Militarypedia - Worldwide Defense Forums

ghazi · Apr 5, 2024

Armoured Fighting and Logistics Vehicles

ghazi · Apr 24, 2024

[H2]May 9 riots: 6-member SC panel seeks larger bench for appeals against military trial verdict[/H2]
Abdullah Momand
April 24, 2024

A six-member bench of on Wednesday decided that a larger bench should hear a set of intra-court appeals (ICAs) against the court's Oct 23 unanimous ruling that had nullified the military trials of civilians involved in the May 9 riots, and referred the matter to bench reconstitution committee.

The development came as the existing bench — led by Justice Aminuddin Khan and including Justice Muhammad Ali Mazhar, Justice Syed Azhar Hasan Rizvi, Justice Shahid Waheed, Justice Musarrat Hilali and Justice Irfan Saadat Khan — resumed hearing the appeals.

The case pertains to the trial of more than 100 civilians for their alleged role in attacks on army installations during the riots that followed ex-premier Imran Khan's arrest on May 9 last year.

In a widely praised ruling last year, a five-member SC bench — comprising Justices Ijazul Ahsan, Munib Akhtar, Yahya Afridi, Syed Mazahar Ali Akbar Naqvi and Ayesha Malik — had unanimously declared that trying the accused civilians in military courts was ultra vires the Constitution.

The apex court had declared that the accused would not be tried in military courts but in criminal courts of competent jurisdiction established under the ordinary or special law of the land.

However, on December 13, in a 5-1 majority verdict, the SC conditionally suspended its own Oct 23 ruling — albeit by a different bench — pending a final judgement as it heard a set of ICAs.

The appeals against the verdict had been filed by the then-caretaker federal government as well as the provincial ones in Balochistan, Khyber Pakhtunkhwa and Punjab. Sindh had denied filing a purported plea on the same matter and was not included among the petitions taken up earlier. The defence ministry had also moved an ICA, requesting the apex court to suspend the verdict's operation during the pendency of the appeal.

In January, a petition was filed by Faisal Siddiqui on behalf of some of those challenging the trials to restrain federal and provincial governments from engaging a private counsel to plead the matter.

On Jan 29, Justice Sardar Tariq Masood, who has since retired, referred the ICAs back to a three-judge committee for the constitution of a larger bench.

In March, former CJP Jawwad S. Khawaja, who is one of the petitioners to challenge the military trials, had requested the apex court for an early hearing of the appeals, contending that the continued presence of civilians in military custody was "beyond compensation".

In a subsequent hearing, the SC had asked the federal government for information about suspects who had been awarded short jail terms or were awaiting release or acquitted.

During the same hearing, KP Additional Advocate General Syed Kauser Ali Shah had submitted a letter expressing the provincial government's intention to withdraw the appeal against the Oct 23 ruling.

On March 27, the SC had conditionally allowed military courts to pronounce reserved verdicts in the cases. It had also modified its Dec 13 injunction, ordering that military courts can commence trials but they will not convict or acquit any suspect until the pendency of government-instituted ICAs.

Subsequently, on April 8, Attorney General for Pakistan (AGP) Mansoor Usman Awan had furnished a list of 20 suspects who had been released so that they could celebrate Eidul Fitr with their families, after they served a major part of their sentence while the remaining period of their punishment was remitted by Chief of the Army Staff (COAS) Gen Asim Munir.

Among the 20 individuals, four belonged to KP while all other 16 hailed from Punjab. They were released in KP and Punjab on April 7 and 6, respectively.

In the hearing today, AGP Awan and ex-CJP Khawaja's lawyer Khwaja Ahmed Husain appeared before the court. Senior counsel Barrister Aitzaz Ahsan, one of the petitioners challenging the trials, was also present.

Today's hearing

At the outset of the hearing, AGP Awan informed the apex court that 20 suspects were released before Eidul Fitr and had returned to their homes.

He recalled that the details about those released had been submitted to the court through an application.

Justice Mazhar then asked the AGP, "Is there no case against the released suspects now?"

Here, Ahsan said that the suspects had been "sent home after turning them into convicted persons".

The senior counsel claimed that a youth was "convicted without trial and was now in hiding".

