LONDON - The Baloch Human Rights Council (UK) has strongly condemned and expressed extreme concern on the continuing human rights violations being perpetrated by Pakistan's security agencies in Balochistan.

TRIPOLI - A former Libyan official has claimed that the Lockerbie bomber, Abdelbaset Ali Mohmed al-Megrahi, had blackmailed Colonel Muammar Gaddafi and threatened to reveal that he had ordered the devastating attack on Pan Am Flight 103 unless the dictator ensured his release from the Scottish prison.

LAHORE - Pakistan Punjab Chief Minister Shahbaz Sharif has accused the Pakistan People's Party (PPP) of conspiring against the Punjab government.

KARACHI - Pakistan President Asif Ali Zardari has pledged to defend the democratic system in the country, saying that the ruling Pakistan People's Party (PPP) has a firm belief in the politics of reconciliation, and will never let democracy derail.