Islamabad, Pakistan (CNN) -- A blast hit near a building housing Pakistan's intelligence service, ISI, in the eastern city of Multan on Tuesday, killing at least 12 people and wounding 20 others, police said. The explosion took place at a security checkpoint, said Jamshed Akram of the city police. Four soldiers and four children were among the dead, said Dr. Kaleem Ullah of Multan's emergency services. Pakistan has blamed the violence on Islamic militants who have vowed to avenge a intense military offensive to rout them from their haven along the country's border with Afghanistan. The nation has come under increasingly frequent attacks. On Monday, a blast at a crowded market in Lahore killed 54 and wounded more than 150 people. The same day two other bombing attacks -- in Peshawar and Quetta -- killed at least 11 and wounded at least 41. The attacks came three days after militants armed with guns and grenades stormed a mosque in Rawalpindi frequented by military personnel. At least 36 were killed and 75 wounded. The Pakistani Taliban claimed responsibility for the mosque bombing, but there were no immediately claims for Monday's attacks. In an e-mail to CNN about the mosque attack, the Tehrik-i-Taliban Pakistan said: "We reconfirmed it, that the TTP has done it, and will do more which are already planned. We once again mention that we are not against the innocent people and the state of Pakistan but against those officers and ministers who are American by hearts and minds and Pakistani just by faces." The United States has pressed Pakistan to rout out Taliban militants. Fighting the war in Afghanistan is "inextricably linked to our partnership with Pakistan," President Barack Obama said Tuesday of U.S. strategy. "We are in Afghanistan to prevent a cancer from once again spreading through that country," he said in a speech at West Point. "But this same cancer has also taken root in the border region of Pakistan. That is why we need a strategy that works on both sides of the border." The United States says Pakistan looms large because Taliban and al Qaeda militants operating in Afghanistan also have had a presence in Pakistan's northwestern region near the Afghan border and have threatened the governments and troops in both countries.

what Attack comes a day after three deadly attacks in Lahore?

what Lahore attack targeted crowded market, killing 54?

How many soldiers and children were found among the dead?

Answer: A blast hit near a building housing Pakistan's intelligence service,

Answer: blast

Answer: Islamic militants

Answer: four

Answer: Peshawar

Summary:
NEW: Four soldiers, four children among the dead, a doctor says .
Attack comes a day after three deadly attacks in Lahore, Peshawar and Quetta .
Lahore attack targeted crowded market, killing 54 and wounding more than 150 .


Islamabad, Pakistan (CNN) -- A blast targeting a bus filled with Shiite religious observers in Karachi killed at least 12 people and another explosion in front of a hospital where attack victims were being treated killed six more Friday, a government official said. Motorcycles were used in both assaults, police said, and they came during the Shiite observance of Arbaeen, a commemoration that takes place 40 days after the anniversary of Iman Hussein's death, which is also known as Ashura. Sindh provincial health minister, Dr. Saghir Ahmed said that along with the 12 dead, 30 people were injured in the first blast. The second blast happened in front of the emergency room at Jinnah Hospital, where doctors treated people from the first attack and people on stretchers were waiting to be taken in to the crowded facility. Along with the six slain, five people were wounded. The last deadly blast in Karachi took place late December during Ashura, when more than 40 people were killed.

In which Shiite observance did the attacks come during?

How many were killed in bomb blasts in Karachi?

How many were killed outside the hospital?

How many people were killed in Karachi ?

Answer: Shiite religious observers

Answer: Arbaeen,

Answer: 12

Answer: at least 12 people

Answer: six

Answer: Friday,

Answer: at least 12

Summary:
Two bomb blasts kill at least 18 in Karachi; motorcycles used in both attacks .
12 killed in the first explosion which targeted Shiite religious observers on a bus .
6 killed in second attack which occurred outside a hospital treating victims of first blast .
Attacks came during the Shiite observance of Arbaeen .


Islamabad, Pakistan (CNN) -- A court order issued Monday blocks five Americans arrested in Pakistan last week from being deported or being handed over to the FBI, officials said. "All the government functionaries, including federal government or provincial governments are directed not to hand over the alleged detainees [Americans] to any American agencies, or any other foreign agencies," the order said, according to Faisal Zaman, attorney for the government of Pakistan's Punjab province. The five were arrested Wednesday amid suspicion that they were plotting terrorist attacks. They were transferred Saturday from Sargodha, a small town where they were seized, to a more secure location in Lahore, police said. The court order was a response to a petition from Khalid Khawaja, a former Pakistani intelligence official and founder of an organization called Defense of Human Rights of Pakistan. Under Pakistani law, any citizen can file a petition with a court. The Lahore High Court scheduled a hearing for Thursday and ordered the government to respond to Khawaja's petition. A police report on the interrogation of the American suspects, dated Thursday, focused on one identified as Ahmed Abdullah Minni, a 20-year-old born in Virginia. The report said he regularly goes online to watch attacks on the U.S. military in Afghanistan and that he left comments praising the actions. That caught the attention of militants, and he eventually was contacted by a person named Saifullah, the report said. After contact had been made, a Yahoo e-mail account was set up so the men and militants could communicate, the report says. E-mails were never sent from the account, but people would leave messages in the draft section of the e-mail account and delete them after reading them, the Pakistani police report said. "This mode of communication enabled them to pass on messages without fear of interception by the FBI," the report said. It said the suspects made a plan with Saifullah to go from Pakistan to Afghanistan. They gathered in Karachi and left for Hyderabad on December 1. They tried to hook up with two militant groups, Jaish-e-Mohammed and the Jamaat-ud-Dawa, but neither of them showed interest. The FBI said Pakistani authorities detained the men -- four of whom it said were found to have American passports. Along with Minni, there were snapshots and brief profiles of four others -- Umar Farooq, Aman Hassan Yemer, Waqar Hussain Khan and Ramy Zamzam -- all from the Washington area. Police in Sargodha took a sixth man -- Khalid Farooq, father of Umar -- into custody, and he was undergoing questioning at a safe location. Authorities have said Khalid Farooq has not been considered a suspect. CNN's Samson Desta and Nasir Habib contributed to this report.

Did the militants contact the Americans?

Answer: five

Answer: five Americans

Answer: he regularly goes online to watch attacks on the U.S. military in Afghanistan and that he left comments praising the actions. That caught the attention of militants, and he eventually was contacted by a person named Saifullah,

Answer: five

Answer: could communicate,

Answer: Pakistan

Summary:
Pakistani court order bars deportation of five Americans .
Five arrested last week amid suspicion that they were plotting terrorist attacks .
Police report says one of the Americans left comments online praising militants .
Militant contacted American after noticing online comments, report says .


Islamabad, Pakistan (CNN) -- A suicide bomber killed 26 people and injured 63 others during a funeral procession in northwestern Pakistan Thursday, a senior police official told CNN.

Saleem Murrawat, the police chief of the Lower Dir district of Khyber Pakhtunkhwa province, said the ceremony was for a member of a pro-government anti-Taliban militia in the area of Jandol.

The chief said a suicide bomber blew himself up when he was standing with people at the procession. There are usually no security checks in such ceremonies. The chief said the bomber was around age 18.

Khyber Pakhtunkhwa and the neighboring tribal region have been havens for militants and there have been many insurgent attacks in the area -- close to war-torn Afghanistan.

On Tuesday, a school bus loaded with children came under rocket and small arms fire near Peshawar. The driver and three children were killed and 16 others wounded, police said.

The Tehreek-i-Taliban Pakistan group claimed responsibility for the attack, according to the group's regional spokesman, Mohammad Talha, who said it was in response to growing support for local resistance groups against the Taliban in the region.

CNN's Nasir Habib contributed to this report

what country the bomber belongs to?
how many kids were killed?
when was a school bus attacked?
Who was the ceremony for?
Where was the bomber standing?
Where was the suicide bomber?
whose ceremony was that?
What was the ceremony for?

Answer: Pakistan

Answer: three

Answer: Tuesday,

Answer: member of a pro-government anti-Taliban militia

Answer: with people at the procession.

Answer: northwestern Pakistan

Answer: a member of a pro-government anti-Taliban militia

Answer: member of a pro-government anti-Taliban militia in the area of Jandol.

Summary:
The suicide bomber was standing among mourners at a funeral .
The ceremony was for a member of an anti-Taliban militia .
On Tuesday, a school bus was attacked .


Islamabad, Pakistan (CNN) -- Dengue fever has killed 25 people and affected more than 6,000 over the past two months in Lahore, Pakistan, a health department spokesman said Monday.

In total, 6,400 cases of dengue fever have been documented, said Ikhlaq Ahmed, spokesman for the health department of Punjab province. Of those, 6,000 are in Lahore, a city of more than 6 million people known as Pakistan's cultural capital.

The 25 who died are all from Lahore, in eastern Pakistan. An average of 300 new cases of the virus-based disease, spread by mosquitoes, are being reported in the city daily.

"We prefer to stay at home rather than going shopping," because of the threat of disease, said Zainab Khan, a 25-year-old professional from Lahore.

Asim Hussain, who works in an office in Lahore, said, "I may lose my job," since he hasn't gone to work because of the outbreak.

All the schools in Lahore have been closed by the provincial government, Ahmed said.

The outbreak has created panic in the city, he said, as thousands of people crowd hospitals for testing. The city's poshest areas are among the hardest hit, he said.

where did The outbreak has caused panic?

Answer: in the city,

Answer: Lahore,

Answer: 25

Answer: panic in the city,

Answer: Lahore,

Summary:
A health official says 25 people have died .
Most of the cases are in the city of Lahore .
The outbreak has caused panic in the city .


Islamabad, Pakistan (CNN) -- Four militants armed with guns and grenades stormed a mosque in Rawalpindi frequented by military personnel, killing dozens of people Friday -- most of them children, the military said.

The attack is the latest to shake the garrison city since this year's launch of strong military offensives against Taliban insurgents in the Swat Valley and South Waziristan. Rawalpindi is the headquarters of the Pakistani army.

Maj. Gen. Athar Abbas said Friday's assault killed 36 people and wounded 75.

Among the dead were 17 children, according to the military's Web site. Also killed were an army general and eight other military officials, six of them of senior rank. The remaining fatalities were adults.