"Whatever has happened, has taken place in a very haphazard manner," Ahsan lamented.

Justice Aminuddin asked if the youth Ahsan was referring to was included in the list of the released suspects, to which the counsel replied in the affirmative.

The court then made the AGP's statements part of the case record.

At this point, ex-CJP Khawaja's lawyer objected to the constitution of the bench.

The counsel requested the apex court that a nine-member bench hear the ICAs and they be referred to the three-judge committee constituted under the Practice and Procedures Act 2023 for bench reconstitution.

The SC then sought copies of the verdicts issued so far by the military courts. Ahsan and other petitioners' lawyers requested the court to include the verdicts' copies of the 20 released individuals in the case record.

At this, Justice Waheed said, "Let us first find out what procedure was followed in the trials."

Subsequently, the appeals were referred to the SC committee for a larger bench's formation.

Azad Kashmir · Apr 23, 2024

A British-Pakistani traveler has raised serious allegations against a Federal Investigation Agency (FIA) officer for allegedly subjecting him to torture at Lahore's Allama Iqbal International Airport.
Ad powered by advergic.com
The incident occurred on Monday when the British citizen, who had arrived from Dubai, lodged a formal complaint with the Civil Aviation Authority (CAA) against ASI Bilal, prompting swift action against the accused officer.

Video Player is loading.
Current Time 3:06
Duration 10:20
Remaining Time 7:14
According to the complaint, the passenger approached the immigration counter where ASI Bilal demanded an e-visa. However, due to a dead mobile phone battery, the passenger requested to verify the visa using his passport number. This simple request reportedly led to verbal abuse from the officer.
Ad powered by advergic.com
The situation escalated when ASI Bilal allegedly resorted to violence, punching the passenger in the face and ear, resulting in a nosebleed and ear injury. "I was punched in the face and ear by ASI, causing blood to flow from my ear," stated the British national victim.

In response to the complaint, both the CAA and FIA have launched separate investigations into the matter to ascertain the facts and determine appropriate disciplinary measures. Director FIA Lahore, Sarfraz Virk, wasted no time in suspending ASI Bilal from duty pending the outcome of the inquiry.
The CAA spokesperson reiterated the authority's commitment to ensuring the safety and well-being of all passengers at Pakistani airports. They pledged to conduct a thorough investigation into the allegations and take necessary action to uphold the integrity of airport security personnel.

Ad powered by advergic.com

Old School · Apr 24, 2024

The investigation plans to apply to the court on Wednesday with a petition for the arrest of Russian Deputy Defense Minister Timur Ivanov, reports "Kommersant".
Tuesday night SC said that Ivanov was detained on suspicion of taking a bribe. The necessary investigative actions are being carried out in the case.
According to the qualifying features of the article under which Ivanov was detained, the amount of the bribe exceeds one million rubles, which is the minimum threshold for an especially large amount.
The maximum penalty for this crime is 15 years in prison.

