PAK CENSORS NEW YORK TIMES ARTICLE BY PASHTUN ACTIVIST CRITICAL OF ARMY

ISLAMABAD: An opinion piece in the International New York Times criticising Pakistan’s powerful army was censored by its local publisher on Tuesday, replaced by a blank space in a country where it can be dangerous to reprimand the military. The article by Manzoor Pashteen, the leader of a movement which calls for an end what it says are enforced disappearances and extra-judicial murders of ethnic Pashtuns by security officials, was widely available online, however. It was headlined “The Military Says Pashtuns Are Traitors. We Just Want Our Rights”. In it, the former veterinary student detailed how the impoverished northwest, along the Afghan border, has been “desolated” in Pakistan’s long fight with militancy.

380 church leaders in US accused of misconduct

SAN ANTONIO: Hundreds of Southern Baptist church leaders and workers have been accused of sexual misconduct over the past 20 years, including dozens who returned to church duties, according to a joint investigation by two newspapers. AP

Taliban name negotiating team ahead of US talks

KABUL : The Taliban on Tuesday announced a 14-member negotiating team ahead of talks this month with US envoy Zalmay Khalilzad, who has been meeting with the insurgents to try to end America’s longest war. Sher Mohammad Abbas Stanikzai will head the Taliban team, which includes five former inmates of the US prison at Guantanamo Bay who were released in 2014. AP

Indians buying UK property may have to pay 1% more

LONDON : Britain is planning a new 1% surcharge on foreign buyers in a bid to control rise in property prices. The falling value of pound in recent months and years, combined with easier RBI norms on buying property abroad, has led to a rise in the number of Indians buying flats and other properties in London and other areas in the UK.

Centuries-old bonsai trees stolen from Japanese man

TOKYO : A Japanese cultivator of bonsai trees appealed on Tuesday for the thieves who made off with his expensive potted plants to take good care of them. Seiji Iimura, a fifth-generation bonsai cultivator who runs a garden in Kawaguchi, north of Tokyo, told AFP the seven tiny trees stolen from his garden were his “family treasure”. “It’s something I would never sell even if I got 10 million yen ($90,000),” he said.

Sri Lanka seeks hangmen to resume executions

COLOMBO : Sri Lanka has started advertising for hangmen, after the president vowed to resume executions for the first time in four decades as part of a hardline anti-drugs crackdown inspired by the Philippines. Candidates must have “mental strength” and “excellent moral character”, according to job ads placed by prison authorities.

Lawmakers back move to isolate Russian internet

MOSCOW : Lawmakers on Tuesday backed a bill that could cut off Russia’s internet traffic from foreign servers, a move critics say is a step towards censorship and possibly an isolated network like in North Korea.