Tuesday, February 19, 2019
Young Afghan girl’s Valentine’s Day song ‘I kiss you amid Taliban’ goes viral
The video song of a young Afghan girl has gone viral in social media as youths in Kabul and other cities of the country celebrated Valentine’s Day on Tuesday, a new phenomenon which is increasingly becoming famous among the youths of the country despite differences of views exist in this regard in the society.Composed by a young Afghan poet Ramin Mazhar, the song ‘I will kiss you amid Taliban, you are not afraid’ was sung by Ghawgha Taban on the eve of Valentine’s Day.
The video immediately went viral and has become a hot topic in social media since it was uploaded in Facebook and Twitter
The youths in Kabul celebrated Valentine’s Day with gatherings and singings but the situation remained different in Herat province, one of the key western provinces of the country.
The Police Commandment of Herat issued a statement warning the residents of the province not to celebrate Valentine’s Day, insisting that marking the day is against the instructions of Islam as per the remarks of religious scholars and clerics.
“I had a simple motive to specify my personal stance against a situation dominated by Talibanism, a thing which Taliban do not have any doubt about. But the reactions were enormous. The reactions are both hopeful and concerning with the main reason being populism, I do not think those who have supported me in their reaction are anti-Taliban and it should be considered as risky, since those considering us as sacred for such a small work, can stone us to death, call us prostitutes, or torch us to death in the center of the city. A Taliban dominant social situation is nothing more than a blink of an eye where people get united at a blink of eye while some actions are condemned blindly. It is our human obligation to react against Talibanism but at the same time we should not forget the horrific reasons, reactions and individual absenteeism, this individual absenteeism is horrific. Real fight against Taliban is nothing more than an individual revitalization,” Ghawgha said in a statement.
This comes as a campaign dubbed ‘Will Not Return Backwards’ has also been launched in social media amid rumors regarding the return of Taliban, formation of interim government, dissolving of Afghan army, and exit of the foreign forces.
The Afghan women have the most concern regarding the return of Taliban as they were deprived of their basic rights, including education and work during the Taliban regime back in 1990s.
The concerns, mainly among the women, are on the rise amid ongoing negotiations between the U.S. envoy Ambassador Zalmay Khalilzad and the Taliban political leaders.
This comes despite the assurances given by the Taliban during the Moscow Summit on 5th and 6th of February which was organized in the absence of the government representatives.
