Pakistan holds 'radical' officer

21 June 2011 Last updated at 12:29 GMT Pakistan's army has been accused of links with militants for years A senior officer serving in Pakistan's army has been detained for alleged contacts with a banned militant group.

Pakistan's military spokesman confirmed to the BBC that Brigadier Ali Khan was being interrogated by the country's military intelligence unit.

Pakistan has banned a number of groups in recent years for supporting militancy and encouraging extremism.

Brig Ali, who is based at military headquarters, was held last month and his family told he would be home soon.

"Yes, that's correct that he is under detention and an investigation is in progress for his contacts with a proscribed organisation," Maj Gen Athar Abbas told BBC Urdu's Asif Farooqi.

He did not provide any more details about the nature of the alleged contact or the organisation the brigadier is accused of being in touch with.

"Any more details at this point in time may affect our investigation process," Gen Abbas said.

'Brilliant' record

A senior military officer, who wished to remain unnamed, told our correspondent that senior officers were both surprised and "disturbed" when a secret report was presented to them about the "inappropriate" activities of the brigadier.

The officer is known to have a "brilliant" service record and comes from a family with three generations of military service.

Brig Ali's father was a junior commissioned officer, his younger brother is a colonel serving in the intelligence service. His son and son-in-law are both army captains.

A military source told our correspondent that Gen Ashfaq Pervez Kayani, Pakistan's army chief, had asked for a briefing about the brigadier and after being satisfied about the weight of the "evidence", ordered the arrest himself.

This is not the first time allegations have been made about links between elements in Pakistan's military and banned organisations, including militant groups.

At least two army officers were court martialled last year for links with the banned Hizb ut-Tahrir group.

In 2004 several low-ranking military personnel were convicted in connection with attempts on the life of former President Pervez Musharraf.

Last week, Pakistan's military denied that a major was among several people who had been detained accused of being CIA informants and passing on information which helped the US track down and kill al-Qaeda leader Osama Bin Laden.

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Assad holds hard line on unrest

20 June 2011 Last updated at 22:05 GMT President Bashar al-Assad: "The strength of the state stems from the strength of the people... let the people and the state come together"

Syrian President Bashar al-Assad has blamed anti-government protests on a small group of "saboteurs".

In his third address to the nation since protests began in March, he said Syria should deal with people's demands for reform but that a "small faction" was exploiting popular grievances.

He said a national dialogue would shape Syria's future and urged people who had fled to Turkey to return.

After the speech there were reports of further protests in several cities.

Local co-ordinators for the protesters said reforms were no longer their demand. The only solution was a change of regime, their spokesman Ali Othman told the BBC.

Continue reading the main story Jim Muir BBC News

President Assad's latest speech is unlikely to change the course of the country's history. It was essentially an update on the second address he gave, on 16 April, in which he gave his new cabinet ministers their marching orders with the emphasis on political and economic reforms.

His new speech was greeted with immediate scepticism by activists and protesters, who took to the streets in several towns to declare their "revolution" would continue.

If there was one tangible new gesture, it came with Mr Assad's statement that he had asked the justice ministry to expand the scope of the qualified amnesty issued on 31 May.

But for much of his speech, he dwelt on his "absolute conviction" about the reform process and the national dialogue that he said must underpin it.

Other opposition activists said Mr Assad's speech was addressed to his loyalists - not to his opponents.

Protesters complained that there was no announcement on ending the violence, nor was there any mention of holding the security services accountable for the crackdown, the BBC's Lina Sinjab in Damascus reports.

But Mr Assad's supporters said the speech was encouraging and responsive to people's demands.

Syrian government spokeswoman Bouthaina Shaaban told the BBC that the majority of Syrians "consider that today is a new dawn for the future of Syria".

Rights groups say at least 1,300 civilians have been killed in demonstrations since March, and more than 300 soldiers and police.

The speech comes as European Union foreign ministers meeting in Brussels warned of further sanctions against Syria.

A statement said the sanctions would be aimed at achieving "a fundamental change of policy by the Syrian leadership without delay".

Meanwhile, the US said it wanted to see "action, not words" on the reforms pledged by Mr Assad.

Turkish President Abdullah Gul said the speech was "not enough".

"Assad should clearly and precisely say: 'Everything has changed. We're transforming the system into a multi-party one. Everything will be organised according to the Syrian's people will, and I will be carrying out this process,'" he told journalists in Ankara.

"As soon as the Syrian president says that he will lead the transition in his country, we will see that things will change."

'Vandalism' Speaking in a televised address to supporters at Damascus University on Monday, Mr Assad expressed regret about the protest deaths, saying that they were a great loss to the nation and him personally.

But he said the "saboteurs", who had smeared the image of Syria across the world during the protests, had to be isolated.

"What is happening today has nothing to do with reform, it has to do with vandalism," he said.

"The demands of the street do not justify inflicting damage on the country."

Mr Assad also said a national dialogue authority was being set up to create a reform plan, and another committee would be created to examine the constitution.

"We must give this dialogue a chance because the future of Syria depends on it," he said, adding that he expected a reform package by September.

He said he had instructed the justice minister to consider expanding a recent amnesty.

Continue reading the main story 30 March: In address to parliament, described unrest as conspiracy against Syria by its foreign enemies16 April: In TV address, announces end to emergency law, expresses sadness over deaths and calls for national dialogueMr Assad also urged thousands of people who had fled into Turkey to return to their homes "as soon as possible".

He referred in particular to the residents of Jisr al-Shughour, where armed forces recently took control after violence in which more than 100 security personnel were killed.

"The state will protect them," he said.

President Assad's latest speech came a day after opposition activists announced the creation of a body to lead the protests.

The council urged people to "co-operate in all cities and provinces of Syria to achieve the legitimate goal of overthrowing the regime", according to AFP news agency.

More than 10,000 Syrian refugees have crossed the Turkish border, and Ankara says another 10,000 are sheltering on the Syrian side.

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Top Libya rebel holds China talks

21 June 2011 Last updated at 05:46 GMT China has tried to distance itself from the military actions in Libya The top foreign affairs official in Libya's opposition has arrived in China for talks with the Beijing government.

Mahmud Jibril is expected to discuss bringing to an end the crisis in Libya, where China has oil interests.

Beijing follows what it calls a policy of non-interference and neutrality in the domestic affairs of other nations.

It abstained in the United Nations Security Council vote which led to the Nato military campaign and has since criticised air strikes.

It has also not joined in calls for the Libyan leader, Col Muammar Gaddafi, to resign.

However, the BBC's Beijing correspondent Martin Patience says Mr Jibril's visit will be seen as another blow to Col Gaddafi's rule.

Beijing has recently been stepping up efforts to persuade the two sides to reach a political agreement.

Chinese officials have already held two meetings with the head of the National Transitional Council, Mustapha Abdul-Jalil, the rebels' umbrella organisation.

The Libyan Foreign Minister, Abdelati al-Obeidi, also spent three days in Beijing earlier this month, with China saying a ceasefire should be the "top priority" of both sides.

Beijing may be asked to consider giving financial assistance to the rebels; Italy, France, Kuwait and Qatar have pledged money so far.

Mr Jibril is scheduled to stay in China for two days.

China has oil interests in the north African state and evacuated 30,000 of its workers at the start of the conflict in February.

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