helped Imran Khan take over from him. If Nawaz Sharif succeeds in his endeavour, he will be big inspiration for other parties too. (Sindh Exp, Akhtar Hafeez)   ####