However, concerns still exist that the achievements of the past two decades would be compromised with, including the freedom of expression, political and civil rights of women, and elections, in the event the ongoing talks produce results and a peace deal is achieved.
https://www.khaama.com/young-afghan-girls-valentines-day-song-i-kiss-you-amid-taliban-goes-viral-03322/
سعودی پیسے آنے سے پہلے گننا حقیقت پسندانہ سوچ نہیں: معاشی ماہرین
سعودی عرب اور پاکستان کے درمیان پچھلے دو روز میں آٹھ یادداشتوں پر دستخط ہوئے ہیں جن کی مالیت
سعودی عرب ایک ایسے وقت میں پاکستان میں سرمایہ لگا رہا ہے جب پاکستان کو معاشی معاونت کی سخت ضرورت ہے اور دوسری جانب انڈیا پاکستان کو بین الااقوامی سطح پر تنہا کرنا چاہتا ہے۔
لیکن اقتصادیات کے ماہرین اور اس پر کام کرنے والوں کے خیال میں پاکستان کو سرمایہ کاری کے اردگرد ہونے والے جشن سے ہٹ کر حقیقت پسندانہ سوچ کا مظاہرہ کرنا چاہیے۔
بی بی سی سے بات کرتے ہوئے مالیاتی امور پر لکھنے والے صحافی خرم حسین کے مطابق ’سعودی عرب کی طرف سے دیے گئے پیسوں کو ابھی سے گننا حقیقت پسندانہ سوچ نہیں ہے۔‘
انھوں نے کہا کہ ابھی اس ساری سرمایہ کاری کو زمین پر آنے میں سالوں لگ سکتے ہیں اور یہ ایک طویل مرحلہ ہے۔ ’دیکھیں یہ بات تو طے ہے کہ اس سرمایہ کاری سے پاکستان کو فائدہ تو ہوگا۔ پاکستان کو اس وقت آئل ریفائنری کی ضرورت بھی ہے اور گوادر میں اسے بنانے سے گوادر میں جاری دیگر پراجیکٹس کو تقویت ملے گی۔ لیکن یادداشتوں پر دستخط کرنا پہلا مرحلہ ہے۔ ابھی کئی سال تو صرف یہ دیکھنے میں لگ جائیں گے کہ اس ریفائنری کو بنانے کی کوئی کمرشل بنیاد بنانے کا کوئی جواز بھی ہے یا نہیں۔‘
سعودی عرب پاکستان میں کن کن شعبوں میں سرمایہ لگارہا ہے؟
بی بی سی سے بات کرتے ہوئے بورڈ آف انویسٹمنٹ کے چیئرمین ہارون شریف نے بتایا کہ بڑے پراجیکٹس کے حوالے سے ایک پّکی رقم بتانا مشکل ہوتا ہے۔ ’کیونکہ ابھی ان تمام پراجیکٹس کا تکنیکی معائنہ کیا جائیگا، آیا پراجیکٹ شروع کیا جاسکتا ہے یا نہیں اور اگر شروع کریں تو امکانات کیا ہیں۔‘
لیکن اس کے ساتھ ہی انھوں نے کہا کہ سعودی عرب کی طرف سے پاکستان کو 20 ارب ڈالرز کا ایک راؤنڈ فِگر بتایا گیا ہے۔ ’جس میں آٹھ ارب ڈالرز بلوچستان کے شہر گوادر میں آئل ریفایئنری کے قیام کا حصہ ہے۔ اگر اس میں وہ پیٹروکیمیکل پلانٹ لگا دیتے ہیں یا ہائڈرو ٹریکر کا اضافہ کر دیتے ہیں تو قیمت مزید بڑھ جائے گی۔‘
انھوں نے کہا کہ بلوچستان میں آئل ریفائینری لگانے کے حوالے سے طویل میٹنگز اور ملاقاتیں ہوئی ہیں۔ ’ابھی تو صرف اس حوالے سے یادداشتوں پر دستخط ہوئے ہیں لیکن یہ ممکن نہیں ہے کہ وہاں کوئی بھی سرمایہ کاری وہاں کے نمائندوں کو شامل کیے بغیر کی جاسکے۔‘
ہارون شریف نے بتایا کہ اسی طرح سعودی عرب چار ارب ڈالرز کا سرمایہ متبادل توانائی کے شعبے میں لگا رہا ہے۔’جس کے تحت وہ وِنڈ اور سولر پر پاکستان بھر میں کام کرنا چاہتے ہیں۔ تو یہ ایک نئی ٹیکنالوجی ہے جس کا ایک ہائبرڈ سسٹم بھی ہے۔‘
انھوں نے بتایا کہ آئل ریفائینری کے لیے سعودی کمپنی آرامکو ہے اور متبادل توانائی کے لیے ایکوا پاور ہے۔ ’ایکوا پاور اس وقت 12 ممالک میں کام کررہی ہے۔ تو یہ ایک تجربہ کار کمپنی ہے۔ تو دو بڑے پراجیکٹ تو یہ ہیں۔‘
بی او آئی چیئرمین ہارون شریف نے بتایا کہ ’باقی پیکج کے لیے شعبے شناخت کیے جا چکے ہیں لیکن اس کی پختہ رقم بتانا اس وقت مشکل ہے جیسے سعودی عرب اس وقت توانائی کے شعبے میں پراجیکٹ خریدنا چاہ رہا ہے۔ جیسے جیسے ان پراجیکٹس کی بولی لگے گی تو اس کے مطابق قیمت لگائی جائے گی۔‘