"As soon as the mosque's security staff checked me, there was a blast and then a finger hit me, then there was another," Ishtiaq, a driver for a military officer, told GEO TV.

Ishtiaq, who uses only one name, was attending midday prayers.

Rawalpindi is near Islamabad, and the mosque is near national army headquarters. It is located inside a walled residential compound where many military families have homes.

A witness told GEO TV there were up to 300 worshippers at the mosque at the time of the attack.

The militants hurled grenades before opening fire, Rawalpindi Police Chief Aslam Tareen told CNN. He said all the militants died, but he doesn't know how.

"These are not militants," Abbas said. "These are terrorists who killed innocent worshippers."

Retired Gen. Muhammad Yousaf was killed in the attack, said Col. Baseer Haider, a military spokesman. He said Yousaf was a former vice chief of army staff who was second in command during the administration of President Pervez Musharraf.

Abbas said two of the attackers were suicide bombers who blew themselves up inside the Parade Lane mosque; the other two were shot and killed by security forces outside the mosque.

Several explosions were heard inside the mosque around 1:30 p.m. (3:30 a.m. ET), followed by gunfire, Abbas said. The militants entered the compound by climbing over a wall, Tareen said.

This is the first attack in Rawalpindi since a suicide bomber targeted a bank on November 2.

On October 10, militants stormed army headquarters in Rawalpindi, taking several people hostage before security forces killed them.

CNN's Reza Sayah contributed to this report.

Where did armed militants attack a mosque during midday prayers?

What did a suicide bomber target on November 2?

Answer: Rawalpindi

Answer: military personnel,

Answer: a bank

Answer: 75.

Summary:
Armed militants attack mosque during midday prayers in Rawalpindi, killing dozens .
Mosque is frequented by retired and serving military officials .
November 2 attack in Rawalpindi saw suicide bomber target a bank .


Islamabad, Pakistan (CNN) -- Four militants armed with guns and grenades stormed a mosque in Rawalpindi frequented by military personnel, killing dozens of people Friday -- most of them children, the military said. The attack is the latest to shake the garrison city since this year's launch of strong military offensives against Taliban insurgents in the Swat Valley and South Waziristan. Rawalpindi is the headquarters of the Pakistani army. Maj. Gen. Athar Abbas said Friday's assault killed 36 people and wounded 75. Among the dead were 17 children, according to the military's Web site. Also killed were an army general and eight other military officials, six of them of senior rank. The remaining fatalities were adults. "As soon as the mosque's security staff checked me, there was a blast and then a finger hit me, then there was another," Ishtiaq, a driver for a military officer, told GEO TV. Ishtiaq, who uses only one name, was attending midday prayers. Rawalpindi is near Islamabad, and the mosque is near national army headquarters. It is located inside a walled residential compound where many military families have homes. A witness told GEO TV there were up to 300 worshippers at the mosque at the time of the attack. The militants hurled grenades before opening fire, Rawalpindi Police Chief Aslam Tareen told CNN. He said all the militants died, but he doesn't know how. "These are not militants," Abbas said. "These are terrorists who killed innocent worshippers." Retired Gen. Muhammad Yousaf was killed in the attack, said Col. Baseer Haider, a military spokesman. He said Yousaf was a former vice chief of army staff who was second in command during the administration of President Pervez Musharraf. Abbas said two of the attackers were suicide bombers who blew themselves up inside the Parade Lane mosque; the other two were shot and killed by security forces outside the mosque. Several explosions were heard inside the mosque around 1:30 p.m. (3:30 a.m. ET), followed by gunfire, Abbas said. The militants entered the compound by climbing over a wall, Tareen said. This is the first attack in Rawalpindi since a suicide bomber targeted a bank on November 2. On October 10, militants stormed army headquarters in Rawalpindi, taking several people hostage before security forces killed them. CNN's Reza Sayah contributed to this report.

What led the armed militants to attack the mosque?

What country was attacked in their mosque?

How many people were killed in the attack?

Answer: mosque in Rawalpindi

Answer: strong military offensives against Taliban insurgents in the Swat Valley and South Waziristan.

Answer: Friday

Answer: Pakistan

Answer: military personnel,

Answer: 36

Answer: Rawalpindi

Answer: Four militants armed with guns and grenades

Summary:
Armed militants attack mosque during midday prayers in Rawalpindi, killing dozens .
Mosque is frequented by retired and serving military officials .
November 2 attack in Rawalpindi saw suicide bomber target a bank .


Islamabad, Pakistan (CNN) -- Pakistan's Prime Minister Yousaf Raza Gilani made a U-turn Saturday -- first declaring that the military offensive against Islamic militants in South Waziristan had ended, then saying there is no timeframe for its completion. The Pakistani army is conducting an intense operation to rout militants from their haven along the country's border with Afghanistan. The militants, in turn, have launched a series of deadly attacks in retaliation. Answering a question from a reporter who asked whether the government will engage in dialogue with the Taliban in South Waziristan, Gilani said the operation was over. "There was talk of dialogue even during the Malakand Operation. But now, the operation in South Waziristan is over. In fact, at the moment, there is talk of an operation in Orakzai Agency," he said. Malakand is another operation that the military is conducting in another region. Orakzai is one of seven districts that make up the Federally Administered Tribal Areas of Pakistan. Like South Waziristan, it is also considered rife with militants. Gilani's comments, made in the eastern city of Lahore, were aired on national television. But hours later, he backtracked. "It could have been in a different context," he told reporters in Karachi. These remarks were also aired on television. Gilani also declined to say when the offensive might end. "We will take military action wherever we get information about the presence of militants," he said. When reached for clarification, the prime minister's office pointed CNN to the second statement. The army did not comment on Gilani's remarks. A release it sends out daily made no mention of an end to the offensive on Saturday. Instead, Saturday's release provided the usual breakdown of operations in various parts of the country, including South Waziristan. CNN's Samson Desta and journalist Nasir Habib contributed to this report.

What did he say on television hours later?

Answer: "We will take military action wherever we get information about the presence of militants,"

Answer: military offensive against Islamic militants in South Waziristan had ended, then saying there is no timeframe for its completion.

Answer: an intense operation to rout militants from their haven along the country's border with Afghanistan.

Answer: to say when the offensive might end.

Answer: conducting an intense operation to rout militants from their haven along the country's border with Afghanistan.

Summary:
Pakistan's Prime Minister Yousaf Raza Gilani tells reporter operation against Taliban is over .
Hours later he backtracks on national television and declines to say when operation may end .
Pakistani army conducting an intense operation to rout militants along Afghan border .


Islamabad, Pakistan (CNN) -- Pakistan's military said Tuesday that its forces have taken over a Taliban stronghold during the ongoing ground offensive in the tribal region of South Waziristan. Pakistani security forces have secured Sararogha and have started to clear the town of weapons and ammunition, the military said. It comes a day after its forces gained control of Kaniguram, another key Taliban stronghold, which the military says its forces have now completely secured. According to the military, 21 militants and one Pakistani soldier died in the past 24 hours of fighting -- most of them in the raid on Sararogha. The military is trying to rout Taliban insurgents operating along the Pakistan-Afghan border. The restive and largely ungoverned region of South Waziristan is the headquarters of the Pakistani Taliban. Pakistan's military suspects its leader, Hakimullah Mehsud, is still in the region backed by up to 8,000 militant fighters. Pakistan's army has launched three similar offensives in Kaniguram and Sararogha since 2004 without success, sometimes agreeing to peace deals that eventually fall apart. Army spokesman Maj. Gen. Athar Abbas recently told CNN that this time a peace deal is not an option. "Certainly there is no scope of a peace deal," Abbas told CNN. "It is a fight to the finish." The military began its ground offensive in South Waziristan three weeks ago, however the region has been affected by a broader anti-Taliban offensive that has uprooted more than 180,000 people this year, according to the United Nations. Many of those people -- more than 94,000 -- have fled South Waziristan since June, the U.N. said last week. In recent weeks, Pakistan has been relentlessly rocked by a wave of attacks as Islamic militants retaliate against the military campaign. On Monday, the Pakistani cities of Lahore and Rawalpindi were hit by separate suicide bombings. A suicide attacker believed to be on a motorcycle targeted people outside a bank in Rawalpindi who were lined up to pick up their monthly checks, police said. That attack killed 30 people, police said on Tuesday. The attack happened in the Cannt area of Rawalpindi, close to Pakistan's military headquarters where the top U.S. commander in Afghanistan, Gen. Stanley McChrystal, was meeting with Pakistan's army chief Gen. Ashfaq Parvez Kayani on Monday. It was unclear if he was there at the time of the attack. Hours later, two suicide bombers detonated their explosives at a police checkpoint in Lahore, injuring 17 police and civilians. CNN's Samson Desta and Reza Sayah contributed to this report.

Where is the headquarters of Pakistani Taliban?

Were other similar offensives successful in the past?

How many similar offensives have been launched?

How many offensives did Pakistan launch?

Where is the headquarters of the Pakistani Taliban?

How many offensives has Pakistans's  army launched?

How many deaths occurred in the past 24 hours of fighting?

Answer: Sararogha

Answer: South Waziristan

Answer: Pakistani security forces

Answer: without success,

Answer: Sararogha

Answer: three

Answer: three

Answer: 21

Answer: 21

Answer: South Waziristan

Answer: one

Answer: Sararogha

Answer: weapons and ammunition,

Answer: Sararogha

Answer: three

Answer: 21 militants and one Pakistani soldier

Summary:
Pakistani forces secure Sararogha, clearing the town of weapons and ammunition .
Pakistan: 21 militants and one Pakistani soldier die in the past 24 hours of fighting .
Restive and largely ungoverned region of South Waziristan is headquarters of Pakistani Taliban .
Pakistan's army has launched three similar offensives in Kaniguram and Sararogha since 2004 without success .


