Hangu (NWFP), Apr. 14 : The Taliban has stopped the polio vaccination drive in Hangu region by threatening to kidnap health officials if they go ahead with the campaign.

“Armed Taliban came here and told my three-member team to stop vaccinating children. We stopped work in the area immediately after the Taliban warning, and this is the reason the Taliban have not done anything so far,” the Daily Times quoted Khan Meer, head of one of the polio teams working in Darsmand, as saying.

The campaign was launched on Monday in Darsmand union council of Lal tehsil as part of three-day polio drive in Hangu and Orakzai Agency.

London, Apr. 14 : A student visa scam has surfaced in Britain. A bogus college is reported to have sold places on fake courses to hundreds of Pakistanis seeking entry to Britain.

According to The Times, the Manchester College of Professional Studies acted as a gateway to Britain for foreigners willing to pay 50 pounds for the letter of admission that earned them a student visa.

Islamabad , Apr. 14 : The Supreme Court of Pakistan has been asked to place former President General (r) Pervez Musharraf’s name on the Exit Control List (ECL) by booking him in a treason case for abrogating the Constitution and damaging the judiciary.

In his petition under the original jurisdiction of the Supreme Court on fundamental rights, Advocate Fazal Ellahi Siddiqui has also requested to overturn the Court’s judgment validating the November 3, 2007 emergency rule.

Karachi, Apr. 14 : A Parliamentary Committee on National Security has asked the Gilani government to formulate an independent foreign policy with a core focus on national interest.

The 17 member committee headed by PPP senator Raza Rabbani, in its report, has urged the government to ask the defence, foreign and interior ministries to initiate an intra-departmental process for the review and formulation of national security policies.

The report viewed that the world wide threat of terrorism could be thwarted by resolving the issues of the Muslim world.

Karachi, Apr. 14 : Pakistan intelligence agencies have reportedly arrested a close aide of the Tehreek-e-Taliban (TTP) chief Baitullah Mehsud.

According to The Daily Times, the Criminal Investigation Department (CID) along with other intelligence agencies has arrested one Badshah Deen Mehsud from a hotel here.

Confirming the report, CID SSP Fayyaz Khan said the 59 year old Badshah Mehsud was a close aid of TTP chief.

Dera Ghazi Khan (Pakistan), Apr. 14 : The Taliban and local militant groups continue to make inroads into Pakistan's Punjab province that is home to more than half of the country's citizens.

Tell tale signs of creeping militancy abound in a belt of towns and villages near Dera Ghazi Khan. Militants have gained strength considerably in the district, which is a gateway, both to Taliban-controlled areas and the heart of Punjab, police and local residents say.