موجودہ پاور پلانٹ میں سرمایہ کاری
ہارون شریف نے بتایا کہ 12 ارب ڈالرز کے پیکج کے علاوہ، سعودی عرب پاکستان میں موجودہ پاور پلانٹس کے پراجیکٹ میں بھی سرمایہ لگانا چاہ رہا ہے۔
انھوں نے کہا کہ ’سعودی عرب ہمارے موجودہ پاور پلانٹز کو خریدنے میں دلچسپی لے رہا ہے۔ ان پاور پلانٹز کی پرائیواٹائزیشن کے ذریعے بولی لگے گی، پھر قیمت مختص ہوگی تو تب یہ دونوں اس پیکج کا حصہ ہوجائیں گے۔ اس کے بعد ہم پانچ ارب ڈالرز پر تکیہ کرسکیں گے۔ جس کے اندر معدنیات اور کان کنی کا شعبہ آجاتا ہے اور یہی رقم پھر غذائی تحفظ اور زراعت کے شعبے میں بھی لگائی جاسکے گی۔‘
انھوں نے کہا کہ ’بنیادی طور پر ان پراجیکٹس کا کچھ حصہ براہِ راست سرمایہ کاری کے ذریعے ہوگا اور اچھی بات یہ ہے کہ باقی مکمل کمرشل سرمایہ کاری ہے، جس کا رِسک سعودی پاکستان میں لے رہے ہیں۔‘
سعودی عرب پاکستان میں سرمایہ کیوں لگارہا ہے؟
بی او آئی چئیر مین ہارون شریف نے کہا کہ ’سعودی عرب اچانک سے پاکستان میں سرمایہ نہیں لگا رہے، بلکہ یہ پچھلے پانچ ماہ کے مذاکرات کا حصہ ہے۔‘
انھوں نے کہا کہ ’ہمیں (پاکستان کو) اس وقت بین الااقوامی سطح پر سرمایہ کاری کی ضرورت ہے۔ اس کی دو وجوہات ہیں۔ ایک تو اس سے ہمیں ہارڈ کرنسی ملتی ہے۔ دوسرا اس سے نئی ٹیکنالوجی متعارف ہوگی، توانائی میں موجودہ خسارے میں بہتری آئے گی، اور ملک کی برآمد میں بھی مددگار ثابت ہوگی۔‘
اس وقت پاکستان میں خطے میں موجود ممالک سرمایہ لگانا چاہ رہے ہیں۔ ہارون شریف نے کہا کہ چین تو پہلے سے ہی سرمایہ لگا رہا ہے لیکن ساتھ ہی عرب امارات، سعودی عرب، ملیشیا اور جنوبی کوریا بھی اس میں شامل ہوگئے ہیں۔
انھوں نے کہا کہ ’تیل کی پیداوار کرنے والے ممالک میں خود مختار دولت کا فنڈ (سوورین ویلتھ فنڈ) موجود ہوتا ہے۔ ان کی حکمتِ عملی ہوتی ہے کہ ایک دو ترقی یافتہ ممالک میں سرمایہ لگانے کے بجائے اس کو دنیا کے مختلف حصوں میں پھیلا دیں۔ ہماری خوش نصیبی یہ ہے کہ وزیرِ اعظم کے دوروں کی وجہ سے سعودی عرب نے پاکستان کو بھی ان پانچ ممالک کا حصہ بنا لیا ہے جہاں وہ سرمایہ لگانا چاہ رہے ہیں۔‘
انھوں نے کہا کہ سعودی عرب کے لیے پاکستان ایک اہم ملک ہے۔ ’کیونکہ سعودی عرب کے پاس سرپلس پیسے ہیں، جو وہ خطے میں لگانا چاہتے ہیں۔ یہ ظاہری سی بات ہے کہ کوئی بھی ملک خطے میں اپنا اثر و رسوخ رکھنا چاہتا ہے۔ اور معاشی سرمایہ کاری اس اثر و رسوخ کو برقرار رکھنے کا ایک بہترین طریقہ ہے۔ تو سعودی عرب ایک سوچے سمجھے طریقے سے جنوبی ایشیا میں سرمایہ لگارہا ہے۔‘
سعودی ولی عہد نے ایسے وقت میں پاکستان کا دورہ کیا جب پاکستان معاشی طور پر اپنے قریب ترین اتحادیوں کی مدد چاہتا ہے۔
دونوں ممالک کے درمیان بہت ہی مضبوط عسکری تعلقات ہیں۔ اس وقت دونوں ممالک کو ایک دوسرے کی ضرورت بھی ہے۔ جہاں عمران خان قریب ترین اتحادیوں کی معاشی مدد چاہتے ہیں وہیں محمد بن سلمان یمن میں ہونے والی جنگ اور صحافی جمال خاشقجی کی اپنے ہی سفارتخانے میں قتل کے بعد دنیا بھر میں سعودی عرب کا ایک اچھا رُخ دکھانا چاہتے ہیں۔
https://www.bbc.com/urdu/pakistan-47293030
Iran, India demand answers and action from Pakistan
By Syed Zafar Mehdi
At a time when Pakistan is hosting the ‘butcher of Riyadh’, the tornado of anger and outrage has engulfed its neighborhood over two recent incidents of terror, both linked to Pakistan.