Islamabad, Pakistan (CNN) -- Pakistani Defense Minister Chaudhry Ahmed Mukhtar is free to travel outside the country, Pakistan's government said Friday a day after blocking his departure and sparking a national incident. There are 53 Pakistani individuals reinstated to an Exit Control List this week which prevents them from leaving the country -- but Mukhtar is not one of them, the National Accountability Bureau said. The confusion stems from a list, dating back several years, that prevented some government officials facing corruption charges from leaving the country. In October 2007, the country passed the National Reconciliation Ordinance, which provided amnesty to about 8,000 people facing various offenses, said Mohammed Afzl Sindhu, Pakistan's minister of state for law and justice. Among them were about 30 politicians. Those who had been on the Exit Control List were given amnesty and could travel. On Wednesday, Pakistan's Supreme Court struck down the ordinance. The 17-judge court said the amnesty "seems to be against the national interest" and "violates various provisions of the Constitution." Following that decision, the government restored the names of 53 people to the Exit Control List, said National Accountability Bureau spokesman Ghazni Khan. Mukhtar was among the officials protected by the ordinance -- but Pakistani officials say he was not among the 53 people on the Exit Control List. He was about to leave on an official trip to China on Thursday when immigration authorities told him he was on the Exit Control List. He said he raised the issue with the offices of the president and prime minister. "It is clarified that the name of Chaudhry Ahmed Mukhtar was not included in that list of 53 persons," Khan said Friday. The National Reconciliation Ordinance, passed under then-President Pervez Musharraf, covered alleged wrongdoing between 1986 and 1999. Among those protected by the order -- which expired last month -- were Pakistani President Asif Ali Zardari and his wife, former Prime Minister Benazir Bhutto. Also on the list were bureaucrats, bankers, retired military officials, and low ranking government officials, Sindhu said Friday. With the order lifted, corruption charges against some officials will now proceed, Pakistani authorities said. An accountability court in Karachi summoned Interior Minister Rehman Malik to appear on January 8, 2010 regarding an outstanding corruption case against him, said Malik's attorney, Khawaja Naveed Ahmed. Ahmed added that 51 others have been summoned to court in Karachi. Atiq ur Rehman, spokesman for the National Accountability Bureau in Lahore, said the cases of 80 people accused of corruption and misuse of power have been reopened and sent to accountability court for further processing. They include include Jahamgir Badar, who is the secretary general of the Pakistan People's Party, and Nusrat Bhutto, mother of assassinated former Prime Minister Benazir Bhutto. CNN's Samson Desta contributed to this report.

What is the name of the Defense Minister?

Answer: Exit Control List.

Answer: Pakistani Defense Minister Chaudhry Ahmed Mukhtar

Answer: leaving the country.

Answer: leaving the country.

Answer: a list, dating back several years, that prevented some government officials facing corruption charges

Answer: Chaudhry Ahmed Mukhtar

Answer: Exit Control

Answer: government officials facing corruption charges

Answer: Chaudhry Ahmed Mukhtar

Summary:
Defence Minister Mukhtar is free to leave Pakistan after initally being denied .
Mukhtar was wrongly put on an exit control list which prevented him from leaving the country .
Confusion stems from a list that prevented officials facing corruption charges from leaving.


Islamabad, Pakistan (CNN) -- Pakistani Defense Minister Chaudhry Ahmed Mukhtar was blocked from leaving the country Thursday after Pakistan's Supreme Court struck down an amnesty that had protected politicians from corruption charges, state media reported. Nearly 280 government officials and ministers have been placed on an exit control list by the high court, said Wajid Hasan, Pakistan's high commissioner in Britain. The 17-judge court invalidated the National Reconciliation Order on Wednesday, saying in its ruling that the amnesty "seems to be against the national interest" and "violates various provisions of the Constitution." The order, passed in October 2007 under then-President Pervez Musharraf, only covered alleged wrongdoing that occurred between 1986 through 1999. The order, which expired last month, protected thousands of bureaucrats and politicians, including President Asif Ali Zardari and his wife, former Prime Minister Benazir Bhutto, from corruption and criminal charges. Mukhtar, among the officials once protected by the order, was on an official trip to China when he was stopped at the Islamabad airport. Pakistan's Supreme Court said its ruling revived all cases that had been suspended or withdrawn under the amnesty. Zardari's government released a brief statement Thursday saying: "The government respects the judgment of the Supreme Court and is awaiting the detailed judgment. However, the government has already started consulting the legal experts for its implementation." CNN's Nic Robertson and Arwa Damon contributed to this report.

what was the number of government officials on the court's exit list

What was it that the Supreme Court of Pakiston rule

The defense minster was on an official trip to where

How many people are on the court's exit control list?

Answer: 280

Answer: struck down an amnesty

Answer: China

Answer: "seems to be against the national interest" and "violates various provisions of the Constitution."

Answer: 280

Answer: Pakistan's Supreme Court

Summary:
Supreme Court kills an amnesty protecting politicians from corruption charges .
Pakistani court rules amnesty "seems to be against the national interest"
Nearly 280 government officials, including defense minister, are on the court's exit control list .
Defense minister taking official trip to China when he is stopped at Islamabad airport .


Islamabad, Pakistan (CNN) -- Pakistani Prime Minister Yousuf Raza Gilani fired his defense secretary Wednesday, a move that spiked tensions between the South Asian nation's civilian government and its all-powerful military.

The prime minister's spokesman confirmed to CNN the firing of Naeem Khalid Lodhi. State media reported that it was for "gross misconduct and illegal action."

The move came after Pakistan's military issued a statement warning of "grievous consequences" of a Gilani interview in The People's Daily Online of China. In it, the military said, Gilani accused the army's chief of staff and the head of the Inter-Services Intelligence spy agency of violating the constitution.

"There can be no allegation more serious than what the honorable prime minister has leveled," the statement said. "This has very serious ramifications with potentially grievous consequences for the country."

The latest tension comes as Pakistan's Supreme Court investigates a controversial, unsigned memo allegedly drafted by the civilian leadership in which it asked the United States to help rein in the nation's powerful military.

The so-called Memogate scandal has unleashed waves of political intrigue in recent weeks, and the media has described a government on a collision course with its own army.

Last month, Gilani spoke provocatively of plots to topple the government.

Later, he accepted an army statement pledging support for the democratic process.

"We have been trying to remain on the same page (with the military) for the last four years," Gilani said in an attempt to temper his comments.

In its 64 years of existence, Pakistan has had to balance its civilian and military leadership. Pakistanis have lived through three military coups and decades of military dictatorship.

Memogate, wrote businessman Mansoor Ijaz, whose column in October touched off the scandal, publicly exposed the tensions.

A series of events have also added to the furor.

The U.S. killing of al Qaeda leader Osama bin Laden during a May raid on a compound located only about a mile from the Pakistan Military Academy in Abbottabad enraged the Pakistani public and deeply embarrassed the military.

Relations became even more strained in November, after NATO forces said they mistakenly killed two dozen Pakistani soldiers in airstrikes near the Afghan border -- an attack the United States insists was an act of self-defense after its troops were fired upon.

Pakistan's government has formally disputed the findings of the U.S. investigation into the airstrike, saying the bombardment went on long after it reported its troops were under fire.

The United States launched its first drone attack in Pakistan Tuesday after more than a month-long lull, killing at least four suspected militants, CNN confirmed.

The drone fired two missiles Tuesday at a suspected militant compound near the provincial capital of Miranshah in the North Waziristan region, located in the country's volatile tribal belt that borders Afghanistan.

Abdul Basit, spokesman for Pakistan's foreign ministry, told CNN Wednesday that Pakistan did not allow for Tuesday's strike nor has it ever granted such permission to the United States.

"We have strong reservations on the drone strikes because this is a violation of our sovereignty. We can't accept violation of our sovereignty."

Journalist Nasir Habib contributed to this story.

For what reason was the Defense Secretary fired?

What was top military leaders accused of?

When have tensions been running high since?

What is the name of the Defense Secretary who was fired?

Answer: Naeem Khalid Lodhi.

Answer: "gross misconduct and illegal action."

Answer: violating the constitution.

Answer: Wednesday,

Answer: Pakistani Prime Minister Yousuf Raza Gilani fired his defense secretary

Answer: Naeem Khalid Lodhi.

Answer: Wednesday,

Summary:
Defense Secretary Naeem Khalid Lodhi was fired Wednesday .
The move comes after the military slammed reported remarks by the prime minister .
Yousuf Raza Gilani accused top military leaders of violating the constitution .
Tensions have been running high since the so-called Memogate scandal .


Islamabad, Pakistan (CNN) -- Pakistani officials have detained a 10th person in connection with the investigation into the failed May 1 car bombing of New York's Times Square, a Pakistani intelligence source told CNN Tuesday.

The intelligence source, who asked not to be identified because he is not authorized to speak to the media, identified the man as Shoaib Mughal.

He is suspected of having served as an intermediary between the bombing suspect, Faisal Shahzad, and the Pakistani Taliban, the source said.

Mughal's uncle, who also asked not to be identified, told CNN that Mughal, who is married, owns and operates a computer parts store in Islamabad.

The uncle said six men dressed in civilian clothing detained Mughal, who has never been outside Pakistan, at his shop on May 6.

In addition, a Pakistani intelligence source told CNN that detainee Muhammad Shahid Hussain was a friend of Faisal Shahzad when the bombing suspect was studying in the United States.

The two men met frequently last year, when Shahzad returned to Pakistan, the source said.

Hussain's brother, Muhammad Khalid, told CNN that Hussain traveled to the United States in 2000 to participate in an MBA program and remained there until 2004.

Hussain's brother and father, Muhammad Ramzan, have denied he has any links to terrorist groups or the attempted bombing in Times Square.

The intelligence official added that another suspect, Major Adnan, resigned from the Pakistani Army last year. The official said Adnan contacted Shahzad by e-mail at least once but the official did not disclose when the e-mail was sent or what it contained.

This month, a senior administration official said Shahzad, a Pakistani-American, was looking for help from the Pakistani Taliban in carrying out a bomb attack during his last visit to Pakistan.

"The question is: Did he go there looking for help or did he fall in their lap? It seems the former. It appears he went seeking help for this attack," the official said. "He had an attack in mind when he went there."

The official spoke on the condition of anonymity because this person wasn't allowed to speak publicly about the investigation.

Top advisers to President Barack Obama said early this month that Shahzad worked with the Taliban movement in Pakistan.

"The evidence that we have now developed shows the Pakistani Taliban directed this plot," Attorney General Eric Holder told NBC's "Meet the Press" on May 9.

John Brennan, assistant to the president for counterterrorism and homeland security, told CNN that the Pakistani Taliban -- also known as Tehrik-e-Taliban, or TTP -- is "closely allied with al Qaeda."