Old School · Feb 14, 2024

Russia wins first-ever drone war

by
Kirill Strelnikov

The special military operation in Ukraine will inevitably go down in history as the first large-scale, high-tech military conflict that will forever change the military doctrines of all the world's leading powers.
The centuries-old strategy of land grabbing has turned before our eyes into a fierce competition for dominance of the skies over the battlefield – a historic turning point for all leading experts.
The first-ever large-scale use of drones in Ukraine already allows us to draw several important conclusions.
Conclusion one. The battlefield becomes "transparent" — with the existing density of drones per square kilometer, it is impossible to covertly accumulate reserves at a certain point and perform an unexpected maneuver, for example, a mass attack. We saw examples of this during the failed counteroffensive MAT in the summer of 2023, when the Russian Armed Forces, working proactively, smashed and destroyed the concentrating enemy forces.
Conclusion two. The speed of decision-making has increased by an order of magnitude. According to some reports, the chain of "target detection – decision to hit – target engagement" now does not exceed one or two minutes, and this time is decreasing. This means that the decades-old algorithms for the passage of information and the final receipt of a combat order are not only outdated but directly play into the hands of the enemy, which highlights the need for urgent updating and democratization of decision-making algorithms by commanders in the field and the transfer of decision-making authority down to a single soldier.
Conclusion three. Drones have democratized warfare. This means that the operator of a combat drone can be any person - not only a combat service member but also a volunteer and a civilian. This also means that drone operators can no longer be in the trenches but can effectively carry out combat missions tens of kilometers from the front line.
Conclusion four. Drones can neutralize numerical and fire superiority. Simple in design and control, cheap drones are ideal for "bartering," where a drone worth a thousand dollars can hit a target worth several tens of millions of dollars.
Conclusion five. Drones minimize their losses and increase those of others. As already mentioned, the drone operator can often be far away and in relative safety, while his "pet" brings death and destruction. According to some sources, at the moment, the losses of the Armed Forces of Ukraine and the Russian Armed Forces (people and equipment) are already 75 percent on the conscience of drones.
Ukraine began to prepare for a "drone war" with Russia in advance and had an advantage in this area in the initial period of the conflict. But, according to Western sources, since November 2023, the number of Russian drone strikes on enemy troops has exceeded the corresponding figures of the Armed Forces of Ukraine.
Learning quickly from its own mistakes and individual successes of the enemy (and there is nothing shameful for us in this), the Russian army, with the help of the rear, builds up its heavenly army every day. According to the head of the Russian Defense Ministry, Sergei Shoigu, a serial (and mass) line of all types of drones- from ultra-small to heavy attack drones- is now being formed at an accelerated pace. A few days ago, the Deputy Prime Minister and the head of the Ministry of Industry and Trade, Denis Manturov, At the World Defense Show, said that Russia plans to allocate one hundred billion rubles for the development and production of UAVs in the next three years, which means new "hundreds of thousands" of FPV drones and "tens of thousands" of heavy drones in our troops.
In the second half of 2024, serial production of S-70 Okhotnik heavy attack drones will begin in the Novosibirsk region. This year, "Rostec" plans to include miniature drones produced by the Kalashnikov concern in the fighters' equipment. Improvements are being made to the characteristics and the circulation of the legendary Lancets, which have most of the military equipment of the Armed Forces of Ukraine on their account, and it is increasing. In Tatarstan, a plant has been constructed where six thousand Geran-2 drones will be produced, which is already causing panic both in Kyiv and the West. According to Yuriy Ihnat, a representative of the Air Force Command of the Armed Forces of Ukraine, our drone is phenomenally tenacious, even if it has been hit dozens of times: "Even if it is like a sieve, it still flies further to the target, and that's it."
The moment of the final transfer of the initiative on drones to the Russian Armed Forces was outlined in January of this year, when, according to the reports of the Ukrainian command, in just a few weeks, the number of soldiers of the Armed Forces of Ukraine hit by Russian drones increased by 30 percent.
Immediately after that, the venerable Western publication Foreign Affairs published a panicked article titled "Ukraine is losing the drone war: how Kyiv can reduce the technological gap with Russia." The article's author is the former head of Google, Eric Schmidt, who now heads the Special Competitive Studies Project (SCSP). This think tank provides the government with United States consulting services on artificial intelligence and new technologies.
Schmidt writes: "Russia has not only bypassed Ukraine in the production of drones, producing about a hundred thousand units per month, but also has drones that have no analogs in the Armed Forces of Ukraine. Ukrainian startups and businesses are working around the clock to produce drones that can counter Russian electronic warfare. Nevertheless, even though the West provides Ukraine maximum opportunities in this area, the collective West is years behind Russia."
Schmidt's words are confirmed by Newsweek, PBS, and ABC, which claim that the Russian Armed Forces shoot down and suppress about ten thousand Ukrainian drones per month.
Although Russia has apparently overcome the diseases of drone growth and firmly seized the initiative, it is too early — and generally unacceptable — to relax.
Clinging to unmanned straws, the Kyiv regime has announced the "Drone Army" program, under which a million-strong unmanned air fleet should soon move against Russia. The UK said it would transfer "the largest batch of drones in history" to Ukraine. Zelensky issued a decree to create a separate branch of the Armed Forces of Ukraine - the Unmanned Systems Forces. The desire of our enemies to compensate with drones for our overwhelming advantage in artillery and missiles cannot be underestimated. At the beginning of last year, there were only seven local drone manufacturers in Ukraine; today, there are at least eighty.
Vladimir Putin clearly and unequivocally stated that our army (and the rear) needs to respond quickly and adequately to the ongoing changes. And this fully applies to military pilotlessness, where armies of foam drones can stop and destroy the enemy's armored armadas.
Our military, engineers, scientists, and manufacturers understand this well, which means that our victory in the skies will also represent a final and irrevocable victory on Earth.

ghazi · Apr 23, 2024

ghazi · Jan 28, 2024

Kalash festival Pakistan, 2024-25. Chitral, KPK...

