Pentagon Says al-Qaida Still has Safe Haven Inside Afghanistan

WASHINGTON — The Pentagon says al-Qaida still enjoys safe haven in some areas of eastern Afghanistan, and its presence worries the top American commander there.

Pentagon spokesman Capt. John Kirby says Wednesday that al-Qaida has found places it can plan and train, but he was not specific about its locations.

Kirby was responding to questions about the announcement that the U.S.-led NATO force had killed al-Qaida’s second-ranking leader in Afghanistan in an airstrike in eastern Kunar province, which borders Pakistan. He says “any number” of al-Qaida in Afghanistan is a matter of concern for Marine Gen. John Allen, the commander of U.S. and NATO forces there.

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Pak Army to Launch Offensive in North Waziristan

ISLAMABAD - After the beheading of 13 Pakistani soldiers by the Taliban in Miranshah, Pakistan Army has decided to initiate a targeted offensive in North Waziristan.
US has repeatedly demanded that Pakistan launch an offensive in North Waziristan especially against the so-called Haqqani network. Pakistan has promised to address the concern on Haqqani network but was reluctant to launch a full fledged operation in restive North Waziristan.
However, after this latest incident against Pakistani soldiers, sources told Online, Pakistan Army has decided to launch a targeted operation in North Waziristan in next few days, which would be completely different from the operation launched in Swat.
Sources said that Army Chief Gen Ashfaq Pervez Kayani in this regard has consulted Pakistan Supreme Commander Asif Ali Zardari in this regard and taken him into confidence.
Sources confirmed that currently three brigades of Pakistan Army are in North Waziristan who are fighting against militancy. However, the sources, were reluctant to give the final date of the operation but said it could be any time in next few days and likely before the NATO heads summit meeting in Chicago, which is to be attended by Asif Ali Zardari.
After the military offensive in South Waziristan nearly 3000 militants went into hiding in NW.
According to sources, as the weather is becoming warmer the militants are coming down from mountains and are attacking the army soldiers.

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Pakistan Criticality for Afghanistan Stability admitted by US

Pakistan's Foreign Secretary says formation of the group exploring safe passage was a tangible accomplishment. PHOTO: AFP/FILE

ISLAMABAD: Pakistan, Afghanistan and the United States said they would explore ways to arrange safe passage for Afghan Taliban militants who wish to engage in peace talks, officials from the three countries said on Friday.

“We need to be able to find them, those who are willing to talk wherever they are,” Afghan deputy foreign minister Jawed Luddin said. “We need to provide … a safe passage and an environment where they feel safe and confident that they can engage in peace talks without any consequence.”

Representatives from Afghanistan, Pakistan and the United States were meeting in Islamabad for two days as part of an initiative to revive stalled peace talks with the Afghan Taliban and to smooth relations between Washington and Islamabad.

Washington’s Special Representative Marc Grossman led the US delegation. He was the highest-level American official to visit Pakistan since a Nov 26 cross-border attack by Nato forces left 24 Pakistani soldiers dead and the US-Pakistan relationship in tatters.

The United States has been working for more than a year to revive stalled peace talks with the Afghan Taliban as it prepares for the withdrawal of most foreign combat troops by the end of 2014.

That campaign has become central to US strategy as officials conclude the Afghan war will not end on the battlefield alone.

“We really welcome this … initiative of the safe passage, which will mean our experts can meet and take this process further,” Luddin said.

Pakistan’s Foreign Secretary Jalil Jilani said the formation of the group exploring safe passage was a tangible accomplishment.

An “important aspect of this group will be an establishment of the subgroup on the safe passage,” Jilani said.

Efforts to salvage the peace process follow a series of US setbacks in Afghanistan: bloody riots caused by soldiers’ burning of the Quran; a staff sergeant’s alleged massacre of 17 villagers; and an 18-hour militant assault of Kabul last week.

Still, officials point to statistics charting a drop in ‘enemy-initiated attacks’ this spring. They were encouraged by recent steps to finalize a deal outlining the US-Afghan relationship, along with statements of support for the peace process by Pakistani Prime Minister Yousaf Raza Gilani.

US officials hope to use all these developments to coax the Taliban’s leadership, under pressure from less senior fighters who oppose negotiations, to formally resume talks.

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Afghan Taliban Appeal for Donations

Kabul: Afghan Taliban on Wednesday appealed to the Muslim world for donations for their insurgency in a rare move that analysts said was part of their media war.

According to reports the appeal was posted on Taliban website with telephone hotlines and email addresses, asking Muslims worldwide to help the rebels in what they say is a “Jihad”, or a holy war, against non-Muslim “invaders”.

“In the light of Islamic sharia, all Muslims everywhere are duty-bound to join the Jihad with money and soul,” the militant group said.

