TTP and government negotiating committees agree to extend ceasefire; Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif says peace talks moving in right direction; TTP suggests government establish judicial commission to investigate detention of non-combatants, expresses willingness to release some high-profile prisoners; TTP intermediary denies peace talks deadlocked; Special Court indicts former president Pervez Musharraf for treason; Defense Secretary says Pakistan will receive leftover U.S. military equipment; Afghan president alleges Pakistani involvement in Kabul attacks, blocking deal with Taliban; Mortars from Afghanistan land in North Waziristan; Petroleum Minister says Iran-Pakistan pipeline stopped due to international sanctions; World Bank to loan Pakistan $10.2 billion in next five years; TTP chief reactivates intelligence wing, establishes new judicial wing; Militants attack Balochistan radar station, kill one and abduct eight; Bomb kills one in Quetta; NATO tanker attacked Balochistan; Sixteen injured in Peshawar attack; Gunmen kill two in Khyber-Pakhtunkhwa.
Peace Talks
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On Saturday, at a meeting chaired by Interior Minister Chaudhry Nisar Ali Khan, the Tehrik-e-Taliban Pakistan (TTP)- and government-nominated negotiating committees agreed to extend the ceasefire and take the necessary measures to expedite peace talks. The head of the TTP committee, Maulana Samiul Haq, confirmed that the ceasefire would be extended but did not say whether the ceasefire was still temporary or permanent. Informed sources said that members of the meeting also reviewed the outcome of the first direct talks between the TTP shura and government negotiators and discussed a course of action for another round of talks.[1]
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On Monday, the TTP central shura reportedly met in North Waziristan; its members are expected to make a formal announcement regarding the ceasefire extension.[2]
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On Sunday, Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif said at a meeting with Punjab Chief Minister Shahbaz Sharif that peace talks with the TTP are moving in the right direction and hoped that talks would bring about the desired results. Prime Minister Sharif added that peace would be restored at all costs, and directed the Punjab Chief Minister to improve the law and order situation throughout Punjab province.[3]
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According to the Chairman of the Pakistan Ulema Council, Maulana Tahir Ashrafi, the TTP suggested that the government should establish a judicial commission to investigate the detention of non-combatants. Ashrafi told reporters on Sunday that the TTP made the suggestion during their first meeting with the government-nominated negotiating committee. [4]
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According to a Monday article in the Express Tribune, the government is starting to consider options regarding the release of non-combatants. One of the members of the government-nominated reiterated that the government maintains there are no women or children in security forces’ custody, although the TTP has insisted otherwise. The government negotiator added that the government should release those who have been kept in custody without any evidence or documentary proof of their crimes, even if the TTP did not ask for their release. [5]
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On Sunday, Jamaat-i-Islami (JI) leader and member of the TTP negotiating committee, Professor Mohammad Ibrahim Khan, said that the TTP expressed willingness to release some high-profile prisoners, including Ali Musa Gilani, Shahbaz Taseer, and Ajmal Khan, as a gesture of goodwill toward the government.[6]
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On Saturday, Maulana Samiul Haq of the TTP-nominated negotiating committee denied reports that peace talks between the government and the TTP were deadlocked.[7]
Musharraf Trial
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On Monday, the three-judge special court indicted former president Pervez Musharraf for high treason, to which Musharraf pleaded “not guilty.” For security reasons, three thousand police and Rangers personnel were deployed along the former president’s route to the special court. In response to a request by Musharraf’s attorneys to allow Musharraf to seek medical attention abroad, the special court dismissed the former president’s application to travel abroad, saying that it was not in the court’s mandate to either allow or disallow him from traveling. According to members of the court, it would be up to the government to remove Musharraf’s name from the Exit Control List (ECL). The hearing has been adjourned until April 15th.[8]
Afghanistan-Pakistan Relations
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On Monday, Defense Secretary Asif Yasin Malik said that Pakistan will receive leftover military hardware after the United States withdraws its forces from Afghanistan at the end of this year. Malik added that Pakistan would first look through the remaining equipment to decide what it wants to keep. According to a U.S. embassy official in Islamabad, excess U.S. military equipment can be made available to all eligible countries—including both Afghanistan and Pakistan—through the Excess Defense Articles (EDA) program. The embassy official also reported that the U.S. is reviewing Pakistan’s request, and that decisions of who receives excess military equipment are made on a case-by-case basis by the U.S. State Department.[9]
