Cablegate: Pakistan Media Reaction: February 25, 2010

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TAGS: KMDR KPAO OIIP OPRC PGOV PREL PK
SUBJECT: PAKISTAN MEDIA REACTION: FEBRUARY 25, 2010

Summary: Coverage of the defeat of a veteran politician, former
Information Minister, Sheikh Rashid in a by-election to a National
Assembly seat in Rawalpindi dominated headlines in nearly all major
newspapers on Thursday morning. Media published conflicting reports
about the extradition of Taliban commander Mullah Baradar. Some
claimed that the GOP refused to hand over Mullah Baradar to the
U.S., while others reported that he will be extradited to
Afghanistan. CENTCOM chief General Petraeus and FBI Director
Muller's Pakistan visits received extensive coverage. Secretary
Clinton's remarks that the State Department is seeking $3.2 billion
for Pakistan during the next fiscal year, along with reports that
Islamabad received $349.3 million as first installment of the
Coalition Support Fund (CSF) received prominent display. Newspapers
reported killing of nine suspected militants from Punjab in a drone
strike in North Waziristan. All mainstream dailies reported that
Taliban have beheaded three men in North Waziristan, on charges of
"spying" for the United States. Several newspapers carried reports
that the U.S. Senate criticized a "reckless" Blackwater unit in
Afghanistan. The issue of the dramatic arrest of Jundullah's chief
Abdolmalek Rigi in Iran continues to garner coverage and media
quoted Pakistan's envoy to Tehran as claiming that "Pakistan helped
Iran nab Rigi." Commenting on the subject, the prestigious daily
"Dawn," observed that "Jundallah's claim that Pakistani intelligence
helped in Rigi's arrest should serve to remove some
misunderstandings between Tehran and Islamabad." Conversely, "The
Nation," in its usual critical vein claimed that the "Americans have
been exposed yet again for playing cloak and dagger games in the
region targeting Muslim states." End Summary.

TOP STORIES

News Story: Unofficial Results Show PML-N Candidate Beat AML Chief
By 21,358 Votes: Sheikh Rashid Trounced - "Daily Times" (02/25)

"The Pakistan Muslim League-Nawaz stamped its authority in
Rawalpindi by retaining the NA-55 seat for the third time in less
than three years as the party's candidate, Malik Shakeel Awan,
trounced Sheikh Rashid Ahmed to a convincing victory in the by-poll,
according to unofficial results."

News Story: US Request To Hand Over Baradar Turned Down - "Dawn"
(02/25)

"The government refused on Wednesday to hand over to the US the
commander of Afghan Taliban, Mullah Abdul Ghani Baradar, who was
recently captured in Karachi."

News Story: Pakistan Agrees To Hand Over Baradar To Afghanistan' -
"The News" (02/25)

"A top Taliban leader picked up in Pakistan as part of a recent
crackdown on insurgents will be handed over to Afghanistan, an
Afghan government official said on Wednesday. Islamabad said,
however, that it had received no formal request to turn him over and
that he could be tried first in Pakistan. Mulla Abdul Ghani Baradar
is one of at least three Afghan Taliban commanders, who have been
captured in recent weeks in Pakistan."

News Story: Petraeus Lauds Pak Efforts In War On Terror - "The
News," "Experss," "Ausaf," "Aaj Kal," "Pakistan," "Khabrain,"
(02/25)

"Gen. Petraeus praised Pakistan's efforts to confront violent
extremists and honored the sacrifices being made every day by the
Pakistan military, government and people in their fight to restore
peace and stability."

News Story: FBI Chief Attends US-Pak-Afghan Session - "Daily Times,"
"Dawn," "The News," "Express," (02/25)

"Robert Mueller, the director of the Federal Bureau of Investigation
(FBI), participated in the US-Afghanistan-Pakistan tripartite
session in order to discuss various matters of security."