Pakistan is facing serious accusations of providing sanctuary to terrorist outfits that target its neighbors. Last week, two deadly bombings rocked India and Iran, claiming more than 70 lives in total.
Both attacks bore striking similarity, had similar targets and were choreographed in a same manner, much to the astonishment of security and intelligence agencies in both the countries.
While India has been more explicit in its diplomatic and military retaliation, Iran issued a veiled threat to the civil and military establishment in Islamabad to take immediate and appropriate action against the perpetrators of the attack in southeastern Sistan-Balochistan province, which killed at least 27 members of the revolutionary corps (IRGC).
While the attack in Indian-controlled Kashmir, which killed at least 44 members of India’s central reserve police force (CRPF), was claimed by Jaish e Mohammad (JeM), the responsibility for attack in Sistan-Balochistan was claimed by Jaish ul Adl. Both these militant organizations are based in Pakistan.
Jaish e Mohammad released a video that appeared to show the attacker, a 22-year-old recruit from south Kashmir, condemning India for atrocities against the people of Kashmir and vowing revenge.
Indian military has been accused of using excessive force to crush the freedom movement in the disputed region, often leading to civilian casualties. Thousands of young men and women have been killed and blinded in recent years due to lethal and non-lethal weapons used by Indian forces in Kashmir.
Pakistan has always extended its diplomatic and military support to the independence movement in Indian-controlled Kashmir. However, experts say Pakistan has its own political and strategic interests.
India blames Pakistan of aiding and abetting terrorist attacks carried out by militant groups like Jaish e Mohammad and Lashkar e Toiba, Hizbul Mujahideen in Kashmir and the country’s powerful intelligence agency Inter-Services Intelligence (ISI) is accused of giving birth to these groups.
Jaish e Mohammad leader Masood Azhar is based in Pakistan and Islamabad has unfailingly refused India’s demands to extradite him. Pakistan’s new all-weather ally China has also blocked India’s moves to have him designated a ‘global terrorist’ at the United Nations Security Council.
While tensions have always prevailed between the two countries, following Thursday’s attack the situation has turned extremely dreadful. The war drums are beating loudly, with hawks in New Delhi calling for strong diplomatic and military retaliation.
India’s Prime Minister Narendra Modi, following the attack on Thursday, said India would give a “befitting reply” to Pakistan, even though Islamabad denied any involvement in the attack.
As part of moves to isolate Pakistan diplomatically, India withdrew its ‘most favored nation’ status to Pakistan and canceled trade privileges granted to Pakistan under World Trade Organization (WTO).
India’s finance minister Arun Jaitley said the diplomatic steps were being taken “to ensure the complete isolation from international community of Pakistan.” Pakistan, however, termed it India’s “dream”.
Times of India, the leading daily of India, reported that military options were also under contemplation and could range from “shallow ground-based attacks and occupation of some heights along the LoC [Line of Control ceasefire line] to restricted but precision airstrikes against non-state targets in Pakistan-occupied Kashmir.”
While the dark clouds of war are looming large over Pakistan and India, on the other hand, Iran also has echoed its grave concerns over Wednesday’s attack that took place close to Iran-Pakistan border in Sistan-Balochistan province claimed by Jaish-ul-Adl.
The attack has been widely condemned in Iran by the political and military leadership.
“How did they [the terrorists] cross the border? And why has this neighboring country become a safe haven for these terrorist groups?” senior IRGC commander Maj. Gen. Yahya Rahim Safavi was quoted as saying following the attack.
“Pakistani government, which has sheltered these [terrorists] and knows where their hideouts are should be held accountable for the crime that has been committed,” IRGC senior commander Maj. Gen. Ali Jafari said, echoing words of Gen. Safavi. “Pakistan will no doubt pay a high price,” he added.
Jafari made the remarks during the funeral of martyrs in Isfahan province, where thousands of people turned up to bid them tearful adieu.
Iran alleges that Saudi Arabia and UAE have helped create and nurture Jaish-ul-Adl, which has been involved in several attacks on Iranian security forces in recent years.
Taha Siddiqui, a Pakistani journalist and founder of safenewsrooms.org, nods in agreement. “Many of these groups have Saudi funding, but since Pakistan is dependent on Saudi aid, it turns a blind eye,” he was quoted as saying by AlJazeera on the existence of Jaish al-Adl and other armed groups.
