Peshawar, Sept. 22 : Afghanistan''s ambassador to Pakistan was abducted and his driver killed in an ambush on the diplomat''s car Monday, in Peshawar.

London, Sept 22 : Frank Leeson, the last British officer to have served in undivided India in Waziristan in 1946-47, recounts how difficult terrain the tribal belt is. According to him, it is a perfect hiding place for terrorists, riddled with valleys and caves. He says now it was a perfect hiding place for the Taliban, and with the support of the local tribesmen, the Taliban couldn’t be won over by use of force.

After more than 60 years of his service, Leeson says that the US must learn a lesson from the Britishers that the Taliban could not be won with force, especially because of the active support of the locals who believe in three principles - hospitality, protection and retaliation.

Rawalpindi, Sept 22 : A lone suicide bomber carried out the deadly explosion at the Marriott hotel on Saturday killing 60 persons and injuring more than 200, said a report submitted to the prime minister by a joint investigation team.

The investigation team, comprising of experts of the Special Investigation Group and intelligence personnel was headed by Federal Investigation Agency Director General Tariq Perveez. The team visited the blast site after midnight and collected evidences, including a CCTV footage.

Washington, Sept 22 : A new “International Religious Freedom Report” has said that though Pakistan took some steps to improve the treatment of religious minorities during 2007, serious problems, like the overall condition of women and minority communities, remained unresolved.

The report pointed out that there were forced conversions to Islam, especially in Sindh where 15-20 Hindu families were forced to convert.

Describing the general situation in the country in “pretty negative terms”, the report, released at the weekend, said that terrorist and extremist groups and individuals “continued to target religious congregations”, reported the Daily Times.

Islamabad - Pakistani security forces and tribesmen repelled a suspected US attack by shooting at intruding helicopter gunships in the tribal region bordering Afghanistan, officials said Monday.

The incident occurred late Sunday night in Lowara Mandi village of the North Waziristan tribal district that is believed to be infested with al-Qaeda and Taliban militants.

"Two gunships flew at least a kilometre into Pakistani territory but hails of machine-gun fire by troops and the villagers forced the intruders to turn back," a security official said while insisting on anonymity.

The US choppers did not return fire and flew back to Afghanistan, he added.

London, Sept 22: Only a few legal formalities are left after which newly-elected Pakistan President Asif Ali Zardari would pocket nearly three million pounds from the Pakistani exchequer, the sale proceeds of Surrey Palace – the “Rockwood House” - which was sold through a liquidator in 2004 after Zardari and his slain spouse Benazir Bhutto were found guilty of corruption.

The total worth of the mansion today is estimated to be around 8.5 million pounds.