Peshawar, Nov 19 : The NWFP government has reportedly set laying down of arms as the foremost condition for peace talks with the Swat-based Taliban.

According to official sources, the condition was presented before members of a Kanjoo Peace Jirga, who met members of the NWFP Assembly from Swat district at the Frontier House to discuss a possible truce in the valley.

The peace jirga, led by Inamur Rehman, informed the MPAs that the Taliban were ready for ‘unconditional’ talks with the government and that their chief [Fazlullah] would abide by the decisions of the jirga, the Daily Times quote the sources as saying.

Karachi, Nov 19 : Najaf Mirza, a senior police officer, who is accused of attempting to kill Asif Ali Zardari in lock up a few years back, would be formally indicted in the case on November 28 before Additional District and Sessions Judge South Khawaja Nizaar.

Earlier, the trial court had supplied copies of the case papers and documents to the accused under section 265-C of Cr PC.

Mirza was admitted to interim pre-arrest bail for one day on Monday and on Tuesday, this was extended till November 28, when he would be formally indicted, reported the Daily Times.

Lahore, Nov 19 : Following the opening up of Indo-Pak trade through land route, the Pakistan government is considering including 100 new items in the positive trade list with India.

According to a TV channel report, the federal government had directed the Federal Board of Revenue to review the list of additional items in the list.

The government was also considering the abolishment of non-trade barrier to promote trade with India, the Daily Times quoted the report as saying.

Presently, bilateral trade between Pakistan and India stands at 2.12 billion dollars, and is restricted by non-tariff barriers imposed by India besides Pakistan’s positive list.

Attock (Pakistan), Nov 19 : The Pakistan unit of the Taliban, the Tehreek-e-Taliban Pakistan (TTP) has reportedly warned the hotels and guesthouses situated in the town to stop “prostitution”, else face dire consequences.

They said the ‘illegal activities’ must be stopped within a week.

The TTP pamphlets warned that the hotels would be destroyed if their administrations did not halt ‘prostitution in the garb of providing service to the visitors’, reported the Daily Times.

Washington, Nov 19: Former Pakistan president Pervez Musharraf will embark on a lecture tour in the US from early next year, with his first speaking engagement to take place at the World Affairs Council of Western Michigan at Grand Rapids on 14 January.

The occasion will be the 59th anniversary dinner of the world council.

The subject that Musharraf would speak on is, however, not clear yet.

Islamabad, Nov 19 : The Islamabad High Court has reportedly dismissed a petition calling for the name of former president Pervez Musharraf to be placed on the Exit Control List (ECL), saying the petition was inadmissible.

Besides Musharraf, the petitioner had also sought to place the name of State Bank Governor Dr Shamshad Akhtar also on the ECL. Earlier the same petitioner had challenged Dr Akhtar’s appointment as Governor.