Jaish al-Adl is the offshoot of al-Qaeda-affiliated Jundullah, which went into oblivion after its leader Abdolmalek Rigi was killed by Iranian forces in 2010. Jaish-ul-Adl has been responsible for many attacks on Iranian security forces in recent years.
In 2013, the group kidnapped and killed 14 Iranian forces in an ambush close to Iran-Pakistan border. In 2014, five members of the Iranian security forces were again abducted.
In October 2018, the militant group abducted 12 Iranian security personnel near the city of Zahedan bordering Pakistan, five of whom were later released following the intervention of Pakistani authorities.
The latest attack has generated tremendous anger and outrage in Iran. Social media has been inundated with posts condemning the perpetrators and their backers.
Pakistan’s envoy to Tehran was summoned by the foreign ministry on Saturday and a strong protest was conveyed to the Pakistani government through her, according to a statement issued by foreign ministry.
Foreign Ministry spokesman Bahram Ghasemi said Iran “explicitly conveyed” to the Pakistan envoy that Tehran expects Islamabad and its military “to make a serious and decisive action” against the Jaish ul-Adl and its base inside its territory.
Parliament speaker Ali Larijani also issued a strong statement, saying the Pakistani government should be held to account for the incident.
“The Pakistani government should be accountable for this act involving the group orchestrating and conducting the operation from their territory,” he said during Sunday's session of parliament.
Larijani said Pakistan “cannot act irresponsibly”, adding that "such behavior will severely damage the level of cooperation" between the neighboring countries.
President Hassan Rouhani, speaking at an event in Hormozgan province on Sunday, said he "regrets" the "wrong policies" of Iran's neighbors, without directly mentioning Pakistan.
Earlier, Hassan Rouhani had vowed to “punish the criminal mercenaries”. “Without a doubt, all perpetrators and those ordered this vicious, flagrant act will be punished soon with the hard work of the powerful security forces of our country,” he said in a statement, following the attack.
Iran’s supreme leader Ayatollah Sayed Ali Khamenei also linked the perpetrators of Wednesday’s attack to “the spying agencies of some regional and trans-regional countries”.
Meanwhile, on Saturday, India’s foreign minister Sushma Swaraj called on Iran’s deputy foreign minister Seyed Araghchi in Tehran to discuss the two attacks and their repercussions.
“Iran and India suffered from two heinous terrorist attacks in the past few days, resulted in big casualties,” Araghchi tweeted. “Today in my meeting with Sushma Swaraj… we agreed on close cooperation to combat terrorism in the region. Enough is enough!”
In response to Iran’s protest, Pakistan’s foreign minister Shah Mahmood Qureshi said on Sunday that he will send a special delegation to Tehran to hold talks on the matter.
Qureshi said it is “regrettable” that the incident took place, and promised Pakistan's “cooperation” in the investigation.
Iran shares a long border with Pakistan, measuring around 1,000km. Jaish-ul-Adl has often infiltrated through this porous border to carry out attacks in the border region.
https://www.tehrantimes.com/news/433108/Iran-India-demand-answers-and-action-from-Pakistan
Iran Says Suicide Bomber Who Hit Revolutionary Guards Was Pakistani
The Feb. 13 bombing in a restive southeast region along the Pakistan border was one of the deadliest attacks in years to strike Iran. At least 13 people were wounded and the bus was destroyed, according to Iranian news websites.
Iran, which is predominantly Shiite Muslim, has often criticized Pakistan for harboring Sunni Muslim militants from the province, Sistan and Baluchistan, a haven for separatist groups and drug traffickers that have orchestrated attacks in recent years against Iranian security forces. But it is unusual for Iran to accuse Pakistani citizens.The accusation, reported by Iran’s Tasnim news agency, was made by a commander of the Revolutionary Guards, Brig. Gen. Mohammad Pakpur, at a ceremony held Tuesday to honor victims of the attack.
Tasnim quoted General Pakpur as saying that two members of the terrorist team and the suicide bomber were from Pakistan, and that three others were from Sistan and Baluchistan.On Monday, the Revolutionary Guards announced three arrests in the attack, but did not specify the identities of the suspects.Within hours of the attack, a militant Sunni extremist group, Jaish al-Adl, which has operated in southeast Iran for years and has links to Al Qaeda, claimed responsibility.
Iranian officials immediately accused the United States, Israel and Saudi Arabia of complicity in the attack. They suggested it was more than coincidental that it had been carried out as representatives of all three nations were meeting in Warsaw at a conference aimed in part at isolating Iran.