News Story: US Seeks $3.2bn For Pakistan, Says Hillary - "Dawn"
(02/25)

"US Secretary of State Hillary Clinton told Congress on Wednesday
that her department was seeking $3.2 billion for Pakistan during the
next fiscal year, which begins on Oct 1."
News Story: US Pays $349.3 Million As CSF Against Bill Of $1.350
Billion - "The News" (02/25)

"Against the total forwarded bill of $1.350 billion on account of
military operation against the militants in the tribal areas,
Islamabad on Wednesday received $349.3 million as the first
installment during the ongoing financial year 2009-10 in the shape
of reimbursement from the USA for Coalition Support Fund (CSF).

News Story: US Drone Strike Kills Eight In North Waziristan - "Dawn"
(02/25)

"A US drone attacked a compound in the Dandy Derpakhel area of North
Waziristan on Wednesday, killing eight suspected militants and
injuring six others. According to sources, the unmanned plane fired
three missiles, one of which hit a parked vehicle. The compound and
the car were completely destroyed."

News Story: Taliban Behead Three 'US Spies' - "Daily Times" (02/25)

"The Taliban have beheaded three men, including two Afghans, in
North Waziristan, accusing them of spying for the US, officials said
on Wednesday."

News Story: US Senate Slams 'Reckless' Blackwater Unit In
Afghanistan - "The Nation" (02/25)

"Military contractors in Afghanistan working for the security
company Blackwater regularly carried unauthorised weapons and
engaged in "reckless" behavior that included the accidental shooting
of a fellow contractor, a US Senate investigation has found."

News Story: US Embassy Offered Less Land At Higher Rate - "Dawn"
(02/25)

"The government has decided to reduce drastically the size of land
to be sold to the US embassy and sharply increase the price, Dawn
has learnt reliably. The embassy was initially offered 18.5 acres of
land by the Capital Development Authority (CDA) at a price of
Rs15,000 per square yard. Now the size of land has been reduced to
8.5 acres and the embassy will have to pay about Rs85,000 ($1,000)
per sq yd."

TERRORISM/MILITARY ISSUES

News Story: Pakistan Helped Iran Nab Jundallah Chief - "Dawn"
(02/25)

"Pakistan played a role in helping Iran arrest its most wanted
Jundallah chief Abdolmalek Rigi who was seized onboard a flight from
Dubai, Islamabad's ambassador to Tehran Mohammad Abbasi said on
Wednesday."

News Story: Afghan Taliban Fear Maulvi Kabir Captured In Pakistan -
"The News" (02/25)

"Afghan Taliban said on Wednesday that they had lost contact with
their senior leaders, including Maulvi Kabir, in-charge of
Afghanistan's important eastern zone, for the past several days.
They feared Maulvi Kabir is being held in Pakistan. "I am sure now
that Maulvi Sahib (Kabir) has been arrested in Pakistan," said a
senior Taliban commander operating in Kunar province while
requesting anonymity. He called The News from an undisclosed
location and said he had not been able to speak to Maulvi Kabir for
the past five days.

News Story: Nato Tankers Cause Annual Loss Of Rs50bn' - "Dawn"
(02/25)

"Federal Minister for Communications Arbab Alamgir Khan said on
Wednesday that Nato containers and tankers had been causing a yearly
loss of Rs50 billion to the National Highway Authority by damaging
the road network in Balochistan."

News Story: US Cites Secret Evidence - "The Nation" (02/25)
"Prosecutors preparing to try a Pakistani-born Chicago businessman
on charges he aided the 2008 Mumbai attackers invoked a secrecy law
on Wednesday to control evidence disclosures in the case. Defendant
Tahawwur Rana looked on during a federal court hearing where Patrick
Fitzgerald, the US Attorney in Chicago, and other prosecutors asked
the judge for a private hearing to lay out the government's

classified evidence. The judge set the hearing for March 29."

POLITICAL ISSUES

News Story: U.S. Hopes Talks Will Lead To Sustained Dialogue -
"Dawn" (02/25)

"On the eve of the New Delhi talks, a senior White House official
expressed the hope that India-Pakistan dialogue would move towards
more normalized relations between the two neighbors'."