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On Sunday, Afghan President Hamid Karzai spoke by phone with U.S. Secretary of State John Kerry, where he accused Pakistan of being involved in recent attacks in Kabul and of blocking his peace deal with the Afghan Taliban. Karzai claimed the attacks were “complex in nature,” suggesting that they were staged by foreign intelligence agencies—a reference to Pakistan’s Inter-Services Intelligence (ISI). Pakistan has denied that it is assisting the Afghan Taliban.[10]
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On Saturday, six mortars, reportedly fired from an Afghan National Army post, landed in Ghulam Khan, North Waziristan agency, causing no casualties.[11]
Iran-Pakistan Relations
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On Friday, Petroleum Minister Shahid Khaqan Abbasi said that the Iran-Pakistan gas pipeline has been stopped because of the sanctions against Iran by the international community.[12]
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According to a Monday report in The News, an Iranian Parliamentarian has suggested that, if Pakistan is unable to secure its borders, Pakistan should “entrust this arduous task to Iran.” This comes in response to Pakistan’s reported inability to locate four Iranian border guards who were kidnapped and are believed to be held in Pakistan.[13]
India-Pakistan Relations
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According to a Monday report in Dawn, Indian Prime Ministerial candidate Narendra Modi of the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) plans to take a tougher line on India’s disputes with China and Pakistan than the current government if he is elected.[14]
International Finance
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On Sunday, the World Bank agreed to give Pakistan loans worth $10.2 billion spread over the next five years in exchange for financial reforms in Pakistan, including eliminating tax exceptions.[15]
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After approving a $555.6 million loan tranche to Pakistan, the International Monetary Fund (IMF) on Friday confirmed the revision of its prediction for Pakistan’s growth in 2014 up from 2.8 percent to 3.1 percent.[16]
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On Friday, IMF Mission Chief to Pakistan Jeffery Franks said that Pakistan holds gold worth $2.7 billion but refuses to sell it, despite urging from the IMF. Pakistan’s reason for not selling the gold is reportedly related to “national security.” An IMF report also positively identified Saudi Arabia as the previously unconfirmed “friendly country” that gave Pakistan a $1.5 billion grant.[17]
U.S. Drone Strikes
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On Friday, the United Nations (UN) backed a proposal submitted by Pakistan calling on all states to ensure that the use of armed drones complies with international law. The resolution was adopted with 27 states voting in favor and six against. The United States, the United Kingdom, and France voted against.[18]
Militancy
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According to a Saturday article in The News, TTP Chief Mullah Fazlullah has decided to reactive the Khurasan, the intelligence wing of the TTP, and to create a new wing of judges who will dispense justice, called the “Darul Qaza.” The Khurasan was initially established under Hakimullah Mehsud, with the aim of identifying and eliminating local informers allegedly working for Pakistan’s security forces and intelligence agencies.[19]
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On Monday, unidentified gunmen opened fire on a train in Mach, Bolan district, Balochistan killing at least two people and injuring seven.[20]
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On Saturday, a bomb planted in a rickshaw detonated, killing one person and injuring 15 in Quetta.[21]
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On Saturday, unidentified gunmen attacked a Radar-Post in Pasni, Gwadar district, Balochistan, killing one person and abducting eight others.[22]
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On Friday, unidentified militants destroyed a North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO) tanker and killed its driver in Dhadar, Kachi district, Balochistan.[23]
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On Sunday, a blast from a hand grenade in Sarband, Peshawar district injured 16 people.[24]
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On Sunday, a bomb blast outside a house in Zargarabad, Peshawar injured three people.[25]
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On Sunday, unidentified gunmen killed two people and injured three others in Gomal Zaman, Tank district, Khyber-Pakhtunkhwa.[26]
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On Sunday, police in Bannu, Khyber-Pakhtunkhwa stopped a suspected terrorist who tried to evade a check post on motorcycle and began firing at police. He then detonated his suicide vest, killing himself but causing no further casualties.[27]
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On Sunday, a bomb blast in Datta Khel, North Waziristan agency appeared to target nearby security forces, but did not cause any casualties.[28]
Domestic