Shahzad was arrested while trying to fly out of New York on May 3, two days after federal authorities say he left a vehicle filled with explosive materials in Manhattan's Times Square. The makeshift bomb failed to detonate.

Shahzad had traveled to Pakistan several times in recent years, Brennan said.

CNN's Reza Sayah and Nasir Habib contributed to this story.

How many people have been detained under accusations of a bomb plot?

who says Mughal has never been outside Pakistan?

who detained 10th person accused of link to bomb plot?

who was intermediary for bombing suspect?

Answer: 10th

Answer: never been outside

Answer: computer parts

Answer: Shoaib Mughal.

Answer: uncle,

Answer: Pakistani officials

Answer: Shoaib Mughal.

Summary:
Pakistani officials detain 10th person accused of link to bomb plot .
Shoaib Mughal was intermediary for bombing suspect, official says .
Mughal owns and operates a computer parts store in Islamabad, his uncle says .
Uncle says Mughal has never been outside Pakistan .


Islamabad, Pakistan (CNN) -- Tensions among Pakistan, Afghanistan and the United States jumped a notch Monday, with Pakistan's prime minister warning there would be "no more business as usual" with Washington after NATO aircraft killed two dozen Pakistan troops.

Pakistani Prime Minister Yousuf Raza Gilani told CNN in an exclusive interview that Pakistan is re-evaluating its relationship with the United States in light of the airstrike, which NATO called a "tragic unintended" event. He said the South Asian nation wants to maintain its relationship with the United States so long as there is mutual respect and respect for Pakistani sovereignty.

Asked directly if Pakistan is getting that respect, Gilani said: "At the moment not."

"If I can't protect the sovereignty of my country, how can we say that this is mutual respect and mutual interest?" he asked.

The Pakistani Taliban urged Pakistan to respond in kind to the airstrike, while a top adviser to Afghan President Hamid Karzai warned that Afghanistan and Pakistan could be on a path to conflict.

In his CNN interview, Gilani highlighted incidents such as the killing of the Pakistani troops and a U.S. raid into Pakistan to kill Osama bin Laden as violations of his country's sovereignty.

"You cannot win any war without the support of the masses ... and such sort of incidents makes people move away from this situation," he said.

Pakistan is a vital land supply route into Afghanistan for the United States and its allies, and a key partner in the battle against al Qaeda and its aligned jihadist movements. But Pakistani authorities turned back 300 trucks carrying NATO supplies and fuel into Afghanistan on Monday, and the prime minister said his government had not yet decided whether to boycott an upcoming Bonn conference on the future of Afghanistan.

Details of Saturday's deadly raid remained unclear Monday, and the chief of U.S. forces in the region named an Air Force general from the military's Special Operations Command to lead an investigation. Gen. James Mattis ordered the investigating officer, Brig. Gen. Stephen Clark, to report back to him by December 23.

According to two senior U.S. officials with direct knowledge of initial reporting on the incident, the probe is focusing on what coordination failures occurred before the airstrike.

One of the officials said initial reports indicate U.S. and Afghan forces said shots were fired across the border from Pakistan, noting that it is a known tactic of insurgents to fire into Afghanistan from very close to Pakistan border checkpoints because they believe it will give them sanctuary. The United States believes the Pakistanis "were called" before NATO opened fire, the official said, but he added that "at this point, we just don't know exactly what coordination was done."

A NATO official said Afghan troops were working with elements of U.S. Special Operations forces in a combined mission on the Afghan side of the border.

Pakistani military spokesman Maj. Gen. Athar Abbas denied the reports that Pakistani troops had prompted the attack Saturday by firing on the NATO helicopters. Speaking by phone to Pakistan's Geo TV News, Abbas said NATO helicopters fired first on the Pakistani military checkpoints.

Abbas said the soldiers notified Pakistani military headquarters, which informed NATO authorities immediately. The spokesman said Pakistani soldiers fired at the NATO aircraft in retaliation.

Speaking in London, the chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, Gen. Martin Dempsey, acknowledged that the U.S.-Pakistani relationship was "troubled." But he suggested it would survive once the two nations work through the "real tragedy" of the Pakistani deaths.

"We've had other moments before," Dempsey said. "I'm hopeful that with the relationships we've built leader-to-leader and worked at over the past years, that we can find our way forward. But I understand the anger. I understand the concern."

The White House offered its condolences to Pakistan, while State Department spokesman Mark Toner said Washington was concerned about the impact the incident could have on relations with Pakistan.

"The relationship is vitally important to both countries. We both face a shared threat from extremists. ... We're taking this very seriously

When does he want the investigation complete by

When do they want the investigation complete by?

Answer: urged Pakistan to respond in kind to the airstrike,

Answer: December 23.

Answer: December 23.

Answer: Islamabad, Pakistan

Answer: reports that Pakistani troops had prompted the attack

Answer: NATO aircraft

Answer: Gen. James Mattis

Summary:
NEW: U.S. commander wants an investigation complete before Christmas .
Pakistan denies firing first at a NATO aircraft that killed two dozen Pakistanis .
The Pakistani Taliban say Pakistan must respond in kind to the attack .
A top Afghan official warns of possible conflict with Pakistan .


Islamabad, Pakistan (CNN) -- The Pakistani Taliban are waiting the weather out and will take on the military when winter arrives in Pakistan's tribal region, said Taliban leader Hakeemullah Mehsud in a phone call with CNN.

"We will wait till January for our offensive since we are stronger during the snowing season," Mehsud said.

He told CNN he remains confident despite the large-scale military operation currently targeting him and his fighters in the province of South Waziristan.

"We have conserved our energy and have not lost our morale," he said.

The leadership of his organization is safe, he said, but he didn't say where they are taking refuge.

He neither denied nor confirmed that the Pakistani Taliban was responsible for Monday's suicide blast outside the district courthouse in Peshawar.

"Being occupied in other matters, I have not been able to contact my colleagues there, so I will not be able to take responsibility at this time," Mehsud said.

Eleven people died and 36 were wounded in the Monday terror attack, according to a count by the hospital where victims were taken. Two of the dead were police officers.

Peshawar is the capital of the Northwest Frontier Province, where the Pakistani government has also waged its recent military offense against Taliban militants.

How many people were killed in Monday's blast?

Answer: January

Answer: during the snowing season,"

Answer: Hakeemullah Mehsud

Answer: Monday's

Answer: Eleven

Answer: people

Answer: Eleven

Summary:
Taliban leader Hakeemullah Mehsud: Leadership of organization is safe .
Group plans January offensive "since we are stronger during the snowing season," he says .
He neither denied nor confirmed responsibility for Monday's blast in Peshawar that killed 11 .


Islamabad, Pakistan (CNN) -- The Pakistani Taliban has claimed responsibility for an early Wednesday morning attack on a police station that killed two officers and injured seven others, a spokesman for the militant group told CNN.

Approximately 10 militants charged the police station, tossed grenades and then opened fire in the predawn attack, said senior police official Sohail Khalid.

The militants escaped after an hour-long firefight with police, Khalid said.

The attack took place in Dera Ismail Khan, a district that sits next to Pakistan's militant-plagued tribal region along the Afghan border.

It comes one day after Pakistani Taliban spokesman Ehsanullah Ehsan denied reports that the militant group had declared a cease-fire while holding peace talks with the government.

Wednesday morning's attack was proof that reports of the cease-fire were false, Ehsan told CNN by phone.

How many militants stormed the police station?

how many  militants storm the police station?

Answer: 10

Answer: 10

Answer: Pakistani Taliban spokesman Ehsanullah Ehsan denied reports that the militant group had declared a cease-fire while holding peace talks with the government.

Answer: militants

Answer: Pakistani Taliban spokesman Ehsanullah Ehsan

Answer: morning

Answer: Approximately 10

Summary:
About 10 militants storm the police station .
The attack comes a day after Pakistani Taliban denied reports of a ceasefire .


Islamabad, Pakistan (CNN) -- The Pakistani military on Sunday was looking into a local report that the region's Taliban leader had died, officials said.

State broadcaster PTV reported that Hakimullah Mehsud, the Taliban commander in Pakistan, was wounded in a drone attack this month, and that he died and was buried last week. PTV cited local sources and its correspondent in North Waziristan.

A Taliban source denied the report to CNN, saying that Mehsud has simply gone "underground" after being targeted by drone attacks.

The source, who requested anonymity because he is not an authorized spokesperson for the Taliban, said Mehsud is alive and well and will release a taped recording to prove as much.

Military spokesman Maj. Gen. Athar Abbas told CNN that "we cannot yet confirm" Mehsud's death.

Pakistani Interior Minister Rehman Malik told CNN on Sunday that officials have received reports of the Taliban leader's death, but also could not immediately verify it.

Mehsud has been the target of suspected U.S. drone attacks in Pakistan. The U.S. military routinely offers no comment on reported attacks by the pilotless aircraft.

The Taliban leader's status came into question following two drone attacks aimed at him this month.

U.S. counterterrorism officials contacted by CNN Sunday could not confirm whether Mehsud is dead or injured.

CNN's Kiran Khalid and Pam Benson contributed to this report.

Pakistani military looking into reported death of who?

What type of attack was Mehsud injured in?

Who reports Mehsud was injured in drone attack and died last week?

Answer: Hakimullah Mehsud,

Answer: a drone

Answer: State broadcaster PTV

Answer: last week.

Answer: was wounded in a drone attack this month, and that he died and was buried last week.

Summary:
NEW: Taliban source says commander alive and well, will release tape soon .
Pakistani military looking into reported death of Hakimullah Mehsud .
State-run TV reports Mehsud was injured in drone attack and died last week .
Mehsud has been target of suspected U.S. drone attacks in Pakistan .


