Tag: Bilawal Bhutto

  • President, PM condemn Karachi police chief office attack

    President, PM condemn Karachi police chief office attack

    Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif and President Arif Alvi have condemned Friday’s terrorist attack on the office of the police chief in Karachi.

    The building came under attack around 7:10pm, triggering an operation initiated by law enforcement agencies immediately after, with cops and soldiers of the Pakistan Army and Rangers taking on the terrorists together.

    Three persons, including security personnel, were martyred, while 18 people sustained injuries. Five terrorists were also killed in the attack.

    As the operation to clear the attackers out from the building has finally concluded, people from across the country, including officials and celebrities, have come together to condemn the attack.

    President Dr Arif Alvi sent out a message of support through the President House Twitter account, stating: “The entire nation stands with its security forces against terrorists. Efforts will continue to eradicate the menace of terrorism.”

    Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif condemning the attack, tweeted, ” I strongly condemn the terrorist attack on the police in Karachi and salute the brave police and law enforcement personnel who foiled the attack. Terrorists may have forgotten that Pakistan is the nation which defeated terrorism with its bravery and courage.”

    Foreign Minister Bilawal Bhutto-Zardari took to Twitter and tweeted, “Sindh police have bravely faced and crushed terrorism before. We have full faith they will do so again, such cowardly attacks will not deter us.”

    Security forces cleared a five-storey police compound on the port city’s main thoroughfare in an hours-long operation during which three militants of the banned Tehreek-e-Taliban Pakistan (TTP) were killed while two policemen, one Rangers official and a citizen embraced martyrdom.

    At least 19 men, mostly police and Rangers officials, sustained injuries in the exchange of fire with militants who stormed the heavily guarded Karachi Police Office after lobbing a hand grenade at its main entrance, police and hospital officials said.

    The outlawed TTP has claimed responsibility for the latest ambush.

  • ‘Unconditional apology on TV, print and social media’: PPP sends Rs10 bn legal notice to Khan

    ‘Unconditional apology on TV, print and social media’: PPP sends Rs10 bn legal notice to Khan

    Pakistan People’s Party (PPP) has sent a legal notice to Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) Chairman Imran Khan for levelling “baseless allegations” against former President Asif Ali Zardari.

    “You are…. called upon to render unconditional apology from our client, on television, print and social media, within 14 (fourteen) days from the receipt of this notice, failing whereof, our client shall be constrained to institute appropriate legal proceedings against you, civil as well as criminal, before the competent courts of law and forums of Pakistan as well as of England, including but not limited to Suit for Damages for Rs.10,000,000,000/- (Rupees ten billion Only) at your risk as to cost and consequences,” said the notice.

    The notice contends that the PTI chief through his “baseless accusations” tried to create a link between Zardari and terrorist organisations “blindly disregarding the fact that our client and his party has remained the victim of terrorism”.

    The notice also reads that the PTI chief through his “defamatory actions” caused “severe agony, mental stress and loss of reputation” to the PPP co-chairperson.

    Imran Khan had alleged on Friday, January 27, in a televised speech, that Zardari was plotting and financing an assassination attempt for which the ex-president had hired terrorists.

    Khan had claimed that four people orchestrated a plan “behind closed doors” to assassinate him.

    “I got to know about it and then I recorded a video explaining the attack. In a public rally, I announced that I would release the video if something happened to me. They stepped back after this,” said Khan.

    Without naming anyone again, Khan said that another plan was made to have me killed by a religious extremist — hinting towards the November 3, 2022, Wazirabad attack, where he was shot in the legs and is still recovering from his injuries.

    “Now, there’s a Plan C. Asif Zardari is behind it. He has amassed a lot of money through corruption, invested that money with terrorists and hired a militant organisation.”

  • BJP leader places Rs2 crore bounty on Bilawal Bhutto’s head for calling Modi ‘butcher of Gujarat’

    BJP leader places Rs2 crore bounty on Bilawal Bhutto’s head for calling Modi ‘butcher of Gujarat’

    Manupal Hansal, a Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) leader from Uttar Pradesh, has placed a Rs 2 crore bounty on the head of Foreign Minister of Pakistan, Bilawal Bhutto-Zardari, stating that Indian people are angry at the minister’s remarks about Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi.

    “Mai ailaan karta hoon ke jo uss mantri Bilawal Bhutto ka dhar se sar alag karega, 2 crore ka inaam mai doonga” [I declare that I will give a reward of ₹2 crore to anyone who will behead Minister Bilawal Bhutto], Hansal had said.