“(The Taliban) are still waging legitimate Jihad single-handedly with mere help from common sincere Islam-loving masses and is in dire need of financial assistance from the Muslim brothers worldwide for its military and non-military expenditures,” it added.

The Taliban were in power between 1996 and 2001 but were toppled in a US-led invasion after refusing to turn in Osama Bin Laden, the leader of Al-Qaeda wanted by Washington for the September 11, 2001, attacks on US cities.

Since being ousted, the remnants of the militia have waged a bloody insurgency.

The appeal appeared to be part of the rebels’ “media war”, a move to show their campaign is supported by the masses, said analyst Abdul Waheed Wafa Wafa, director of the Afghanistan Centre, a research body at Kabul University.

“I think it’s part of the Taliban propaganda war,” he told AFP adding that through this they were trying to show that their Jihad is supported by the people and their funds were coming from the people.

According to Western and Afghan intelligence most Taliban funds are generated from regional Muslim communities and Islamist networks in the Gulf states.

The nation’s Western-backed government also accuses neighbouring Pakistan’s radical groups of funding the Taliban insurgency, mostly a campaign of suicide attacks and other bombings.

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Balochistan Can't be Separated in Army Presence: Musharraf

KARACHI: Former president Pervez Musharraf has said as long as Pakistan Army was there, Balochistan could not be separated from Pakistan.

Addressing retired army officers organisation 'Pakistan First' over the video link on situation in Balochistan, the leader of All Pakistan Muslim League and former army chief said Balochistan Liberation Army is an organisation of militants supported by foreign elements and targeting non locals in the province. He regretted that some politicians were supporting the separatists for political gains.

The former president said out of 160 tribes in the province, only Sardars of three namely Bugti, Marri and Mengal wanted separation of Balochistan for their vested interests and they had the backing of forces involved in destabilising Pakistan.

He said Talal Bugti, Shahzeb Bugti and others were in contact with the foreigners for this purpose. He said only four percent of Pakistan's population lives in Balochistan and 60 percent among it had rejected the separatists.

He regretted that people of Pakistan were not fully abreast with the situation in Balochistan and they were perturbed over the prevailing situation.

Musharraf said the situation had worsened in Balochistan due to failure of the government and he felt pained over it. He said during his tenure, four universities and three cadet colleges were opened in Balochistan and all the Master degree holders were given ten thousand rupees scholarships and jobs.

Speaking on the occasion, retired army officers expressed concern over the situation in the province. The function was attended by a large number of retired army officers.

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Pakistan Army VS World Enemies

It looked impressive when the French army chief Gen Bertrand Ract-Madoux laid a floral wreath at the Yadgar-e-Shuhada outside the GHQ on March 13, a gesture of recognition of the matchless contribution of Pakistan armed forces' personnel and officers, by a coalition partner, which the Americans and other NATO member countries should also follow suit. Gen Kayani speaking on the occasion rightly said that the sacrifices made by the Pakistan army were more than that of the NATO forces in Afghanistan..."Therefore it required appreciation and not baseless accusations." This leads us to draw a little comparison between the Pakistan armed forces and the contemporary armies of the world. The most unforgettable and, according to Karzai, "unforgivable" act of brutality in Kandahar by the American troops was killing a numberof unarmed Afghan civilians. A number of similar incidents by the Americans remind us of the pressure and frustration they suffer internally as they do not willingly accept their postings into the war zones of Afghanistan or elsewhere in the combat areas. Recently, a Major
of the US Army, in his headquarters in USA, opened fire on his colleagues and killed four of them, just because he was opposed to his posting in Afghanistan. One wonders whether the Pakistan Army troops face a similar kind of pressure or frustration while going into war. Why
even a single incident of such kind has never occurred in the entire history of the Pakistan military? There might have been at the beginninga difference in opinion on whether or not the war on terror was the war of Pakistan, but later when it started engulfing Pakistan and hitting
its security forces, the consensus and focus led to not only motivation but sweeping actions by the forces in which our troops' individual resolve for valour and sacrifice was seen at its peak. Not to mention that there have been over 3,700 martyrdoms in this ongoing war. But the
great aspect, which is not highlighted, is the height of patience, resoluteness and resilience demonstrated by our men and officers during the course of this asymmetrical warfare. The inhuman attitude of US-NATO troops, like pissing on dead bodies and burning of the copies of Quran in Afghanistan shows the level of ethics and morality the troops of the most civilized nation adhere to.

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Fake Taliban caught!

