ISLAMABAD: The Higher Education Commission of Pakistan yesterday submitted to the Supreme Court a list of 13 newly-elected National Assembly members whose educational degrees are suspicious. A three-member bench of the court heard identical petitions against MPs having fake degrees. MPs include Samina Khawar Hayat, Mian Shafi, Mir Badshah Qaiserani, Mian Nadir Magsi, Liaquat Hussain Bhatti, Shaukat Aziz Bhatti, Dewan Ashiq Hussain, Khawaja Islam, Zeb Jafar, Maulvi Agha Muhammad, Maiza Hameed, Iftikhar Hussain Gilani and Bilal Rehman. The court asked the Election Commission of Pakistan to submit a report on holders of fake degrees.
German minister visits soldiers
Kabul: German Defence Minister Thomas de Maiziere yeserday arrived in northern Afghanistan. It was his 12th trip to the country in almost 28 months as minister; he most recently visited in tandem with Chancellor Angela Merkel in May. With a total handover of combat and security missions by end of 2014, de Maiziere said that Germany would continue to provide military personnel after this date, setting the condition that there must be “a sustainable, reliable agreement on the troops’ statute.” Most of about 4,100 German troops are based in Mazar-i-Sharif.
Give peace a chance: China
Beijing: The Chinese Foreign Ministry yesterday urged the international community to continue to offer assistance for the reconciliation process in Afghanistan. “China maintains that the international community, on the basis of respecting Afghanistan’s independence, sovereignty and territorial integrity, should provide necessary assistance for the reconciliation process,” spokeswoman Hua Chunying told a daily press briefing. She said China has always supported a reconciliation process owned and led by Afghans.
Six troops killed in Peshawar
Islamabad: Militants ambushed an army convoy in northwest Pakistan late on Wednesday, killing six soldiers and wounding two, officials said. The troops were patrolling the Matani area, 25km south of Peshawar, the capital of Khyber Pakhtunkhwa province, when they were attacked. At least four militants were also killed. Agencies
