2. Interior Minister Rehman Malik has issued directives to tighten security for Chinese engineers and experts staying in Pakistan. He said Pakistani soil will not be allowed to be used against Chinese people. (Kawish)

3. President Zardari, while talking to the Chairman of the Chinese Foundation for International Studies, said that China should take advantage of the relaxations provided by Pakistan to China for investment and business opportunities. He said that as per a new law, called the Special Economic Zone bill 2012, the industries set up in special economic zones will be exempted from custom duty. (Nawa-i-Waqt)

4.  President of the Pakistan Economy Watch Dr. Murtaza Mughal has welcomed the decision to hand over the Gwadar Port to China; he said this was in national interests and that it would bring economic development in Balochistan. (Baad-e-Shimal)

AFGHANISTAN/ UNITED STATES
1.  Defense Minister Navid Qamar said that the issue of Afghanistan could not be resolved without Pakistan. He stated that Pakistan’s role will increase in the region once the US withdrew from Afghanistan. (Urdupoint)

2. In his article, Mushtaq Ahmed Qureshi writes that one Hajji Muhammad Yunus visited the Jama Masjid Islamic Centre in Chicago recently where the Imam introduced him to a convert Abu Abdullah who wrote a book on how and why he adopted Islam. His brother was in the American army but has since converted to Islam and joined Taliban ranks.. Abdullah claims that many American soldiers in Afghanistan had converted and were now fighting for Taliban. (Al Qalam Weekly, 7 September to 13 September)

3. Afghan refugees should be confined to their refugee camps, since they are involved in weapons smuggling and drug peddling.  (Daily Hazara News)

INDIA
1. Former AJK President and Supreme Head of Muslim Conference, Sardar Abdul Qayyum said sidelining the Kashmir issue and talking with India on the visa policy and trade is harmful for the Kashmir Freedom Movement. (Baad-e-Shimal, Daily Dharti)

2. Analyst Khalid Lodhi says the Indo-Pak Foreign Ministers’ meeting didn’t discuss any of the core issues including Kashmiri freedom, India’s water aggression and infiltration into Balochistan were touched. Even though Pakistan’s stand on the Kashmir issue was presented by the Pakistani Foreign Minister, there was no mention of India’s interference in Balochistan. He is concerned that India had established its influence in Afghanistan with US support and was now establishing its relations with China as well. Lodhi says that the US military bases will remain in Afghanistan until 2024; hence, Pakistan’s political and military leaders should be sceptical of Indian tactics of friendship. He warns that India was following a ‘three-track’  policy – track one  cultural attack, track two  friendship and track three  RAW’s secret activities. He warns that ISI should do its duty. (Nawa-i-Waqt)

3. Arshad Chaudhary writes that a section of Pakistanis was pro-investment in India; this section was unaware of the fact that the Indian economy had been completely destroyed due to massive corruption. Recently, even Indian PM Manmohan Singh has faced accusations of corruption and many Indian ministers are involved in corruption and some were behind bars on the graft charges. He writes that Indians are protesting against corruption; India has lost credibility at the international level, and foreign investors are afraid of investment in India. (Urdupoint)

4. Even though a majority of Indians are against Pakistan, they want peace in the region; since, Kashmir is the cause of tension, India should settle this dispute as per the UN resolution. (Nawa-i-Waqt Edit)

5. Foreign Ministers’ talks between India and Pakistan should bring a positive change in the bilateral relations. Though India would be more benefited through trade, Pakistan’s economy would also improve. (Daily Intekhab Edit)

6. On the occasion of the signature campaign initiated by the Kashmir Centre (London), leaders of PPP, PML-N (AJK), Muslim Conference, Tahreek-e-Kashmir, and leaders of Kashmir Centre (Brussels) said that the foreign minister-level talks between India and Pakistan were a good gesture. They welcomed Foreign Minister Hina Rabbani Khar’s statement that Kashmiris will be included in talks and that durable peace could not be obtained in South Asia until the Kashmir dispute was resolved. The chairman of the Kashmir Centre (London) Prof. Nazir Ahmed Shawal, Chairman of Kashmir Centre (Brussels) Barrister Majid Trumbo, President of Kashmir Centre (Advisory Council) Raja Muhammad Ayub, Senior deputy President of PPP (UK) Chaudhary Muhammad Manzoor, President of Tahreek-e-Kashmir Muhammad Ghalib, Councillor Muhammad Ikhlaq, Councillor Zafar, and other leaders of smaller organizations took part in this signature campaign and supported the right to self determination for the people of Kashmir. They said that the British Parliament will have to be persuaded to hold a debate on Kashmir. (Ausaf)