But the Iranians also made clear after the attack that they suspected militants from the Sistan and Baluchistan region.
Tasnim said Iran’s foreign minister, Mohammad Javad Zarif, spoke by telephone on Sunday with his Pakistani counterpart, Shah Mahmood Qureshi. Mr. Qureshi said Pakistan was “ready for any kind of cooperation with Iran to probe into the terrorist attack,” the news agency reported.
A Happy Marriage Between God and Budget Deficits - What keeps Saudi Arabia and Pakistan together.
By Mohammed HanifA few years ago, when my wife and I decided to name our newborn son Changez — which sounds like “CHAN-GAZE” — my older sister was livid. “But he was a mass murderer; he killed so many people.” The connection to Genghis (Khan) hadn’t really occurred to us. The name sounded nice, and we had announced it. “What did you have in mind instead?” I asked my sister. She suggested a prophet’s name. I said that the prophet might have had to kill a few people, too. Every ruler in history has had to kill a few people. And that doesn’t stop other people from celebrating them.
When Mohammed bin Salman, the crown prince of Saudi Arabia, arrived in Pakistan on Sunday there was an air of celebration and no mention of murder. A few journalists put up as their display picture on social media photographs of the dissident Saudi journalist Jamal Khashoggi, who was killed in the Saudi consulate in Istanbul in October. They got calls from their bosses to remove the shots, and most of them did. Otherwise, our TV screens turned into a welcoming red carpet. It was a unique visit, we were told again and again.
Mundane logistical details sparkled, as these things do when they come in contact with royalty. The Pakistani government has been on an austerity drive, and a while ago it auctioned off many of its luxury vehicles. But now it was renting 300 Prado SUVs to carry the Saudi delegates. Pakistani officials were tasked with sourcing 3,500 pigeons to release on the prince’s arrival. There was dancing on the streets. Air force jets escorted the prince’s plane as it entered our air space. Yes, it was a royal welcome.
For days before Prince Mohammed’s arrival, TV journalists were breathless with anticipation. Eighty containers full of the prince’s stuff were expected to arrive in advance. A special gym was set up in the house of Prime Minister Imran Khan. Two kids with bouquets as big as themselves greeted the prince in the prime minister’s house. They got a pat and a kiss on their heads. Poor kids.
It’s often said here that Saudi Arabia is the undisputed leader of the ummah, the worldwide community of Muslims, because its rulers are the custodians of the sacred sites in Mecca and Medina. Pakistan, with its nuclear arsenal, considers itself the guardian of the custodians. We are told that all of us are brothers in faith, but relations really just boil down to the fact that Saudi Arabia is bailing Pakistan out of yet another economic crisis. It’s a happy marriage between God and budget deficits. Prince Mohammed just promised us investments worth $20 billion. One might think that it’s his dad’s money he is spending. But Pakistanis seem to think that since God has blessed Saudi Arabia with so many riches, we are only getting our fair share.
Being promised billions tends to make you forget that the custodian of our sacred cities has caused more misery to the ummah than most nations on this Earth. Not only does Saudi Arabia continue to bomb one of the poorest Muslim countries in the world; it also refuses to pay wages to the poor laborers it imports from Pakistan and elsewhere, or it locks them up and throws away the key. Prince Mohammed won over lots of Pakistani hearts when, after a plea from Mr. Khan, he announced the release of more than 2,000 Pakistani prisoners from Saudi jails. Nobody questioned the merits of a justice system in which a prince can release thousands of prisoners because he is in a good mood. How many can he jail when he is having a bad day?
After declaring the prince a great modernizer and a “global thinker,” the West got a rude shock when it heard that he may have ordered Mr. Khashoggi’s gruesome murder. He had been exalted in these pages and many other places. The media coverage both before and after the murder has turned Prince Mohammed into an international brand.
His victory tour of Asia comes as India is threatening Pakistan with revenge for a suicide attack in Kashmir that killed more than 40 Indian soldiers last week. (There was another deadly attack on Monday.) Nobody is expecting the prince to do anything about Pakistan and India being on the brink of a war yet again. Like all little princes he does not have to pick sides or make a choice. When he visits India this week, he is expected to sign more investment deals. The Pakistani government calls his visit historic, and Indian officials call it historic. But only people with no sense of history call every passing chariot a historic event. The prince is playing with Pakistan and India because he is being temporarily snubbed by the boys and girls of the West, the ones he really wanted to play with.