Islamabad, Pakistan (CNN) -- The Taliban in Pakistan have released a second audiotape purportedly containing the voice of their leader, Hakimullah Mehsud, who sources say was wounded in a suspected drone strike this week. The group also released an audiotape Friday, though CNN could not confirm that the voice on either tape belongs to Mehsud. It was unclear whether the first tape was recorded before or after Thursday's drone strike, but the voice on the second tape announced the date as Saturday. "Let me say this briefly, that I, Hakimullah Mehsud, today, on the 16th of January, with central spokesman Azam Tariq and Umar Khittab, want to give this message to all mujahedeen: that by the grace of Allah, I, Hakimullah Mehsud, am alive and in good health. Neither have I been martyred in a drone attack nor injured," the voice says on Saturday's tape. Tariq, a Taliban spokesman, denied Thursday and again Friday that Mehsud was hurt. Tariq said Mehsud had left the site of the attack -- a converted religious school -- before the missiles struck. He dismissed reports of an injury to Mehsud as propaganda. However, other Taliban and intelligence sources said doctors were treating Mehsud for wounds he sustained in the drone strike. Tariq delivered both audiotapes to local journalists. On the tape released Friday, the voice says, "The media right now is also part of the war. The enemy through the media wants to demoralize the Taliban. At times they spread the propaganda in the media that 'We have martyred Hakimullah.' At other times they say, 'We have completed the operation in South Waziristan,' but this will never happen." The drone strike hit a madrassa, or religious school, that local officials said had been converted into a militant training camp. Ten people were killed in the strike, Pakistani intelligence and local officials said. In the Friday tape, the speaker warns of what will happen if the drone strikes continue. "I want to inform the Pakistani people that the drone attacks that take place in the tribal areas endanger the politics, well-being and sovereignty of Pakistan," the speaker says. "From today onward, for any dangerous step that the Pakistani Taliban will take in Pakistan, those responsible will be Pakistan's rulers, not the Taliban. This is because the Pakistani rulers want to spill the blood of the innocent [tribesmen] in exchange for dollars." The U.S. military routinely offers no comment on reported attacks by drones, or unmanned aircraft. The United States is the only country operating in the region known to have the ability to launch missiles from remote-controlled aircraft. Last week, the Taliban released a video showing Mehsud sitting next to Humam Khalil Abu-Mulal al-Balawi, the man who killed seven CIA employees and a Jordanian army captain at an eastern Afghan base December 30. The Pakistani Taliban claimed responsibility for that attack. It was carried out out to avenge the death of Mehsud's predecessor, Baitullah Mehsud, who died in a suspected U.S. drone strike last year, according to al Qaeda's commander of operations in Afghanistan, Mustafa Abu Yazid. Baitullah Mehsud and Hakimullah Mehsud are from the same tribe, but not from the same family. CNN's Pierre Bairin contributed to this report.

according to the reports, Mehsud was injured because of what?

Answer: a suspected drone strike

Answer: "I want to inform the Pakistani people that the drone attacks that take place in the tribal areas endanger the politics, well-being and sovereignty of Pakistan," the

Answer: an injury to Mehsud

Answer: The Taliban in Pakistan

Answer: seven

Answer: Mehsud.

Summary:
NEW: Taliban in Pakistan issue another tape they say is by Hakimullah Mehsud .
NEW: Speaker declares he is "alive and in good health"
Reports conflict over whether Mehsud was injured in a drone strike this week .
Last week Taliban released video of Mehsud with the man who killed seven CIA employees .


Islamabad, Pakistan (CNN) -- The captors of a kidnapped 5-year-old British boy included someone who was close to the family, Pakistan's Interior Minister said Sunday.

"There is someone who is very close to the family because the way the situation happened; the way the entry was made," Minister Rehman Malik said.

Malik, who spoke to reporters after meeting the boy's father in the Pakistani town of Jhelum, said authorities were close to finding the kidnappers.

"We have certain leads which we would not like to disclose, but I have a warning to those who abducted the boy: leave the boy because we are very near to you," he said.

The boy, Sahil Saeed, is of Pakistani descent.

He was on the last day of a two-week vacation in Pakistan before he planned to return home to Oldham in northern England.

Gunmen barged into Sahil's grandmother's home in the eastern province of Punjab and took him at gunpoint Wednesday.

They have reportedly demanded a ransom of 10 million rupees ($118,000).

Who was on a two week vacation is Punjab?

What was the five-year-old's name that got snatched?

What is the amount that kidnappers have demanded as ransom?

Who was on a two week vacation in Punjab?

Answer: Pakistan

Answer: 10 million

Answer: Gunmen

Answer: Sahil Saeed,

Answer: Sahil Saeed,

Answer: Pakistani

Answer: 10 million

Answer: They

Answer: Sahil Saeed,

Summary:
Five-year-old snatched by armed robbers while on holiday with family in Punjab .
Sahil Saeed, of Pakistani descent, was on a two-week vacation in Punjab .
Kidnappers have reportedly demanded a ransom of $118,000 .


Islamabad, Pakistan (CNN) -- The death toll from an explosion in the central Pakistani city of Dera Ghazi Khan climbed to at least 25 on Wednesday, a senior government official said. Another 56 people were wounded in Tuesday's attack, according to Hassan Iqbal Khan. The blast ripped through a market located near the house of a senior adviser to the chief minister of Punjab province, said Mohammed Hasnain, a rescue official. The adviser, Sardar Zulfiqar Muhammad Khosa, is a former provincial governor and a senior opposition party politician. He said he was the target of the attack, though police initially said he was not the intended target. Khosa told CNN that none of his family members were in the house when the attack occurred. He also said that he had never before received any threats against his life. The attacker detonated his car in front of the main gate at Khosa's house, said Hassan Iqbal, a senior government official. About 20 shops in the market were reduced to rubble. CNN's Samson Desta and journalist Umar Aziz Khan contributed to this report.

Who is claiming he was the target of the attacks?

Answer: Sardar Zulfiqar Muhammad Khosa,

Answer: Sardar Zulfiqar Muhammad Khosa,

Answer: at least 25

Answer: Ghazi Khan

Answer: detonated his car in front of the main gate at Khosa's house,

Answer: Ghazi Khan

Answer: at least 25

Answer: Sardar Zulfiqar Muhammad Khosa,

Summary:
NEW: Attack on market in Dera Ghazi Khan leaves 25 dead, 60 wounded .
Attacker detonated car in front of Sardar Zulfiqar Muhammad Khosa's home .
Former provincial governor claims he was intended target of attack .


Islamabad, Pakistan (CNN) -- The identity and nationality of an alleged al Qaeda operative arrested in Pakistan remained shrouded in mystery and conflicting information Monday, a day after Pakistani officials said one of the FBI's most wanted terrorists was in custody.

A Pakistani military official said Monday that the man arrested is a foreign operative linked to al Qaeda. The official did not specifically describe the man as American and gave no further details.

On Sunday, a senior Pakistani government official said that Adam Gadahn, a U.S.-born spokesman for al Qaeda, had been arrested. A second senior Pakistani government official later confirmed Gadahn's arrest.

But a U.S. intelligence official said there appeared to be no validity to the reports that Gadahn was in custody. Other U.S. officials also said they had no indication Gadahn had been captured.

U.S. counterterrorism officials said Monday they had received no indication from Pakistan that any American had been arrested. One official said there was "no validity" to reports that Gadahn was arrested. Another called the reports "bogus."

News reports Monday cited Pakistani officials as saying that a different man, believed to be an American member of al Qaeda, had been arrested.

But U.S. counterterrorism officials said the United States has not heard of the person, who was identified in some reports as Abu Yahya Mujahdeen al-Adam, an American born in Pennsylvania. One official said the reports coming out of Pakistan were a "real head scratcher."

Rick Snelsire, a spokesman for the U.S. embassy in Pakistan, said Monday that the embassy had not received any information about an American being detained by Pakistani security forces.

Gadahn, 31, also known as Azzam the American, was indicted on charges of treason and providing material support to terrorists in 2006. The U.S. government has offered a $1 million reward for information leading to his capture.

He is the first American charged with treason since 1952.

Reports of an arrest Sunday came hours after Islamist Web sites posted video of Gadahn praising a November massacre at Fort Hood, Texas. On the video, Gadahn said the Army major charged with gunning down 13 people "lit a path" for other Muslim service members to follow.

Authorities have targeted several key Islamist figures in Karachi -- the heavily populated port city and financial capital of Pakistan that, for some time, has functioned as a hideout for Taliban and al Qaeda sympathizers.

A city of 13 million -- with some estimates saying there are 100,000 new arrivals a month -- Karachi has seen an influx of Pashtuns from the tribal border region with Afghanistan. Many fled there during fighting and Pakistani military offensives in the Northwest Frontier Province and Waziristan, making Karachi a comfortable place for the Taliban to blend in and count on a network of supporters.

CNN's Reza Sayah, Nic Robertson and Adam Levine contributed to this report.

What did US officials say about Gadahn being in custody?

What terrorist activities is Gadahn accused of?

Answer: Adam Gadahn,

Answer: the man arrested is a foreign operative linked to al Qaeda.

Answer: the man arrested is a foreign operative linked to al Qaeda.

Answer: charges of treason and providing material support to

Summary:
On Monday, Pakistani military official said foreign operative linked to al Qaeda arrested .
Official didn't describe man as American, gave no further details .
On Sunday, officials from Pakistan government said Adam Gadahn had been arrested .
U.S. officials: Reports that Gadahn is in custody don't seem valid, are a "real head scratcher"


Islamabad, Pakistan (CNN) -- The recent convictions of Pakistan cricketers Salman Butt, Mohammad Asif and Mohammad Amir brings to an end this sad chapter on corruption, however, the full story will continue as names of other players were also mentioned during the trial; they will be investigated and further action may also be taken.

Butt, Asif and Amir sold themselves for a relatively modest amount of money and in the process destroyed their careers and brought cricket and Pakistan into disrepute.

The fact that three players, possibly more, were involved is worrying; none of them considered that what they were doing was not only wrong but also dishonest and illegal.

In Pakistan, where cricket provides a welcome distraction from the internal security threats and the terrible natural disasters the country has faced in recent years, there is a sense of outrage and anger at being let down by people who were role models for hundred of thousands of fans.

I believe that the convictions for the players were correct. In addition to the jail sentences and fines they have all been banned for five years from any form of cricket.

I do feel sorry for teenager Amir; while I am not convinced that he was coerced or pressurized, he was naive and in all probability did not fully appreciate what he was doing or its consequences due to his background and education.

Butt and Asif must never again play for Pakistan; I would treat Amir's case with more sympathy but it will be very difficult for him to get back into international cricket in five years time. I am not happy with the sentence given to agent Mazhar Majeed; it should have been much tougher.