News Story: Swiss Cases Can't Be Reopened, PM Told - "The News"
(02/25)

"Prime Minister Syed Yousuf Raza Gilani on Wednesday was given a
briefing on the Swiss cases against President Asif Ali Zardari and
informed that these cases could not be reopened under the Swiss
law."

News Story: NAB Chairman Sends In Resignation, Asked To Continue -
"Daily Times" (02/25)

"National Accountability Bureau (NAB) Chairman Naveed Ahsan formally
sent in his resignation on Wednesday, but has been asked by Prime
Minister Yousaf Raza Gilani to continue until the government finds a
replacement."

News Story: Pak Foreign Secretary Reaches India For Talks- "Daily
Times" (02/25)

"Foreign Secretary Salman Bashir arrived in the Indian capital on
Wednesday for closed-door talks with his Indian counterpart,
Nirupama Rao, today (Thursday). Addressing reporters at the airport,
Bashir hoped for the talks to yield a positive outcome. 'It is good
to be back here. I have come to bridge the differences, and I hope
for a positive outcome,' he said."

MISCELLANEOUS

News Story: Swat: A Model For US Generals In Afghanistan - "Daily
Times" (02/25)

"From US National Security Adviser James Jones to Joint Chiefs of
Staff Chairman Admiral Mike Mullen, no senior American military
dignitary's visit to Pakistan is complete without a trip to the
former Taliban stronghold of Swat. Less than 24 hours after a
suicide attack ripped through Mingora, US Gen David Petraeus' visit
to Swat on Tuesday is a testament to the importance Washington
attaches to the "successful Swat model" of an operation against the
Taliban."

News Story: Obama To Consult Sarkozy On Pakistan, Afghanistan- "The
Nation" (02/25)

". . . . A White House statement said Obama "looks forward to
consulting with President Sarkozy on a broad range of issues of
mutual concern including Afghanistan and Pakistan, Iran, Middle East
peace efforts, European security cooperation and global economic
recovery. . . ."

News Story: UN Commission Meets President, Prime Minister - "Daily
Times" (02/25)

"UN commission probing the assassination of former Prime Minister
Benazir Bhutto met President Asif Ali Zardari at the Aiwan-e-Sadr on
Wednesday ahead of finalizing its report, the president's spokesman
said."

EDITORIALS/OPINIONS

Editorial: Rigi's Arrest , an editorial in the center-right national
English daily "The Nation" (cir. 20,000) (02/25)

". . . . The Iranian Interior Minister has confirmed that they are
in possession of evidence which shows that Rigi was hand in glove
with the US and UK to foment unrest in the country. They allege that
he has an Afghan passport and had met with the NATO chief leaving no
doubt of the US backing him up. Tehran also maintains that hours
before his arrest, he was present in a US military base in
Afghanistan. The Iranian charges seem to have an element of truth.
Even US analyst Seymour Hersh had, in the past, hinted at the
possibility of the Bush regime in cahoots with Jundullah to create
trouble in Iran. . . . The Americans have been exposed yet again for
playing cloak and dagger games in the region targeting Muslim
states. On the one hand, they are trying to extend their hegemony to
Iran in an outrageously highhanded manner and, on the other,
enlisting the support of the Indian intelligence RAW to carry out
acts of sabotage and bombings in Pakistan. Add to this the alleged
unlawful activities of the Blackwater mercenaries and the US
dangerous intent becomes clear. We must watch out for our so-called
ally."

Editorial: Jundallah Chief's Arrest , an editorial in the
Karachi-based center-left independent national English daily "Dawn"
(cir. 55,000) (02/25)

". . . . Jundallah's claim that Pakistani intelligence helped in
Rigi's arrest should serve to remove some misunderstandings between
Tehran and Islamabad. Additionally, along with Mullah Baradar's
arrest it may also mark a dramatically different, and welcome,
approach by the Pakistani security set-up."

