VIEW: Will the Loya jirga be a success? —Mohammad Jamil Historical evidence suggests that the Afghans guard their independence very jealously. The idea of sending some leaders into exile would not be acceptable to the Taliban leaders, as they are from Afghanistan and they are going to stay there Most Afghan political leaders are of the opinion that in a country where tribal affiliations play a crucial role, a jirga representing influential tribes can persuade and convince the Taliban to end their insurgency. The upcoming jirga will decide how to reach out to Taliban leaders with a view towards persuading … Continue reading Will the Loya jirga be a success?

By Ali Hazrat Bacha dawn.com Tribal elders of FR Peshawar have been warned to expel militants from their areas, otherwise the government will take action against them as per the law. — Photo by AP National Three cops among six injured in Peshawar jail clash Three cops among six injured in Peshawar jail clash PESHAWAR: A deliberate show of flag by the militants in the suburbs of the provincial capital in recent days has panicked the local residents forcing many to shift to safer places. A source hailing from Matani told Dawn on Friday that around 80 masked men armed … Continue reading Prying militants spread scare in Peshawar suburbs

Balochistan schools receive TTP’s threatening letters DAWN.COM A student shows the threat letters sent by the Tehrik-i-Taliban Pakistan at Girls High School in Kali Shekhan, Quetta. — Photo by Online Pakistan Militants kidnap 60 in Kurram tribal region Militants kidnap 60 in Kurram tribal region QUETTA: A number of schools, including at least two girls’ schools, have closed down in Quetta after threatening letters were received by their managements. Security was also beefed up in parts of the provincial capital and in Mastung. Some of the letters threatened that if purdah was not observed in schools, then teachers and administrative … Continue reading Mullahs threaten more schools – this time in Balochistan

Draw Muhammad Day: Collectively Punishing Muslim Americans Shahed Amanullah By Shahed Amanullah In the wake of the self-censorship controversy surrounding South Park’s portrayal of the Prophet Muhammad, artists intent on defending freedom of speech have responded by organizing an event they call Draw Muhammad Day, to take place on May 20. The goal, according to the website hosting the endeavor, is to defend free speech by showing Muslims that artists “don’t back down” when threatened. But the fact is that millions of Muslim-Americans — many of whom have known about South Park caricatures of Muhammad for years — behaved exactly … Continue reading Collectively Punishing Muslim Americans

Sarah Palin supports stoning and slavery? Posted on 14 May 2010 by Inconnu Franklin Graham and Sarah Palin Authored by: Inconnu Edited by: Danios There’s nothing quite like one loon being interviewed by another loon.  Sarah Palin, who defended Franklin Graham’s vitriolic comments calling Islam “a very evil and wicked religion,” recently appeared on the Islamophobic show The O’reilly Factor, where she claimed that the United States is a “Christian nation” and that U.S. law should be based upon the Bible and the Ten Commandments.  Palin declared: Go back to what our founders and our founding documents meant — they’re … Continue reading In support of Slavery and Stoning

Dr. Hesham Hassaballa Here is a good article by Dr. Hesham Hassaballa: Terror Double Standard On the evening of May 10, there was a small explosion and fire outside a Jacksonville, FL mosque. According to a fire department investigation and officials of the Islamic Center of Northeast Florida, worshipers heard a loud noise outside the mosque, and there was a small fire that was extinguished. The damage was described as “very minimal” by a Jacksonville Fire and Rescue spokesperson. Thank God, no one was injured in the attack. According to the Council on American Islamic Relations, mosque officials reported that an … Continue reading Terror Double Standard

A peacock has become tame enough to enter a family home after becoming accustomed to living in the garden and eating bird seed. telegraph uk Bhajan Pabla and his wife Kulwinder Pabla with Sheru the peacock Photo: DERBY TELEGRAPH The peacock, who sleeps in a tree and spends the day in the family’s garden in South Normanton, Derbyshire, has begun exploring the kitchen when the back door is left open. The stray male, named Sheru by Bhajan Pabla and his wife Kulwinder, briefly went missing last week but has since returned after being found roaming the streets. Mr Pabla, 56, … Continue reading Peacock moves into family home

USSR planned nuclear attack on China in 1969 The Soviet Union was on the brink of launching a nuclear attack against China in 1969 and only backed down after the US told Moscow such a move would start World War Three, according to a Chinese historian. Andrew Osborn in Moscow and Peter Foster in Beijing telegraph uk US President Richard Nixon in Moscow with Soviet leader Leonid Brezhnev in 1974 Photo: AP The extraordinary assertion, made in a publication sanctioned by China’s ruling Communist Party, suggests that the world came perilously close to nuclear war just seven years after the … Continue reading The Soviet Union was due to launch a nuclear attack against China in 69!

How to: delete your Facebook account, and adjust key privacy settings Facebook is embroiled in an ongoing row over privacy. Here, we talk you through some of the key things you need to do to manage your Facebook account By Claudine Beaumont, Technology Editor telegraph uk Facebook, founded by Mark Zuckerberg, is facing a backlash from users and the technology community over recent changes to its privacy policy Photo: ASSOCIATED PRESS Facebook‘s privacy policy is a whopping 5,830 words long. As the New York Times recently pointed out, the Constitution of the United States is just 4,543. In recent months, … Continue reading Facebook is embroiled in an ongoing row over privacy.

People, take heed of Twitter’s power The latest uproar over a comedian’s tweets in Australia shows how ignoring the web’s public nature is disingenuous Judith Ireland guardian.co.uk Australia has been utterly captivated over the past week, but not by the old motherland’s general election or the hoopla over its own federal budget. The biggest story has concerned nothing but a couple of tweets. It started with Australia’s annual television awards (the unfortunately named “Logies”), which inspired comedian and the Age newspaper columnist, Catherine Deveny, to let fly on Twitter. When Steve Irwin’s 11-year-old daughter hit the red carpet, Deveny observed: … Continue reading Twitter – Just starting out here!