For me the important question is how did this happen; what lessons did we learn and what should the game do going forward?

It was very clear that the three players did not understand the ethos of the game or what the spirit of cricket means. They also callously ignored the ICC Code of Conduct on corruption and matching fixing.

The ICC has an excellent program for awareness and prevention of corruption; so where did the message fail to get through?

The ICC works in partnership with every cricket board to educate the players on corruption. In this case it is clear that the Pakistan Cricket Board did not do enough.

This was a major failing and the PCB should not only accept responsibility for this but undertake to ensure that it does not happen again.

The team management had concerns about the players' agent but failed to do anything about it. There had been rumors about the team's performance in Australia before the tour to England, yet no measures were taken to tighten the controls around the players and stop outside influences from having access to them.

When the News of the World broke the story, the PCB went into denial implying this was a conspiracy against the Pakistan team; this forced the ICC to take action against the players something the PCB should itself have done.

After the match fixing scandals in the late 1990s the PCB worked very hard to eradicate corruption from the game. Certainly, until 2006 when my term as President of the ICC came to an end, I was confident that the PCB and specifically its chairmen during my time, made great efforts to prevent and monitor corrupt practices in Pakistan cricket.

But things have gone dreadfully wrong in the past three to four years and Pakistan cricket has paid the price of a weak governance structure.

The chairman is appointed by the president of the country without a consultation process with any of the key stakeholders in the game.

The PCB chairman is not accountable to anyone; some years ago the PCB chairman also assumed the position of chief executive and downgraded the role of the CEO to chief operating officer; this destroyed whatever little checks and balances existed within the PCB.

Without a sound governance structure and professional management, corruption will remain a huge risk for Pakistan cricket.

I do not believe that corruption is endemic in cricket; almost all of the Test playing countries have a robust anti-corruption regime.

During my time with the ICC I met with Paul Condon, the then chairman of the

What is the name of one of the cricketers?

whats Other players names were mentioned in the trial and they will also be investigated?

Who will accept full responsibility for what has happened?

What wil happen to other players mentioned in a trial?

What country convicted cricketers belong to?

Answer: Salman Butt,

Answer: other players were also mentioned during the trial; they will be investigated and further action may also be taken.

Answer: the PCB

Answer: they will be investigated and further action may also be taken.

Answer: Pakistan

Answer: corruption,

Summary:
The convictions of three Pakistani cricketers is not the end of the story .
Other players names were mentioned in the trial and they will also be investigated .
The Pakistan Cricket Board should accept full responsibility for what has happened .


Islamabad, Pakistan (CNN) -- The three security guards and the driver of an American development expert who was abducted in Pakistan on Saturday have been detained for questioning, a police official said Monday.

The four men are not considered suspects at this point, said the official, who asked not to be named because he is not authorized to speak to the media. Under Pakistani law, police can detain someone for up to 72 hours without charging them with a crime.

Investigators have no leads in the case and are not any closer to finding out what happened to the American, whom the U.S. Embassy identified as Warren Weinstein.

Weinstein was abducted early Saturday when gunmen, posing as neighbors offering food, pistol-whipped him and his driver and tied up his guards, U.S. Embassy and Pakistani officials said.

Weinstein works for J.E. Austin Associates Inc., a U.S. consulting firm based in Arlington, Virginia, a Pakistani official said. He's is a world-renowned development expert, with 25 years of experience, according to his company's website. The site says he was heading what the company described as the "Pakistan Initiative for Strategic Development and Competitiveness."

As Weinstein's security guards prepared for the meal before the Ramadan fast early Saturday, three men knocked at the front gate and offered food for the meal -- a traditional practice among Muslims during the Ramadan holy month, according to senior Lahore police official Tajamal Hussain.

Once the gate was opened, the three men forced their way in while five other suspects entered the house from the back, Hussain said. The men tied up the three security guards and duct-taped their mouths, he said. They pistol-whipped the driver and forced him to take them to Weinstein's room, where the men hit Weinstein in the head with a pistol, and forced him out of the house and into a waiting car, Hussain said.

He said Weinstein is in his 60s.

There has been no claim of responsibility nor any demands by any groups, according to senior police official Awais Ahmed.

Weinstein has lived in the residence in an upscale Lahore neighborhood for several years, Ahmed said.

Weinstein is a Fulbright Scholar in Belgium and is proficient in six languages, with a doctorate in international law and economics, according to his company website.

U.S. Embassy officials are working with Pakistani authorities on the case, Embassy spokesman Alberto Rodriguez said Saturday.

The U.S. State Department updated a travel advisory for Americans traveling and working in Pakistan this week, warning that extremist groups operating in the country were continuing to target U.S. and other Western citizens and interests.

It cited part of the reason for the advisory as "reported" abductions of U.S. citizens "for ransom or personal reasons," including the kidnapping of a U.S. citizen in Lahore in June. No further details about that incident were released.

Abductions are not unusual in Pakistan, though those targeted are typically Pakistani rather than American or Western.

In early July, a Swiss couple was grabbed at gunpoint while traveling in the town of Loralai in the volatile southwestern Balochistan province, provincial officials said at the time.

Three weeks after their abduction, Pakistani authorities said they believed the couple was still alive.

Weinstein's abduction follows another high-profile incident involving an American in Lahore.

Raymond Davis, a CIA contractor, was charged with killing two men in January but was released in March after compensation was paid to their families.

Journalists Nasir Habib and Shaan Khan and CNN's Salma Abdelaziz contributed to this report.

Who did gunmen abduct?
Who got abducted?
who is warren weinstein
What does the police official say?
Did anyone claimed responsibility?
Who was he identified as?

Answer: three security guards and the driver of an American development expert

Answer: three security guards and the driver of an American development expert

Answer: an American development expert

Answer: The four men are not considered suspects at this point,

Answer: There has been no claim of

Answer: Warren Weinstein.

Summary:
The men are not considered suspects at this time, a Pakistani police official says .
Gunmen abducted an American from his Pakistan residence Saturday, authorities say .
He is identified as Warren Weinstein, the U.S. Embassy says .
There has been no claim of responsibility, or demands .


Islamabad, Pakistan (CNN) -- Thirty-six people were killed and dozens were injured in explosions at a market in Lahore, Pakistan, on Monday, an official said.

Rizwan Naseer, chief of Lahore's rescue service, also said 109 people were wounded.

The explosions did not appear to be a suicide attack but could instead have been bombs detonated by remote control, Punjab Police Chief Tariq Salim said.

The nation's state-run news agency, Associated Press of Pakistan, said the blasts were the result of "bomb explosions."

The explosions occurred at Moon Market in the Iqbal Town neighborhood, the news agency said. It cited Iqbal Town Division's Ali Nasir Rizvi as saying most of the victims were women.

Khusro Pervaiz, a senior government official in Lahore, said in a television interview that 60 people had been taken to five Lahore hospitals.

The blasts happened around 8:45 p.m. at the popular market, said Rai Nazar Hayat, a spokesman for Lahore police.

Earlier, ten people were killed -- including two police officers -- when a suicide bomber detonated outside a district courthouse in Peshawar on Monday, officials said.

At least 36 were injured, six of them seriously, said Dr. Hameed Afridi, CEO of the Lady Reading Hospital.

The bomber got out of a rickshaw and detonated himself, according to witnesses.

The attacker was wearing a suicide jacket with about 6 kilograms of explosives, said Shafqat Malik, head of the North West Frontier Province bomb disposal unit.

Peshawar is the capital of the Northwest Frontier Province, where the Pakistani government waged a recent military offense against Taliban militants.

Meanwhile, five people were hurt in a bomb attack in Quetta on Monday morning, said Jamil Kakar, a Quetta police official. The explosives were placed in a car and destroyed two other cars and three motorbikes.

The courthouse attack comes three days after four militants armed with guns and grenades stormed a mosque in Rawalpindi frequented by military personnel. At least 36 were killed and 75 wounded.

Among the dead were 17 children, according to military officials. Also killed were an army general and eight other military officials, six of senior rank.

The Pakistani Taliban claimed responsibility for the mosque bombing. The Tehrik-i-Taliban Pakistan reiterated its claim in an e-mail to CNN the next day, after media outlets quoted officials who doubted the group's participation.

"We reconfirmed it, that the TTP has done it and will do more which are already planned," the group said in the e-mail. "We once again mention that we are not against the innocent people and the state of Pakistan but against those officers and ministers who are American by hearts and minds and Pakistani just by faces."

Rawalpindi is the headquarters of the Pakistani army.

CNN's Reza Sayah contributed to this report.

How many people were killed in Peshawar?

Answer: Thirty-six people were killed

Answer: Thirty-six

Answer: 109

Answer: did not appear to be a suicide attack but could instead have been bombs detonated by remote control,

Answer: Thirty-six

Answer: Thirty-six

Summary:
36 dead, dozens hurt following two explosions at market in Lahore .
Explosions could have been bombs detonated by remote control, police say .
Ten killed, including two police officers, in suicide attack in Peshawar .


Islamabad, Pakistan (CNN) -- Thirty-six people were killed and dozens were injured in explosions at a market in Lahore, Pakistan, on Monday, an official said. Rizwan Naseer, chief of Lahore's rescue service, also said 109 people were wounded. The explosions did not appear to be a suicide attack but could instead have been bombs detonated by remote control, Punjab Police Chief Tariq Salim said. The nation's state-run news agency, Associated Press of Pakistan, said the blasts were the result of "bomb explosions." The explosions occurred at Moon Market in the Iqbal Town neighborhood, the news agency said. It cited Iqbal Town Division's Ali Nasir Rizvi as saying most of the victims were women. Khusro Pervaiz, a senior government official in Lahore, said in a television interview that 60 people had been taken to five Lahore hospitals. The blasts happened around 8:45 p.m. at the popular market, said Rai Nazar Hayat, a spokesman for Lahore police. Earlier, ten people were killed -- including two police officers -- when a suicide bomber detonated outside a district courthouse in Peshawar on Monday, officials said. At least 36 were injured, six of them seriously, said Dr. Hameed Afridi, CEO of the Lady Reading Hospital. The bomber got out of a rickshaw and detonated himself, according to witnesses. The attacker was wearing a suicide jacket with about 6 kilograms of explosives, said Shafqat Malik, head of the North West Frontier Province bomb disposal unit. Peshawar is the capital of the Northwest Frontier Province, where the Pakistani government waged a recent military offense against Taliban militants. Meanwhile, five people were hurt in a bomb attack in Quetta on Monday morning, said Jamil Kakar, a Quetta police official. The explosives were placed in a car and destroyed two other cars and three motorbikes. The courthouse attack comes three days after four militants armed with guns and grenades stormed a mosque in Rawalpindi frequented by military personnel. At least 36 were killed and 75 wounded. Among the dead were 17 children, according to military officials. Also killed were an army general and eight other military officials, six of senior rank. The Pakistani Taliban claimed responsibility for the mosque bombing. The Tehrik-i-Taliban Pakistan reiterated its claim in an e-mail to CNN the next day, after media outlets quoted officials who doubted the group's participation. "We reconfirmed it, that the TTP has done it and will do more which are already planned," the group said in the e-mail. "We once again mention that we are not against the innocent people and the state of Pakistan but against those officers and ministers who are American by hearts and minds and Pakistani just by faces." Rawalpindi is the headquarters of the Pakistani army. CNN's Reza Sayah contributed to this report.