Editorial: Surge In Extremism, an editorial in the Karachi-based
center-left independent national English daily "Dawn" (cir. 55,000)
(02/25)

". . . . In recent weeks, there have been many reports from various
parts of the country of'resurgence' in the ranks of the extremists.
While the administration may be on the lookout for terrorists
dispatched by militants from the tribal belt, it also needs to
ensure that no local groups are allowed to function through violence
and hate-mongering. . . ."

Editorial: Killing Civilians ,an editorial in the populist, often
sensational national English daily "The News" (cir. 55,000) (02/25)

". . . . General McChrystal says the troops are there 'to protect
the Afghan people' but the US and NATO forces use air power
excessively and end up killing innocent civilians. Is there a way
out? It is unlikely that the foreign troops will leave Afghanistan
anytime soon. Obama's troop pullout deadline of July 2011 appears
unrealistic as key managers of the war have feared that the fighting
is likely to continue for years. And as long as the war continues,
so will death and destruction."

Opinion: Governing The Governors Of Pakistan an op-ed by Syed Talat
Hussain in the Lahore-based liberal English language daily "Daily
Times" (cir. 10,000) (02/25)

". . . . In the last 62 years, except for the brief spurt of
Zulfikar Ali Bhutto's public diplomacy, much of the country's
relations with the US have remained a complex network of deals and
personal understandings the rulers of the day give to the American
negotiators dangling short carrots on long knives. . . ."

Editorial: Government's Responsibility After Successful Military
Operation, an editorial in the leading mass circulation populist,
often sensational Urdu daily "Jang" (cir. 300,000) (02/25)

"After the successful operation in South Waziristan, Swat, Malakand,
and other tribal areas, the military leadership has asked the
civilian authorities to assume control of these places. We think
that the rehabilitation of displaced people and compensation of the
damage caused to their properties during the war against extremists
should be the first and foremost priority of the government. This
will ensure full cooperation from these people if terrorists
challenge the government's writ in the future."

Opinion: Afghanistan: The Initial Salvo, an op-ed I.M.Mohsin in the
center-right national English daily "The Nation" (cir. 20,000)
(02/25)

". . . . Pakistan has been actively helping in the new U.S.
strategy. The cost of it is rising, as is indicated by the latest
bombing in incidents in Swat and Chilas. . . .At the same time the
regional countries have to realize that they must pool their
resources to find a local solution as even the U.S. power appears to
be giving a stalemate in nine years. . . . We have already paid a
heavy price in the last 30 years due to the old game rejuvinated by
the U.S./Soviet Empire of the yore, The U.S. has varied interests
but it too can not walk away."
Editorial: Indo-Pak Foreign Secretaries Talks: Nothing Except
Kashmir And Water Should Be Discussed, an editorial in the
second-largest, nationalist Urdu daily "Nawa-i-Waqt" (cir. 150,000)
(02/25)

"Now that the Pakistani delegation has been sent to India, it should
be told in categorical terms that both the countries cannot have
good neighborly relations without resolving the Kashmir dispute in
keeping with UN resolutions on Kashmir.... If India keeps occupying
Kashmir and does not stop its conspiracies to push us into a drought
by stopping our water, then Pakistan knows how to protect its
security and sovereignty."

Editorial: Delhi talks: why was Pakistan's delegation changed? , an
editorial in the center-right Urdu daily "Pakistan" (cir. 10,000)
(02/25)

"Pakistan has changed the composition of its delegation to India by
replacing water and power and interior ministries representatives
with two directors of the foreign office.... Did someone have a
dream just before the departure on Pakistani delegation that two
important members of the delegation were replaced with two directors
of the foreign office...? By removing the two water and power and
interior ministries delegates what message is Pakistan sending.
Does it want to say that it would not raise water and terrorism
issues in the talks and will discuss only the Kashmir issue? But
India does not even want to have Kashmir on the agenda of talks,
meaning thereby that the talks will fail before starting.... And if
India wants to discuss terrorism then what prompted Pakistan to drop
the representative of Interior ministry.... Anyway, Pakistan's
altered delegation has reached Delhi and we might see the 'fate' of
the dialogue soon."

(All circulation figures are based on estimation)

Patterson

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