This visit brings back old memories of when, following the Iranian revolution and the Soviet invasion of Afghanistan in 1979, Saudi Arabia started giving Pakistan lots of money to fight the communists, bringing fortunes to a few people and a rabid and enduring sectarianism to the rest. In Afghanistan, Saudi Arabia matched the United States dollar for dollar, and together they spawned a multinational jihad complex that still haunts the world.
In the buildup to Prince Mohammed’s arrival in Pakistan this week, some small groups made muted noises about his brutal war on Yemen and started the #MBSNotWelcome hashtag. The Ministry of Interior issued a notice singling out “disgruntled members of the ‘Shia community’” as those “mostly involved in this nefarious activity to malign” Saudi Arabia. When it was pointed out that this sounded like old-fashioned sectarianism, the ministry issued a second notice saying it was starting an inquiry into why the first one had been issued. Mr. Khan heads the Interior Ministry.
Mr. Khan is so smitten with Prince Mohammed that he insisted on driving His Royal Highness himself. Referring to the prince’s popularity in Pakistan, the prime minister joked that if the prince contested an election in Pakistan, the prince would get more votes than he. Only, the prince doesn’t seem to be in a mood to contest elections, from here or anywhere. He is keen on the old family feud, though.
At a joint news conference in Islamabad on Monday, the Saudi foreign minister launched into a diatribe against Iran and called it the chief supporter of terrorism in the world. TV channels quickly muted his speech. The Pakistani foreign minister chose to mute himself. The same day, Prince Mohammed was given Pakistan’s highest civilian award. All this comes at a time when the Iranian government is blaming Pakistan for a suicide bombing in Iran last week that killed at least 27 Revolutionary Guards.
Pakistan may welcome goods coming from the Saudi royalty, but it should think about what might be asked of it in return.
Pakistan interested in advancing relations with Israel, says Foreign Minister Mahmoud Qureshi
According to a report published by Ma’ariv, an Israeli news portal, Pakistani Foreign Minister Mahmoud Qureshi said:
“Pakistan is interested in advancing its relations with Israel, but this is a question of the political situation in the region,”
The statement comes at a time when Israel’s Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu is looking to normalize relations with Muslim countries around the world.
The Pakistani Minister further said:
“Progress in solving the Israeli-Palestinian conflict will be very helpful,”
He continued that “We wish all the best for Israel, we have many friends in the region and we would like you to join them,” the Pakistani minister concluded.
Pakistan and Israel have also engaged with each other in the past. In 2005, during Pervez Musharraf’s time, foreign ministers of both countries held a much-publicized meeting in Istanbul.
https://www.rabwah.net/pakistan-interested-in-advancing-relations-with-israel-says-pakistans-foreign-minister/
Saudi Arabia Is Investing $20 Billion in Pakistan. Here's What It's Getting in Return
By JOSEPH HINCKSSaudi Arabia’s Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman has been shunned by much of the world after the murder of dissident journalist Jamal Khashoggi in October, which the CIA concluded he had ordered. A-list executives pulled out of his Riyadh investment forum (dubbed ‘Davos in the Desert’), street protests greeted his arrival in Tunisia in November, and there were reports Morocco’s King Mohammed VI snubbed him on a visit to the North African country. That wasn’t the case earlier this week in Pakistan, however, which bestowed its highest civilian award on the young Saudi prince, gave him a gold-plated gun, and declared Monday a public holiday in honor of his two-day visit to Islamabad.
“Saudi Arabia has always been a friend in need, which is why we value it so much,” Pakistani Prime Minister Imran Khan said Sunday, while seated next to MBS, as the crown prince is known. Earlier Saudi’s de-facto leader had announced investments in Pakistani petrochemicals, power generation, and mining projects worth more than $20 billion.
In addition to the staggering financial package, MBS — on Khan’s request — ordered the “immediate release” of more than 2,000 Pakistani prisoners incarcerated in the Kingdom. He “won the hearts of the people of Pakistan,” the prime minister — who broke protocol to personally drive MBS to his official residence — later gushed on Twitter.
MBS’s visit to Islamabad is widely regarded as an attempt to repair his tarnished credentials as an international statesman. It precedes stops in India and China, which—like Pakistan—have not spoken out about Khashoggi’s murder. But Saudi Arabia’s investment in the nuclear-armed South Asian state is more than just a PR exercise.
Why does Pakistan need Saudi funds?