Kalash festival is an ancient cultural event which takes place every year around the same time in the Kalash Valley, Pakistan. Kalash valleys are surrounded by the Hindukusch mountains. People who live in these valleys are called Kalasha people, who have a unique culture, traditions, and language and follow an ancient form of Hinduism.

Kalash Festival Highlights

Spectacular mountain vistas
Experience the pagan culture of the ethnic minority community of Kalash.
Meet the descendent of Alexander the Great & his troops.
Dance with the Kalash people and learn their culture.
UNESCO listed Kalash culture as an intangible cultural heritage
Enjoy Pakistani cuisine.

Festival Overview

Kalash festival is celebrated by the Kalasha people. Kalasha people live in the Kalash Valley of Pakistan. Kalash Valley is surrounded by the Hindu Kush mountain range. Kalash festival takes place three times a year, in spring, summer and in the winter. The spring festival is called Chilam Joshi festival, which starts around the 13 of May. Summer festival called Uchal festival, which begins on 20 August. The winter festival is called Choimus Festival, which starts on 15 December. During the festival, people not only drink, dance and have fun in general, but they also worship their Gods and spirits, giving offerings and even sacrifices. Also, during this festival, young men and women choose their future husbands and wives.

Kalash festival dates 2024:

Chilam Joshi Festival (Kalash Spring Festival) 13 May – 16 May
Uchal Festival (Kalash summer festival) 20 Aug – 22 Aug
Choimus Festival (Kalash winter festival) 15 Dec – 22 Dec.

Trango Adventure has been organizing tours to Kalash Valley to witness the Kalash festival for 40 years. We operate an 8-10 days long private and solo group Tours to Kalash. All our festival tours and other holidays in Pakistan are on a full-board basis. You can follow our standard Kalash festival itinerary, or our travel advisor can customise an itinerary according to your travel needs.

Our Kalash festival Tour starts from Islamabad. Islamabad is the purpose-built capital of Pakistan. Our representative will meet you at the Islamabad International Airport and transfer you to the group hotel. The rest of the day is free to recover from the journey. We will meet again in the afternoon to give you a briefing about the Kalash festival tour. The next morning, you will be transferred to the airport to catch the spectacular 1-hour mountain view flight to Chitral. Flights to Chitral are weather-dependent, in case of cancellation, you will drive to Chitral. Arrive in Chitral, check into your hotel, and the rest of the afternoon is free to explore the town.

The next day, you will drive to Kalash Valley. You will spend a few days exploring and enjoying the Kalash festivals, meet the PEGANS, and then follow the same itinerary back to Islamabad. Night stay in Islamabad, and the next morning, we will transfer you to Islamabad International Airport for your flight back home.

We strongly believe that the Kalash festival tour is one of the top cultural retreats in the world. This beautiful valley and the friendly Kalasha people will make your holiday a lifetime journey.

Festivals of Kalash

The people of Kalash celebrate their festivals three times a year.

Spring festival (Chilam Joshi festival)
Summer Festival (Uchal festival)
Winter Festival (Choimus festival).

Spring festival – (Chilam Joshi festival)

Spring festival is also known as the Chilam Joshi festival. The people of Kalash celebrate four days across all Kalash valleys. Spring festival begins with “Milk Day”. Ten days before the festival, they store milk from their households. The people of Kalash offered their libation during this event. The festival reflects their unique cultural richness, the harmony in their society and the message of peace to the world. They ask for blessings from their God and pray for a prosperous year of agriculture and the health and safety of their herds. During this festival, Kalashi men and women also chose their life patterns. During the Kalash festival, women wear traditional attire with lively colours, and their dresses have patterns of flowers on them. They wear beaded necklaces which complement their dresses and headgear.

