ISLAMABAD: Operation ‘Zarb-e-Azb’ has been launched against terrorism and it will continue till the obtainment of the final objective of restoration of peace and tranquility in Pakistan, said Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif here on Monday.

Addressing the lawmakers and senator from the floor of National Assembly and then Senate here, the Prime Minister said the government, with a view to give peace a chance, had begun dialogue process but at the same made it clear that talks and terrorism cannot go side by side.

“We gave peace a chance despite the sacrifice of thousands of lives rendered by the army and others,” the PM recalled.

However, he regretted that the offer of initiating the peace talks process made in all sincerity was not reciprocated in the same coin. “On the one hand the peace negotiations were undertaken while on the other the bloodbath of our women and children also continued,” he added.

http://www.thenews.com.pk/article-150952-Operation-Zarb-e-Azb-launched-to-stamp-out-terrorism:-Nawaz

Tens of thousands of people are fleeing North Waziristan tribal region in north-west Pakistan after the army began an offensive against militants.

A camp for displaced people has been set up near Bannu but it lacks food, water and electricity, locals say.

Many displaced families are seeking shelter with friends and relatives.

A curfew has been lifted to allow people in North Waziristan to escape - and officials expect thousands more to flee to safety in the coming days.

http://www.bbc.com/news/world-asia-27928255

KABUL, Afghanistan (AP) — Taliban suicide bombers struck NATO fuel trucks at a key border crossing between Afghanistan and Pakistan Thursday, setting off explosions that destroyed dozens of trucks and triggering a gunbattle with police guards that left all three attackers dead, officials said.

The attack underscored the instability plaguing the country and the continuing danger to the U.S.-led mission in Afghanistan as combat forces prepare to withdraw by the end of this year.

Western officials had hoped a peaceful transfer of authority to a new president in democratic elections would help ease the transition, but instead allegations of massive fraud in the June 14 runoff vote have plunged the country into a new political crisis.

http://www.montereyherald.com/world/ci_25993304/taliban-strike-nato-trucks-east-afghanistan

PESHAWAR, Pakistan -- Nearly 80,000 people have fled a tribal region in northwest Pakistan over the last two days, an official said, as the military continues its offensive in the rugged area near the Afghan border.

The military launched the operation in North Waziristan Sunday night, saying it was going after militants who have long used the region as a base from which to launch terrorist attacks.

A curfew already in place Saturday prevented residents from leaving until it was lifted Wednesday morning. The offensive has so far consisted of airstrikes, but the lifting of the curfew to allow residents to flee could signal a wider ground offensive to come.

Arshad Khan, the head of the region's disaster management authority, said 79,000 people left North Waziristan Wednesday and Thursday. Even before the operation was announced about 63,000 people had left because of previous airstrikes and fears of a larger offensive.

http://www.miamiherald.com/2014/06/19/4188186/pakistan-80000-flee-northwest.html