    The BJP also held protests across India and in front of the Pakistan Embassy in New Delhi, burning effigies of the Pakistani foreign minister.

    Minister of Climate Change Sherry Rehman has condemned Hansal’s remarks in a tweet, saying that this was a testament of “the shocking impunity that extremism enjoys for doing only what terrorists do in Modi’s RSS-defined India”.

    In an interview with “Bloomberg“, Bilawal Bhutto stood by his statement about Modi by pointing out that what he had said was “a historical fact”. He also pointed out that the term “butcher of Gujarat” had not been coined by him, but by the people of Gujarat after the 2002 Godhra incident. He further added that he was aware of the bounty a BJP leader had placed on his head.

    “I was referring to a historical reality. The remarks I used weren’t my own. I did not invent the term ‘butcher of Gujarat’ for Mr Modi. The Muslims of India following the Gujarat riots used that term for Mr Modi. I believe I was referring to a historical fact and they believe that repeating history is a personal insult. If I was incorrect then … So what has happened today… it’s been two days since my remark, a member of Mr Modi’s party has announced 20 million rupee bounty on my head. So I don’t think the best way to disapprove the fact that Mr Modi is the butcher of Gujarat is to adopt such extreme steps,” he said in the interview.

    When the interviewer had further questioned Bilawal on whether these comments might further sour relations with India and even the possibility of nuclear war, the FM pointed out that Indian citizens had the right to protest, but the threat to his life was very problematic:

    “As far as my remarks concerned they resulted in protests all over India and that’s their right. I think you cross the line when you officially announce head money for your neighboring country’s foreign minister’s assassination. I think that’s a line we’re normalizing in crossing and the fact that we get to move on from that question is troubling for me when I’m engaging with Bloomberg which is an important international forum. As far as nuclear war no one has threatened nuclear war. A minister did say that Pakistan is a responsible nuclear country and should be treated as such.”

    https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=YZKjz4SUs7s&t=436s

    At a press conference in New York on December 16, Bilawal Bhutto-Zardari had responded to accusations that Pakistan had sheltered Osama bin Laden by pointing out that Modi, who is regarded as ‘butcher of Gujarat’ is still the Prime Minister of India:

    “I would like to remind Mr Jaishankar that Osama bin Laden is dead, but the butcher of Gujarat lives, and he is the prime minister (of India).”

  • Russia to sell cheap crude oil to Pakistan, Musadik Malik reiterates

    Russia to sell cheap crude oil to Pakistan, Musadik Malik reiterates

    State Minister for Petroleum Musadik Malik on Friday reiterated that Russia will provide Pakistan with crude oil at discounted rates.

    Speaking at a press conference, Malik claimed that Russia will offer Pakistan crude at a discount, just like the energy giant does for other nations across the globe.

    “It (the discount) could be greater than what others receive,” he added. 

    The remarks come a day after PBS Newshour journalist Amna Nawaz interviewed Foreign Minister Bilawal Bhutto-Zardari, who said: “As far as Russia is concerned, we aren’t pursuing or receiving any discounted energy, but we are facing an extremely difficult economic situation.”

    In response to a question on the $60 per barrel limit on Russian seaborne oil imposed by the Group of Seven and the EU in connection to Russia’s war in Ukraine, Bilawal said, “Up until now we actually haven’t received nor are we getting any oil from Russia.”

    “As far as discounted rates, no one is giving discounted rates for oil these days,” Bilawal also told reporters at the United Nations. “That’s not a reality. It is true that we’re actively pursuing ways and means to address the energy shortfalls and difficulties we’re facing in Pakistan.”

    Malik, who had earlier in the month claimed that Russia will supply cheaper oil, revealed on Friday that Pakistani refineries could process Russian crude, namely Siberian Light and Ural Light. Islamabad’s inability to obtain oil from Moscow is attributed to Pakistan’s refineries’ capacity to handle Russian crude.

    “Pakistan Refinery Limited (PRL), owned by Pakistan State Oil (PSO), told us that they could utilise up to 50 per cent light crude of Russian origin. Similarly, PARCO has told us that they could utilise up to 30 per cent of Russian crude.”

    “Whereas, Cnergyico, the third largest oil refinery in the country, could not only process these two (Siberian Light and Ural Light) crudes but also heavy crudes as well.”