Men wear traditional Shalwar Kameez with a waistcoat made of wool. They dance together and sing in valley tribes as it allows them to choose their life partners and announce their names on the last day of the festival.

Kalash Summer festival: (Kalash Uchal festival)

The people of Kalash celebrate the arrival of summer in their way. The summer festival is popular among the Kalasha people. In recent years, this festival has also gained popularity around the world. People from different parts of Pakistan and international tourists attend the summer festival in large numbers. During the festival, Kalasha People pay homage to their God by celebrating the harvest and thanking their God for blessing them with good food and crops. Kalash people take a procession to a high plateau outside the village in Balangkuru and pray to their God, after the prayers, the night-long dance and party begins, which lasts until the early hours of the next morning. The summer festival is celebrated in all the valleys for several days.

Kalash Winter festival – ( Kalash Choimus Festival)

Kalash Winter Festival is also called “Choimus” in the local language. This annually observed event symbolises and forecasts the prosperity of the village and the villagers for the new year. During the festival, People go out to seek foxes which are considered good omens. Torch-lit processions arrive from nearby villages at the main traditional dancing place called a “Charsue”. The dancing and festivities are held indoors and last into the night as the local wine is handed around the bonfire. The locals perform rituals for purification during the festival at the dawn of the new year. The tribal elders gather at hilltops to watch the rising sun of the new year, followed by goat sacrifices made to the Goddess, “Jastak”, and the blood is sprinkled at the temple Jastarkhan.

We believe that visiting Kalash Valley and experiencing the “Kalash festival” will create a lifelong memory which will stay with you for a long time.

Kalash Festival 2024 | Chilam Joshi / Uchal & Choimus / Trango Adventure

Kalash festival is held in Kalash valley by the people of Kalash in Pakistan. Chilam Joshi, Uchal and Choimus are the main Kalash festivals. Book Now.

trangoadventure.com

Old School · Mar 4, 2024

ACCORDING to economist Julian Simon, “the ultimate resource is people — especially skilled, spirited, and hopeful young people endowed with liberty — who will exert their wills and imaginations for their own benefits, and so inevitably they will benefit the rest of us as well”.
Pakistan’s HCI level in 2020 was 0.41, which means that a child born in Pakistan will be only 41 per cent as productive as she could be when she grows up if she enjoyed complete education and full health.
Pakistan fares very poorly in comparison to the 130 countries for which the World Bank prepared the HCI. It ranks 118 and its HCI is the lowest in South Asia, which has an HCI average of 0.48.
It is imperative to invest more in human capital to promote growth and development in Pakistan.
Given this dismal situation, it is imperative to invest more in human capital to promote growth and development in Pakistan. This, however, cannot be done with our very low expenditure on education and health. According to the Pakistan Economic Survey, FY23, expenditure on education was only 1.7pc of GDP, and health 1.4pc. Not only is expenditure on education low, it has actually declined from 2.1pc of GDP in FY18 to 1.7pc in FY23. We are regressing on investing in education.

If the government focuses only on two areas, it can increase its human capital in a few years. First is the provision of clean drinking piped water to its citizens; second is increasing enrolment rates for primary education. The provision of clean drinking water will reduce many diseases, lower infant and child mortality and increase adult survival rates. More investment in primary education will reduce dropout rates from primary school and enable more students to complete secondary and post-secondary education.
According to the World Bank, the net primary enrolment rate in Pakistan was 68pc in FY18, which, going by the Pakistan Social and Living Standards Measurement survey, FY20, decreased to 64pc in FY19.

The World Bank asserts: “With over 20 million school-age children out of school, high levels of child malnutrition, and low empowerment of women, Pakistan’s human capital challenges are among the most serious in the world — it is a human capital crisis that is profound, silent and with far-reaching negative effects on the potential of the country and its people.”

Pakistan’s investment rate was extremely low at 13.6pc of GDP in FY23. It has also declined over the years. Aggregate consumption was almost 98pc of GDP. There is obviously an urgent need to increase investment.
If the government alters its priorities towards more investment in human capital, it will increase overall investment and promote economic growth and development on a sustainable basis.