DEFENCE
1. President Zardari met COAS Gen. Kayani and they agreed against launching operations under foreign pressure in North Waziristan. They also discussed issues of national security. It was agreed that during his US visit, Kayani will raise the issue of drone attacks. (Baad-e-Shimal, Jinnah, Khabrain, Kawish)

TERRORISM/EXTREMISM
1. JI-Punjab’s legislature party meeting was told that there was conspiracy to spread sectarian violence across Pakistan and to destabilize Karachi and Balochistan. The chief of JI-Punjab, Wasim Akhtar said that the Army was fighting against its own people in the tribal areas, and that Pakistan was involved in drone attacks. (Nawa-i-Waqt)

2. Ahl-e-Sunnat-Wal-Jamaat Balochistan deputy chief Maulana Ramzan Mengal said that the government should immediately ban political parties which were working at the behest of foreign actors and were supervising terrorist groups in Pakistan. Ahl-e-Sunnat-Wal-Jamaat leaders said that the media should stop writing ‘Shia-Sunni Bhai Bhai’ as Shias did not respect the companions of the Prophet and thus, they were not Muslims. (Daily Intekhab)

3. The suicide attack in Parachinar’s Kashmir bazaar was in reaction to the Army’s operation against militants and drone attacks in the tribal areas. (Nawa-i-Waqt Edit)

4. Difa-e-Pakistan Council has announced a fresh schedule of protests against issues such as the
operation in North Waziristan, MFN status to India, trade with India, resumption of NATO supply, and drone attacks. DPC will protest in Peshawar on 1st October, and in Karachi on 7th October which would be ‘Million March’; on 24th October DPC will hold a tribal jirga in Bannu, on 4th November a conference in Lahore in which tribal heads and leaders of Balochistan will take part, on 14th November a massive rally in Muzaffarabad to express solidarity with the people of Kashmir.  Chairman of DPC said that their main objective was to liberate Pakistan from America’s and India’s slavery. He said that they should leave the war which had been forced upon them since 9/11. JuD chief Hafiz Muhammad Saeed said that the Indian Foreign Minister’s visit was full of conspiracies. He d said that a few days back, Parliament was given a briefing on India’s role in Balochistan and now a delegation of Parliamentarians visited India to increase trade. Saeed said that Pakistani leaders were trying to give indications that Pakistanis should either abandon support to Kashmiris or accept India’s interference and terrorism in Balochistan. Saeed said that they will not allow weapons to be supplied in containers from India to Afghanistan. He said that the operation in North Waziristan was a conspiracy to increase chaos and to trigger suicide attacks in Pakistan. He demanded that drones be shot down by Pakistan’s forces. Saeed said that at India’s behest, the UN mission had been sent to Pakistan; he emphasized that this mission not be allowed to visit Balochistan. He questioned why wasn’t the UN mission going into J&K and why couldn’t it observe the violation of human rights there. JI Chief Syed Munawar Hassan said the visit of the Indian Foreign Minister was intended to sideline the issues of Kashmir, water aggression, and Indian interference in Balochistan. Hassan said that the Interior Minister Rahman Malik was always saying that India was behind the situation in Balochistan but he didn’t dare to say it in front of SM Krishna. (Urdupoint, Khabrain, Jinnah)

POLITICAL DEVELOPMENTS
1. PML-N chief Nawaz Sharif said the caretaker government will be formed in consultation with the opposition; otherwise they will complain to the Election Commission. (Urdupoint)

2. PML-N chief Nawaz Sharif has ruled out any more talks with MQM. The statements by MQM leaders after meeting with PML-N indicated that no further talks could be held with them. Sharif said no meetings had been held with ANP yet. (Kawish)

3. Aftab Sherpao has decided to dissolve the PPP-Sherpao party and to form a new nationalist party. A formal announcement will be made in the coming days. (Jinnah)

4. Talking to lawyers, disgraced nuclear scientist Dr. AQ Khan said that the country will have to get rid of the present government for peace and national stability. (Nawa-i-Waqt)

5. Public Accounts Committee has expressed serious reservations over the foreign ministry’s way of spending its budget. Matters related to illegal sale of Pakistan-based Indonesian and Japanese embassies has been forwarded to NAB. (Urdupoint)