How many people are dead due to suicide attack?

How many people are dead due to explosions?

What could have been detonated by remote control?

How many killed in Peshawar suicide attack?

Answer: Thirty-six people

Answer: Thirty-six

Answer: Thirty-six

Answer: bombs

Answer: Thirty-six

Summary:
36 dead, dozens hurt following two explosions at market in Lahore .
Explosions could have been bombs detonated by remote control, police say .
Ten killed, including two police officers, in suicide attack in Peshawar .


Islamabad, Pakistan (CNN) -- U.S. Secretary of State Hillary Clinton said Friday she did not come to Pakistan for "happy talk." Her three-day trip is aimed at getting frank, open discussions going about the fight against terrorism, and that includes presenting U.S. concerns about how much success Pakistan is having, she said. In an interview with CNN, Clinton said it's time to "clear the air" with a key U.S. ally. She added, "I don't think the way you deal with negative feelings is to pretend they're not there." "I think it's important, if we are going to have the kind of cooperative partnership, that I think is in the best interest of both of our countries, for me to express some of the questions that are on the minds of the American people," Clinton told CNN's Jill Dougherty. The secretary's comments came a day after she seemed to question the commitment of some in the Pakistani government for going after the leaders of al Qaeda, who U.S. intelligence experts believe are taking refuge in Pakistan's remote tribal areas. "Al Qaeda has had safe haven in Pakistan since 2002," she told a group of Pakistani journalists Thursday. "I find it hard to believe that nobody in your government knows where they are and couldn't get them if they really wanted to." She added, "Maybe they're not gettable. I don't know." In the CNN interview Friday, Clinton said she was not suggesting that someone inside the government might be complicit with al Qaeda or might be failing to follow through in fighting the terrorist group. "No, no," she said. "What I was responding to is what I have been really doing on this trip, which is there exists a trust deficit, certainly on the part of Pakistanis toward the United States, toward our intentions and our actions. And yet we have so much in common, we face a common threat. We certainly have a common enemy in extremism and terrorism, and so part of what I have been doing is answering every single charge, every question." Trust "is a two-way street," she added. While Pakistan's military operation has been "extremely courageous in both Swat and now in South Waziristan, success there is not sufficient," she said. "... I just want to keep putting on the table that we have some concerns as well. And I think ... that's the kind of relationship I'm looking to build here." Asked whether she had underestimated the level of anti-American sentiment in Pakistan, Clinton said, "No, because I've been following the research and the polling that's gone on for a couple of years. I knew that we were inheriting a pretty negative situation that we were going to have to address." That's why she wanted three days in the country, "a long trip for a secretary of state," she said. "I wanted to demonstrate that, look, we are not coming here claiming that everything we've done is perfect. I've admitted to mistakes by our country going back in time, but I've also reminded people that we've been partners and allies from the beginning of Pakistan's inception as a country. Pakistan has helped us on several important occasions, and we are very grateful for that. So let's begin to clear the air here." Clinton also commented on Iran, as the United States seeks clarification on whether the nation will agree to a deal brokered by the International Atomic Energy Agency aimed at resolving a dispute about Iran's nuclear program. "I am going to let the process play out, but clearly we are working to determine exactly what they are willing to do," Clinton said. The secretary made a vow to Israeli and Palestinian leaders during the CNN interview as well. "We're going to do everything we can to try to clear away whatever concerns that the parties have, to actually get them into negotiations where they then can thrash out all of these

what does hilary clinton aim to address?

what does clinton want frank talk about?

Answer: getting frank, open discussions going about the fight against terrorism,

Answer: was not suggesting that someone inside the government might be complicit with al Qaeda or might be failing to follow through in fighting the terrorist group.

Answer: "I don't think the way you deal with negative feelings is to pretend they're not there."

Answer: fight against terrorism,

Answer: U.S. Secretary of State Hillary Clinton

Answer: Friday

Summary:
Hillary Clinton says she aims to address questions that Americans are thinking about .
She says she wants frank talk about fight against terrorism, including U.S. concerns .
On Thursday, she said she wondered why terrorists hadn't been found and dealt with .
She said she wasn't suggesting Pakistan was complicit with al Qaeda or didn't want to fight it .


Islamabad, Pakistan (CNN) -- Under heavy criticism for a telling cell phone carriers to ban certain words in text messages, the Pakistan Telecommunication Authority went into damage control mode Wednesday.

PTA spokesman Mohammed Younis Wednesday denied the existence of the plan, which has met with derision from mobile phone users in the country.

"If at all we finally decide to go for this process, then we will prepare a list in consultation with the mobile operators," Younis told CNN.

In another conversation with CNN two days earlier, however, Younis acknowledged that the telecommunications authority had sent out a notice to carriers -- but said that the agency was giving the operators more time to come up with a shorter list.

Earlier this week, three carriers -- Mobilink, Warid and Telenor -- received the notice, officials there confirmed.

In it, the PTA , which regulates cell phone and internet carriers in Pakistan, called on them to implement the ban within seven days.

This would mean blocking text messages containing the offending words.

Most of the 1,500 banned words were deemed sexually explicit or obscene by the PTA, the officials said.

The words include "taxi" -- often used to refer to prostitutes in Pakistan -- "gay," "tongue," "homosexual," "intercourse," "condom" and "hole."

CNN has obtained a copy of the list.

In the notice, which is available online, the PTA cited a law that bans the transmission of indecent and obscene messages.

The notice says the banned words are part of an effort to cut down on spam and unsolicited text messages, the officials said.

Last month, the PTA banned thousands of websites containing pornography.

But the latest about face on text messages appears to mean the PTA will not act on the notice -- at least, any time soon.

How many words did Pakistan tell phone companies to block from text messages?

Answer: words in text messages,

Answer: 1,500

Answer: sexually explicit

Summary:
Pakistan tells phone companies to block 1,500 words from text messages .
Cell phone users respond with derision .
The Pakistan Telecommunication Authority sends mixed messages on its plan .
The banned words list includes terms related to sex and prostitution .


Istanbul (CNN) -- Several thousand opponents of new Internet filtering rules, set to take effect in Turkey in August, marched in protest in Istanbul on Sunday.

Demonstrators carried signs in Turkish and English reading "Don't touch my Internet" and "We don't need protection," while they chanted slogans against website censorship.

Internet users must choose among four filtering options, including family, children, domestic or standard settings, as a part of Turkey's "Safe Internet Service."

The regulations are designed to protect children from indecent online content, according to BTK, the prime minister's information technology board. Critics argue that it is not clear how the filtering system will work.

The marchers stopped several times to stage brief sit-ins during the two-hour route from the Taksim Square to the end of Istiklal Street.

Organizers claimed the marcher numbered in the "thousands," which appeared to be accurate to a CNN reporter on the scene.

The new filtering rules will be enforced beginning August 22, the government said.

A "Enemies of the Internet" report issued this month by Reporters Without Borders included Turkey on its 2011 list of "countries under surveillance."

The BTK was "not fooling anyone when it claims to be rendering a service to Internet users by giving them a choice between a lot of restrictions and fewer restrictions," the report said.

Turkey already blocks more than 7,000 websites, "in most cases without reference to any court," the report said.

What does the journalism group report say?

What country is trying to introduce filtering?

Answer: "Don't touch my Internet"

Answer: "Don't touch my Internet" and "We don't need protection,"

Answer: Turkey already blocks more than 7,000 websites,

Answer: Turkey

Answer: new filtering rules will be enforced beginning August 22,

Answer: The BTK

Answer: children

Answer: Several thousand opponents

Summary:
Turkish officials say filtering is needed to protect kids from Web content .
"We don't need protection," marchers' signs say .
Turkey rules "not fooling anyone," journalism group report says .


Istanbul (CNN) -- Turkey's fiery prime minister ratcheted up rapidly-escalating tensions with Israel on Tuesday, comparing Ankara's once-close ally in the Middle East to a "spoiled boy" and announcing additional sanctions would soon be imposed.

"We are completely suspending all of these, trade relations, military relations, related with the defense industry," Recep Tayyip Erdogan said, according to the semi-official Anatolian Agency. "All of these are completely suspended and other measures will follow this process."

Asked to clarify whether this meant Turkey will halt more than $3 billion in bilateral trade, an official in the Turkish prime ministry, speaking on condition of anonymity under government protocol, insisted Erdogan was not referring to trade relations.

"He was referring to the defense industry," the official said. "Nothing more than the measures that have been announced so far."

Last week, Turkey declared it was downgrading relations with Israel, suspending all military agreements between the two countries and giving senior Israeli diplomats less than a week to leave Turkish territory.

"If the current steps are regarded as 'plan B,' there will be a 'plan C,'" Erdogan said on Tuesday in his first public comments on the matter since Ankara imposed sanctions on Israel.

Erdogan's government is incensed that Israel refuses to apologize or pay compensation for eight slain Turks and one Turkish-American. The humanitarian workers and activists were shot dead by Israeli commandos in a botched 2010 raid on an aid convoy that was trying to bust Israel's sea blockade of Gaza.