ThunderCat · Apr 20, 2024

Rangers nabs Bangladeshi crossing border into Pakistan from India

SADIQABAD: The Punjab Rangers arrested a Bangladeshi citizen for illegally entering into Pakistan’s jurisdiction from India.According to the details, a 39-year-old Bangladeshi citizen named Sira

www.pakistantoday.com.pk

SADIQABAD: The Punjab Rangers arrested a Bangladeshi citizen for illegally entering into Pakistan's jurisdiction from India.

According to the details, a 39-year-old Bangladeshi citizen named Sirajud Daulah entered Pakistan's Cholistan from India's Rajasthan in the dark of night. The Pakistan Rangers handed over the Bangladeshi national to local police for further investigation. During the initial interrogation, Sirajud Daulah revealed that he belonged to Chittagong, a city in Bangladesh. The law enforcement agencies said that 5150 Indian rupees were also recovered from the detained Bangladeshi citizen.

A case has also been registered against him at Manthar police station.

ghazi · Apr 23, 2024

[H3]US envoy inaugurates Police Training College in Balochistan[/H3]
US Embassy's INC Section spearheads $5.35m collaboration tripling Police Training College capacity with new buildings

News Desk
April 23, 2024

US Ambassador Blome at the Inauguration Ceremony of Balochistan Police Training College . PHOTO: EXPRESS

United States Ambassador to Pakistan, Donald Blome, extended heartfelt greetings and appreciation to The Balochistan chief minister and Inspector General of Police for their hospitality and insightful remarks on the inauguration of the new Police Training College (PTC) campus in Quetta, in a statement released on Tuesday.

The four-year, $5.35 million-dollar collaboration, spearheaded by the US Embassy's International Narcotics (INC) and Law Enforcement Section, has resulted in the construction of seven new and renovation of four existing buildings. This transformative upgrade not only triples the capacity of the Police Training College but also ensures that aspiring recruits and seasoned officers alike receive high-quality, skills-based training essential for operating effectively in Pakistan's most demanding environments.

Ambassador Blome underscored the pivotal role of the new facility in equipping law enforcement personnel: "With the completion of this new facility, the men and women trained at PTC Quetta will be far better prepared than their predecessors to address the tremendous risks and challenges they face every day in the line of duty.

"In addition, we have scheduled delivery of $900,000 worth of radio communication equipment and 35 mine detectors, and recently provided $700,000 worth of vehicles and $195,000 worth of blast suppression equipment, all of which will greatly enhance operations and security across the province."

Beyond the confines of the training centre, the partnership between the United States and Pakistan extends to various initiatives aimed at fortifying security, combating narcotics trafficking, and countering terrorism. From INL providing essential equipment to fostering gender-inclusive policing, taken together, these actions make Pakistan safer, stronger, and more secure, said Ambassador Blome.

He also commended the concerted efforts to increase women's representation within the police force, acknowledging the exemplary leadership of officers like Zarghoona Manzoor. Zarghoona's journey from homemaker to police leader exemplifies the transformative impact of gender-inclusive policies, enhancing operational effectiveness and service quality for all communities.

Furthermore, Ambassador Blome also commended the special efforts made to recruit more women into the police force, highlighting the establishment of gender desks in police stations and the expansion of facilities to better serve women and underserved communities. He particularly lauded the remarkable achievements of Balochistan Police officer Zarghoona Manzoor, who was recently honoured with a worldwide leadership award at an international conference for women police.

"Zarghoona, formerly a stay-at-home mother, joined the force after her husband was killed serving in the Balochistan Police. She now leads Balochistan's first women's police station. Women officers like Zarghoona improve the entire force's operational effectiveness and efficiency and enhance the quality of service offered to all Pakistanis, especially those from underrepresented communities."

US Ambassador Blome at the Inauguration Ceremony of Balochistan Police Training College . PHOTO: EXPRESS

Search

Militarypedia - Worldwide Defense Forums

SOURCE & DATE

Latest Posts Latest Countries Latest Continents Q&A

Videos

[🇵🇰-Land] Pakistan Army Weapons

[🇵🇰] May 9 riots : The Supreme Court Hearings

[🇵🇰] FIA Officer Brutally Assaults British-Pakistani at Airport

[🇷🇺] Deputy Defense Minister Ivanov may be placed under arrest on Wednesday