    “We will get these light crudes from Russia on a discount,” added Malik.

    Discounts on finished goods, such as gasoline and petrol, will also be discussed, the state minister added. The Russian delegation is expected to visit Pakistan in 2023.

    According to DAWN, in the second week of January, there will be an Inter-Governmental Commission (IGC) meeting between Pakistan and Russia. During the conference, the Russian energy minister is likely to visit.

    In connection to the TAPI project, which “may offer us with 1.3bcf of gas,” Malik continued, the administration has also reestablished contacts with Turkmenistan.

    “A special strategic cell has been established in the Ministry to follow up these projects,” he said.

    On liquid natural gas (LNG), Malik said the government is working with Azerbaijan on a gas purchase framework agreement, which is being drafted. “Under this framework, we would have a government-to-government level agreement with the State Oil Company of Azerbaijan Republic, largely known as SOCAR,” he said.

    “SOCAR will provide us with distressed cargoes on a monthly basis, and the Government of Pakistan would have the option to purchase these cargoes at given rates or not. “This will help us increase our gas supply,” he said.

    The minister said that SOCAR has already offered Pakistan LNG cargo for December 14. “However, we were unable to purchase it as both our terminals were not available,” he said.

    Additionally, the government is still working to come to an arrangement with the UAE that would allow for the purchase of diesel and petrol cargoes.

    “I want to reiterate that the policies of the current government are meant to alleviate hardships of poverty-ridden masses,” said Malik.

    He said that despite a 10 per cent yearly loss in gas reserves, the government is giving its people more gas this year than it did the year before. ”We will have an additional cargo of gas in the coming months of January and February, in comparison to the same period in 2022,” he said.

    “We are also bringing in 20,000 tons LPG in addition to facilitate our consumers.”

  • Is Pakistan finally able to help give Kashmir its freedom?

    The oppression in Indian Illegally Occupied Jammu and Kashmir (IIOJK) is no secret. India’s historically oppressive treatment of the Kashmiri Muslims and its human rights violations are well-documented. Scrapping Article 370 on August 5, 2019, meant the Indian state went ahead with colonising the region. India’s ruling BJP has long advocated the idea of Indians being allowed to buy and settle in Indian-occupied Kashmir, disguising it as the region’s economic development. Yet, these illegal actions are an attempt at changing the demographic makeup of the region. An attempt to silence the Kashmiri voice. An attempt to dilute the calls for self-determination.

    German Foreign Minister (FM) Annalena Baerbock’s latest statement on Kashmir is of utmost importance. Speaking at a joint press conference on Friday with her Pakistani counterpart Bilawal Bhutto-Zardari in Berlin, she said, “Germany has a role and responsibility with regard to the situation in Kashmir. Therefore, we support intensively the engagement of the United Nations (UN), to find peaceful solutions in the region.”

    Moreover, Bilawal highlighted the grave human rights violations in the IIOJK, and said that the alarming situation posed risks to regional peace and stability. Pakistan has consistently urged the international community to hold India accountable for its brazen persecution of innocent Kashmiris. The German FM’s statement as well as US Ambassador Donald Blome’s visit to Azad Jammu and Kashmir (AJK) has caused quite an uproar in India and its diplomatic circles, which shows that Pakistan’s efforts at building a case for Kashmir is having an impact after all.

    Foreign Office Spokesperson Asim Iftikhar recently said, “The Indian side needs to understand that if they are really genuine and serious in resolving this dispute, they have to proceed in accordance with this international legal framework, which is there, which has been there for seven decades, and which has the legitimacy and acceptance of the international community.”

    The present crisis is an outcome of more than seven decades of injustice imposed on Kashmiri people just because they want to decide their destiny, which is a fundamental right. Pakistan has successfully and relentlessly been building a case for the freedom of the people of Kashmir. Pakistanis will not stop raising their voice until justice is served to the people. The world has been turning a blind eye to the sufferings of the people of Indian-occupied Kashmir for over seven decades. However, Ambassador Blome’s visit and the German FM’s statement result from Pakistan’s consistent foreign policy. The world should wake up to what India has done to innocent Kashmiris over the decades. India’s impunity must end. Kashmiris in Indian-occupied territory deserve freedom.

  • ‘Modi is not Manmohan Singh or even Vajpayee’: Bilawal Bhutto

    ‘Modi is not Manmohan Singh or even Vajpayee’: Bilawal Bhutto

    Foreign Minister (FM) Bilawal Bhutto-Zardari once again talked about India being a different country now and said a lot has changed since 2010, pointing out that the current Indian Prime Minister, (PM) Narendra Modi, is not like his predecessors.

