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Sunday, December 27, 2009

Women, children among 10 killed in Orakzai attack

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Ten people, three women and four children among them, were killed when military planes bombed a house in Feroze Khel area in lower Orakzai Agency on Friday.

Officials said the house of tribal elder Zikria Khan was razed to the ground and four members of his family were killed.

Tribesmen pulled out the bodies from the debris of the house.

Two other houses that were empty were also destroyed.

Officials said that except the women and children most other people who died in the attack were militants.

Independent sources said Zikria Khan and his family had nothing to do with militants and all the victims were civilians.

The officials said that members of the Tehrik-i-Taliban who had escaped from Waziristan were living in the house, adding that the headquarters of Hakimullah Mehsud was earlier located in the area.

MASTERMIND HELD: Security forces arrested an explosives expert from Doaba area in Hangu district on Friday.

The militant was identified as Khan Qasim.

Saturday, December 19, 2009

Karak dwellers to get gas, assures minister

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Provincial Minister for Prisons Mian Nisar Gul Friday said the NWFP government had deposited Rs160 million for 111-kilometre gas pipeline to Banda Daud Shah tehsil.

Addressing a meeting of Oil and Gas Development Company Limited (OGDCL) officials at the Circuit House in Karak town, the minister said the provincial government had constituted a committee under the chairmanship of NWFP Minister for Information Mian Iftikhar Hussain to resolve dispute over provision of natural gas in Karak. He said the committee would hold meeting in Peshawar on December 23 to discuss the complaints of the landowners of the Noshapa area.

Mian Nisar Gul warned the OGDCL officials not to force the residents to take up arms for their rights and said the work on the Noshapa oil and gas reserves would not resume till the December 23 meeting and resolution of the issue.

The provincial minister said the exploration of oil and gas in Banda Daud Shah tehsil and Noshapa had adversely affected the environment and according to a survey the abortion cases and death ratio of women in delivery cases were on the rise. He said the wildlife had also been affected.

OGDCL Regional Coordinator Mushaffaq Paracha told the meeting that efforts would be made for the uplift of the area and the projects would be approved after consulting the elected representatives.

Friday, December 18, 2009

Ulema assure authorities of cooperation

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Ulema from various schools of religious thought Thursday assured the district administration and police of their support in peaceful observance of Muharramul Haram.

Deputy Inspector General of Police Kohat Region Abdullah Khan urged the leaders of Shia and Sunni schools of religious thoughts to display solidarity and brotherhood to thwart the sinister designs of enemies who were out to create rift between the two sects.

The police officer stated this during separate meetings with the leaders of the two sects held at Police Lines in Kohat. Although, he claimed, the district administration had made foolproof security arrangements for the month, still the leaders and religious scholars should play their role in maintaining peace during Muharram and avoiding any untoward incident.

Among others, District Police Officer Kohat Dilawar Khan Bangash, District Naib Nazim Arif Muhammad, Deputy Superintendent of Police City Abdul Qayyum, Chairman Sunni Supreme Council Javed Ibrahim Paracha, Ali Shah and Abdul Saboor attended the meetings.

Ulema assure authorities of cooperation

POSTED IN NEWS

Ulema from various schools of religious thought Thursday assured the district administration and police of their support in peaceful observance of Muharramul Haram.

Deputy Inspector General of Police Kohat Region Abdullah Khan urged the leaders of Shia and Sunni schools of religious thoughts to display solidarity and brotherhood to thwart the sinister designs of enemies who were out to create rift between the two sects.

The police officer stated this during separate meetings with the leaders of the two sects held at Police Lines in Kohat. Although, he claimed, the district administration had made foolproof security arrangements for the month, still the leaders and religious scholars should play their role in maintaining peace during Muharram and avoiding any untoward incident.

Among others, District Police Officer Kohat Dilawar Khan Bangash, District Naib Nazim Arif Muhammad, Deputy Superintendent of Police City Abdul Qayyum, Chairman Sunni Supreme Council Javed Ibrahim Paracha, Ali Shah and Abdul Saboor attended the meetings.

Commander among 17 militants die in Orakzai

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Seventeen militants, a local ‘commander’ among them, were killed and four compounds and three tunnels were destroyed as helicopter gunships pounded terrorists’ hideouts in Dabori area of Orakzai Agency on Thursday.

The ‘commander’ was identified as Ajmer, officials said, adding that 21 militants were also injured in attacks.

Two militants were also killed and an ammunition depot was put on fire by a tribal lashkar in separate incidents.

Two tribesmen, including a malik, were injured in an exchange of fire with militants in the Stori Khel area.

Wednesday, December 16, 2009

Tribesmen shoot dead Taliban stuntmen

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Angry tribesmen shot dead four militants for causing disturbance by performing stunts on their motorcycles in Stori Khel area of Orakzai Agency, locals said.

The young militants belonged to Tariq Afridi group of Tehrik-i-Taliban Pakistan. The group has significant influence in the entire Orakzai Agency.

Sources said that militants were busy in performing stunts and motorcycle race when tribesmen asked them to leave the area because they were violating the tribal code besides causing disturbance.

The militants instead of paying heed to elders’ bidding started more noise and used abusive language against them. The angry tribesmen pulled out their Kalashnikovs and killed all the four militants on the spot on Monday afternoon.

Eyewitnesses said that bodies of the killed militants and their motorcycles were lying there and Taliban had not taken any action against the tribesmen.

20 killed in Orakzai air strikes

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Twenty militants were killed and six others injured in air strikes in lower Orakzai Agency on Tuesday evening.

Three camps and four vehicles of the militants were destroyed.

Official sources said that military aircraft and helicopter gunships pounded Taliban hideouts in Sultanzai and Stori Khel.

Unconfirmed reports said the aircraft and helicopters had also attacked a TTP jirga in Sultanzai.

Tuesday, December 8, 2009

Tribesmen banned from entering Kohat

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The district administration, on instructions of the provincial government, on Monday banned the entry of tribesmen in Kohat with immediate effect in a move to maintain law and order.

Official sources said that as the district faced the threat of terrorist attacks during Muharram, the administration had been asked to close all routes from the adjoining tribal areas and deploy additional force there.

The displaced people coming here in thousands from the Orakzai Agency where a military operation is in progress have been asked to stay in the two relief camps established in Mohammad Khawaja and Dalan areas of the Hangu district.

The Hangu administration has established several points for registration of the tribesmen from Orakzai Agency.

Monday, December 7, 2009

14 hurt in road accidents

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At least 14 passengers including four women were injured in two separate road accidents in the district here Sunday.Sources said a Rawalpindi-bound coach overturned after colliding with railway crossing post near Ghulam Banda on Kohat-Rawalpindi Road, leaving six persons including two women injured.The injured were rushed to a nearby local hospital for treatment. In another incident, a Bannu-bound car hit a pickup coming from opposite direction on Indus Highway. As a result, eight passengers including two women were injured. The injured were shifted to the District Headquarters Hospital in Kohat. Thier condition is said to be stable.