Sunday, December 30, 2007
Report silent on what hit Benazir’s head
ISLAMABAD: The seven-member medical team that examined former premier Benazir Bhutto at Rawalpindi General Hospital on December 27, submitted its report to the Interior Ministry, making no mention of what exactly hit the head of the former prime minister. A 3-page medical report, a copy of which is available with Daily Times, stated that an open-head injury with depressed skull fracture caused a cardiopulmonary arrest. The Interior Ministry had claimed that Benazir suffered a head injury after hitting the lever of her vehicle’s sunroof. The report read, “Benazir was pulse-less and was not breathing when she was brought to the hospital. Her pupils were fixed dilated and non-reacting to light. A wound was present on the right temporo-parietal region through which blood was trickling down and a whitish material, which looked like brain matter was visible in the wound.”It said that cardiopulmonary resuscitation was given as soon as Benazir was brought to the hospital. azaz syed
Courtesy DailyTimes.com.pk
News
Demand for Rawalpindi tragedy probe by int’l agencies rejected
ISLAMABAD: The interior ministry has turned down the demand for holding investigations into the murder of Benazir by the international agencies. Interior ministry spokesman, Brigadier ® Javed Iqbal Cheema in a press briefing here said that if the PPP leadership so desires, then by retrieving Benazir’s body from the grave, postmortem could be arranged. He said that the government had presented its views on the murder of Benazir and if Sherry Rahman claims that Benazir died of gunshot; then government would have no hesitation in acceding to conducting postmortem by retrieving Benazir’s body from the grave, if PPP leadership so desires. Replying to a question, interior ministry spokesman told that besides Nawaz Sharif, Chaudhry Pervaiz Ellahi, Maulana Fazlur Rahman, Aftab Sherpao and Sheikh Rashid were also on the hit list of the terrorists. Brigadier ® Javed Iqbal Cheema said that the two-day riots caused losses in billions of rupees. Besides, 38 innocent people lost their lives and 53 were wounded, while 174 banks, 34 petrol pumps, 157 offices, 370 vehicles, 72 train bogies and 18 railway stations were torched or looted. Following the call for army, the situation would come under control in one/two days. He said that those looting the banks were not the supporters of Benazir and added that they were miscreants. Brigadier Javed Iqbal Cheema said that the foreign investigators could not work in our environment by coming here. Replying to another question, he said that the two murder attempts were made on President Pervez Musharraf, while the intelligence agencies had foiled seven attacks before it could take place.
US warned BB weeks before fatal attack: report
WASHINGTON, Dec 29: The Bush administration had warned former prime minister Benazir Bhutto, weeks before her assassination, that extremists were trying to kill her, the Los Angeles Times reported on Saturday.
The report, however, claimed that the Pakistani government rebuffed US entreaties for beefed-up security for Ms Bhutto. “The decision to provide intelligence to an opposition candidate in a country headed by a strong American ally reflects US recognition of the gravity of the threat Bhutto faced,” the report said.
The newspaper also noted that Washington backed her effort to reclaim power in Pakistan because it saw her as a stabilising influence in the turbulent country.
Although acknowledging the danger, US officials stopped short of providing direct security services, such as the private contractors they arranged for Afghan President Hamid Karzai and for top leaders in Iraq, the report added.
The intelligence shared with Ms Bhutto was furnished by the US Embassy in Islamabad, a US official who spoke on condition of anonymity told the paper. Along with information about possible threats to her, the Americans provided security advice on ways her risks could be reduced.
The US official said the Americans were aware that Ms Bhutto faced serious dangers, especially in light of an earlier attempt on her life, a bombing during her homecoming rally in Karachi on Oct 18, in which more than 140 people were killed.
Americans also “reiterated” that the Musharraf government needed to make vigorous attempts to avert dangers to her, the official said.
News
Sunday, December 30, 2007
Railways suffer Rs 10bn loss in two days
By Aamir Yasin
RAWALPINDI: Since assassination of Benazir Bhutto on Thursday, the Pakistan Railways (PR) has suffered Rs 10 billion loss, as angry mobs have set on fire several railways stations, trains and other railway equipments. The Pakistan Railways was expected to restore Sindh-bound train service from Monday, which was suspended on Friday. Two Karachi-bound trains from Peshawar were stranded at Rawalpindi Railways Station after suspension of train service to Sindh. Caretaker Federal Minister for Railways Mansoor Tariq told Daily Times on Saturday the annual budget of the PR was Rs12 billion and it had suffered a loss of Rs 10 billion during last two days. “It will take time to revive PR completely,” he added. According to the PR sources, it is impossible to restore railway traffic in Sindh soon as the angry mobs have damaged 63 railways stations, 149 bogies, 29 locomotives, VHF Tower between Sukkur and Rohri have been damaged and taken away 27 block instruments in some areas. However, Tariq said the trains were running as per schedule between Lahore and Rawalpindi, Lahore and Faisalabad and Lahore and Multan. He said the ministry had requested President Pervez Musharraf to release more funds to overcome the huge loss suffered by Pakistan Railways. “The railway authorities are also in contact with the district administrations, rangers and army for the security of railway installations and properties. Rangers have been called in to assist the railways police in provision of secure and comfortable travelling facilities to the people,” he said.
Courtesy DailyTimes.com.pk
No comments:
Post a Comment