Sydney, Sept 15 : By going ahead with the Indian tour in the aftermath of Saturday’s serial blasts in New Delhi, Cricket Australia (CA) has shown double standards about the security situation, especially after a few months of canceling the Pakistan series and then Champions Trophy (CT) citing ‘security reasons”, said an article in Pakistani daily The News.

“It was feared that Australian tour to India would also be postponed after the blasts or at least Australian cricketers would express some security concerns. But, nothing such happened and Cricket Australia decided to go ahead with the tour setting aside any affect of recent blasts,” said the article.

Wana, Sept 15 : An attempt by US troop

Lahore, Sept 15 : Pakistan tops the list of countries as far as the number of deaths in suicide bombings during the first eight months of the year is concerned, figures compiled by an elite intelligence agency have said.

From January till August, there were in all 28 suicide attacks in Pakistan which claimed more than 471 people and injured around 713. Both the dead and the injured included a large number of innocent civilians as well as the armed forces personnel.

Iraq stood second with 463 people killed in 42 suicide attacks, while Afghanistan was third with 436 people killed in 36 suicide attacks. In Iraq, a total of 527 persons were injured, while in Afghanistan a totalof 394 people were injured, reported The News.

Washington, Sept 15 : Amid a series of strong statements emerging from Islamabad that the ongoing US strikes might prove counter-productive and could lead to straining of US-Pak ties, US Assistant Secretary of State for South and Central Asian Affairs, Richard A. Boucher Monday said there was “no rift” in relations between Pakistan and US.

Describing Pakistan as a “praiseworthy ally” in war against terrorism, Boucher said that contacts and cooperation would continue between two countries.

New Delhi, Sep 15 : Union Defence Minister A K Antony today reacted strongly to the failed infiltration bid by militants in Poonch district of Jammu and Kashmir, and pointed fingers at Pakistan for supporting terror groups operating inside India.

“A large number of non-state armed groups have sanctuaries in our neighbouring states who use these bases and resources to carry out acts of terrorism across India,” he said.

“Militants are getting support from across the border and this is a fact,” Antony said on the sidelines of a seminar organised by Centre for Joint Warfare Studies 
(CENJOWS).

Washington, Sept 15: The ongoing US’ military strikes targeting the Taliban and Al Qaeda were “risky” but must continue, as over the past six years the Bush administration’s reliance on Pakistan to combat the militants only “strengthened the Taliban and Al Qaeda networks in FATA”, said an editorial in the Washington Post.

It said that the Pakistan forces alone lacked the capacity to eliminate the extremists.

According to it, the US strikes in Pakistan were necessary and were long overdue. “They must continue,” it added.