LAHORE - CIA Police on Wednesday arrested a man, who pretended to be a representative of the banned militant organisation Tehreek-e-Taliban Punjab and had been demanding Rs 30 million as protection money from a trader of Misri Shah Area. As per details a local businessman of Misri Shah Area namely Rehan filed a complaint with Misri Shah Police claiming that he had received a threat letter from a Tehreek-e-Taliban Punjab on February 19, 2012 in which the writer had demanded him to deposit Rs 30 million in their account. He, while quoting the menacing letter said that the terrorist of Tehreek-e-Taliban Punjab threatened to blow his house if he would have had contacted the police. He claimed that following the letter, he received several calls from different unknown numbers at his cell phone. He said that the caller had asked him to follow the instructions and in case of denial had threatened him for dire consequences. Rehan claimed that some unknown men planted explosive material outside his house on March 10 which had gone off after he had not acted upon the instructions of the callers. He said that following the blast, he had received another call in which terrorists had threatened to blow his house again if he had not acted upon on their instructions. Misri Shah Police on Rehan’s complaint registered a case number 200/2012 under sections 386 and 25-D and started probing into the matter. The case was immediately marked to the staff of CIA because of the involvement of the name of Tehreek-e-Taliban Punjab. The staff of CIA in the leadership of SP CIA Malik Liaqat immediately collected the record of the mobile number from which Rehan was receiving threats and arrested an accused namely Khizar Shahzad, a resident of Garhi Shaho Area. The police also recovered different mobile sims from his possession. Further investigations are underway.

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Taliban Threatens Zardari, Gilani, asks Pak govt. to Discontinue Swat Operation

Islamabad, May 24 (ANI): The Taliban has threatened Pakistan President Asif Ali Zardari, Prime Minister Yousuf Raza Gilani and other top Pakistan Peoples’ Party (PPP) leaders, saying they would face dire consequences if the military offensive is not discontinued immediately.

In a letter to the PPP Information Secretary Fouzia Wahab, the Tehreek-e-Taliban Pakistan (TTP) warned that the country’s leadership would be targeted if the operation against them is not stopped.

Confirming the report, Wahab said such threats would not deter either her or any other party leader.

“Such threats can’t weaken our resolve against terrorism, and the PPP will not bow before the terrorists,” The Nation quoted Wahab, as saying.

Backing the government’s decision to initiate a military operation against the Taliban and other extremists in the Swat Valley, she said the Taliban had overstepped its limits following the inking of Nizam-e-Adl Regulations.

She also criticized a certain section of the people who were making an issue out of the draft of the resolution adopted in the All Parties Conference (APC) recently.

Wahab said that either those people were trying to win the sympathies of Taliban, or the epicentre of their politics was Taliban. (ANI)

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Join Pakistan Army as Officer – 24th Technical Cadet Course

Registration for 24th Technical Cadet Course is starting from 28 February till 15 March 2012 (Including Satuday/Sunday).

The Preliminary Tests ‘ll be held from 19 March- 30 March 2012 (Except Satuday/Sunday/Close Holidays) reported PakSoldiers.Com.

Eligibility Conditions are as follow:

a.	AGE	17 – 21 years on 1st September 2012 (relaxable for three months both in upper and lower age limit)
b.	GENDER	Male
c.	MARITAL STATUS	Unmarried
d.	NATIONALITY	Citizens of Pakistan, domiciles holders of Azad Kashmir / Gilgit Baltistan. Upon final selection candidates with dual nationality will have to surrender nationalities other than Pakistani.
e.	PHYSICAL STANDARDS (1) Minimum Height – 5’-4” (162.5 cm) (2) Weight – As per Body Mass Index
f.	EDUCATION FSc (Pre Engineering) Physics, Mathematics, Chemistry / Computer Studies / Computer Science with minimum 65% marks or ‘O’ level passed (English being compulsory) in five subjects and ‘A’ level passed in Mathematics, Physics and Chemistry / Computer Studies/Computer Science in Grade A-C. (1) Candidates possessing qualifications such as ‘O’ level and ‘A’ level etc will be required to obtain Equivalence Certificate and conversion of marks from Inter Board of Chairmen Committee (IBCC), Ministry of Education, Islamabad and attach it with the application form. (2) Candidates who have passed FSc Part-I Examination with minimum 65% marks and appeared/are appearing in FSc Part-II / Final Examination can also apply on “HOPE Certificates” duly issued by the Head of the institutions. (3) Candidates with Computer Science instead of Chemistry in FSc can apply for Computer Software Engineering only.

Ineligibility Conditions:

a.“Not Recommended” twice by ISSB / GHQ Selection Board.

b. Declared medically unfit by concerned CMH / Appeal Medical Board.

c. Enrolled cadets and recruits withdrawn/resigned/discharged/dismissed from Armed Forces (Army, Navy & Air Force) training academies/institutions on grounds of discipline, character, medical, inefficiency, weak profile, or declared unsuitable.

d. An individual dismissed / removed from any other Government Service.

e. Diploma holders.

f. Convicted by a Court of Law for an offence involving moral turpitude.

g. Those studying in any of the Armed Forces Institutions/Academies or nominated against reserved defence quota seats / studying a Paying Cadet in any of the Armed Forces Technical Colleges.

