Pakistan in Media

ISLAMABAD: Former president Pervez Musharraf believes Pakistan Muslim League-Nawaz (PML-N) supreme leader Nawaz Sharif would get a “strong” message from King Abdullah bin Abdulaziz, during his forthcoming visit to Saudi Arabia, to change his stiff stand against the ousted leader, the retired general’s close aides feel.

They claim that Nawaz Sharif would be asked to “honour the international guarantees and commitments” clinched with the inclusion of the United States, Britain and Saudi Arabia at the time of Musharraf’s resignation as the president of Pakistan and about which he was fully aware. They say a key element of these dos and don’ts was that Musharraf would be a free man, facing no embargo on his movements while going out of and coming in Pakistan and would not be prosecuted anywhere on any account.
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As a commentator on a private TV channel said on Sept 2…"We solve all our problems abroad. We send our children abroad for their education and the same with our political problems. We never seem to sort them out ourselves here at home." Thus the sight of our previous president jetting in to Saudi Arabia on an aircraft sent by the Saudi government and then being received with full protocol should not surprise us. Neither should we be surprised at the apparently coincidental arrival of assorted government figures in Saudi Arabia at the same time as a past president and not surprised either that they did not – of course they didn't – meet or have any contact whatsoever with him. And no deal regarding his future, or any trial, was even thought about let alone agreed upon and signed with a discreet handshake. No, nothing like that at all.
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Daily Times, Pakistan, Saturday, June 20, 2009
COMMENT: Saleem H Ali
During my last visit to Lahore when I interviewed various progressive scholars, they also expressed the strongest concern about America’s unflinching support for Saudi Arabia’s policies, which made them more suspicious of the West’s resolve in tackling extremism.

The assassination of Dr Sarfraz Naeemi at a prominent madrassa in Lahore marks a turning point in Pakistan’s civil strife. The Taliban profess to be “pure” Sunni Muslims, and have targeted Shia mosques and seminaries many times before. However, Maulana Naeemi is the first notable Sunni scholar to be murdered by the Taliban.
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By SEBASTIAN ABBOT – 21 hours ago

KABUL (AP) — The United States, grappling with how to counter the spread of Taliban militants on both sides of the Afghanistan-Pakistan border, is turning to Saudi Arabia for help. But so far the kingdom seems wary of diving into the thorny conflict.

Pakistan will be on the agenda when President Barack Obama meets with Saudi King Abdullah in Riyadh on Wednesday, according to Mark Lippert, deputy national security adviser.

Obama's defense secretary, Robert Gates, has already asked the Saudis for help in staving off the spread of militants in Pakistan and encouraging Pakistani officials to work together in countering the terrorist threat.

"Saudi Arabia clearly has a lot of influence throughout the entire region, and a long-standing and close relationship with Pakistan," Gates said after a visit to the kingdom last month.

Many experts say the Sunni Arab powerhouse could be crucial in mediating some form of reconciliation with the Islamic extremists wreaking havoc in both countries. Saudi Arabia could also help cut off large sums of money that flow to militants from wealthy Saudi donors and Islamic charities.

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