Saudi Arabia has a long history of providing financial support to Pakistan. That includes funneling money through Pakistan’s madrassa education system, cushioning the impact of international sanctions following its nuclear test in the late 1990s, and loaning Islamabad $1.5 billion when the Pakistani rupee crashed in 2014.
But the latest round of investment comes at a critical time for Islamabad, which is in the middle of an economic crisis. The foreign exchange reserves that Pakistan uses to purchase crucial fuel imports have dwindled to less than $8 billion. Since he was sworn in as prime minister last August, the populist Khan has been engaged in a highly public “austerity drive” while appealing to friendly nations for financial support.
In fact, in October his government received Saudi funds to the tune of $6 billion, including $3 billion import payment deferrals. The Kingdom proffered that support package after Khan’s visit to Riyadh, when Pakistan’s central bank reserves had plummeted 40% on the previous year’s figures. Islamabad is currently negotiating a bailout from the IMF—the country’s 13th since the 1980s.
What are the economic incentives for Saudi Arabia?
Historically known for spending lavishly to win hearts and minds, the Saudi Kingdom now faces financial constraints of its own. It urgently needs to diversify its oil-dependent economy. “The largesse that the Saudis were able to afford in the 80s and 90s, we haven’t seen recently, and we definitely haven’t seen it under MBS,” says Andreas Krieg, a Middle East security expert at King’s College, London. The pledged $20 billion in “not just a bailout they do because they like the Pakistanis,” he says. Instead there is oversight to ensure investments are “sustainable and will actually have returns in the future.”
Some $8 billion of the funds pledged to Pakistan have been earmarked for the construction of an oil refinery at Gwadar Port, the jewel in the crown of the China–Pakistan economic corridor and an area in which Saudi Arabia’s Gulf neighbor UAE has also invested. With Beijing set to pump some $62 billion into the economic corridor under its transnational Belt and Road Initiative, Saudi stands to massively increase its own oil export market in Pakistan.
How might Saudi money affect regional dynamics?
Khan’s government has welcomed Saudi’s $20 billion investment pledge but “it’s one that’s potentially fraught with risk,” says Farzana Shaikh, associate fellow at the London-based think tank, Chatham House.Gwador Port is situated in Pakistan’s restive Balochistan province, which borders Iran’s similarly volatile Sistan and Baluchestan Province. On Feb. 13 a Sunni militant group claimed responsibility for a terrorist attack that killed 27 Revolutionary Guards on the Iranian side of the border. Iran blames Pakistan for sheltering militants and accuses Saudi of promoting Sunni violence against its majority Shi’ite population. Pakistan has been trying to “navigate this very delicate terrain between Saudi and Iranian interests in the region, and the attempt of each one to establish its own regional hegemony in this part of the world,” Shaikh says.
Saudi’s investment also risks exacerbating Pakistan’s conflict with India. MBS arrived in New Delhi Tuesday as tensions flared between the nuclear-armed neighbors in the wake of the deadly Feb. 14 terrorist attack in Indian-administered Kashmir. Pakistan-based militant group Jaish-e-Mohammad—which Shaikh says has been a recipient of funds originating from Saudi Arabia—claimed responsibility for the attack, which killed at least 40 Indian paramilitary police. Before leaving Islamabad Monday, Saudi Arabia’s Foreign Minister said the Arab state would work to “de-escalate tensions” between India and Pakistan, but New Delhi is likely to regard Saudi’s bumper investment in its regional rival with wariness.
Is there a military quid-pro-quo?
“Pakistan is providing capacity to militaries across the Gulf, but particularly Saudi Arabia. They couldn’t function without the Pakistanis,” says Krieg, the Middle East security expert, adding that estimates of how many Pakistani soldiers are serving in the Kingdom go as high as 65,000. “If ever relations went sour, Saudi Arabia wouldn’t have another source of manpower to fuel the massive military machine,” Krieg says.
Separately, Saudi Arabia has long been rumored to have nuclear weapons “on order” from Pakistan. Although Riyadh currently purchases billions of dollars worth of weapons from the U.S., the U.K., and other nations, the U.S. Deputy Energy Secretary recently said Washington would not help the Kingdom develop nuclear technology without guarantees it would only be used for civilian purposes, CNBC reports. In addition to its economic pivot to Asia, Riyadh is attempting to diversify its supply of military assets, Krieg says. “The Pakistanis are a very important part of this because they can procure technology that nobody else might be willing to procure at this point.”
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