Topline
- An agreement has reportedly been reached for European countries to resume deportations of Pakistani nationals to Pakistan, after talks between Interior Minister Chaudhry Nisar Ali Khan and the visiting European Commission for Migration, Dimitris Avramopoulos. Afghanistan and Pakistan held trade and economic talks on Monday in Islamabad, but reached no agreement on the extension of transit trade past their borders into India and Tajikistan. In a statement on Monday, Pres. Ghani warned against the expansion of unofficial militias and urged former commanders to direct their supporters to join the Afghan national security forces instead. A presidential task force estimates roughly 200 Nangarhar university have “ties” to Daesh, the Taliban, or Hezb-e-Islami. Pakistan is expected to execute its 300th death row convict tomorrow, a paraplegic man convicted of murder in 2009. The Pakistani parliamentary committee on electoral reform is debating changes to the process of appointing a caretaker government today. Former Pres. Zardari was acquitted in a corruption case related to allegations of kickbacks on two Swiss contracts in 1997.
Pakistan — Security
- Tensions with India: Reuters notes that negotiations for the induction of India into the Nuclear Suppliers Group at a meeting next June have aggravated tensions with Pakistan; an anonymous Pakistani military source says that as a result “the need for even more deterrence from our side will grow, not decrease.”
- Executions: Amnesty International reports that Pakistan has carried out 299 executions since the resumption of capital punishment last December; Abdul Basit, a parapalegic sentenced on murder charges in 2009, is scheduled to be executed on November 25.
- Sectarian Tensions: At least 40 people have been arrested in connection to weekend riots in Jhelum that targeted the Ahmadi community, burning a factory and mosque. Separately, two anti-terrorism courts issued separate convictions on charges of online hate speech, issuing 13-year and 5-year sentences.
- Karachi Crackdown: The Sindh Rangers continue to make arrests in the wake of an attack on Rangers personnel last Friday that killed four; at least 29 suspects were detained on Monday, four of whom — identified as members of the MQM, Sipah-e-Sahaba Pakistan, and Sipah-e-Muhammad Pakistan — were linked to attacks on police and Pakistan Navy personnel. Officials report Karachi’s main jail facilities are crowded to nearly double or more their capacity as a result of the increased tempo of arrests by the Rangers this year.
Pakistan — Politics and Diplomacy
- Agreement Reached to Resume EU Deportations: European Commissioner for Migration Dimitris Avramopoulos visited Islamabad on Monday for meetings with Interior Minister Chaudhry Nisar Ali Khan, following Pakistan’s suspension of agreements with the EU for the repatriation of its citizens after complaints that European officials were not following agreed procedures and were deporting Pakistani nationals without sharing details with the Pakistani government. Speaking to reporters afterwards, Avramopoulos said that “there were some technical issues that have been clarified, in order to move ahead with the implementation of the repatriation agreement”; the interior ministry said that “deportees will be sent from Europe under a clear Standard Operating Procedure (SOP) after finding a solution to Pakistan’s reservations”. [Dawn] [ET]
- Elections: On Tuesday, the Election Commission filed a Supreme Court challenge against a Lahore High Court order invalidating local village council constituency boundaries in the Rawalpindi district. On Monday, the ECP directed the Karachi local administration to remove large billboards and banners violating campaign code of conduct regulations, ahead of the third phase of local elections scheduled to take place December 5. Dawn offers an explainer on the differences between Karachi’s local government system and the rest of Sindh. Local elections in Islamabad will take place on November 30; 972 out of the 2,407 candidates are independents. Meanwhile, the PTI’s candidate for the NA-122 by-poll in October, Abdul Aleem Khan, formally wrote the provincial election commissioner seeking more details on voter registries and changes to the voter list between 2013 and 2015. [ET] [Dawn]
- Other Political Activity: The parliamentary committee on electoral reforms will meet on Tuesday to consider changes to the process for appointing a caretaker government in the period between the end of a government’s term and the holding of elections; the PTI is seeking to make consultation with all opposition parties a requirement. A meeting of PTI legislators on Monday decided to reach out to the PPP in an effort to create a more effective opposition against the PML-N majority, Dawn reports. On Monday, PML-N leader Tariq Fazal was sworn into the federal cabinet as a minister of state; his portfolio has not been announced. Also on Monday, the ministry of human rights was reactivated as its own distinct portfolio, with the prime minister’s top legal aide, Zafarullah Khan, given minister of state status to oversee it. [Dawn] [ET] [Dawn]
- Zardari Acquitted in Corruption Case: On Tuesday, a National Accountability Bureau court acquitted former Pres. Zardari in two 1997 cases in which he is alleged to have received kickbacks from two Swiss companies, saying prosecutors had failed to provide solide evidence of the charges. [ET]
Pakistan — Remainders
- Judiciary Not Overlooking Missing Persons Issue, Chief Justice Insists [Dawn]
- Bangladesh Pushes Back at Criticisms Over War Crimes Executions [Dawn]
- Court Throws Out Musharraf Objections to Siegel Testimony in Bhutto Murder Case [Dawn]
- Manhunt Underway in Gilgit After Kidnapping of Army Communications Officials [ET]
- Pilot Killed in Trainer Jet Crash Near Mianwali [Reuters] [AFP] [Dawn]
- Search Operation in Khuzdar Kills Two [ET]
- Brazilian Joint Staff Chief Meets with Chief of Army Staff [Dawn]
- More Than 400 FATA Schools to be Closed Under “Rationalization Plan” [Dawn]
Afghanistan — Security
- Nangarhar University Students ‘Linked’ with Militants: A presidentially-appointed delegation tasked with investigating a rally at Nangarhar University at which students raised Taliban and Daesh flags reported on Tuesday that as many as 200 students “have ties” to Daesh, the Taliban, or Hezb-e-Islami. At least 27 students have been arrested to date. No further details on the nature of those linkages have been reported. [TOLO]
- President Objects to Militias: In a statement on Monday, the presidential palace called for a halt to the creation of new militia forces, saying that the Afghan Local Police program was only effective under the control of the Ministry of Interior, and that former commanders should instead direct their supporters to join the Afghan national security forces.
Afghanistan — Politics and Diplomacy
- Refugee Exodus: The NYT notes that calls from Afghan government officials for citizens to remain in the country “ring hollow”, particularly as the families of many of those officials live outside the country in Europe or the U.S.
Afghanistan — Economics and Development
- Pakistan Trade Talks: A meeting of the Pakistan-Afghanistan Joint Economic Commission, which was originally due to be held in August but was postponed after the breakdown in relations related to the collapse of the Murree talks process, was held in Islamabad on Monday. Prime Minister Sharif met with the head of the Afghan delegation, Finance Minister Eklil Ahmad Hakimi, and pledged “all possible support to Afghanistan” and to double the two countries’ bilateral trade to $5 billion by 2018. In the negotiations, Afghan officials renewed a request to allow their trucks to cross the Pakistani-Indian border at Wagah and proceed onward to India, but this was denied by Pakistan; Afghanistan in turn denied Paksitan transit access through to Tajikistan. The two sides also discussed the import of 2,000 megawatts of energy from Turkmenistan to Pakistan, and the development of a road linking Gwadar and Helmand. [Pajhwok] [TOLO] [APP]
Afghanistan — Remainders
- National Security Council Rebuts Accusations of Supporting Daesh [TOLO] [Khaama Press]
- Afghan Authorities and Taliban Reach Agreement on Reopening Schools in Two Helmand Districts [RFE/RL]
- Polio Vaccination Drive Held in Faryab [TOLO]
colin cookman 