Deadly car bomb hits Pakistan's Jalozai refugee camp

At least 12 people have been killed and 30 hurt after a car bombing at the Jalozai refugee camp near the Pakistani city of Peshawar, officials say.

One report suggests people were lining up for food at the time of the blast.

The camp houses people fleeing unrest in the tribal districts bordering Afghanistan, where many Taliban- and al-Qaeda-linked militants shelter.

But police say the camp is also used as a hideout by some militants. No group has said it carried out the attack

Jalozai - Pakistan's 'small city' camp

UN: Pakistan 'does not sanction' US drone strikes

The UN investigation into drone strikes was launched in January and is expected to deliver its conclusions in October

The head of a UN team investigating US drone strikes in Pakistan has said that Islamabad does not consent to them and sees them as a territorial violation.

Nato announces Afghanistan Wardak agreement

US forces see Wardak province, not far from Kabul, as strategically significant

An agreement has been reached between Nato and the Afghan government on the withdrawal of US special forces from Wardak province, alliance officials have announced.

The agreement appears to bring to an end a bitter dispute between the coalition and the Afghan government.

The troops and their Afghan counterparts have been accused of murder and intimidation in the area.

Iran unveils Qaher F313 'stealth fighter' plane

 

Iran has unveiled a new home-made combat aircraft, which officials say can evade radar.
The single-seat Qaher F313 (Dominant F313) is the latest design produced by Iran's military since it launched the Azarakhsh (Lightning), in 2007.
In an unveiling ceremony on Saturday, President Mahmoud Ahmedinejad said he ranked the aircraft as "among the most advanced fighter jets in the world".
Russell Trott reports

there was a video to go along with it...but i couldn't figure out how to post it..

India Arrests Suspects in Swiss Rape Case

Police say six detained suspects have confessed to gang-raping a Swiss woman and attacking her husband.

Indian Troops Killed in Kashmir Attack

At least two assailants killed after clashing with security forces at police base near city of Srinagar.

Police said it was not immediately clear if more than
two assailants were involved in the attack [AFP]

At least two fighters have opened fire on a paramilitary camp on the Indian side of the disputed region of Kashmir,
killing five Indian personnel and wounding five others, police have said.

The assailants were killed in a gunfight that ensued on Wednesday at the Central Reserve Police Force (CRPF) base just outside the restive city of Srinagar, under curfew for much of the last few weeks following protests.

Several Killed in Afghan 'Insider Attack'

NATO says a number of Afghan and coalition soldiers killed during incident in the flashpoint eastern Wardak province.

India Admits 'Lapse' in Death of Rape Suspect

Interior minister faults security at prison as police insist man accused of fatal gang-rape of student hanged himself.

Scores injured as Bangladesh protests rage on

Again, unable to find video on Youtube, please use link provided:
http://www.aljazeera.com/news/asia/2013/03/20133613342267543.html


Leaders and activists of main opposition BNP and its ally Jamaat-e-Islami have clashed with police during a demonstration at its headquarters in the Bangladeshi capital, Dhaka.
Police fired tear gas shells and rubber bullets to break up Wednesday's anti-government protests, injuring scores of people.
The strikes were called after a special tribunal sentenced a top leader of Jamaat-e-Islami to death for alleged atrocities during the country's 1971 independence war.
Since last Thursday, when Delwar Hossain Sayedee was sentenced, at least 61 people have died in clashes, mainly between police and Jamaat-e-Islami activists across the country.

UN denounces US drone use in Pakistan

The United States has violated Pakistan's sovereignty and destroyed tribal structures with unmanned aerial drone strikes in its counterterrorism near the Afghan border, a UN human rights investigator has said.
"As a matter of international law, the US drone campaign in Pakistan is ... being conducted without the consent of the elected representatives of the people, or the legitimate Government of the State," Ben Emmerson, the UN's special rapporteur on human rights and counterterrorism, said in a statement issued by the Office of the High Commissioner for Human Rights in Geneva on Friday.
Emmerson visited Pakistan for three days this week as part of his investigation into the civilian impact of the use of drones and other forms of targeted killings.
"It involves the use of force on the territory of another state without its consent and is therefore a violation of Pakistan's sovereignty," he said.
Emmerson said in January that he would investigate 25 drone strikes in Pakistan, Yemen, Somalia, Afghanistan and the Palestinian territories. He is expected to present his final report to the UN General Assembly in October.

Pakistan government completes full term

Unable to find video on Youtube, please use link provided:
http://www.aljazeera.com/video/asia/2013/03/2013316193951188553.html


Pakistan's government has passed a major milestone,  as its parliament became the first such democratically elected civilian-led body to finish its five-year term in a country that has faced three military coups and persistent political turmoil.
After years of attacks carried out by anti-state and sectarian groups, worsening electricity blackouts and faltering economic growth, public dissatisfaction with the sitting government is high, and the next election will likely see the ruling Pakistan People's Party sitting on the opposition benches.
Parliament held its last session on Thursday, but its term officially ended on Saturday.