    In his address at Washington DC-based think-tank, Woodrow Wilson Centre, the minister stated, “This is a very different India, Modi is not [former PM] Manmohan Singh or even [former PM] Atal Bihari Vajpayee. We want a manageable and responsible relationship with India”, adding that he was not surprised by India’s reaction to the United States’ decision to give $450 million to upgrade Pakistan’s fleet of F-16 aircraft. “Obviously, Indians are going to be upset, let them be, kiya karein (what do we do)”, he said.

    Last week, prior to PM Shehbaz’s United Nations General Assembly (UNGA) session Bilawal said that, “India today is a changed India and is no longer the secular country promised by its founding fathers for all its citizens.”

    While responding to a question from the audience at the Woodrow Wilson Centre that some sections of the media are reporting that the “US schooled Pakistan” on maintaining ties with India and China, Bilawal dismissed the reports, saying “He [US Secretary of State Antony Blinken ] is an incredible human being and can never talk in such tone.”

    ‘Everything else can wait’: Bilawal urges China and US to work together

    At the international forum, the minister also urged the two world powers to cooperate and not fight with each other.

    “Let me be absolutely clear. We will not overcome climate change, we will not save our planet, if China and the US do not work together on climate,” said Bhutto-Zardari

    “Everything else can wait. Every other conflict. Every other dispute. We will all fight among ourselves if there’s a planet left to fight over,” he added.

    Earlier, US Secretary Blinken said that he had urged Pakistan to engage China on some of the important issues of debt relief and restructuring so that Pakistan can more quickly recover from the floods

    Addressing these remarks, Chinese Foreign Ministry spokesperson Wang Wenbin said that Beijing is already providing assistance to the flood victims and urged that other nations also do “something real and beneficial, instead of passing unwarranted criticism against China-Pakistan cooperation”.

    It is pertinent to mention that US is so far the largest donor to flood relief and rehabilitation funds. Washington has provided about $56 million to Pakistan since July.

  • PM Shehbaz likely to meet US President Biden this month

    Prime Minister (PM) Shehbaz Sharif is scheduled to visit the United States of America (USA) this month from September 19- 24 to attend the 77th session of the United Nations General Assembly.

    During this visit, he may have a meeting with US President Joe Biden. Both PM Shehbaz and Foreign Minister (FM) Bilawal Bhutto-Zardari will attend the dinner reception hosted by President Biden for heads of state and government of countries attending the General Assembly.

    Apart from this, PM will meet the head of the International Monetary Fund (IMF) and the President of the World Bank (WB) in New York. He will also address the United Nations General Assembly (UNGA) on September 23.

    It is pertinent to mention that this year’s UNGA session is significant because this will be the first in-person summit of world leaders since 2019. For the last two years, sessions were held virtually due to the Covid-19 pandemic.

    Since US President Biden’s election, relations between Pakistan and the US have cooled down. Former PM Imran Khan also has repeatedly accused the US of outsing him from power, a charge denied repeatedly by US officials and Pakistan’s establishment.

  • Punjab CM Pervaiz Elahi increases financial assistance for flood victims to Rs10 lac

    Punjab CM Pervaiz Elahi increases financial assistance for flood victims to Rs10 lac

    Chief Minister (CM) Punjab, Chaudhry Pervaiz Elahi, has increased financial assistance for families of deceased victims from Rs. 0.8 million to 1 million (Rs 8lac to Rs10 lac).

    CM Elahi had a meeting with Provincial Minister Muhammad Muneeb Sultan Cheema in which they discussed the current political situation of the country and relief activities for flood affectees.

    Elahi was of the view that Pakistan has been greatly affected by climate change, with massive destruction caused by unusual rains and floods. For this purpose, the government has to take extraordinary measures, reports Geo Urdu.

    Commissioner Dera Ghazi Khan (DG Khan) said that Rs75,000 will be given for the loss of large animals due to floods.

    The aid for those who lost their cemented houses has been increased from Rs. 100,000 to Rs. 400,000. Similarly, the aid for those who lost their mud houses has been increased to Rs. 200,000 from Rs. 40,000.

    On Friday, Foreign Minister (FM) Bilawal Bhutto-Zardari presented a cheque of Rs15 million to PM Shehbaz as a contribution from the Ministry of Foreign Affairs towards the PM’s Flood Relief Fund.

