What’s wrong with this picture?

The vehement denials that have lately been pouring out of Islamabad with reference to Matt Waldman’s controversial discussion paper on the Inter-Services Intelligence (ISI) directorate’s embroilment with the Afghan Taliban offer little cause for surprise. Even a relatively milder indictment of the ISI’s role in Afghanistan would have been greeted with a dismissive counter-offensive.

At the same time, however, even a cursory perusal of the report demonstrates that what’s disconcerting about it goes well beyond the striking allegation that President Asif Zardari (whose name is consistently misspelt as ‘Zadari’ in the discussion paper) actually visited incarcerated Afghan Taliban in a Pakistani prison and harangued dozens of them for half an hour.

Heavy rain batters Gwadar, cyclone eyes Karachi

QUETTA / KARACHI: Widespread torrential rains, accompanied by cyclonic winds, lashed the Makran coast and parts of central Makran on Friday.

Cyclone Phet hit Makran coast and started moving towards Karachi and other parts of Sindh in the afternoon.

Navy personnel rescued six fishermen trapped in the cyclone two kilometers off Jiwani.

Hundreds of fishing boats were reported missing in Gwadar, Pasni, Jiwani and Peshkan areas.

At least 25 people were injured.

Balochistan facing 150 MW of power shortage

QUETTA: Balochistan is facing 150 megawatts of power shortage after four transmission lines tripped due to some technical fault in the province.

QESCO sources said four transmission lines of 220 and 232 KVs were tripped suspending power supply to Quetta and other adjacent areas from 42 grid stations.

Power supply to some of the areas has been restored after repairing of three transmission lines while the work on 220 KVs trasmission line stretching betwen Quetta and Sibi is underway.

Govt efforts won’t heal Baloch wounds

QUETTA: Jamaat-e-Islami’s central secretary- general Liaquat Baloch has said that the people of Balochistan are not satisfied with the package announced by the government to remove the sense of deprivation among the Baloch people.

He was referring to the Aghaze- Haquq-e-Balochistan package the PPP-led government announced recently in a bid to woo disgruntled Baloch nationalists. Addressing an election convention of the Jamaat-e-Islami on Wednesday, Baloch said the central government must ensure equitable and transparent distribution of resources among the provinces to do away with decades of disenchantment among local populations. “This is the only way out of the present mess,” he added.

Four policemen killed in Quetta firing

QUETTA: Four policemen were killed as gunmen opened fire on a police vehicle in Satellite Town, Quetta.

Official sources said a contingent of policemen from Satellite Town police station were on their way to the station when unidentified men opened fire on them at Saryab Link Road. An SHO named Abdul Khalique was among the four killed.

Teachers in Balochistan fearful of being targeted

QUETTA: “After the target killing of Nazima Talib, a University of Balochistan professor, we are all living in fear,” a senior teacher said while speaking to The Express Tribune on condition of anonymity. “Teachers have restricted their activities and avoid attending events.”

At the university, teachers and most officials were unwilling to speak to the media or discuss the issue of the targeting of teachers.

Yet, the fear among the academic community is so strong that many teachers have requested transfers to other provinces.