Pakistani men killed by Davis accused of being intelligence operatives; Wife of man shot by Davis commits suicide; Hillary Clinton meets with Minorities Affairs Minister; Thousands rally against Indian rule in Kashmir; Indian and Pakistani foreign secretaries hold talks; Indian Kashmiris demonstrate against killing; Troop clashes on border continue; Car bombing in Khyber; Taliban kill four “spies;” Clashes in Balochistan; Thirteen killed by bomb in Serath Chowk; NATO tankers torched in Bolan; Six killed in Karachi; Blasts at Karachi police stations; 10,000 rally in Lahore; Policeman killed in Balyamina.
U.S.-Pakistani Relations
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The Express Tribune has reported that the two Pakistani men killed by U.S. diplomat Raymond Davis are believed to have been intelligence operatives. The report quotes an anonymous security official as saying, “Yes, they belonged to the security establishment….they found the activities of the American official detrimental to our national security.” A separate report by the Express Tribune states that the Pakistani government has prohibited three more Americans from leaving Pakistan. This is based on claims that they were in the vehicle that arrived on the scene to assist Davis, but subsequently hit and killed a man. A Federal Interior Ministry official said, “The interior ministry has placed the name of the three Americans, including the driver of the US consulate in Lahore, on the exit control list.”[i]
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The wife of one of the men shot by Raymond Davis on January 27 committed suicide on Sunday by eating rat poison. When taken to the hospital, she was recorded by doctors and reporters as saying she feared that Davis would be freed without facing a trial. She said, “I do not expect any justice from this government. That is why I want to kill myself. The way my husband was shot, his killer should be shot in the same fashion.” The Associated Press has reported that Davis may be released in days, once the Lahore High Court reviews documents related to his diplomatic status.[ii]
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U.S. Secretary of State Hillary Clinton met with Minorities Affairs Minister Shahbaz Bhatti on Thursday to discuss religious freedom within Pakistan and projects to promote inter-faith harmony around the country. In the face of death threats, Bhatti has recently campaigned for an initiative to form local committees to sort out religious disputes. He said, “This is the way to win the hearts and minds of the people.”[iii]
Indo-Pakistani Relations
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On Saturday, thousands of people rallied across Pakistan to condemn Indian rule in Kashmir. The rally came on Kashmir Solidarity Day, a Pakistani public holiday that promotes the region’s right to self-determination. In his speech, Prime Minister Gilani urged India to participate in a dialogue with Pakistan over the issue of Jammu and Kashmir. He said that India’s failure to execute UN Security Council resolutions has hindered the implementation of sustainable peace in the region. He stated, “We solemnly affirm our unstinted support to the just struggle of Kashmiri people to safeguard their fundamental rights, including the right to self-determination as enshrined in UN resolutions.”[iv]
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The foreign secretaries of India and Pakistan, Nirupama Rao and Salman Bashir, held talks while in attendance at a South Asian Association for Regional Cooperation (SAARC) meeting in Thimphu on Sunday. However, Dawn has reported that the two failed to set a future date for the continuation of peace talks between the two countries.[v]
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On Saturday, thousands of people in Indian-administered Kashmir protested the killing of a student who was shot dead by Indian troops in Handwara on Friday. A spokesman for the Indian army, J.S. Brar, said that "troops fired after he paid no heed to their signal to stop." Kashmir state chief minister Omar Abdullah subsequently released a statement that said, “"How can one not condemn the death of 21-year-old Manzoor at the hands of the army late last night? Another needless death in a bloody Kashmir.”[vi]
FATA
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Following clashes on the border between Afghan and Pakistani troops last week, schools and bazaars in areas of North Waziristan remained closed. An anonymous official told The News that fire was exchanged throughout the night on Thursday, resulting in injuries to Afghan and NATO troops. Unidentified sources reportedly told The News that the shelling continued on Saturday, with twenty-two additional mortar shells fired from Afghan territory. Villagers in Naro Doog and Tabiwal threatened to close down the routes passing through the Ghulam Khan and Saidgi areas in North Waziristan if the cross-border shelling didn’t cease.[vii]
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On Saturday, a car bombing in Khyber killed three people and wounded two others. The bomb was planted in a car traveling in the Bar Qambar Khel area, before it detonated. No group has claimed responsibility for the attack.[viii]
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The bodies of four men accused by the Taliban of being spies were discovered outside Karak district which borders North Waziristan on Saturday. Sources say that a note was left on the bullet-riddled bodies, which declared that they were killed for spying on behalf of India and Israel’s intelligence agencies.[ix]
Violence in Balochistan
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Five people were killed by unidentified gunmen in two separate incidents in Quetta and Musakhel on Friday. In the first incident, two rival groups clashed in Mian Ghundi, leaving three people dead. In the second attack, two people were shot by militants riding motorbikes in the Musakhail area.[x]
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Thirteen people were injured by an explosion in Serath Chowk on Sunday, after unidentified militants planted a bomb near a local mosque. An investigation into the incident is underway.[xi]
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Two NATO tankers were torched in the Mithri area of Bolan on Monday, while three others were badly damaged. The group of NATO oil tankers transporting oil for International Security Assistance Forces (ISAF) was traveling from Karachi when unidentified armed men assailed the vehicles in the Bolan area. An investigation into the incident has been opened.[xii]
‘Target Killings’ in Karachi
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On Friday, six people were killed in separate incidents of violence. Among the deaths, unidentified armed men shot dead a man in Orangi Town and assailants shot to death a man in Shah Latif Town early Friday morning. Investigations into the incidents have been opened.[xiii]
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Blasts targeting two different police stations in Karachi have resulted in two injuries and damage to the walls of the stations. A policeman and a woman were hurt when an exterior wall fell on top of them. No group has claimed responsibility for the attacks.[xiv]
Rally in Lahore
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More than 10,000 people rallied in Lahore on Sunday in response to the recent attacks on shrines and surge in militancy. The demonstrators pleaded for peace in the country while marching from the Punjab provincial assembly building to the city’s main Data Darbar shrine. The rally was organized by the Pakistan Awami Tehreek party.[xv]
Khyber Pakhtunkhwa
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One policeman was killed on Monday in Balyamina, ten kilometers west of Hangu. Unidentified militants fired rockets at a police patrol, also killed seven others. Taliban spokesman Azam Tariq claimed responsibility for the attack and declared, “Our attacks will continue until (US) drone attacks and operations in tribal areas, which are killing innocent people, are stopped.”[xvi]