    Last week, Prime Minister (PM) Shehbaz Sharif announced that PM Flood Relief Fund will be audited by the Accountant General Pakistan Revenues (AGPR) and a private audit firm to ensure transparency.

    Devastating floods in Pakistan have wreaked havoc across the country, leaving a path of destruction and loss in their wake. More than 1,400 people have lost their lives, one-third of whom are children.

    Record monsoon rains and melting glaciers triggered the disaster. The United Nations (UN) and Pakistan have linked the extreme weather to climate change; some 600,000 people have fled their homes.

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  • ‘Matter of justice’: UN chief appeals to the world to support Pakistan

    ‘Matter of justice’: UN chief appeals to the world to support Pakistan

    United Nations Secretary-General Antonio Guterres on Saturday, September 10, urged the international community to support disaster-hit Pakistan as the country needed massive financial help to overcome post-flood crises.

    “It is not a matter of generosity, but a matter of justice,” he said reiterating the United Nation’s commitment, strong support, and solidarity with the flood-affected populace of Pakistan.

    Guterres said that huge damages and losses were caused to human lives and properties. The Secretary General further said that the UN absolutely supported Pakistan and requested richer nations to generously help the country so that it could face the future challenges of climatic changes and save its people.

    He stressed that the international community must realize the serious impacts of greenhouse emissions as nature was striking back in the form of natural calamities.

    He continued that greenhouse gases had accelerated climatic changes and that nations with larger greenhouse emission footprints must understand these issues. Citing scientific estimates, the UN secretary-general emphasized that now was the right time to reduce greenhouse emissions.

    He said it was also a fact that they were living in a climatic changing era and have to make efforts to rebuild communities and to enable countries to resist and face future disasters that could be wrought by the natural calamities.

    Prime Minister (PM) Shehbaz Sharif, Foreign Minister Bilawal Bhutto-Zardari, Minister for Planning Ahsan Iqbal, Minister for Information and Broadcasting Marriyum Aurangzeb, provincial ministers, and the relevant authorities were present on the occasion.

    Sindh Chief Minister Murad Ali Shah gave a detailed briefing on the damages and loss of lives in the province.

    He said during the current monsoon season, different districts of the province had received unusual rainfall never witnessed in the past.

    He said that 30 districts of the province were affected, displacing about 12 million, adding that a total of 578 people lost their lives. A total of 3 million houses were destroyed and crops grown on an area of about 3.3 million acres were damaged while 500,000 livestock had been swept away.

    Earlier, the prime minister along with the UN secretary general and the federal ministers took an aerial review of the flood-affected areas of the Sindh province.

  • Bilawal Bhutto avoids handshake with Indian foreign minister

    Foreign Minister (FM) Bilawal Bhutto-Zardari met and held meetings with his counterparts from Afghanistan, China, Tajikistan, Kazakhstan, Uzbekistan, and Kyrgyzstan at the Shanghai Coopera­tion Org­anisation’s (SCO) Council of For­eign Ministers’ meeting. However, it has been reported that Bilawal and Indian FM Dr S. Jaishankar avoided handshake and the two ministers sat away from each other.

    Bilawal attended the SCO meeting (July 28th to 29th) in Tashkent and this is where both he and Jaishankar came together since the Pakistani foreign minister took charge.

    It is pertinent to mention that the SCO meeting is being held in connection with the preparations for the SCO Heads of State meeting scheduled to be held in September.

    On the international platform, Bilawal said that there are no plans of any meetings between Indian and Pakistani Prime Ministers (PM) in September, adding that “both India and Pakistan are part of the SCO and the two countries are only engaged in the context of the broad-based activities of the organisation”.

    The foreign minister said: “India is our neighbouring country. While one can decide on a lot of things, one cannot choose its neighbours, therefore, we should get used to living with them.”

    Bilawal recalled that after 2019, constructive dialogue with India became difficult, while statements based on Islamophobia by Indian officials are further creating hurdles in dialogue.

    ‘What is our fault if Khan failed to boost ties with US?’

    Reacting to Imran Khan’s criticism that said Pakistan and the United States (US) relation has weakened during the tenure of the coalition government, the foreign minister said, “There is no truth in Imran Khan’s claims.”

    “Khan tried to strengthen relations with Washington when he was in power,” he said and asked, “What was their fault if he failed to boost ties with the US?”