6. Despite the PM’s instructions and SC’s orders, instead of making permanent the employees of the health department, payment of their salaries have been stopped. (Baad-e-Shimal)

7. Daily Pak edit is on the case against the Information Ministry that it has misused secret funds and the minister’s claim that some elements were spreading wrong propaganda. After the Arsalan Iftekhar case, there was lot of anti-media propaganda circulating on the net.  (Daily Pak Edit)

ECONOMY/ENERGY/WATER
1. Pakistan’s products may receive consent for duty free access to Europe. (Jinnah)

2. Daily Dharti criticises the sale of government land in Rawalakot land to the very person who had encroached upon it for the past forty years.  The Accountability Bureau had taken action against encroachments but it now seems that the entire administration is active in selling the 1700 square metres of land to the occupier at government rates. Stop the sale and reclaim the land. (Daily Dharti Edit)

3. Government has taken a loan of Rs.110 billion from the State Bank between August 17th and August 24th, and paid Rs. 34 billion to commercial banks towards its outstanding debt.. The total loans taken by the government from commercial banks during the year now aggregates Rs. 216 billion. Kawish)

4. 10 out of 12 units at the Gudu Thermal power plant are not working due to water seepage into the power plant. This affected power generation at this unit by 80%. It will take 5 days to drain out the water. (Kawish)

KHYBER PAKHTUNKHWAH (NWFP/FATA)
1. Transport union has given an ultimatum to stop supplies to Gilgit-Baltistan as the government had failed to provide security to transporters plying in Gilgit-Baltistan. (Daily Hazara News)

2. Abbotabad was once a beautiful town. Today it presents a pathetic picture with bad drainage, and water logging everywhere. It has lost is greenery as trees have been cut indiscriminately. (Daily Hazara News Edit)

SINDH
1. PML-F, PML-Q, ANP and the Likeminded group have announced that they will sit in opposition in the Sindh Assembly in order to oppose the new ordinance on the municipal government in the province. PML-F leader Yam Madal Ali said that the Sindh government had betrayed the people by issuing the ordinance and that it would not be allowed to function. He said that attempts were being made to separate Karachi from Sindh. (Kawish)

2. Rauf Nizamani writes that a systematic attempt is being made to lay out the madrassa network in Sindh; he claims that these madrassas are different from ordinary ones. Nizamani is of the opinion that if religious forces had an open field in Sindh where they meet no resistance for their designs, it would lead to a situation like that in north Sindh, especially the anti-Hindu incidents. He says that the question before the Sindhi nationalists today was whether to save Sindhis from being reduced to a minority in Sindh or whether to save the Sindhi society from the menace of growing fundamentalism. He says both objectives are connected as the first could be achieved only when emphasis is also laid on the second; hence, Nizamani says that it was time to set priorities right. (Awami Awaz, 11 September)

BALOCHISTAN
1. CJP Iftekhar Muhammad Chaudhary has declared that the life and property of Baloch people would be protected at any cost. He asked the provincial government to crackdown on criminal elements. He also said that kidnapped people should be rescued and brought to courts. All this shows that there was no government writ in Balochistan and the government was not serious about establishing its writ there. (Ausaf Edit)

2. There are different view
s on the UN mission to Pakistan to discuss the missing persons issue. The fact of the matter is that the SC is seized of the issue and the government is inactive. If government doesn’t give up its apathy, anti-Pakistan conspiracies in Balochistan will increase in the coming days. (Nawa-i-Waqt Edit)

POK/ G-B NEWS
1. AJK Premier Chaudhary Abdul Majid said that Pakistan was their ultimate destination and that the people of J&K have always given every sacrifice for the defence of the nation, whether it was 1965 or 1971 wars. He added the Pakistan Army had given huge sacrifices for the safety of the nation and that Kashmiris would not ditch Pakistan. (Daily Dharti, Jang)

2. During his talks with PM Ashraf, the Chinese premier announced that China will send heavy machinery for the Attabad Lake. The two leaders also discussed issues related to the Gwadar Port, defence and energy. (Baad-e-Shimal, Jinnah, Khabrain)

3. KP Information Minister Mian Iftekhar Hussain said that helicopter gun ships may be deployed on Karakorum Highway in order to make travelling safe. (Baad-e-Shimal)

4. NETCO will begin its A/C bus service in 4 cities in AJK. (Baad-e-Shimal)

5. Baad-e-Shimal calls for stern action against the militants in G-B though it notes that no decision had been taken with regard to a military operation against militants. (Baad-e-Shimal Edit)