Registration Process :

A candidate can register on Official Website of Pakistan Army. Date and time of test shall be intimated on internet, for which the individual should have an e-mail account. Candidates will report on exact date and time given for preliminary test on computerized roll no slip. Date once given will not be changed. Candidates will also bring along documents mentioned in para 6 and will pay prospectus fee on the day of test. Candidates MUST attain working knowledge of computer.

Contact your nearest Army Selection and Recruitment Centre for Registration:

Candidates may report at nearest AS&RCs for registration / allotment of roll no along with necessary documents mentioned in para 6 and the prospectus fee for completion of registration formalities. Candidates will bring these documents on the day of test as well.

	AS&RC	Telephone		AS&RC	Telephone
(1)	Peshawar	091-201-35885	(2)	Rawalpindi	051-561-34137
(3)	Lahore	042-6699-35885	(4)	Multan	061-531-35885
(5)	Hyderabad	0222-791-35885	(6)	Karachi	021-560-35885
(7)	Quetta	081-2490-35885	(8)	Gilgit	05811-961-35885

NOTE:

If you are calling from Mobile, call from WARID on these given numbers.

Written Test:

Written test will be based on multiple choice questions from English, Physics, Mathematics and Chemistry / Computer Studies / Computer Science (Only for CS students). The candidates declared successful in written test, will undergo physical tests at AS&RCs.

Physical Test:

Candidates are required to qualify following physical tests as under:-

(a)	1.6 km Run	8 1/2 Minutes
(b)	Push Ups	15 Repetitions in 2 Minutes
(c)	Sit Ups	15 Repetitions in 2 Minutes
(d)	Chin Ups	3 Repetitions in 2 Minutes
(e)	Ditch Crossing	7’4” x 7’4” with a depth of 4’

Preliminary Medical Tests:

Candidates will undergo initial medical test at AS&RCs.

Further Selection:

Short listed candidates will receive notice for ISSB tests through website as well as call up letters. Medical examination of ISSB recommended candidates will be carried out at nearby CMHs. Final selection will be made at GHQ on the basis of candidate’s overall performance. Allocation of disciplines will be made due considration to merit, choice and service requirements. Allotment of discipline/decision of GHQ will be final and no representation in this regard or request for change in discipline allotted will be entertained.

ACADEMIC/ MILITARY TRAINING

Academic:

S/No.	Discipline	Duration 4 years at
(1)	Civil Engineering	Military College of Engineering Risalpur (NUST)
(2)	Electrical (Telecommunication) Engineering	M­ilitary College of Signals Rawalpindi (NUST)
(3)	Computer Software Engineering
(4)	Electrical Engineering	College of Electrical & Mechanical Engineering Rawalpindi (NUST)
(5)	Mechanical Engineering
(6)	Computer Systems Engineering
(7)	Mechatronics Engineering
(8)	Aeronautical Engineering	College of Aeronautical Engineering, Risalpur (NUST)

Military Training:

One year military training at PMA Kakul, after obtaining Bachelor of Engineering (BE) Degree.

Documents Required at Army Selection Centres

1. Original Certificate / detailed Marks Sheet of Matric/FSc/Equivalent certificate. In case of ‘O’ Level / ’A’ Level, submission of Equivalence Certificate issued by IBCC is mandatory.

2. Computerized National Identity Card for 18 years and above or Computerized Form “B” along with Guardian’s Computerized National Identity Card (Father or Mother) for candidates less than 18 years of age.

3. One set of attested photocopies of above mentioned documents.

4. 6 x Colour Photos (duly attested front and back) by Principal/Class-1 Gazetted Officer.

5. Original as well as 3 x photocopies of ISSB “NOT RECOMMENDED” letter are also required for Repeater Candidates.

Important NOTE.

Old National Identity Card and Form “B” will not be accepted.

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Pakistan Army Conducting War Exercise near Jehlum

Pakistan Army is conducting war exercise at Tilla Field Firing Ranges near Jhelum reported PakSoldiers.Com.

According to military sources large number of troops are participating in the exercise. Gujranwala Corps Commander Lieutenant General Raheel Shareef visited the field area and witnessed the exercise. Corps commander was briefed on the tactical setting of the exercise by the field commanders on the occasion.

Raheel Shareef witnessed the firing of Artillery and heavy Infantry weapons during the exercise.

He appreciated the morale, skilful planning and conduct of exercise and highly commended the tactical skills as well as accurate firing standard of the troops. He lauded endurance and standard of professional readiness of Soldiers. During this exercise Director General Military training and General Officer Commanding (GOC) were also present.

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Job Opportunities in Pak Army

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