DND News Ground realities in Afghanistan are changing as northern resistance groups have begun attacking and targeting the Afghan Taliban, while resistance continues in parts of Kamdesh Valley and Nuristan despite the Taliban’s reported recovery of several areas. Against this backdrop, reports indicate that the Afghan Taliban regime has deployed more than 30,000 hardcore fighters to northern Afghanistan and shifted a part of the al-Qaeda network towards areas bordering Central Asian countries. According to information obtained through northern resistance groups, al-Qaeda has intensified efforts to organize and finance Central Asian terrorist networks. Approximately one month ago, the network allegedly held an important meeting in Dasht-e Archi area of Imam Sahib district in Kunduz province to discuss strengthening relations, financial support, recruitment, training and operational capabilities of these groups. An individual using the alias Abu al-Hasan al-Maghrebi, a national of an Arab country, attended the…

DND News ISLAMABAD: Pakistan had, in the past, been a country where resources were exploited with little accountability, particularly in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa (KP), where mining became one of the most ruined sectors. Illegal mining using dynamites, destroying 80 per cent of precious stones for only 20 per cent recovery, had remained in the news since the 1980s. The majority of this illegal and unchecked mining had been carried out by Afghans under political patronage, while one of the most important political parties, Jamiat Ulema-e-Islam (JUI), had led this theft of national resources since long. Several journalists who had raised their voices against this mafia in the past had either been silenced through force or forced to leave their jobs to secure the lives of their families as this had been business of multimillion dollars. Since the Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) emerged as the ruling elite in KP, it became a partner in crime with other political parties, including JUI. Politicians from both parties shared…

DND News ISLAMABAD, October 15: Russian Interior Minister Vladimir Kolokoltsev’s four-day visit to Pakistan has triggered a counternarrative in sections of Indian and Afghan-sponsored media, where commentaries have sought to portray differences over Afghanistan as a potential obstacle to growing Pakistan-Russia relations while overlooking the significance of the high-level security engagement between the two countries. Kolokoltsev departed for Moscow on Thursday after concluding his landmark visit, the first-ever visit to Pakistan by a Russian interior minister. The visit was significant for strengthening bilateral security cooperation, building mutual trust and exploring avenues for joint efforts against terrorism and other transnational security threats. During his stay, Kolokoltsev held meetings with President Asif Ali Zardari, Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif, Field Marshal Syed Asim Munir, Chief of Army Staff and Chief of Defence Forces, Deputy Prime Minister and Foreign Minister Ishaq Dar, and Federal Interior…

Editorial Pakistan and Russia have emphasised stronger bilateral security cooperation, counterterrorism coordination and institutional linkages during Russian Interior Minister Vladimir Kolokoltsev’s meetings with Interior Minister Syed Mohsan Naqvi, Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif, President Asif Ali Zardari and Chief of Army Staff and Chief of Defence Forces (COAS & CDF) Field Marshal Syed Asim Munir, highlighting the growing importance of security ties between Islamabad and Moscow. The most important meeting was with Field Marshal Syed Asim Munir at General Headquarters (GHQ), Rawalpindi, where Kolokoltsev discussed matters of mutual interest and the regional security environment, with particular emphasis on strengthening cooperation between the security institutions of Pakistan and Russia. Both sides underscored the importance of closer institutional linkages and improved coordination, while the Pakistani military leadership reaffirmed Pakistan’s resolve to deepen its longstanding relations with Russia and…