But "Israel does not want to see a further deterioration in the relationship with Turkey," said a senior Israeli government official, who asked not to be identified because of the sensitivity of the issue. "There have been a number of proposals on the table to prevent a deterioration and unfortunately they have not been successful, but from our point of view a deterioration in the relationship serves neither side's interests."

Multiple Israeli sources said they are doing what they can to be responsible and reverse the negative dynamic. Some Israeli officials believe the current troubles between the two countries are minor bumps that can be smoothed out with time and the proper diplomacy.

Others believe the deteriorating relationship has little to do with Israel and more to do with a reorientation of Turkish foreign policy towards the Muslim world.

A possible Erdogan trip to Gaza is contributing to that school of thought. Diplomats in Cairo and Ankara tell CNN that Erdogan is tentatively scheduled to visit Cairo next week. There is growing speculation in local media that the Turkish prime minister may try to visit Gaza via Egypt's Rafah border crossing.

"This is a process that will continue until the last moment," Erdogan said Tuesday, according to Anatolian, when asked about a trip to Gaza. "We will make the final decision there, talking to our Egyptian friends and brothers. According to that, there may be a trip to Gaza."

Despite deteriorating political relations between Jerusalem and Ankara, trade has grown substantially between the two countries over the last year, according to Turkish government statistics.

On Monday, Stanley Fischer, governor of the Bank of Israel, gave a speech in which he highlighted the importance of Israel's economic ties with Turkey. He noted that Turkey's economy was the largest in the region, with a gross domestic product in excess of $700 billion, and that Turkey is becoming a key player in regional trade.

Turkey is a significant Israeli trading partner, Fischer said, and damage to the trade relationship between the two countries could have serious consequences for Israel.

Yigal Schleifer, Washington-based editor at Eurasianet and expert on Turkish-Israeli relations, argues the Middle Eastern "outsider" status that once drew Turkey and Israel together into an alliance during the 1990s has changed, as Turkey has grown economically and established closer political ties with Arab neighbors.

"The paths have diverged," Schleifer said. "What you have left is two countries with different visions currently for their position in the region. So Turkey wants to build a more

what israel wants to say?
Will trade relations be suspended?
A raid in what year stemmed tensions?
what will not be suspended?
from what The tension stems?

Answer: deterioration in the relationship serves neither side's interests."

Answer: completely

Answer: 2010

Answer: trade relations,

Answer: for eight slain Turks and one Turkish-American.

Summary:
Tensions between the two countries are rising .
An official says trade relations will not be suspended .
The tension stems from a 2010 raid on a Gaza aid convoy .
Israel says it does not want a further deterioration of relations with Turkey .


Istanbul (CNN) -- Turkey's foreign ministry condemned Texas Gov. Rick Perry Tuesday for saying that Turkey was a "country that is being ruled by what many would perceive to be Islamic terrorists."

Perry made the statement during a spirited debated between Republican presidential candidates in South Carolina Monday night.

Most of Turkey was fast asleep during the live broadcast, and Turkish newspapers had already gone to print by the time Perry declared that Turkey had moved "far away from the country I lived in back in the 1970s United States Air Force. That was our ally that worked with us, but today we don't see that."

The Texas governor also argued that it was time for Washington to cut foreign aid to Ankara.

A spokesman for Turkey's foreign ministry fired back Tuesday, accusing Perry of making "baseless and improper claims."

In a statement e-mailed to CNN, Selcuk Unal said presidential candidates should "be more informed about the world and be more careful their statements."

"The unfortunate views of Perry are not shared in any case by Republican party supporters, considering the weak support he has received in public polls and primary elections," Unal concluded.

U.S. State Department spokesman Mark Toner said the State Department "absolutely and fundamentally" disagrees with Perry's statements.

Turkey is "Islamic democracy in action," Toner added, calling Ankara a "stalwart ally" with which the United States has a "strong partnership."

"I am disappointed and concerned that Turkey and its time-tested ties of alliance, partnership and friendship with the United States became the object of misplaced and ill-advised criticism during last night's Republican candidates' debate. Needless to say, the Turkey described in the debate simply does not exist," Turkey's ambassador to the United States, Namik Tan, said in a statement Tuesday.

He also rejected the idea that Turkey receives significant sums of foreign aid from the United States.

"Indeed, Turkey is a strong and growing trading partner with the U.S. in general, and with Texas in particular, creating thousands of jobs throughout that state," Tan added.

Top Turkish government officials were unavailable for comment Tuesday, with many of them in Northern Cyprus for the funeral of veteran Turkish Cypriot leader Rauf Denktas, but the country's largely-tabloid press wasted no time in responding to the comments on websites early Tuesday morning.

"The debate that the Republican candidate Rick Perry attended on American Fox TV turned into a scandal that contained very ugly statements about Turkey," announced TRT state television.

"Rick Perry: what an idiot," tweeted Mustafa Akyol, a columnist with the English-language Hurriyet Daily news. The Hurriyet newspaper also posted a video on its website of Perry drawing a blank in the middle of a prior debate, forgetting in mid-sentence which was the third of three government departments he would cut if elected president.

Perry's remarks came on the same day a Turkish foreign ministry spokesman announced that a new NATO radar station, manned by Turkish and American military personnel, went online this month in the Turkish province of Malatya. The radar station is part of a controversial U.S.-led missile defense shield that both Russia and Iran have publicly opposed.

For more than 50 years, Turkey has been the only Muslim member of the NATO military alliance.

Ankara's relationship with Washington has been turbulent over the last decade, with sharp divisions emerging after the 2003 U.S.-led invasion of Iraq.

But that relationship has improved dramatically over the last several years. Turkey has commanded the NATO mission in Afghanistan four times over the last decade, and the United States shares real-time intelligence from aerial drones for the Turkish military's ongoing war with rebels from the Kurdistan Workers Party, who operate along the mountainous border between Turkey and Iraq.

What relationship has improved recently?

What did Perry suggest about Turkey rulers?

The relationship between Ankara and where has improved recently?

Who suggested that Turkey's rulers are perceived by some as Islamic terrorists?

Who said that Perry made baseless claims?

Which country is "Islamic democracy in action"?

Answer: with Washington

Answer: many would perceive to be Islamic terrorists."

Answer: Washington

Answer: Texas Gov. Rick Perry

Answer: A spokesman for Turkey's foreign ministry

Answer: Turkey

Summary:
NEW: Turkey is "Islamic democracy in action," State Dept. spokesman says .
Perry suggested that Turkey's rulers are perceived by some as Islamic terrorists .
Turkey's foreign ministry says Perry made "baseless" claims .
The relationship between Ankara and Washington has improved recently .


Istanbul (CNN) -- Turkey's judicial system faced an uproar this week after one of the country's highest courts upheld a decision to reduce sentences against 26 men convicted of having sex with a 13-year old girl. Public outrage stemmed from a court ruling that the 13-year old girl had willingly engaged in "consensual" sexual relations with the 26 men.

Among the growing chorus of critics was Turkey's President Abdullah Gul.

"I take particular care not to make any direct statements on issues that are in the judicial process," Gul wrote in a series of statements on his Twitter account on Friday. "[But] the decision about reducing the punishment related with what happened to a young child of ours made me deeply uncomfortable... there is still the possibility for an appeal. I am hoping for an outcome that will comfort the public conscience."

The case in question dates back to 2002, when 26 men from the southeastern Turkish town of Mardin were accused of repeatedly having sex with a 13-year old girl identified only by the initials "N.C." According to Turkish media reports, the men, who included village 'muhtars' [mayors] and a gendarme officer, were accused of paying money to two adult female intermediaries during a 7-month period for repeated access to the girl.

Turkey's Supreme Court of Appeals has now found itself under fire from women's rights groups, lawyers' associations, and senior government officials.

In response, the head of the Supreme Court's 14th Criminal Office adopted a somewhat contradictory position.

"The evaluations of the court were correct. We made a decision. This decision is not definite, it is also not possible for this decision to be changed by making noise," said Fevzi Elmas of the Supreme Court of Appeals, in an interview with the semi-official Anatolian Agency on Friday.

The courts sentenced the 26 accused rapists' according to an earlier version of the country's penal code, which underwent significant revisions in 2005.

The older penal code entailed lesser punishments for defendants found guilty of sexually assaulting children.

"In the old penal code there was a very clear article which said it didn't matter if you were under 15 [years of age] or over 15... if any rape or sexual assault happened with the consent of the girl or the woman, then the sentence would be reduced," said Pinar Ilkkaracan of the group Women for Women's Human Rights, who lobbied for the 2005 revision of the Turkish criminal code.

"In the new Turkish penal code there is no question of consent, that is incredibly important for us," Ilkkaracan added. "In terms of girls and boys under 15 it says very clearly any violation of the body for sexual purposes is defined as sexual abuse in the new code. Which means that sexual assault or the violation of the body should have a higher sentence."

According to Turkish media reports, some of the 26 defendants were acquitted, while others received jail sentences of one to four years.

"This decision is an outright scandal," said Ilkkaracan, the women's rights advocate.

In his statement to Anatolian Agency, Elmas, the official from the Supreme Court of Appeals, argued that the court had no choice but to sentence the defendants according to the pre-2005 version of the penal code.

"We don't have any other option," Elmas said. "This is an undebatable rule of law."

But that decision was challenged by the Union of Turkish Bar Associations on Friday, which called the ruling "legally inappropriate."

Meanwhile, in a written statement released on her ministry's web-site, Family and Social Policies Minister Fatma Sahin argued the ruling violated not only the current criminal code, but also the older version which had been in force in 2002 at the time when the 26 men were accused of having sex with the 13 year old.

"I find the decision of the Supreme Court of Appeals 14th Criminal Office to approve the verdict of the local court that a 13-year old child 'got together with the defendants of her own free will' unacceptable and

what country's president said the ruling made him uncomfortable

what men had sentences reduced for molesting a girl

Answer: Abdullah Gul.

Answer: Turkey's

Answer: "consensual" sexual relations with the 26 men.

Answer: that the 13-year old girl had willingly engaged in "consensual" sexual relations with the 26 men.

Answer: 26 accused rapists'

Answer: having sex with a 13-year old girl.

Answer: 26

Summary:
Sentences for 26 men convicted of having sex with a 13-year-old were reduced .
The ruling said the girl had engaged in "consensual" sex .
Turkey's president said the ruling made him "deeply uncomfortable"