US could freeze $2B in aid to Pakistan – official

Trump’s decision to freeze aid to Pakistan could affect almost two billion dollars’ worth of assistance, a senior administration official said on Friday— substantially

After an announcement designed to force Pakistan’s military and intelligence apparatus to cut support for the Taliban and other Islamist groups, the assistance and Afghanistan coalition funding to Islamabad could

It is “approximately two billion worth of equipment and coalition support funding that

After more than a decade of sim Islamabad and the Taliban and the Haqqani network—a Taliban

- that has allowed Pakistan access to advanced military technology, but also funding that is meant to pay

Analysts believe the United

- cated that there could be “exemp- including cash for keeping Paki

when it comes to further moves, including stripping Pakistan of its

The White House is demanding Pakistan crack down on Taliban elements and other groups that raise funds and take refuge in the

It believes that a Pakistani crackdown could be pivotal in deciding the outcome of the war in Afghanistan— entering its 17th year—by weakening the Taliban militarily and forcing the

other military bodies have long helped fund and arm the Taliban for ideological reasons, but also to counter rising In

Islamabad denies those allegations and has called Trump’s decision to threaten funding

Pakistan’s foreign ministry issued a cautious statement in

AFP PHOTO CHILLY TRADITION A boy holds up a cross while men dance in the cold winter waters of the Tundzha River in the town of Kalofer, Bulgaria on Saturday as part of the Epiphany Day celebrations. As a tradition, an Eastern Orthodox priest throws a cross in...