TWO STORY POST - Several killed in failed Pakistan jail break/Christians clash with police in Pakistan

Two suicide bombers have attacked a judicial compound in the Pakistani city of Peshawar, killing four people and taking hostages, officials said.

One suicide bomber blew himself up outside the crowded complex on Monday, causing the deaths, said Information Minister Mian Iftikhar.

Suicide bomber attacks Afghan buzkashi sports fans

 

 Buzkashi is a popular spectator sport

A suicide bomber has killed at least seven people in an attack on spectators at a buzkashi sports event in north-east Afghanistan.

The brother and father of the speaker of the Afghan parliament are said to be among the dead in Imam Sahib district, Kunduz province.
Hundreds of people were watching and the death toll may rise further.
Buzkashi is played on horseback and is similar to polo, but uses the headless carcass of a goat instead of a ball.
The governor of Kunduz province, Mohammad Anwar Jigdalak, said Abdul Qayum Ebrahimi had been killed in the attack along with his father.
He had been the local chief of police and brother to Abdul Raouf Ebrahimi, the speaker in the Afghan House of Representatives.
It is not clear if they had been the targets of the attack, however.

Iran nuclear crisis

 

 Iran nuclear crisis

US President Barack Obama has told an Israeli television channel it would take Iran "over a year or so" to develop a nuclear weapon.

In an interview with Channel 2 he said he did not want to "cut it too close" and declined to rule out the possibility of military action.
Iran's nuclear programme is expected to be high on the agenda when Mr Obama visits Israel later this month.
Tehran insists it is refining uranium only for peaceful energy purposes.
But Israel has repeatedly threatened a military strike if Iran appears to be on the verge of obtaining a bomb.
Washington is pushing for more time to allow diplomacy and economic sanctions to run their course.
"We think that it would take over a year or so for Iran to actually develop a nuclear weapon but obviously
we don't want to cut it too close," Mr Obama said.

Pakistan begins construction of Pakistan-Iran gas pipeline

Amid US threats to impose sanctions on his country, Pakistani President Asif Ali Zardari joined Iranian President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad in a ceremony breaking ground on construction of the Pakistani portion of a planned Iran-Pakistan pipeline on Monday.
With national elections due in May, Zardari and his ruling Pakistan Peoples’ Party (PPP) will seek to gain electoral advantage by using the pipeline to posture as being independent from Washington. Iran sees the project as a way to counter the crippling economic sanctions the US has imposed on it, based on unsubstantiated allegations that Iran is developing nuclear weapons.

Pakistan soldier 'stoned to death for affair' in Kurram

A soldier accused of having an affair with a local woman has been stoned to death on the orders of tribal elders in north-west Pakistan, officials say.

Elders in Kurram tribal agency said scores of people threw stones at the soldier in a cemetery near the town of Parachinar until he bled to death.

Locals in the mostly Shia area opposed the alleged relationship because he was a Sunni Muslim and the woman a Shia.

There was no immediate response from the military.

Curfew imposed in Kashmir after day of violence

A curfew has been imposed in Indian-administered Kashmir following a day of violence on Wednesday in which at least eight people were killed.

India and Pakistan have meanwhile exchanged bitter recriminations as to who was responsible for the violence.

Earlier on Wednesday, militants killed five security personnel in a gun and grenade attack in the city.

The curfew was imposed after a man was killed later in the day in clashes between police and protesters.

Indian Home Secretary RK Singh said two gunmen killed in the attack appeared "not local but from across the border" - a reference to Pakistan.

But the foreign ministry in Islamabad issued a statement late on Wednesday which rejected Mr Singh's accusations.

The statement also rejected claims by India that Pakistani troops beheaded two Indian soldiers on 8 January - the last time the two sides exchanged accusations over the long-running Kashmir conflict.

"We feel that this trend of making irresponsible statements and knee-jerk reactions by senior Indian government functionaries have the potential of undermining the efforts made by both sides to normalise relations," it said.

Pakistan "condemns such actions of terrorism in the strongest possible terms and calls upon the government of India to carry out a thorough investigation... before leveling such accusations which are counter-productive and serve no purpose."

Karzai speech 'put Nato forces at risk', commander warns

The number of US troops in Aghanistan is expected to drop from about 66,000 to 34,000 in early 2014


International troops in Afghanistan have been put at risk after an "inflammatory speech" by President Hamid Karzai, Nato's commander warned.

Five troops killed as gunmen attack Kashmir security camp

Militants in Indian-administered Kashmir have killed at least five security personnel in a gun and grenade attack near a school in Srinagar.

Two gunmen were also killed and at least five others, including three civilians, were injured, police said.
The gunmen, who concealed weapons in sports bags, launched the attack after mingling with children playing cricket.
It was the bloodiest militant attack for three years in the region, which is claimed by both India and Pakistan.

Bangladesh deploys troops as clashes escalate

At least 23 people killed during strike called in protest over death sentence given to Jamaat-e-Islami party leader.

New Clashes Erupt in Bangladesh

At least two killed day after 40 killed in wake of death sentence to Jamaat-e-Islami leader for war crimes.